The 5 Smartest Things I Did Before My Trip To Paris

1. I Worked out on the StairMaster

The word for steps in French is marches, and boy, did we ever do the marches! Oh la la!.

Our Airbnb was in Montmartre, which is the hilliest arrondissement in Paris, and I knew this, so I spent the weeks prior to the trip working on the StairMaster at my gym. It helped. 

We climbed 284 steps up a spiral staircase to get to the viewing terrace at the top of the Arc de Triomphe.

There are 222 steps to the door of Sacre-Coeur.

The Abbesses Metro station, our stop, is the deepest in the Paris Metro, requiring a spiraling climb of 176 steps from the train to the street. 

Getting anywhere in Montmartre requires climbing hills and negotiating spiraling steps. 

If you’re planning a trip to Paris, and especially if you stay in Montmartre, your marche game needs to be strong. 

2. We Booked an Evening River Dinner Cruise

One of my yoga students told me to do this. She said, “I know it sounds like a bougie, touristy thing to do, but it’s worth it.” She was right. G booked us a table for two in a bay window at the front of the boat. The view was stunning. I found unexpected tears welling up as our boat softly navigated the Seine, passing by the most astonishingly beautiful architecture on the most perfect Parisian evening. The cruise ended at the base of the sparkling Eiffel Tower. 

We booked through this company: bateauxparisiens.com.

Highly recommend!

3. We Booked a Tour to Giverny

We both wanted to do this, the question was how.

Giverny is home to Claude Monet’s famous gardens. It’s 50 miles west of Paris, and you can take the Metro to a train, and then board a bus to get there. 

However, we decided to book a private tour instead. 

We used Flavors of Paris. 

https://www.flavorsofparis.com/

We were picked up at our apartment by a bow-tied driver named Philippe. Our guide was Lisa Rankin, the owner of Flavors of Paris. Both of them were fluent English speakers. It was so wonderful to talk to both of them about our experiences being non-native speakers. They assured us that any attempt to speak French, even if we murdered the language, was appreciated. 

Touring Monet’s house and gardens with Lisa was like having a French friend who knew all the inside info about everything. Sadly, she had a cold and sneezed a lot, but it didn’t detract at all from our tour. It was an ideal way to experience Giverny, especially for first-time visitors. 

If your itinerary allows it, definitely visit these gardens. They are tres magnifique!

4. I Packed Only Black and White clothes

This was the first time in my life that I went on a big trip and packed correctly. I didn’t underpack or overpack. 

The only thing I missed was my skin care, which I had forgotten back in the car at the Elmira airport. I had to buy new stuff I was unsure about at a pharmacy in Paris. 

However, the clothing and shoes part of the my packing was spot on. I stuck to a black and white palette, and it totally worked. 

I now know to stick to two colors. They don’t necessarily have to be black and white, but everything has to mix and match. 

5. I Downloaded Perplexity on my Iphone

https://www.perplexity.ai

This app, which I’ve been subscribed to for a few months, was super helpful on this trip. It’s an AI you can talk to just like you’d talk to a person. It finds answers fast, and explains things clearly. For example, here are a few things I asked it:

I am on the Rue de la Verrerie. Can you suggest a good lunch place nearby?

Where’s a good place to have a snack near the Musee d’Orsay?

I’m at the BnF in Paris and need to buy an adapter for my IPhone. Where’s the closest place?

I’ve just landed at CDG airport from the US. Can you walk me through the Customs process?

All the answers were concise and easy to understand and gave me directions and addresses and menus and prices and  was just so very helpful. I am a HUGE FAN of this app!

We’ve been back almost a week now. On the morning of our flight home, I woke up from a restless sleep with a fever. I’ve been laying low ever since, and am feeling better now.

I loved this trip so much! I feel so grateful to have been able to go back to Paris, this city I fell in love with after only two days last year, and experience even more of it.  

Au revoir, Paris! I’ll be back!