Exactly How Many Days in Paris? An Expert Guide

How Long to Stay in Paris?

You want to book a trip to Paris, but don’t know how many days do you need in Paris?

Figuring out how many days to spend in Paris can be one of the most confusing parts of planning a French vacation. Especially if you’ve never been to this thriving capital city, it’s hard to know how many days in Paris, whether you should spend one day in Paris, or seven, or something in between.

You might wonder how many days to visit Paris to see the major Paris attractions or maybe you only have a set number of days to spend in Paris and you’re wondering if it is time enough to accommodate lesser-known districts of Paris or any of the most popular day trips from Paris.

The answer to this question is a bit nuanced and depending on your interests, budget, and kind of travel, the amount of time you should spend in Paris can vary greatly.

In this post, we will first tell you how long to stay in Paris for most people, and then we’ll go into the other options and what you might be able to get done in that time.

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How Many Days Do You Need in Paris? – The Short Answer

Travel to Paris

Paris, how many days? The best advice we can give you is to spend as much time as you can afford to! We are spending our lives in Paris and we would love to have a little more time 😉

At the minimum, plan for 3 days in Paris to get a great taste of the city, visit some of the main sights, and explore the main neighborhoods. But if you really want to enjoy yourself, I’d recommend 7 days in Paris as a good starting point, especially if it’s somewhere you’ve been dreaming of visiting for a long time.

If Paris is part of a French trip, plan on spending 4+ days in Paris if your total time in France is two weeks or more.

The long answer is that there’s no right or wrong answer and it all depends on what kind of traveler you are and the things you like to do when visiting a new city. Some travelers spend three days in Paris and think it’s more than enough. On the flip side, there are plenty of people left wanting more after 7+ days in Paris.

With this in mind, we have created a guide with the perfect Paris itineraries for 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 days to help you decide how many days to see Paris.

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How Many Days to Visit Paris to See the Major Attractions?

If you do have not much time available, you might be wondering how many days in Paris to visit the main sights. If you’re really only interested in top Paris attractions like the Louvre Museum, the Eiffel Tower, and a stroll around Ile-de-la-Cité, you could do this in about two busy days.  

But please note that this really would be all of what you’d be fitting in – perhaps a Seine night river cruise, a short break at the Tuileries Garden next to the Louvre, and the absolute headliners.

In this case, this Paris highlights full-day tour could be very helpful. This tour knows how to make the most of your visit to the City of Light, that’s why it always gets the best ratings.

How Many Days in Paris on a Honeymoon?

If you are considering a honeymoon in Paris, you might be wondering how long to stay in Paris for your honeymoon, which again is about a week. A week is a great amount of time to relax, do some sightseeing, have some romantic dinners out, and take your time doing romantic things in Paris without getting tired.

How Many Days to Spend in Paris to Feel Like a Local

Paris without crowds

How long in Paris for a more local experience? Some people can take much longer trips to Paris or somewhere else with the aim of feeling like a local. Look for their favorite boulangerie or Parisian café, explore Paris’ hidden gems, and perhaps learn a bit of French.

If this is you, aim for at least a month in Paris.

By a month’s time, you should have a great grasp of the city and be able to feel a bit more like a Parisian and less like you’re on vacation.

You may need a couple of weeks to settle in and then you can combine off-the-beaten-path explorations or day trips from Paris with a day or two to relax.

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How Many Days in Paris with Kids?

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If you want to do Paris with kids, we would recommend around 5 days in Paris. You will probably want to take it slow and build time in to see things.

A trip longer than a week with young kids in Paris could become exhausting, as it is a very fast-moving and busy city, and the Parisian metro is not well set for prams.

How many days for Paris if you have teenagers? With teenagers, you can extend your trip to Paris to one week to be sure to find interesting things to see and do for everybody in the family.

Paris Itinerary – Planning Your Time

If you need practical examples to decide how many days to stay in Paris, here are our suggested Paris itineraries for one to seven days and more in Paris.

One Day in Paris

One day in Paris is simply not enough for the first time in Paris. With one day in Paris, you can only get a glimpse of what the city can offer.

If there’s no way to add another day or two, we suggest picking one central district (have a look at our Paris Arrondissements Guide to decide which one) and taking the time to walk around it, perhaps visiting a couple of sights.

Then in the afternoon, you can climb up the Eiffel Tower to learn the history of the most iconic monument in Paris and see the city from above.

Finally, you can book a Seine River cruise with dinner to admire the most iconic landmarks in Paris lit up at night whilst enjoying a nice French meal.

