What I like about Brazil is that they have the Christ statue. As long as you pray to Him, he will give you the money to travel to every place in the world! I pray, and Jesus gave me the funds to travel. Jesus bless you and I know you will get the money thanks to Him! Paris is a great place to start as Jesus made the Notre Damme and he is making it whole again after the fire. When I went to Canada, I met a lot of Brazilians that were there because they said Jesus gave them the jobs to get the money to get there. :-)
Travel videos is how I'm seeing the world before I die. Health, responsibilities & finances prevent me from seeing it myself but I still want to see it.
Hey Lucas, if you work in construction, you’ll easily get a job in Paris! The entire city is overhauling the transit system so there’s a huge shortage of workers. I was broke and living in Canada, and I’m so happy I moved to Paris for work.
I love Paris. I went to the Eiffel Tower one afternoon and got on the elevator and went up to the top and back. I only waited about 30 secs to get on. I had always heard it was super crowded, so I was pleasantly surprised. When I got back down, I asked one of the Gendarmes about it. He smiled and said I had timed it just right as there had been a bomb scare about an hour earlier and everyone had to clear out. They had just given the all clear when I arrived !
I had my first trip tip to Paris last month. Right from the airport the taxi driving up the Champs Elysse and past the Arc De Triomphe to my hotel was a special moment I'll remember the rest of my life.
We had the same pleasant experience about the myth the French being rude and snubs. Far from it, we found them friendly and helpful. Starting conversations with a simple “ bonjour” and a smile is all it took. Same experience we had in Quebec City.
I had that experience as well. In fact, Parisians were some of the nicest people I have met on my travels. You are a guest in their city. Be respectful and you will be treated respectfully.
A simple Bonjour brings the biggest smiles to Parisians‘ faces. People don’t realize people we talk to reflect our own attitude. If we show up in a foreign country just expecting the locals to speak English, that in itself is rude and arrogant.
@@taytay4349 We went May 2018 in Paris. Stayed at Amarante Beau Manoir located just a block from Madeleine Church. Frankly found the hotel dated but its location is perfect. One block to Metro and 8 minutes walk to Place de la Concorde and short distance from other attractions. I love Paris! Enjoy your vacation.
I'm from Paris and you're absolutely right about shopping experience in the Champs Elysées. Instead might I suggest going shopping in the Marais and then grab a snack but not eating on the Seine Banks but going to Canal Saint Martin because you'll see much less tourists and more Parisians. Loved your videos
Forget the Eiffel Tower and go up Mont Parnasse (sp?) - it's basically an office block, but with really good views of the city. And the best bit - you get a view WITH the Eiffel tower. Makes for some great photos! It's a bit out the way, but easily accessible by the Metro. Also go to other museums, but DO go to the Louvre at night after closing, it looks lovely when it's all lit up.
Or go on the arc De la Defense (a big steal and glass building just outside de Périphérique. It's a bit outside (but also on a metro line) but it is in a line with the Arc de Triomphe and de Louvre.
In 2012 stayed in the most amazing BnB off the Ave du Maine, about 500 metres from Montparnasse tower. Our host, an amazing French film-maker in her 70's (who owned her own cinema showing social justice films!) asked one morning. "Have you been up the tower?" meaing Montparnasse. We said no, we don't even know where it is. She nearly died! She said "How can you miss it, it is the ugliest building in Paris!!!" We laughed, and then went to the top of it. What a view! And to top it off, got talking to a couple who lived about 100 metres from us in Australia. It is an amazing world
Thanks for your spot on videos Wolters. I am French and I fully agree with all that you said in this video. There are some over-rated things in Paris. Generally, the must-sees are the most touristic crowded places in Paris, but there are soooo many more stuff to explore in Paris than just the Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, Le Louvre & Champs Elysees. Also Paris is not all about France, go explore all the 15 other biggest cities in France, they all have something great and unique to offer.
