If you're interested in going to Paris (with a quick stop to Nice and Monaco), love trips filled with the best food spots and photo ops, but you're not sure where to begin with planning, then this post is dedicated to you.
BEFORE YOU GO
This was my third time going to Paris and I still can’t get enough of it! If you haven’t already, check out my first post on Paris for some basic tips. Reading both posts can give you a much fuller plan for your trip, and yet there will still be so much more to explore!
For this trip, I decided to get a French SIM card/phone number to use in my iPhone. It was about 23 euros for the card itself plus 110GB of data, which was more than enough for the two weeks I was there. It was super cost efficient compared to the $10/day my regular plan in America would have charged. Just make sure your iPhone is unlocked, otherwise you won’t be able to use the SIM card.
Nice
Although I heard the train ride from Paris to Nice is quite pleasant, we decided to take a quick flight to save time. Public transportation in Nice is super easy as long as you use Google Maps to guide you. I would recommend staying in Old Nice as it is right along the water and is the most lively area (so it has tons of food options). We loved the Airbnb we stayed at and would definitely recommend it! It is only a block away from the water, has a balcony view of the Opéra de Nice, and is right in the heart of the outdoor market. Although it was such a central location, we surprisingly didn’t have any issues with noise when we went to sleep.
Monaco
Since we wanted to stay in Nice, we took the train to Monaco for a quick day trip. Overall Monaco was very beautiful and clean. It was also the week before the Monaco Grand Prix so we were able to see a lot of the structures around the country which was pretty cool! There really isn’t too much to see/do in Monaco so we hopped back on the train to grab dinner in Ventimiglia, Italy for some fresh pasta and gelato! Check out the “FOODS TO EAT” section for more details on that.
SITES TO SEE / ACTIVITIES TO DO
Since I’ve already documented the basics in my first post on Paris, I’ll focus on the additional items I went to see this time.
Château de Versailles - I was lucky enough to visit this gorgeous château the second time I visited Paris, but I didn’t document it in a blog. This time I decided to spend more time in the garden portion and biked around Parc de Versailles. I also noticed they had adorable row boat rentals that I would love to do if I ever go back again.
Disneyland Paris - Michael is a huge amusement park fanatic so I took him to Disneyland Paris for his birthday! Although most of the rides are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, I’ll share with you a few key differences for you to check out:
Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain is similar to Space Mountain in the way that it is an indoor dark coaster. However this one has an exhilarating launch and a couple of coaster inversions. I’m a big baby with coasters so this one was actually a little too extreme for me compared to the Space Mountain in Anaheim, but everyone else absolutely loved it.
Big Thunder Mountain (Le Train de la Mine) takes place on its own dedicated island, which takes you underneath the river to access the island as part of the ride. This one is also slightly more intense than the one in Anaheim, and I enjoyed it enough to ride it twice!
Phantom Manor has a darker tone compared to the Haunted Mansion in Anaheim which has more of a whimsical tone. It also had a more coherent story which made the ride more enjoyable.
Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril is an actual roller coaster (with an inversion) so it is way more intense than the enhanced motion vehicle dark ride in Anaheim.
Alice's Curious Labyrinth is a hedge maze that leads you to a tower you can climb up for a nice view.
Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant (a.k.a. Sleeping Beauty Castle) is a little more exciting because you can actually walk through the castle. Unfortunately for us, this attraction was closed so I can’t tell you if it’s worth walking through or not.
La Tanière du Dragon is a walk-through attraction under the Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant where you can see a cool animatronic dragon.
The food is known to be significantly worse than the food in Anaheim so I would recommend saving your money and bringing in your own food from a boulangerie or something.
Sacré-Cœur Basilica - although I’ve already visited this church during both my past trips, this time I climbed up the stairs to get to the top which had such a beautiful view!
