Paris in 3 Days: The Lucalvry Itinerary

Day 1

The Right Bank essentials

1. 8.30am

   Coffee and croissant at Café Verlet on Rue Saint-Honoré (the city's best small-batch ro…

   Coffee and croissant at Café Verlet on Rue Saint-Honoré (the city's best small-batch roaster, a five-minute walk from the Louvre). Skip the hotel breakfast on Day 1.

2. 9.00am

   Louvre — pre-booked timed-entry slot

   Louvre — pre-booked timed-entry slot. Three hours covers the essential rooms (the *Mona Lisa* corridor, the Italian gallery, the Denon Wing sculptures, the Egyptian antiquities) without exhaustion. The trick is the Pyramid entrance via the Carrousel underground passage; the queue at the front pyramid is a tourist mistake.

3. 12.30pm

   Lunch in the Tuileries at the Café des Marronniers or, for the better meal, walk to Ver…

   Lunch in the Tuileries at the Café des Marronniers or, for the better meal, walk to Verjus Bar à Vins on Rue de Richelieu (small plates, exceptional wine list). 90 minutes.

4. 2.30pm

   Walk through the Palais-Royal gardens, north along Rue Saint-Honoré (the shopping spine…

   Walk through the Palais-Royal gardens, north along Rue Saint-Honoré (the shopping spine of the Right Bank), and pause at the Galerie Vivienne (the prettiest 19th-century covered passage in Paris).

5. 4.00pm

   Place Vendôme and the Tuileries again, this time crossing the Seine at the Pont des Art…

   Place Vendôme and the Tuileries again, this time crossing the Seine at the Pont des Arts to land in Saint-Germain. Coffee at Café de Flore on the way to the hotel.

6. 6.30pm

   Aperitif at the bar of the Hôtel Lutetia (recently re-done, one of the city's most civi…

   Aperitif at the bar of the Hôtel Lutetia (recently re-done, one of the city's most civilised hotel bars) or, for the smaller-scale alternative, the bar at Relais Christine on Rue Christine.

7. 8.30pm

   Dinner at Allard (Ducasse, the Bresse chicken, book three weeks ahead)

   Dinner at Allard (Ducasse, the Bresse chicken, book three weeks ahead). End the night with a walk along the Seine back to your hotel via the Pont Neuf.

Day 2

The Left Bank, the Île de la Cité, the Marais

1. 8.30am

   Pastries at Du Pain et des Idées on the Canal Saint-Martin — the best bakery in central…

   Pastries at Du Pain et des Idées on the Canal Saint-Martin — the best bakery in central Paris, a 10-minute cab from the Left Bank. (If you are based in the Marais, this is a 15-minute walk.)

2. 9.30am

   Musée d'Orsay — earliest available slot

   Musée d'Orsay — earliest available slot. Two and a half hours covers the Impressionist galleries, the Van Goghs, and the Pavillon Amont without exhaustion. The d'Orsay clocktower windows are the museum's defining photograph.

3. 12.30pm

   Lunch at Le Procope on Rue de l'Ancienne-Comédie (the city's oldest café, opened 1686)…

   Lunch at Le Procope on Rue de l'Ancienne-Comédie (the city's oldest café, opened 1686) or, for a less touristed alternative, Le Comptoir du Relais on Carrefour de l'Odéon (Camdeborde's institution; queue at noon for the lunch service).

4. 2.30pm

   Walk east along the Seine to Île de la Cité

   Walk east along the Seine to Île de la Cité. Sainte-Chapelle (book a timed slot, 30 minutes inside, the stained-glass windows are the single most beautiful interior in Paris) and the Conciergerie. Skip Notre-Dame interior on a 3-day visit unless you have a specific reason — the post-fire reopening is excellent but the queue is severe.

5. 4.30pm

   Cross the Pont d'Arcole into the Marais

   Cross the Pont d'Arcole into the Marais. Place des Vosges (sit, walk the arcades), Maison de Victor Hugo (free, 30 minutes), and the Musée Carnavalet for the city's most underrated permanent collection.

6. 6.30pm

   Aperitif at Le Mary Celeste on Rue Commines (no reservations, go at 7pm) or at Cour des…

   Aperitif at Le Mary Celeste on Rue Commines (no reservations, go at 7pm) or at Cour des Vosges' bar if you can get in.

7. 8.30pm

   Dinner at Septime (the original, on Rue de Charonne, book three months ahead) or, for a…

   Dinner at Septime (the original, on Rue de Charonne, book three months ahead) or, for a more spontaneous evening, Bouillon Pigalle (no reservations, 30-minute queue, the best €30 dinner in central Paris).

Day 3

Versailles or the Marais on a Sunday, then a final Left Bank evening

**On a Sunday morning:** The Marché des Enfants Rouges in the Marais is the city's best food market — go at 11am for the brunch service. Spend the rest of the morning wandering the Haut Marais, the boutiques on Rue de Bretagne and Rue Charlot, and the Picasso Museum (book a timed slot).

1. Late afternoon, either day

   Coffee at Carette on the Place des Vosges or, on a Sunday, Café Charlot in the Haut Mar…

   Coffee at Carette on the Place des Vosges or, on a Sunday, Café Charlot in the Haut Marais.

2. 6.30pm

   Aperitif at Hemingway Bar at the Ritz (book ahead, no reservations technically taken bu…

   Aperitif at Hemingway Bar at the Ritz (book ahead, no reservations technically taken but the doorman remembers; the most expensive cocktail in Paris and worth it once) or, for the less polished alternative, the bar at Le Sirius on Rue Vieille-du-Temple.

3. 8.30pm

   Final-night dinner

   Final-night dinner. Three options worth the splurge: Le Cinq at the Four Seasons George V (three Michelin stars, three-hour evening, €450 per head, book three months ahead); L'Arpège (Alain Passard's vegetable-led temple on the Left Bank, three Michelin stars, €380 per head); or Allard a second time, because some Parisian meals are worth repeating. End with a midnight walk along the Seine.