The best part of your video was you son in background and Mom waving him off with a stick! Made my day!! So cute and funny!! Love your knowledgeable videos. And love that you take your family. It is wonderful that we get to experience with you the ups and downs of travel with children.
My wife and I are planning our first trip to Paris (and London, Belgium, and the Netherlands) and all of your videos have been super helpful! Keep it coming :)
The Jardin de Luxenbourg park is in this video and I'd highly recommend that. I also found the river cruise, hop on, hop off service really useful for a tour around Paris, and it's a good way to travel to some of the major attractions, they do 24 or 48 hour tickets. Slower than the Metro, but you see more!
@@rockracingfan Cool! I'm planning on getting the Paris Pass so I can do the Seine tour and the hop on hop off bus, and get into most of the attractions without any hassle. The Eiffel tower isn't included, but Montparnasse is.
@@Snowshowslow nope! Covid shut things down just a month before the trip. I've fortunately been able to visit many other cool places since then, but still haven't been to Paris. We're talking about next year...
We went to Paris for 3 days in May at the end of a European trip, basically to make my wife happy (happy wife, happy life!). I learned French in high school, but that was 45 years ago so not much use, but just making the attempt was so appreciated. My favorite moment: We came out of a metro station (Trocadero, I think) for some reason I can't remember and the view of the Eifel Tower was magic. I fell in love with Paris at that very moment, and hope I will be back soon.
Agreed with the Mona Lisa. There is so much more to see...Liberty Leading the People brought a tear to my eye and I was basically alone looking at it (and people should cross the river and go to the Musee d'Orsay!). Thank you for this timely video, I am going back in February! I am not a huge fan of French food but even thinking of the baked goods makes me happy.
@@patriciasouchik-stock7521 . True. We sort of just stumbled onto the Louvre while walking and gawking as normal tourists do. And then BOOM!!! The Louvre is right in front of you. It's like an extremely beautiful and sexy person tapping you from the back to ask you something about?
im french and i agree with every thing . great video , keep the good job Maybe one day you could do a video about the part of paris of pere lachaise , menilmontant , gambetta , the 20 arrondissement where i grow upp . thanks
“The Marriage at Cana” is amazing, and you’re right that many people miss it. I spend a lot more time seeing it than the Mona Lisa when I go. Also, I’ve never gone to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and probably never will. I personally like the climb up the tower of Sacré-Cœur for the view of the city. It’s so interesting to see the inner parts of the bell tower and parts of the outside up close. Regarding Parisiens being rude, I think you get what you expect to some degree. Greet them with a smile and a “Bon jour,” and you might be surprised.
I have to say I am a lover of Paris. My favorite visit was taking my 10yo granddaughter and seeing it through her eyes. Being at the top of the Eiffel Tower was worth every long moment to get there. To see the Mona Lisa in person was a thrill in spite of the crowds. We spent the day at Le Louvre and even saw the mummies. If you travel with a positive attitude you will enjoy your trip. Love your videos Mark.
thank you. I know what you mean seeing it all through your kids/grandkids eyes. I love that, i went with my aunt and uncle years ago and it was like seeing everything for the first time again. So wonderful.
I just came back from studying abroad and Paris was one of my favorite places I visited. I was actually on the Eiffel Tower when Norte Dame caught on fire.
For a first time visit to France, do you think it's worth it to cut our time in Paris short so as to visit other cities/towns like Tours, Lyon, Bordeaux and Strasbourg? I'm not into the nightlife and prefer historic sites to the more modern places.
Paris is magical. The people are wonderful. Learn to speak some key phrases. Be polite and speak softly, always say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop. I agree, no need to have a car, walk, take the metro and buses. I would not cut your time in Paris short. Have a plan and know what you want to see, but leave time to wander and hang out in a great cafe.
Always love the videos! One of my favorite shopping things to do in Paris is to hit the thrift and resell shops. I've found fabulous fashion for a fraction of the cost! And I love when people pay it a compliment and you can say " I got this coat in Paris for $5!
just don't go when it's raining like I did. I got soaked and had no umbrella! I had to buy an expensive one at the top! We went because only one lift was working and it was a 2 hour queue!
