To the people who visited Paris: a question!

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To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by PeZook »

I am going there with my wife on February 26-29.

Being silly movie-raised tourists, we'd like to walk about the Eiffel Tower and have lunch on it: however, the only tickets available in advance are for hours like 7 P.M. and later, and since it's Debruary it will be dark and cold by then. So I have to ask this question to anyone's who's been there/lives in the city: is it at all possible to get in without already having a ticket, if we'd like to arrive around, say, noon (since we'd like to have lunch in one of the restaurants there, so it's pointless to come before it opens)?
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Spoonist »

How are you trying to reserve a table? When we went there, like 7 years ago, we just called the restaurant directly. Also note that there are two restaurants and one bar in the tower and a cafe at the bottom. One of ther restaurants also have a stand where you can pick up "fast" food without a reserved seat - like oysters and such.
Le 58 tour Eiffel
and
Le Jules Verne

French being french I wouldn't trust the english site to have as many reservations as the french one. So use google translate and try the french site instead.
http://www.restaurants-toureiffel.com/
Also note that the french make a difference between smaller meals and bigger meals - I don't remember the terms - so if you use the wrong one they might think that you are only after a snack and place you accordingly.

Le Jules Verne is the really expensive one - but there you can have reservations from noon onwards, you can preorder your menu etc. Its got a Guide Rouge star and everything.

Happy holiday and didn't you have a toddler or am I mistaken?
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by PeZook »

I meant getting onto the tower itself ; We'd really like to go all the way to the top,and I'm trying to decide if we have any chance at all if we show up at, say, noon and try to buy the ticket upon arrival, or should we bite the bullet and buy an admission ticket online?

And yeah, we do have a toddler and it will be our first getaway without him (my wife's sister is gonna take care of him for the three days we're away) :)
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JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up

It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small.
- NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11

Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.

MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by madd0ct0r »

whenever I've been there the queue for tickets has been, impressive.

and view of Paris by night? not to be sneezed at.

I'd also recommend the Parthenon. probably my favorite slightly touristy place in paris.

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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Dartzap »

Handy hit: don't bother with the lift, its a ridiculous price. Climb the stairs like a real man for half the price.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Zed Snardbody »

Just come to Vegas and see our knockoff. :P
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by PeZook »

Zed Snardbody wrote:Just come to Vegas and see our knockoff. :P
So, you're telling me to pay five fifteen times the cash to see a plastic replica? :P
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JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up

It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small.
- NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11

Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.

MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Zed Snardbody »

But does Paris have yard long margaritas?
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by PeZook »

I'm pretty sure I can buy enough margharitas to fill up a nice pond with all the extra money I'd spend on the plane ticket :P
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JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up

It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small.
- NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11

Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.

MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Dalton »

My wife's been there. Apparently the streetside crepe vendors lace their product with crack.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Dartzap »

That's Vegas for you! ;)

You could always go to Blackpool! I've heard its very romantic. *coughs*
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Dalton »

Dartzap wrote:That's Vegas for you! ;)
I was talking about Paris, actually.



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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Crown »

Top of the tower at night with a 360 degree panoramic view of Paris laid out at your feet is 100% recommended. Do it, you won't regret it. Hell doing it in daylight is impressive enough, especially if you get a crisp clear day.

Look up it's operating times though, as it varies during the season the last time I was there.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Spoonist »

PeZook wrote:I meant getting onto the tower itself ; We'd really like to go all the way to the top,and I'm trying to decide if we have any chance at all if we show up at, say, noon and try to buy the ticket upon arrival, or should we bite the bullet and buy an admission ticket online?

And yeah, we do have a toddler and it will be our first getaway without him (my wife's sister is gonna take care of him for the three days we're away) :)
Bite the bullet, definately. Queues are no fun.

Nice with a bit of alone time for the stressed out parents then... :mrgreen:
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Broomstick »

Dartzap wrote:Handy hit: don't bother with the lift, its a ridiculous price. Climb the stairs like a real man for half the price.
Well, yeah, I took the stairs, too, but it's a decent climb, not everyone is up to it. It is pretty cool to climb it, though, it's a different way of experiencing it than taking a lift.

Also thought taking the climb up to the bell tower at Notre Dame was pretty cool, too, although it's a very old stone staircase and I don't expect it's changed since I walked it. Tell the ladies NOT to wear heels, the stairs are worn from centuries of feet and uneven. Again, though, not everyone will be up to the climb.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by weemadando »

We skipped the 3 hour queue with insane charges to go up the tower.

Go to Sacre Couer in Montmarte *early* in the morning, donate the Euro and climb through the weird access passages and watch the sunrise over Paris from the top of the Cathedral roof.