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for Paris in one day

2  Days in Paris

Two days in Paris isn’t really enough, so be ready for long days and a rushed itinerary. With two or three days you may have time to scratch the city’s surface and visit a few main attractions.

We recommend dedicating one day for the Seine’s Right Bank, visiting Ile-de-la-Cité, the Tuileries Garden, and a 2-hour visit to the Louvre Museum, and the second day for the Seine’s Left Bank, visiting Saint-Germain-des-Prés and with the climb up to the Eiffel Tower plus a Seine River cruise with dinner.

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for 2 days in Paris

3 Days in Paris

With three days in Paris, you will have the chance to have a general overview of the city at a more leisurely pace, visit a couple of museums or sights other than the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower, and partially enjoy the best Paris has to offer.

Stick to the best neighborhoods in Paris and you’ll be fine!

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for 3 days in Paris

4 Days in Paris

With four days in Paris, you can experience Paris at a leisurely pace. Apart from the key highlights, you can visit minor museums, do a food tour or a wine-tasting class or go to lesser-known neighborhoods or areas like Canal de Saint-Martin, La Villette, or Belleville.

Four days in Paris allow you to spend a couple of lazy hours in beautiful parks, doing some shopping, or just people-watching in a café-terrasse.

Some of you may prefer to visit Versailles (the Palace of Versailles is stunning!) or another of the most popular day trips from Paris on the fourth day.

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for 4 days in Paris

5 Days in Paris

With five days in Paris, you can easily combine main Paris tourist attractions with off-the-beaten-path sights, or other activities to learn more about French culture or Parisians’ everyday life.

We recommend taking a day tour to see a bit more of what France has to offer. Some of you may prefer to concentrate the sightseeing in Paris in 3 days and enjoy a weekend getaway out of the French capital (click here for some nice weekend trips from Paris by train).

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for 5 days in Paris

6+ days in Paris

Staying for around 6-10 days in Paris gives you the ability to relax a little more and take things slow as well as tackle your ‘to-do’ list – that one that you have been working on for a long time.

You’re able to dedicate some time to walking around and finding things organically, not just following a list from place to place. You’re also less likely to feel guilty about taking part in a day or two off to sleep in or to relax at the spa or swimming pool of your hotel. 

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for 6 days in Paris

>> Check out our suggested itinerary for 7 days in Paris

Helpful Tips to Make Short Trips to Paris Efficient

On a day trip or weekend city break to Paris, do not be tempted to cover too much.

For shorter stays in Paris, book your accommodation in the central districts of Paris like Paris 1 and Paris 4 in the Right Bank, or Paris 5 and Paris 6 in the Left Bank.

For longer stays, it does not matter where you stay in Paris as long as you are near a metro station. Check out the best arrondissements to stay in Paris depending on the type of your trip. With longer stays, you can also decide to rent a home from home. Check out these apartments with an Eiffel Tower view for the perfect vacation in Paris.

Before arriving in Paris, decide what sights and activities you really want to do and stick to them.

Book as soon as possible your Eiffel Tower climb and your visit to the Louvre Museum to be sure to have a date and time slot that suits you.

Click here to learn how to skip the longest lines in Paris

Decide if a Paris tourist pass is worth buying for your trip to Paris. There are many options apart from the Paris Museum Pass and some of them include a travel card. Find the most interesting options in our Paris Tourist Pass Comparison.

Before arriving in Paris, learn how to navigate the city efficiently with the Parisian metro. Also, take some time to find the best metro tickets or travel passes for your trip. Paris by bike is also a good idea, especially to get a quick layout of the city.

Make restaurant reservations for special lunches or dinners (especially if you have a specific restaurant in mind) if you are planning to visit during the weekend.

Paris has interesting nightlife. Be sure to save some energy to enjoy Paris at night!

Some More Ideas for Longer Stays in Paris

How Many Days in Paris is Enough? – Conclusion

How many days in Paris is enough for a successful trip? If you’ve made it this far, you should at least have a little better idea of how many days should be dedicated to experiencing Paris. Whether you decide to spend 2 days or one week, we are sure that you will have a great time in Paris.

And remember that Paris is always a good idea so you can decide to come back again to explore other parts of Paris!

How many days, Paris? How long to visit Paris to get a good picture of what the city has to offer? Let us know if you agree with our suggestions or if we need to increase the recommended days.

Click here for more Paris travel tips

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Quirky Parisian explorers with a preference for lesser-known sights, we are continuously looking for new ideas and tips to bring you the best of the City of Light! Read more about us.