How to see the Mona Lisa without the crowds 🤫

🇫🇷 Paris Travel News 🇫🇷

🚗 Did you know the Champs-Elysées and arrondissements 1-4 are car-free the first Sunday of each month? It’s the BEST time for strolling in these areas.

🎟 On the fence about going to the Opéra Garnier? You can get last minute tickets the day of for super low prices.

🚆 If you’re planning to travel to another French city while you’re in Paris, you can now book tickets on France’s discount trainline, OuiGo, for dates through the end of the year.

Bonjour Reader,

We’ve recently had STUNNING weather in Paris ☀️☀️

So it wasn’t a surprise that café terraces were totally packed. FYI, except for rare exceptions, you can just seat yourself on terraces here, unlike the inside of restaurants where you usually have to wait to be seated (that’s just one of the super useful bits of info covered in our video on Paris essential advice you MUST know 😉)

It was also the perfect weather for strolling, so I took a nice long walk along the Seine. The Right Bank side of the river, which faces south, gets the most sun – something to keep in mind for when you come to Paris and also want to have a romantic stroll along it.

The Right Bank also has the best views of the Eiffel Tower, but you can instead admire stellar views from your room at the hotels I’ve brought together in the article included in this week’s edition of the Paris Postcard, as well as:

🏩 The best areas to stay in Paris
😍 How to see the Mona Lisa without the crowds
⚠️ Paris basics you should know before getting on the plane
❌ Itinerary planning mistakes you should NOT make + scams to avoid

Allons-y! ⬇️

🏩 Where to stay in Paris (especially if you want an Eiffel Tower view)

If you’re dreaming of waking up to views of the Eiffel Tower, I have good news for you 😍😍

⚠️ But first, there are a few things you need to keep in mind.

Only a small percentage of Paris hotels actually have views of the world-famous tower and most of them are in areas I wouldn’t normally recommend staying in because they lack personality and are really expensive (namely, the 7th and 16th arrondissements).

There are a few exceptions (which I’ve included in my list of hotels with Eiffel Towers views), but no matter the neighborhood, hotels charge a LOT more for rooms with that precious view 💸💸

If you’re fine with these caveats, I hope you’ll find the right match for you 💙

If you’re curious about the areas I recommend staying at instead of the 7th and 16th arrondissements, you have to watch this video.

Parisian Jamie tells you about the top 5 areas to stay in when visiting Paris that we think you'll love, plus the pros and cons of each so you can choose the PERFECT area to stay in for your Paris trip 🌳

🖼 How to see the Mona Lisa without the crowds
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Do you want to see the Mona Lisa, arguably the most famous painting in the entire world, when you're in Paris?

If you said yes, that's not at all surprising. But... almost every other tourist wants to see it too 🫠

So if you don't want to be squeezing through thousands of people to (hopefully) get a glimpse of it, here's what to do:

Book a tour with an expert guide who has a carefully curated itinerary, taking you around other can't-miss parts of the Louvre, and then bringing you to the star of the show right when it's peaceful and quiet. Take your time, enjoy your personal space, and avoid that sardine feeling 😄

Our friends at Walks have a tour that does just that: Closing Time at the Louvre. You'll have a fun, knowledgeable tour guide (just read the reviews saying so!) giving you a fantastic introduction to the Louvre's best pieces. It's the best way to do this massive, overwhelming museum in a relaxing and engaging way.

Book Closing Time at the Louvre with Walks before your travel dates sell out.

⚡️ Other helpful advice for your Paris trip

❌ Major mistakes people make when planning a Paris trip itinerary - avoid these and you’ll see more and have a MUCH better time making it happen.

⚠️ EVERYTHING you NEED to know before visiting Paris - from the geography to etiquette and even safety and the weather, we got you covered.

💸 9 biggest scams in Paris & how to avoid them - no one likes getting ripped off on what’s meant to be a dream trip 🥺

❓ Question of the week

🤔 You asked, we answer ⬇️

No, a ticket isn’t required to visit Notre Dame any time or day, however, I recommend reserving a free ticket via the cathedral’s official website (available two days before) so you don’t have to wait in line 😅

➡️ Mass is held 3 times a day Monday to Saturday, so you might prefer to go during the week which will be less busy than Sunday (see hours here).

Do you have any questions about Paris? Reply to this email and we might answer yours in next week’s edition of the Paris Postcard 💌

Congratulations to the 70% of you who got last week’s question right! Paris is comprised of 20 neighbourhoods, called arrondissements.

Take a guess at this week's question, and we’ll share the answer next week ⬇️

What color is the Eiffel Tower painted? 🤔