Can you imagine this guy taking the stairs? The only stairs he takes is one to step up at McDonald's for his burger. He'd have a heart attack on stairs at the Eiffel tower.
I visited Paris for the first time in a quarter century back in 2015, and I figured I’d be disappointed since I’m older now and have spent more time living in and visiting world class cities in the intervening years. On my first two visits to Paris I came fresh outta American suburbia, so Paris was quite stunning to say the least. For my latest visit I arrived via TGV from Barcelona - we’d been delayed over an hour in part due to the arrest of a thief on the train in Spain, so yeah, as your video makes clear don’t assume your train will be on time. We got into the Gare d'Austerlitz just as the sun was going down. I told myself not to be disappointed by Paris, as I was older now and a bit jaded. The station is on a slight hill and I stopped at the entrance for a moment to fiddle with my bags and my bus ticket to the hotel. I finally looked up and was just blown away by the beautiful summer evening view - big puffy clouds dappled in the sky, sunlight reflecting off of them, elegant buildings on the surrounding avenues glowing in the golden light. Paris was every bit as beautiful as I remembered. It is much cleaner than it used to be. Which isn’t to say it’s immaculate - it’s an old, crowded city - but the inner arrondissements have greatly gentrified, hosting mostly the wealthy now, their pied-a-terres, Airbnbs and similar housing for the global elite. The core of the city seems much less congested as a result, almost Disneyfied. Which has benefits and drawbacks. If you want a more authentic experience, you can always head for one of the outer arrondissements. My French is so rusty I largely gave up trying to use it and just asked people if they spoke English. Everybody did. In fact, virtually none of the people I interacted with in central Paris seemed to be French - most had accents indicating they came from elsewhere in Europe. I suspect they’re as fluent in English as they are in French. My restaurant French did come back pretty quickly though, so I had no trouble with the menus - hey, nothing’s gonna keep me away from eating. 🤣
Another spot on Paris video! Speaking of small shops, I found a big and tall men's shop across from Le Procope just off Blvd St Germain. I can say I own French clothes now!
Just got back from Paris on my honeymoon and I 100% agree with this video! Paris was wayyyy cleaner than a lot of the large US cities I've been too like Columbus Ohio, New York City, and some cities in California! Also, we learned like 6-7 basic phrases that we used daily and it really helped with everyone treating us very politely.
Time Out Paris is a must especially for 1st time visitors. Really good Things to do with kids in there like the zoo. It also covers all aspects of a great visit so you can organise things in advance like booking tickets, etc. Also, St Michel is the quartier I was told by female co-workers in Paris was the place to buy cool fashion at reasonable prices, not Halles or Galleries Lafayette
I just got back from my European Vacation and it was fantastic! We did Paris for 3 Days, Rome for 3 days, then a 10-day Cruise of the Greek Isles and Naples. I thought Paris would be dirty, crowded, and rude. It was none of these things! I was so pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed Paris and how beautiful everything was. If you ever get a chance to go I highly recommend it!
I agree for the TGV, I live in France and when i have to take a plane, i'll go in Paris a day before, or early in the day bc we never know. There are always smthg when you travel (strikes, accident, no trains...) 😂
Yes, I will. I will film the Paris one on my next visit to Paris next year. I am trying to figure out some of the best "not normal" sights and how to judge them. It's tougher than i thought :)
@@woltersworld We visited Viaux le Vicomte this summer (not technically in Paris, I know) and there were almost no tourists there. We've been to Versailles & this was a great alternative. The kids LOVED the audioguide too!
@@barbaraheck5638 My wife and I visited Vaux-le-Vicomte September 2018 and loved it, too. We visited it on a whim and were surprised it is not too well known. It has a great story, too, with the king using the same architect to create Versailles.
