I knew I’d love Paris before our train even pulled into the station.

I’ve been speaking French since the sixth grade, when my family moved to New Brunswick, a bilingual province in Eastern Canada. French has been a love of mine since I started using it. I went to French camp; I minored in French in college. Outside of my educational experience (and, my siblings), I didn’t have a chance to actually use my French – ever – in the real world. All of my French professors would tell us that we had to get ourselves to France. I missed out on the Study Abroad opportunity in college, but Paris was always at the top of my list.

And, let me tell you – it did not disappoint. A few nay-sayers told me before my trip that Paris was dirty, overrated, and underwhelming. For someone who’s always loved the romantic idea of the Eiffel Tower, the accordion music, and the baguettes, this was a downer for me. If you take anything from this post, take this – form your own opinions. No one can tell you how your experience will be, because you shape it.

Paris doesn’t have to be an expensive place to visit. Like all the European cities I’ve visited so far, Paris can be as cheap or as pricey as you make it. If you’re hoping to stay in a gorgeous hotel in the center of Paris and eat at upscale restaurants every evening, yes – it’ll cost you a good chunk of change. But, if you’re willing to modify those plans a bit, Paris is actually pretty affordable. My brother and I stayed for about three full days, and our costs weren’t more than about 50 Euros a day (not including lodging). Here’s how we spent our time, and it ended up being an awesome, awesome experience:

Get yourself an Airbnb. We stayed in Alfortville, which was about a 30 minute commute on the Paris metro into the city every day. But, Alfortville is charming and residential, with so many authentic Parisians (because, the locals aren’t the ones affording the high rent of the inner city) and incredible food. It was honestly one of our best choices, and our Airbnb cost us about 70 Euros a night (35 each). We even took an evening to wander around just our little area, which happens to have a walking path down the Seine. Yes, really. If you end up in Alfortville, get some schwarma at Eli’s Lebanese Restaurant. He also has 1 Euro baklava.

Day 1:

Take the train into the Eiffel Tower.
Train tickets aren’t too expensive in Paris – you can get a “carnet” (car-nay) of ten tickets for about 14 Euros. This is the perfect amount for a three or four day visit (if you walk the majority of the time).
Stop for a croissant.
Visit the Champs Elysée.
Stop at Ladurée for a world-famous macaron.
Visit the Trocadero.
Stop at the Parc Monceau.
This is an adorable park with sculptures, a bridge with lily pads, and couples literally having picnics on the ground. It’s awesome.
Walk through the Jardin du Luxembourg.
This park is also worth it. There is a little pond where kids play with model boats and some beautiful flowers.
Eat a baguette.
It’ll only cost you 1 dollar.
Pop in a French bookstore.
There are a ton of old bookstores around Paris and they’re just really cool. They usually have a cart of books outside that are between 1 and 5 Euros, so that’s a neat souvenir to take home if you don’t want an Eiffel Tower keychain.
Finish the day at the Jardin des Plantes.
There’s a cool maze here and a ton of flowers. It’s also free (yay!).

Day 2:

Time for more sightseeing! Start the day at the Place de Concorde.
There are two palaces across the street and the Jardins of Champs Elysées are close.
If you want a good vegan restaurant recommendation, try Hank Burger for lunch.
I’m not a vegan, it’s just really good.
Visit the Louvre!
You do need a reservation in advance for the Louvre, where you choose a thirty-minute time slot to enter the museum. It’s a little pricey, but – in this writer’s opinion – the Louvre is totally worth it. It’s absolutely massive, with several very famous pieces and hundreds of other just really interesting works of art. If you have a student ID, you can also get a discount.
Enjoy pain au chocolat, a palmier, a chocolate baguette, or a crêpe.
Or all four.
Stop at Notre Dame Cathedral.
It’s beautiful and it’s by the river.

Day 3:

Take a train to Versailles.
This famous spot takes about thirty minutes and a special train ticket to get to, but the gardens are incredible. If you want to go inside the actual palace, you should definitely reserve tickets in advance because lines are incredibly long. Plus, if you went to the Louvre the day before, you’ve probably already seen some of Marie Antoinette’s famous furniture so you may want to skip it. A ticket to the gardens alone is cheaper (about 8 Euros).
When you get back into Paris, walk up to Montmartre.
There is an iconic white basilica (Sacre Coeur) at the top of this hill that has an overlook of the whole city. The area is really artsy and cool, and it’s just a beautiful way to see the sun setting over Paris. This is a must see!
Take a ride on the carousel.
At the bottom of the hill near Montmartre there is a little park with a carousel. It costs 1 or 2 Euros to ride and it’s just fun to ride on a carousel in Paris.
Visit the love wall.
Walk over to the love wall to see the words “I love you” written in just about every language on this tourist-loved photo opp.
Finish off your trip to Paris with dinner at a French restaurant and some luscious red wine.
Any house red is the best red you’ve ever had. You may also want to order the crème brûlée.

Bon voyage!