France / Paris & Île-de-France / Paris

Paris

The Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and the Seine, with Versailles a Train Ride Away

4 daysIdeal stay₹13,850From / night₹3,200Food / day₹3,410Entry

The capital and where almost every flight from India lands (Charles de Gaulle). The Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, Notre-Dame (reopened in December 2024), Montmartre, the Musée d'Orsay and the Seine fill three days; the Palace of Versailles is a half-day trip by RER C train. Indian food is easy to find: Passage Brady and rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis (10th arrondissement) and the Tamil shops and restaurants of La Chapelle have pure-vegetarian South and North Indian food. Museums and big monuments need timed tickets booked online.

Highlights

The Louvre and the Mona Lisa
Eiffel Tower at night
Notre-Dame, reopened in 2024
Seine river cruise
Musée d'Orsay's Impressionists
Montmartre and Sacré-Cœur
Palace and gardens of Versailles
Sainte-Chapelle stained glass
Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Élysées
Le Marais and its falafel
Galeries Lafayette rooftop
Indian vegetarian thalis in Passage Brady and La Chapelle

Things to do

Louvre (timed ticket): Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Winged VictoryMorning · 3h 30m
Eiffel Tower summit or second floorEvening · 2h 30m
Seine river cruise (Bateaux Mouches / Vedettes du Pont Neuf)Evening · 1h 30m
Notre-Dame and Sainte-Chapelle on Île de la CitéMorning · 2h 30m
Musée d'Orsay ImpressionistsAfternoon · 2h 30m
Montmartre walk to Sacré-Cœur and Place du TertreAfternoon · 3h
Arc de Triomphe rooftop and the Champs-ÉlyséesEvening · 2h
Le Marais and Place des Vosges walkAfternoon · 2h 30m
Catacombs of Paris (timed ticket; new route since April 2026)Morning · 1h 30m
Musée de l'Orangerie water lilies and the Tuileries GardenAfternoon · 2h
Palais Garnier opera house and the Galeries Lafayette rooftopMorning · 2h
Latin Quarter, the Panthéon and the Luxembourg GardensAfternoon · 3h
Musée Rodin and its sculpture gardenAfternoon · 1h 30m
South Indian vegetarian dinner in La Chapelle or Passage BradyEvening · 1h 30m

Tours & tickets

Tours & tickets in Parisvia GetYourGuide Tours & tickets in Parisvia Klook

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When to go

Best time: April – June, September – October

Heads up

Paris in August: Quieter, Some Places Closed

Many Parisians leave in August: some independent restaurants, bakeries and shops close for two to four weeks (look for "fermeture annuelle" signs), while museums, monuments and hotels stay open and the city is calmer. Book the Louvre and Eiffel Tower by timed ticket all the same.

Heads up

Strikes Can Cancel Trains and Flights

Strikes (grèves) by SNCF rail staff, air-traffic controllers or Paris transport workers happen several times a year, are announced a few days ahead and cancel TGVs and flights. Check SNCF Connect and your airline in the days before travel, keep a buffer day before the flight home, and prefer refundable or exchangeable tickets.

Heads up

Heatwave Risk

Paris can reach 35-40 °C in a summer heatwave (canicule), and many older hotels and flats have no air-conditioning: check before booking, carry water, and plan museums for the afternoons.

Bastille Day (Fête nationale) — France's national day: a military parade on the Champs-Élysées in the morning and fireworks at the Eiffel Tower at night, with crowds on the Champ de Mars from the afternoon. Carcassonne's fireworks over La Cité are among the biggest in the country. Banks and many shops close; trains run.
Fête de la Musique — Free music on streets, squares and bar terraces all evening and night in every town, on the longest day. Public transport runs late in Paris; streets in the centres are packed.
Ganesh festival procession, La Chapelle — Paris's Sri Manika Vinayakar temple takes Ganesh through the streets of La Chapelle (the 18th arrondissement's Tamil quarter) on a chariot, a Sunday after Ganesh Chaturthi, with coconut-breaking, music and free food. Tens of thousands come; the date follows the Hindu calendar.
Roland-Garros (French Open) — The clay-court Grand Slam, late May to early June in the west of Paris. Tickets sell out in a spring ballot and resale; hotel prices rise across the city those two weeks.

Part of a longer route

Paris is a stop on 3 curated circuits through France.

🚄

Paris, Brussels & Amsterdam

Stop 1 of 3 · 9 days · easy

🚆

Rome to Paris via the Swiss Alps

Stop 6 of 6 · 14 days · moderate

🗼

London & Paris

Stop 2 of 2 · 8 days · easy

Getting there

Fly into Paris (CDG)

Search flights to CDG from your city ↗

Flights from India

From Delhifrom ₹34,000
From Mumbaifrom ₹36,000
From Chennai (1 stop)from ₹32,000
From Hyderabad (1 stop)from ₹32,000
From Ahmedabad (1 stop)from ₹32,000
From Kochi (1 stop)from ₹32,000

Fly into Nice (NCE), 685 km away

Then: Flight · 4h (Air France / easyJet / Transavia (Orly or CDG))

Search flights to NCE from your city ↗

Flights from India

From Delhi (1 stop)from ₹36,000
From Mumbai (1 stop)from ₹37,000
From Bengaluru (1 stop)from ₹40,000

Fares from India: one way, per person; typical fares, not live prices.

Entry rules

Your passport

Visa needed before you fly for up to 90 days, about ₹9,590

Apply for a Schengen short-stay (type C) visa on france-visas.gouv.fr, up to six months and at least 15 days before you fly; 4-8 weeks ahead is safest in summer and December.
Book an appointment at a VFS Global France centre in India and go in person to give fingerprints and a photo (not needed again for 59 months). Pay the €90 visa fee (€45 for children aged 6-11, free under 6) plus VFS's service charge.
Allow about 15 days for a decision, up to 45 in peak season. Track it online; VFS returns the passport.
If you have used two Schengen visas lawfully in the last three years, ask for a multiple-entry visa: under the EU's cascade for Indian nationals you can get two years, then five.
Did you study in France for at least a semester, with a master's degree or higher? Ask for France's five-year alumni short-stay visa.
At the first Schengen border, register your fingerprints and photo in the Entry/Exit System (EES). Stay no more than 90 days in any 180 across all Schengen countries.

Carry: Passport valid at least three months beyond the day you leave the Schengen area, issued within the last ten years, with two blank pages; France-Visas application form (printed) and two recent passport photos; Return flight booking and hotel bookings (or an invitation) for the whole stay; Travel medical insurance covering at least €30,000, valid in all Schengen countries; Bank statements for the last three to six months, and recent income-tax returns; Employer's leave letter or proof of business; for students, a letter from the school; A short covering letter with your day-by-day itinerary; For children: birth certificate and both parents' consent if not travelling with both.

One Schengen visa covers France and 28 other countries, but a multi-country trip should apply through the country where you spend the most nights. Book the VFS appointment early: slots for June-August and December go weeks ahead. The ETIAS travel authorisation does not apply to visa holders.

Checked 2026-10; confirm with the embassy before you fly.

Also in Paris & Île-de-France

🏰 Disneyland Paris · Two Disney Parks 40 Minutes from Central Paris
👑 Versailles · The Sun King's Palace, Its Gardens and the Trianons

Plan a trip to Paris

Flying in from elsewhere? Start at Paris (CDG)