The area around the Louvre has numerous museums and they are all a lot less crowded, it really depends on your interests where to go, its great going to the Louvre, but know its not your only option, off the top of my head I can think of more than you could visit in one vacation.
I just returned from Paris on a quick guided tour with students. It was my second trip, and I will return, but hope to spend at least a month there next time (as a teacher, I do have lots of time off). The Parisians were wonderful, and as a big fan of NYC, and a lifetime of living around Miami, I found Paris to be not too dirty. It’s not as clean as some Canadian cities I’ve been to, but still not bad.
I'd agree that the traffic can be crazy, but my absolute favourite thing to do in Paris is watching the traffic on the Place de l'Etoile from the top of the Arc de Triomphe. 13 roads all converging in one chaotic place. Apparently ALL car insurance is invalid in that one spot as it is so dangerous to drive.
Paris and Budapest are my 2 fav places and I agree Mona is midget painting. Makes more sense to avoid top of Eiffel Tower. Was pleasantly surprised how lovely Parisians were to us when there.
The only donkeyholes I ever run into in Paris have been tourists. Almost always a dad going ballistic to his family. The Parisians have always been super helpful when I needed a bit of assistance with directions or the like
Back in 1992, the Eiffel Tower was reasonably priced, hardly any queues, and no security checks. How things change! Thats the last time I went to Paris as I was very underwhelmed with it. I love other parts of France though, and will be touring Brittany in May. Thanks Mark and Happy New Year.
The Eiffel Tower is hardly unique in that area, I could say the same thing about the Empire State Building or the Statue of Liberty as well, everywhere these days there are too many people and the dangers of terrorism.
I think showing respect and greeting them in french and knowing some polite words in french goes a long way. I had a great experience when I was there and everyone was super friendly and all it took was a Bonjour!~
I love Paris and being a big city it has problems of every big city. Because it is one of the best places in the world architecturally, I wouldn't leave anything out if you have time. On my fourth visit a few years ago, my son and I ate dinner at 58 restaurant on the first level and it was an amazing experience. The food was incredible even though it was served a la carte. The fact that the tower was completed for the 1889 World's Fair makes this structural masterpiece even more awe inspiring. Please don't leave this landmark off your list, especially for first time visitors. I should also say that I'm a budget traveller but it's nice to indulge every now and then for a broader travel experience.
Visited in April 2019: I went hour before it opened with no booked ticket - 1st Gate was a breeze, 2nd Gate not too bad at all...if I had the time I would have liked to been there at night too - but did see it lit up from the Seine...only so much time & money to do it all
Paris is one of the best cities in the world. It is such a romantic city, I love walking around, eating, sitting, etc. I will be there in Nov 2022 for my Thx Giving vacation..... I have not been there since 2015, I am really looking forward to being there...This will be my 25 years anniversary of going to Paris...The first time was 1997!.
Absolutely spot on. But to be fair I rarely had much more than 5 min delays with TGV, but it's just that occasional incident that can ruin your plan once in a while at high season.
Shawn Hierlihy yes, of course. Not only there are lot of other places to visit all over the country, but I think that focussing only on Paris and its surroundings areas gives a very distorted vision of what France is about. I have noticed that many tourists understanding about France is focussed on Paris and maybe some neighboring regions like Normandy or Champagne, sometimes extended to the Loire Valley. All these places have very interesting to visit but that are representative only of the northern half of France. Most people do not understand that France is at least a bi-cultural country, and I would say a bi-geographical country. The northern half of the country (where lies Paris) is part of the plains of central/western Europe. This part of the country is neighboring to Belgium, Southern Germany and southern England. The landscapes are quite flat, the climate is quite rainny, the architecture is mostly made of grey/blue slate roofs... despite being of latin and catholic culture the north of France does not feels really southern European. This is a completly different story about the regions located south of the Loire Valley. The architecture changes for the tipical rroman tiles of red/orange terracotta, tipical of southern Europe, the weather is sunnier (and more and more as soon as going down to the south); the vegetation progressively becomes more mediterranean, the people have different accents (and historically spoke a different variety of latin languages, closer to Catalan and Italian than standard french is), more mediterranean looks and ways of life, foods, wine culture, siesta culture, olive oil in the south-east... the landscapes are totally different, full of variety, 2 huge high mountain chains (Alps and Pyrenees) with glaciers and wild life, lots of smaller mountains, plateaus, canyons, sleeping volcanoes, hilly landscapes, some plains... great variety of climates and as such vegentation and food productions... Compared to that diversity, Paris is nothing special and certainly not representative of our beautiful country
I agree with your tips for sure! It's also important for travelers to experience more than just Paris when they come to France. Oh, and The Louvre is closed on Tuesdays!