Best thing? We didn't see a single other tourist there.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by madd0ct0r »

Notre Dame was disappointing. St Pauls is much better and even Liverpool Cathedral beats it.

Walk around it sure. There's a nice little museum underneath the front square if you're an archeology buff, but the actual cathedral. meh.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by weemadando »

Yeah, we only walked around Notre Dame too. Seriously, with that short a time in Paris, don't waste your time queuing for hours to get into some places - just walk and walk and walk. Don't take a bus tour or anything like that. Just wander the city or hop on the Metro to get place to place.

It's almost fantastical in places that city and many places like the Pantheon aren't even on guide maps despite being impressive monuments in their own right.

The exception to the queuing rule? The Louvre. If you're going to go there, arrive before opening and wait for it to open.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Hawkwings »

We went to the Eiffel Tower about 8AM and we eventually got up to the top of the tower around 11. It is definitely worth it, but you need to go early. We spent pretty much the entire day there, until the afternoon. There's lots to see on the tower, not just the scenery.

Sacre Coeur is amazing though. Definitely go, and just spend some time looking around. The Pantheon is pretty cool, and after that head to the Latin Quarter for narrow streets filled with food. Check out the Arc de Triomphe at night. Oh, and Napoleon's tomb and the Invalides museum is great.

I was only in Paris for about a day and a half, but we packed that time full with all the sights. It was exhausting, but worth it.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Havok »

Screw going in the Tower. It wasn't any more impressive than being on the top of 30 Rock.

That said two things about Paris, one about the Tower and one about the cafes.

The Tower lights up like a fucking BLUE Christmas tree. I don't know if that is a well known fact or not, but it shocked the shit out of me. It looks fucking gawd awful and I can understand why Paris residents hate the thing.
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I'm not kidding. I was like "What the fuck is happening?!" :lol: Still cool to see though.

The second thing... about the cafes. Yes. There IS crack in everything, not just the crepes, and you will NEVER find that high again until you get back there... I've tried. Oh how I've tried. :D
However, in America and other countries I've been to, the seating arrangements at cafes have you sitting looking at your companion. In Paris the seating is arranged so that you are sitting side by side, watching the side walks and street. It's an interesting dynamic of their culture that I found pretty fascinating as if they encourage the people watching and judgement that seems to be a stereotype of the French. It's totally fun to get into.

Whatever you do, have fun. I found Paris to be everything it was built up to be and would love to go back for another week and more.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by weemadando »

My recommendation - if you have any local friends/family friends/distant relatives - get them to show your around. We spent 3 or so days there by ourselves and loved it, then came back a few days later and spent time there with my French brother from another mother and holy crap - we went through the same areas, but took slightly different routes (like "Oh no, walk down this alley, not that one") or went at certain times of day and it was just so completely different look and feel to what we'd seen before.

Man, fucking Paris. I loved it. Loved it so much.

And like Hav said - the food is something else. There's markets scattered throughout the city and vendors and cafes and everything else. Just - god, just try everything, believe me, you'll find stuff you like and stuff you loathe, but you'll be walking all day and into the night (like I said it's that kind of city) so you don't have to worry about putting on any weight.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Thanas »

weemadando wrote:We skipped the 3 hour queue with insane charges to go up the tower.

Go to Sacre Couer in Montmarte *early* in the morning, donate the Euro and climb through the weird access passages and watch the sunrise over Paris from the top of the Cathedral roof.

Best thing? We didn't see a single other tourist there.
I second the Sacré-Cœur in montmartre.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by PeZook »

Well, I am a stubborn idiot (also I REALLY want to do the tower thing because I'm not sure if I will ever go back to Paris again), so we will be going up onto the tower in the evening for that night time view of the city. I think we'll do Sacre Coeur too, on the second day in the early morning.

I have a pretty good idea of what to see now for the big monuments, but we're definitely going to spend some time just...walking. Thanks for all the good advice and I'll try to write something about the visit once we get back :)
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JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up

It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small.
- NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11

Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.

MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by Thanas »

You might also want to take a look at the Opera Garnier, Les Invalides and the Bourse de Paris.

Oh, and the antique collection at the Louvre is amazing.
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Re: To the people who visited Paris: a question!

Post by PeZook »

I figue on the 26th we'll do the Louvre (early in the morning because you can't buy e-tickets in advance...), then walk about, see the notre damme if we feel like waiting in line, visit les invalides and the pantheon ; Then eat something and visit the tower (we havetickets for 8 P.M.), then back to theh hotel.

On the second day it's Sacre Coeur early in the morning, then Pigalle (my wife really wants to see moulin rouge :D ), la defence for the architecture and uh something else which I forgot.
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JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up

It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small.
- NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11

Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.

MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
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