Visit Paris On A Budget

Visit Paris on a Budget

When Stew and I travel, we travel cheap and we managed to travel Paris on a budget.

Admittedly, we did walk 20 miles and we cycled to Paris from the UK which reduced travel costs rather a lot (don’t worry you don’t have to do that).

If you’re interested in travelling to Paris here’s how we got to Paris, saw the sights cheaply whilst having a lovely time in France’s capital!

Our budget in Paris

Before we dive in, let me first share our budget, which was super-low! We were travelling around the world for a year, so we needed to watch our spend. Hopefully you’ll be able to scrap some of our money-saving ideas in favour of a little more luxury.

Accommodation 2 nights 60.00 EUR
Food for 2 days 20.00 EUR – thank you Lidl, France!
Walking Tour 10.00 EUR tip
Montparnasse Tower 36.00 EUR
Travel 17.80 EUR
Total 143.80 EUR

Honestly, I’m amazed we did that…

Cheap accommodation near Paris

A quick win for budgets is to stay out of Paris.

We stayed in an AirBnB in Livry-Gargan. When we stayed here the cost was just under £30/night. It’s plenty big enough for a couple. You’ll be sleeping on a sofa bed, but for the money we really thought it was worth it! The host is so lovely and even helped us out when we needed to get something posted to his place.

The one downside, he has a lively and very friendly pup, so if you’re not a dog person it might not be for you, but the dog was no bother for us.

An added bonus with this AirBnB is that you’re allowed to use the fridge and microwave which meant food came in cheaply too. There’s a LIDL just a 10 minute walk away so we bought our breakfast dinner and packed lunches from there.

The commute from Livry-Gargan to Paris took about 1 hour and the cost was 8.90EUR each to use the RER & Metro to get in and out of Paris.

Amazing stuff!

Eating on a budget? Take a packed lunch

There are a million reasons to eat the incredible food in Paris, but we were on a proper budget and decided to scrimp on food. For us, it was an easy decision to take our own lunch. It prevented us from wasting time time trying to find the right place to dine and since Paris has beautiful gardens to stop and admire a packed lunch gave us an excuse to do just that.

Whilst this tip won’t be for everyone it stops those bits and pieces from really adding up: a piece of cake here, water there, a tea later in the day. You know how it is.

We wouldn’t blame you for indulging in Paris, so if a packed lunch is just too much, then be mindful of your spend, set a budget and take bottled water.

Itinerary to see Paris on a budget

Stew and I created an itinerary. Paris is a big place and it helps to have a plan. We scraped the surface of some of the famous landmarks including:

• Orangerie Museum
• Opéra, Place de l’Opéra
• City Hall
• Notre Dame
• Les Jardins du Luxembourg
• Montparnasse
• Eiffel Towel
• Place du Trocadéro et du 11 Novembre

And here’s how you can do the same. We like to plan, so we pinned the areas we wanted to view on a google map.

Feel free to use it as a starting point!

Be warned, we walked 20 miles this day – it was tough on the feet! We did contemplate the electric scooters we saw whizzing around but at 15EUR / hour it was a no from us!

We should’ve taken the metro and I recommend you do.

Walking Tours

We found a free walking tour and opted for Discover Walks. The tour we selected was the “Paris Landmarks”. The tours are totally free, but they rely on tips and donations to keep going.

I’d like to think that any tour is worthy of a tip!

The tour guide, John, was really great. He spoke brilliant English and he knew his stuff, too!

He shared the history of Paris in relation to key landmarks and he had a sense of humour.

We paid 5EUR each for the tour, total 10EUR.

City Hall

You can sit outside the City Hall, Hôtel de Ville – this was the spot we selected to eat lunch but we ended up resting in a garden instead.

Notre Dame

We were so lucky to catch the Notre Dame before it burned, we were there literally days before!

The Notre Dame can be visited for free – you can walk around the grounds and some of the cathedral without paying a penny. It’s a beautiful building, a fine example of French Gothic architecture. The cathedral is really impressive.

We went on a working day and the wait to get in was maybe 10 minutes max! They will check baggage before you enter. You can take photographs, but no flash.

French Gardens: Le Jardin du Luxembourg

If you opt for the Landmarks tour you will walk through French gardens anyway and the guide will tell you a bit about the history.

We specifically wanted to walk through Jardin du Luxembourg. French gardens are beautiful! Unlike English gardens they are symmetrical and quite rigid in their design. They look amazing and they are pieces of art to be viewed. I did long to flop onto the grass, but this is not allowed.

Montparnasse Tower

Okay, there is some spend here, but wow is it worth it!

We were actually in Paris on our one year anniversary and the Montparnasse Tower was our chosen gift for that occasion.

To keep costs low we decided not to opt for the meal and picked this instead.

At 18EUR/head it’s not cheap, but the views are stunning. If you’re in Paris on a clear day I highly recommend.

TOP TIP: My best friend, Kim, cut my hair for free and insisted I put the money towards this view instead. She’d been to Paris with her boyfriend the year before. She recommended going to the top of the Montparnasse Tower rather than the Eiffel Tower as you can see the Eiffel Tower from there. If you go up the Eiffel Tower you don’t get the pleasure of seeing the Eiffel Tower itself.

Eiffel Tower

By the time we had done all of the above we were tired. I was happy to leave visiting the Eiffel Tower close up, but Stew insisted we should. He was right too!

We walked to the Eiffel Tower and enjoyed the views grabbing shots of the Tower itself. We were planning to walk to Trocadéro Square, but we didn’t make it there. We had walked enough and we were ready to go home.

Things I Wish I’d Done Differently

Used the Metro

We had a brilliant time exploring Paris by foot, but I really do wish I’d just paid for the metro. It isn’t expensive. You can see Paris unlimited for one day for as little as €5.80.

Post written by: Zoe Ashbridge