How to Travel to Paris on a Shoestring Budget

Paris |

Paris on the CHEAP-CHEAP with cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Your Euros won't last long in Paris.  Find out how to stretch your bucks with this ultimate guide to ​CHEAPIE-TRAVEL in Paris.    cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Introduction |

Gay-'ol-Paris is a very expensive city.  Many travelers that are going to France already expect the prices to be higher than that of America, but for the low-budget traveler, backpacker, student, or just all-around cheapskate (like me), a low-cost guide to Paris is just what you need to maximize your bucks, your fun, and your time.  cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Budget |

Paris can drain your daily travel budget quickly.  With each bottled drink costing you approximately 2.50 €, you might find yourself living off of crackers for the rest of your backpacking trip through France.  cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Paris can still be traveled through cheaply, but not on a shoe-string budget, which I classify as $50.00USD per day (or less if you are a disciplined budgeter).  To be safe, I would allot myself $100.00 spending money per day, not including lodging.  The $100.00 USD budget would include short travel in the city, food, drink, and moderate entertainment.  If you plan to do some fine-dining, you will need to increase your budge by upwards of $200.00USD per day.  Below, the breakdown of my budget is as follows:

$100.00USD Per Day Budget:

• $5 breakfast
• $15 in metro tickets (or daily pass) to see various things around the city
• $5 lunch
• $30 for one fun excursion, perhaps going up the Tour Eiffel (yes, it's said in that order.)
• $15 dinner
• $15 in coctails or other nightlife
• $10 water or other hydration (tap water is probably not a good idea)
• $5 miscellaneous

*Of course, your budget could be CHEAP-CHEAPER, for example, if you brought your own water bottle that had as a built in filter in it already, you could save on your hydration, and put that toward another section of your budget.  You should remain flexible with your budget.  If you go $5 over, that's ok.  Maybe you compensate later, by taking a scenic hike instead of taking that five minute cab ride.   cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Phonetics |

pronounced /fəˈnɛtɪks

Paris |

PEAR-WREE (In French) or

PEAR-ISS (In English) 

Paris, France's capital, is a major European city with picturesque landmarks and cityscapes.  It's home to the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Champs-Élysées, among others.  

The Louvre |

The LOU-VAH-RAH (emphasize the VAH)

Musée du Louvre

The Louvre, a museum in Paris, that contains many historical pieces of art, including the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo (Aphrodite), and Cupid's Kiss, among others.

Champs-Élysées |

The SHAUMPS-ELLIE-ZAY

The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a boulevard in Paris, which runs between the Place de la Concorde (the Louvre is located there) and the Place Charles de Gaulle , where the Arc de Triomphe is located.  

Hostels |

This being a CHEAPIE-TRAVEL website, I've never stayed in a hotel in Paris.  Only hostels.  Hotels in Paris are much more expensive than hostels.  So, below, I will provide just that, a review about hostels. 

I've stayed in two different hostels in Paris on two different trips there.  The most important thing I have found out when trying to choose a quality hostel for a CHEAP-CHEAP price, is that you must read the reviews, and a lot of them.  You should look for reoccurring themes in the reviews.  The hostel I stayed in about 9 years ago was a perfectly fine hostel for the price.  It was about $40 USD per day, breakfast included.  The rooms were shared in a co-ed room of four.  The room was small, but clean.  There were bunkbeds.  Luckily I claimed a bottom one and everything was fine for me. The restroom was small, but was clean and located inside of the room.  That is a plus in terms of hostels.

The second hostel I stayed in had great reviews, great photographs, and great prices.  The price was a downpayment of $10 USD online, and then $30 Euros at the time of check-in.  The only issue, was that they require check in-online, but not until fairly close to your travel date, making it just another thing you have to remember to do before you leave home for the airport.  Online check in was a smooth process.  The issue was that I think I wasn't expecting it to be so humid in Paris when I went in August 2014.  This made the airconditioner useless in the shared 12 person room.  The room was very clean, but it was unbearably hot.  The restrooms were located down the hallway, and were a large dormitory style restroom.  Typical with those type of restrooms, everything is wet, all the time.  Travelers come in from all corners of the earth, at all times of the day, and so the restroom is always in use.  No privacy here.  Be forewarned. 

