Eiffel Tower & Trocadéro
View it from Trocadéro across the river first; book the summit ahead and time it for the hourly night sparkle.
The cliché is true — it really is that beautiful, between the bakeries.
When to go: April–June & September–October — mild and lively; August half-empties as locals leave.
Best places to visit
Must-see
Louvre
Enormous — pick two wings and leave; the Richelieu passage and evening Wednesday/Friday hours dodge the crush.
Le Marais
Falafel queues, vintage shops and the Place des Vosges — the best quarter for an aimless afternoon.
Montmartre & Sacré-Cœur
Climb for the white basilica and the city laid out below; go early before the crowds and caricaturists.
Musée d'Orsay
The Impressionists in a former railway station — lighter and lovelier than the Louvre, under a giant clock.
Canal Saint-Martin
Iron footbridges and canalside apéro with young Paris — picnic with wine as the locals do.
Plan your trip to Paris
WTFly finds the cheapest dates to fly there across a whole flexible window — then activities and a car to round out the trip.