La Défense/La Grande Arche de La Défense is the largest and most modern arch located at the east end of the Axe Historique, which is a straight line of sight through the city from the Louvre, through the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs Elyses, to the Grande Arche. It is so massive that apparently it could easily fit the Notre-Dame Cathedral within the arch! There are actually numerous stories of offices in the structure of the arch and the steps in front seemed to be a perfect spot to take a lunch break.
Place des Vosges - For a nice relaxing afternoon, we chilled here for a bit after getting coffee and croissants nearby at Carette (see more under “FOODS TO EAT”). We also loved to spend our afternoons at Jardin du Luxembourg which I mentioned in my previous Paris blog.
Nice
Colline du Chateau (a.k.a. Castle Hill) - The trek uphill wasn’t too bad and it was worth it for the best view in Nice! Not only were there multiple vantage points, the large park at the top is a great place to hang out as well.
"I Love Nice" Sign - It is located near the bottom of the Colline du Chateau steps so you can take a quick picture before heading up.
Place Masséna - This historic square leads you to Old Nice and is a pretty cool photo op with the checkered floors and colorful buildings.
Russian Orthodox Cathedral - The exterior is stunning for photos. However it is a little further from Old Nice, so you may want to take the bus.
Promenade des Anglais - Perfect opportunity to walk along this promenade is on the way to Colline du Chateau/"I Love Nice" Sign.
Monaco
Palais Princier de Monaco (a.k.a. Prince's Palace of Monaco) - This palace is the official residence of the Sovereign Prince of Monaco and is the main thing you need to see in Monaco. Not only were the views absolutely breathtaking, but the overall area was so beautiful and clean. Honestly, this view easily topped the view from Colline du Chateau in Nice.
Monte Carlo Casino - Beautiful architecture especially for a Casino! It costs 17 euros to actually go in and gamble, but you can check out the architecture for the exterior and inside the lobby for free.
FOODS TO EAT
Coeur de Breizh is my favorite crepe spot! They have an awesome weekday lunch special - salad, savory crepe (galette a.k.a buckwheat crepe), sweet crepe, and cider (or apple juice) for only 13 euros! Make sure you ask for the “formule midi” (a.k.a. lunch menu). Not only is it a sweet deal, the crepes are the best! The galette savory crepe is actually crispy, which not all creperies master in. As for the sweet crepe, the homemade caramel is divine and is the perfect amount of sweetness. I wanted to lick every last bit of it off the plate! I remembered this place from my trip back in 2019, so I made sure I got to eat here more than once during this trip!
Pink Mama is a very chic, four-floor restaurant that specializes in homemade pasta/pizza and steak (they breed their own cows). We ordered the truffle pasta and l'entrecôte cotée (steak with salsa verde sauce and rosemary potatoes) and absolutely loved them both. The freshmade pasta was al dente mafaldine coated with a perfectly creamy truffle sauce. The steak was deliciously tender and the rosemary potatoes were flavorful and crispy. I would definitely recommend this place, but you’ll want to get a reservation as it is very poppin.
Carette is a cute cafe just outside of Place des Vosges. We got the Express Carette which is a coffee, hot chocolate, or tea paired with a croissant, chocolate croissant, or Parisian brioche for 10 euros. I loved spending the afternoon on their terrace before heading over to the park to relax in the sun some more.
Aux Artistes is a great place for French cuisine at a killer price - a three course meal for 16 euros! For appetizers, the deviled eggs were good but a little too mustardy for me (FYI I hate mustard) and the cold fish was good but on the salty side. We very much enjoyed the beef bourguignon, especially since we dipped the unlimited bread in the stew. However, the stew didn’t have potatoes like in the photos we saw on Google reviews. For dessert Michael got ice cream, my friend, Keemia, got applesauce, and I paid 3 euros extra for crème brûlée. We were all very satisfied with our desserts and with the meal in general. Especially for that price, you really can’t beat it!
EL&N Paris is a super instagrammable cafe located in Galeries Lafayette Haussmann. We got a couple of coffee drinks and fries which weren’t very notable. However the drinks/food and cafe itself have so many photo ops, it’s a great place to pop by for the gram!