Weather |

Paris can range from snowy winters, to very humid summers.  The humidity may be shocking to some.  It seems as if the local Parisians aren't even acclimated to the humidity of the summer in Paris.  Bring gloves and a coat in winter and early spring, and bring light airy clothing in the summer, just in case.   cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Food |

CHEAPIE-CHEAP food in Paris, is surprisingly not difficult to find, in the correct places.  Sure, if you purchase something in the Louvre, it's going to be expensive, but if you purchase water in a small corner store, you will expect to see prices still a bit higher than in America.  A bottle of water might cost $2.00 Euro, or an ice cream might cost $3.00 Euro, but, when you're traveling, you have little options sometimes.    cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

You can find budget food located away from major tourist attractions.  I found many CHEAP-CHEAP places near the Gare du Nord neighborhood of Paris.  Gare du Nord is a major train hub in Paris, France.  My personal favorite is Falafel, a traditional Middle Eastern food, commonly served in a pita.  They are CHEAP---like $5 Euros.  They taste great, come with frites (french fries, ironically) and a mayonnaise dipping sauce.  The mayonnaise part might sound weird, but it's really tasty.  Fine French dining reviews can be found on another blog site.    cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Vitals |

Passport:
Before you travel outside of the United States, you will need a Passport.  For more information, visit:  
The U.S. Department of State

Vaccinations:  
Disclaimer:  I am not a medical professional, and you should not take any medical information in this blog as medical advice.  Always seek medical advice from a doctor.  That being said, there are no required vaccinations to travel to France that I was required to have.  However, you may want to seek the advice from a medical professional.   cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Flights |

The CHEAP-CHEAP time to fly to Paris is during the winter months because of the cold, snowy weather in northern Europe.  cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Flights range from about $900.00 USD (including taxes) to $1,250.00 USD.  Research your flights, your layovers, and I couldn't stress this enough -- PURCHASE EARLY.   cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Transportation |

The main mode of transportation for travelers is the Metro.  

Metro:

A Metro ticket costs €1,80.  It's issued by RATP, the transportation authority for the Paris region, usually out of kiosks or vending machines.  More information can be found by visiting RATP's website at http://www.ratp.fr/en/ 

The Metro is easy to use, and the "next stop" announcement is is French and English.  The train comes very often, but slows as the night wears on.  The Metro does close at about 1 or 2 A.M., so you can't depend on that if you are out for a late night on the town.   If you become confused, RATP has a lot of workers on the busier train platforms for people who are disoriented.  Don't be afraid to ask them questions.  That's what they're hired for, and a lot of the liaisons speak English, or can muster out some English.  Or, if you're like me, you can try to listen to the French and see what latin root words you can pick out and translate into words you are familiar with.   cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

MORE TIPS HERE...

Bus:

It isn't advisable to ride the bus system in Paris, unless you are familiar with the city, and are able to speak and read French.   cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Cabs:

Cab fare is expensive in Paris.  Sure, it's convenient, but it isn't EL-CHEAPO.  Short cab rides may save you some hassle from point "A" to point "B", but you will pay for the convenience.  A cab fare once cost me 80€ (including tip) from Charles De Gaulle Airport to Gare Du Nord.  From then on, I used Metro from the Airport to Paris, which is about a 40 minute cab ride.  cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

A tip about Cabbies:  Some cab driver will not even give you a ride if your destination is, according to them, in walking distance.  Keep this in mind when in Paris late at night, when you may feel nervous about walking around on the street after a long night at the local watering hole...  cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

Preparing Yourself |

TOP LIST OF THINGS YOU SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR WHEN TRAVELING TO PARIS, FRANCE:    cheapie-travel.com/paris.html

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• FOR FRANCE'S BEAUTY
• FOR ITS AMBIENCE
• FOR ITS TASTE IN EVERYTHING INCLUDING FOOD
• FOR BIG-CITY LIFE AND NOISES
• LARGE CROWDS ON ALL FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION
• FOR A SIDE OF FRANCE YOU MAY HAVE NEVER SEEN OR IMAGINED
• FOR ITS HISTORY
• FOR ITS MAGNIFICENCE
• FOR ITS TEMPERATURE
• FOR ITS COST
• FOR ITS UNFORGETTABLE LANDMARKS AND SIGHTSEEING

Also visit http://en.visitparisregion.com/ 

for more information.  The official website for Paris region

For more information, click on the Paris Tourism Office Website.   http://en.parisinfo.com/

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