i have started to remember to mention the tuesday closure in more videos lately (forgot in this one) i am editing the don'ts of France video and i mention it there as i too found out the hard way the first time i went to Paris... many... many... many years ago :)
he was awesome! we wanted him to do Liam too, but the artist next to him was pretty pressuring so we had him do Liam, and it was no where near as good as the guy in this video
Bought advance tickets for the Eiffel Tower for when it first opened in the morning. My family had the top of the tower all to ourselves for a few minutes. Pretty special.
I’m currently here in Paris and I agree with each and every one of these. The only problem right now is that the Metro employees are in a strike and the transportation is really bad. Only the busses, the M-1 and M-14 (trains) work and they’re super and extremely packed.
I used all your video and tidbits before visiting Paris for the first time, it was the best time i ever had! All these tips youve mentioned here and there in other videos and after seeing it first hand I 100% agree with you ! thank you for all you do Walter!
I had my first trip to Paris last summer and I thought the people there were great and very friendly. They especially appreciated it when I tried to use a few words in French, even if it was just bonjour or merci. I would never hesitate going back to Paris again.
Great video. I would add the Bateaux Mouches (Seine River cruise) as a touristy thing. Lovely to see the city from the water, food was great and wine was never ending, but other drunken tourists singing and dancing to the accordion music was a bit of a buzz kill. Also people should note that, at least for me, it seems to stay light a lot later in the evening than we expected. We went up the Eiffel Tower to watch the lights come on and had to wait hours -it seemed very cold and windy for a June evening so we drank a lot of hot chocolate while we waited for the spectacular city and tower to come alive with lights.
Hi Mark. One thing that is not overrated is having lunch at Eiffel 58 the restaurant on the first level of the Eiffel Tower. I had a great experience there this year and the food was delicious. But the atmosphere is pure Parisian and it's wonderful to eat a meal and see the views of the tower and surrounds.
Damn, that's parc Monceau, 1min from my house in Paris!! It would haven been so nice if I could actually see you filming there. PS : and for someone who lives in Paris since many years, I agree with everything you said!
I went to Paris once for the week after New Years and it was fabulous. On Wednesday night it was literally just me and Mona in that room. Sure, it's a little brisk and the fabulous Paris gardens are all dormant but all the tourist crowds are gone. Accommodations are also super cheap. Only downside is sometimes the venues shut down partially to renovate and redo exhibits during the slow period.
I strongly disagree with you about the Eiffel Tower. My wife and I absolutely LOVED it. The views are amazing, and we really enjoyed the experience. In my opinion, no trip to Paris is complete without going up on the Eiffel Tower. That said, LOVE your videos and we always watch them before we go anywhere. Keep up the great work you do to help the traveling community.
I've been to Paris many times, and even spent several months there right out of school. I've never once gone to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and have no desire to do so. Parisians are used to seeing it in their day to day lives, they don't go stand in line with tourists to go to the top (I have friends born and raised in Paris who have never done it.)
