Before You Fly — Quick Essentials
🛂 Schengen C Visa — French Embassy / VFS; apply 8–12 wks ahead
💱 1 EUR ≈ ₹90
✈️ Direct via Air India (DEL–CDG); Emirates/Qatar with 1 stop
🚇 Paris Métro — 16 lines, covers all attractions
🌡️ Jun–Aug peak · Apr–May & Sep–Oct best value
Paris is India's most aspirational European destination — driven by its honeymoon market and growing luxury segment. The Schengen visa is the main friction point; apply through VFS Global or the French Embassy with 8–12 weeks lead time. Air India operates the only direct flight from Delhi; most Indians fly via Dubai (Emirates), Doha (Qatar) or Abu Dhabi (Etihad).
Day-by-Day Itinerary
DAY 1Eiffel Tower + Seine CruiseLandmark
Arrive at CDG; RER B to city centre (35 min, €11.80); or private transfer (~€60–80)
Check in to hotel near Champs-Élysées, Le Marais, or Saint-Germain area (central for walking)
Evening: Eiffel Tower — book tickets in advance; 2nd floor (elevator) has the best views + restaurant; top floor for clear days
Eiffel Tower sparkle show — every hour on the hour after dark; best viewed from Trocadéro or Champ de Mars lawn
Bateaux Mouches Seine dinner cruise — 2 hours, dinner included (€80–150/person); quintessential Paris honeymoon experience
Eiffel booking: Tickets sell out 60+ days ahead in summer. Book the moment Schengen visa is granted. The free option — walking the gardens below at night during the sparkle show — is genuinely spectacular.
DAY 2Louvre + Musée d'OrsayArt & Culture
Morning: Louvre Museum — book skip-the-line entry online; allocate 3–4 hours minimum; Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Egyptian antiquities
Lunch: Café Marly inside the Louvre courtyard (overlooking the glass pyramid) — pricey but the setting is unforgettable
Afternoon: Musée d'Orsay (former railway station) — Impressionist masterpieces: Monet, Degas, Renoir, Van Gogh
Evening: Saint-Germain-des-Prés neighbourhood — café culture, bookshops, evening stroll
Indian art connection: The Louvre's Asian civilisations gallery has significant Indian sculpture from the Gupta period. Ask a guard for "Arts de l'Inde" section — often missed by Indian visitors.
DAY 3Versailles Palace Day TripRoyalty
RER C from Paris to Versailles Rive Gauche (35 min, €3.60); walk 10 min to Palace
Palace of Versailles — Hall of Mirrors, King's State Apartments, Marie Antoinette's apartments (book timed entry)
Gardens — 800 hectares of formal gardens; free admission; musical fountain shows on Saturdays/Sundays (summer)
Trianon palaces (Grand and Petit Trianon) + Marie Antoinette's Hamlet — quieter and charming
Return to Paris by 6 PM; dinner in Montmartre area
Full day needed: Versailles is a full-day commitment. Don't combine with Louvre on the same day. Bring a packed lunch or eat at the palace café — restaurant queues are very long in season.
DAY 4Montmartre + Sacré-Cœur + Champs-ÉlyséesArt & Shopping
Morning: Montmartre — Sacré-Cœur Basilica (free entry; panoramic city views); artist square Place du Tertre
Moulin Rouge area — exterior photographs; evening show tickets available (book months ahead; €100–200)
Afternoon: Champs-Élysées — Arc de Triomphe (climb to top, €13); luxury shopping including Cartier, Louis Vuitton flagship, Ladurée macarons
Galeries Lafayette on Boulevard Haussmann — under the magnificent glass dome; best luxury department store for Indian shoppers
Shopping for Indians: Paris is Europe's best city for luxury goods tax refunds (VAT refund at 12–15%). Spend €100+ in a single store, ask for the détaxe form, and claim at CDG airport. Factor this into your budget.
DAY 5Disneyland Paris (or Nice Day Trip)Family / Day Trip
Families: Disneyland Paris — 45 min by RER A from central Paris; two parks (Disneyland + Walt Disney Studios); book in advance; full day needed
Couples: TGV train to Nice (5.5 hrs, €50–120 one-way; or fly Nice–CDG in 1.5 hrs); French Riviera — Promenade des Anglais, Monaco half-day trip, Èze village
Paris option: Le Marais neighbourhood — Centre Pompidou modern art, vintage shops, Place des Vosges (oldest square in Paris), Jewish quarter
Nice alternative: If budget allows, consider 2 nights in Nice as a standalone trip extension. Monaco (30 min from Nice) and Cannes (30 min) are bucket-list experiences for high-spend Indian travelers.
DAY 6Le Marais + DepartureDeparture
Morning: Le Marais neighbourhood — independent fashion boutiques, Place des Vosges, Marché des Enfants Rouges (covered food market, oldest in Paris)
Notre-Dame Cathedral exterior visit (restoration ongoing; reopened December 2024)
Île de la Cité — Sainte-Chapelle (stunning Gothic stained glass, €13)
CDG airport: Terminal 2E has the best duty-free for luxury goods; allow 3 hours for international departures
Indian food in Paris: Passage Brady (Strasbourg–Saint-Denis area) is Paris's Indian restaurant street — authentic curry houses, South Indian joints, and Indian sweet shops run by the Tamil community. Best Indian food in the city.
Budget Breakdown
Flights (return)
₹75–140k
Via Dubai or Qatar usually best value.
Hotel (4-star, 6 nights)
€900–1,500
Central Paris. 3-star saves 30–40%.
Food & Dining
€300–500
€15–30/person/meal at mid-range restaurants.
Attractions & Transport
€300–500
Eiffel, Louvre, Versailles, Disneyland, Metro.
Total average per person: $2,500–3,500 depending on hotel tier and shopping. Shopping (luxury goods) is often the largest variable for Indian travelers in Paris — budget separately.
Live India–Paris Flight Data
Scheduled India–Paris flight capacity, Air India vs connecting airlines, and seasonal demand for the Paris market.
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