Boulangerie LIBERTÉ is one of the few boulangeries that have outdoor seating. Although most boulangeries in Paris are delicious, this is definitely one of the better croissants. Plus the ambiance of sitting outside with your croissant and cappuccino is delightful.
Little Baobei is a tiny joint that offers unique options of burgers on a bao bun. I thought it was very good and the bao was nice and soft! You also have the option to switch it to a ramen bun.
Le Relais de L’Entrecôte specializes in steak frites (fries) so much that there is no menu - that is literally all you can order. The steak is served with their famous green sauce. When they first serve you, you may think the portion seems pretty small. Don’t be fooled! When you’re finished, they come back around and serve you more steak and frites! Michael and I were both satisfied after the two servings. This chain is known for having a long line, so we lined up prior to opening which I would recommend.
Bouillon (Pigalle and Chartier locations) is another great option for French cuisine at a decent price. For starters Michael ordered the escargot and I ordered the onion soup. For our main dishes we actually pointed at the couple next to us and just said we wanted the same thing. We believe we ordered the burgundy beef stew (boeuf bourguignon) with coquillette pasta and veal with mashed potatoes. I wouldn’t say the food was anything special, but it was a good place to try multiple French dishes in one stop. This place is known for having a long line, and although it was around the corner when we got there, we surprisingly didn’t wait more than 20 minutes.
Café de Flore was featured in Emily in Paris and had a ton of reviews, however I didn’t think it was worth the price. Not only did they charge over 7 euros for flat water, but the small cappuccino was also over 7 euros. We got the most basic dishes which were 14 euros each, and if you wanted a more standard dish you can expect to pay over 20 euros each (i.e. a club sandwich that looked pretty skimpy). Although I’ve heard the croissants are good here, I didn’t order any because we already had plans to meet Keemia at Carette for croissants shortly after. I’m not sure what the hype is on this place, but from my experience I would guess it is just the cute exterior (and I’ve seen cuter).
In Versailles we went to Le Parnasse for their homemade quiche. Although I’m not a huge quiche fan, we loved the cozy corner this place was located in! We also stopped by Les Biscuits de Madame Georges for some tea and mini-financiers. My friend recommended the cheesecake there but they didn’t have any at the time. It was Michael’s first ‘tea time’ experience and we both very much enjoyed it.
Nice
Boulangerie-Pâtisserie Jeannot was recommended by our Airbnb host as it was located right outside and we loved it! Not only did we love their croissants, cappuccinos, and sandwiches, we also loved that it had outdoor seating for us to enjoy our breakfast in the ambiance of that lively Nice street. We went here every morning during our stay in Nice!
We ate at Chez Pipo to try Nice’s specialties - socca and la pissaladière. They were nice little snacks and the staff were very kind.
La Voglia is a beautiful Italian restaurant recommended by our Airbnb host. We got the truffle risotto and pizza diavolo (tomato, mozzarella, salami). The food was good and we loved sitting on the terrace.
Monaco
Since there wasn’t anything in particular we felt we had to eat in Monaco, we figured we might as well go a little further on the train and get some fresh pasta and gelato in Italy! In Ventimiglia, we went to Pasta & Basta where we got carbonara and lemon shrimp fettuccine. You can tell it was fresh pasta, and it was nice to have one heavier/thicker sauced pasta and one lighter sauced pasta. We both loved our dinner, and it was a very nice restaurant along the water! We also grabbed some delicious gelato not too far from the train station. It was all definitely worth the pit stop!
FINAL THOUGHTS
I had more sadness leaving Paris this time compared to any of the previous times. It could be because I had spent more time in Paris itself so I became more acclimated with the city and the culture. It could also be because I had both Keemia and my fiance with me, so there was just constant happy energy and good vibes around me. Whatever the reason, I hope I’ll have many more opportunities to visit Paris again!