I absolutely loved going up the Eiffel Tower, the queues can be very long, but one way to get around that is to take the stairs rather than the elevator as by doing that, i only had to wait 20 minutes to get in (the other queue was way longer). It's a long and tiring climb, but as long as you take it slow and pace yourself, you will get there eventually (my video called Inside the Eiffel Tower shows this), and you will find yourself on the upper levels way before the folks waiting for the lift. The Champs Elysees is still great too, as while some places are very expensive, there are a number of shops you won't find anywhere else such as the Paris Disney Store (their main flagship), and the Renault store which sells some really cool unique items (especially pin badges, i love pin badges lol). In terms of cleanliness, Paris is a lot like London, in which sure, there are a few grubby parts, but no worse than anywhere else, and some areas are actually spotlessly clean. I will add however that the traffic is indeed terrifying, especially the mopeds which zip in and out of the traffic at high speed.
I wouldn't say the Mona Lisa experience is overrated, but it's very upsetting that you can't get close to it to examine details, as I personally like to do :c
It's well digitised, comparing that version to other less crowded paintings scanned the same ways is all ready amazing (not that I didn't enjoy in person time with oil paintings).
In a small city of Amboise, there's a home where Leonardo da Vinci lived during the last years of his life. And there, there's a copy of Mona Lisa that he made himself, that you can see without any crowds 😃 (also, the park is great there).
Probably depends on where you stay in Paris and when. Walking through the metro to our hotel we passed feces in the gutter in the metro and it smelled strongly of urine. The street next to pur hotel was similar with the bushes being used as bathrooms and trash stroon about. It seemed a very dirty and smelly place in summer. Best thing about Paris was the Louvre there is so much amazing art there, it's sad people focus on the Mona lisa, people were walking right by Michelangelo's and Bernini's which were beautiful.
Yeah, we noticed the smell of pee was everywhere, and when we went for a walk there was a guy having a whiz between two parked cars with no shame. Lots of graffiti, too. But we enjoyed ourselves anyway.
Man, you are the first english speaking travel youtuber who is 95% spot on. It's really cool to see my country and places I know represented fairly, warts and all, without parroting fake critique or focusing on marketing gimmicks.
I 100% agree with your son, I too go to see the Wedding Feast also. They had it down last time for some remodeling. :-( I can look at it for hours, it is so amazing.
I was there 1988 and I understand it's had a big transition since then. it used to be a big center boulevard with parking streets in either side. From what I see here and what I saw on a PBS tour by Halle Barry it looks a lot nicer, but I imagine just as ridiculous with the traffic.
We did a major trip to France with friends.We went in early August and arrived .in the USA one day before 9/11. We Stayed in Paris for 5 days starting the trip and came back 2 days before we flew home. In between, we rented a car and went off to see the rest of the country. When we returned to Paris we ditched the car and spent some days in a comfortably cool September weather. My friend and I did a lot of thrift shopping in Paris. Ok, I admit we were obsessed!. At the time we both spent around $200 each and flew out with the duffle bag we had brought on the trip empty, (hoping we could fill it with treasures) and indeed it was filled with all our purchases! . When we came home we separated what was hers and mine.We are both wearing still ...clothes bought on the trip. There are still bargains to be had at low prices, whether you thrift shop or new with the labels..
I just got back from Spain, Italy and France. People from Paris were hands down the nicest people out of all 3, downright incredible. It surprised our entire group. Spain (Madrid) was a horror story.
timmmahhhh I went to Madrid. People from other parts of Spain I interacted with were awesome. Some even told me other parts of Spain aren’t so rude and unhelpful. Hope you have a good trip in the future!
this is great stuff Wolter. Can you make a video on best places to visit in europe or things to do during December? Clothing to wear etc how cold it is stuff like that?
Mark you have such great advice and videos. Thanks. However, I so think if someone has never been to Paris the Eiffel Tower and other things are worth the hassle. I have never been to the top and would still like to. Eating lunch at the restaurant is a good option to not wait in line. Food is just ok but still a memorable experience especially with my grand daughters and daughter 🥰. Thanks for the heads up about the TGV. I always think it is a good idea to be in the city where your flight leaves from.
