Paris

Paris 5-day itinerary

5 days in Paris on foot. The plan moves through Landmarks, Landmarks, Museums and galleries, starting with Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, Champs-Élysées. No car.
Best for
A first visit to Paris with room for one extra neighborhood.
Pace
Four walking days and one day trip.
Base
Landmarks
Estimated budget
$400–$1,400

Day-by-day plan

Follow the stops in order. Walk times are estimates between nearby places.

  1. Day 1

    Landmarks

    Walk Landmarks in Paris. Start at Eiffel Tower, then Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile and Champs-Élysées. Stay on foot.

    1. Stop 1

      Eiffel Tower

      No other monument better symbolizes Paris.

    2. Stop 2 · 23 min walk

      Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile

      The Arc de Triomphe exudes grandeur and offers a central view of the city.

    3. Stop 3 · 14 min walk

      Champs-Élysées

      Widely regarded to be one of the most recognizable avenues in the world

    4. Stop 4 · 48 min walk

      Notre Dame Cathedral

      Impressive Gothic cathedral that was the inspiration for Victor Hugo's novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

    5. Stop 5 · 50 min walk

      Sacré Coeur

      A church perched on top of the highest point in Paris. Behind the church is the artists' area, in front are spectacular views of the whole city.

    6. Stop 6 · 25 min walk

      Opera Garnier

      Masterpiece of theatre architecture of the 19th century built by Charles Garnier and inaugurated in 1875 housing the Paris Opera since it was founded by Louis XIV.

    Eat · Eat near Landmarks. Sit down once, keep the rest as snacks.

    Browse Paris tours
  2. Day 2

    Landmarks

    Walk Landmarks in Paris. Start at Grande Arche de la Défense, then Panthéon and Père-Lachaise Cemetery. Stay on foot.

    1. Stop 1

      Grande Arche de la Défense

      A modern office-building variant of the Arc de Triomphe.

    2. Stop 2 · 128 min walk

      Panthéon

      Underneath, the final resting place for the great heroes of the French Republic including Voltaire, Victor Hugo, and Marie Skłodowska-Curie; above, a marvellous view of the city.

    3. Stop 3 · 53 min walk

      Père-Lachaise Cemetery

      Unlike any cemetery in the world. Ornate grave stones, monuments set among tree lined lanes. See the graves of Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and Frédéric Chopin, among many others.

    4. Stop 4 · 49 min walk

      Sainte-Chapelle

      Exquisite stained glass chapel. More beautiful interior than the gloomy Notre Dame Cathedral.

    5. Stop 5 · 12 min walk

      The Louvre

      One of the finest museums in the world of art and culture. Home of the Mona Lisa and innumerable others. Enormous building and collection, plan at least two visits. .

    6. Stop 6 · 9 min walk

      Musée d'Orsay

      Incredible collection housed in a former railway station. Works by the great artists of the 19th century (1848-1914) including Monet's "Blue Water Lilies, Renoir's "Bal du moulin de la Galette", van Gogh's "Bedroom in Arles", Whistler's "The Artists Mother", etc.

    Eat · Eat near Landmarks. Sit down once, keep the rest as snacks.

  3. Day 3

    Museums and galleries

    Walk Museums and galleries in Paris. Start at Picasso Museum, then Musée Marmottan-Monet and Musée de l'Orangerie. Stay on foot.

    1. Stop 1

      Picasso Museum

      Contains the master's own collection.

    2. Stop 2 · 93 min walk

      Musée Marmottan-Monet

      Over 300 paintings of Claude Monet. Also, the works of Berthe Morisot, Edgar Degas, Édouard Manet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. "Impression Soleil Levant" by Monet is on display.

    3. Stop 3 · 54 min walk

      Musée de l'Orangerie

      [Jardin des Tuileries] Houses "The Water Lilies" (or "Nymphéas") - a 360 degree depiction of Monet's flower garden at Giverny. Also, impressionist and post-Impressionist paintings by Cézanne, Matisse, Modigliani, Picasso, Renoir, Rousseau, Soutine, Sisley and others.

    4. Stop 4 · 19 min walk

      Musée Delacroix

      Housed in the home of painter Eugène Delacroix.

    5. Stop 5 · 19 min walk

      Centre Georges Pompidou

      The museum of modern art. The building and adjoining Stravinsky Fountain are attractions in themselves. Closed for renovation until 2030.

    6. Stop 6 · 40 min walk

      Les Invalides

      Very impressive museum of arms and armor from the Middle Ages to today. Also contains the tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte.

    Eat · Eat near Museums and galleries. Sit down once, keep the rest as snacks.

  4. Day 4

    Museums and galleries

    Walk Museums and galleries in Paris. Start at Musée des Arts Décoratifs, then Carnavalet and Cité des sciences et de l’industrie - La Villette. Stay on foot.

    1. Stop 1

      Musée des Arts Décoratifs

      Showcasing eight centuries of French savoir-faire.

    2. Stop 2 · 29 min walk

      Carnavalet

      Museum of Paris history; exhibitions are permanent and free. Renovated 2017–2021.

    3. Stop 3 · 62 min walk

      Cité des sciences et de l’industrie - La Villette

      Science museum primarily for children.

    4. Stop 4 · 68 min walk

      Mémorial de la Shoah

      Paris's Holocaust Memorial Museum, in the heart of the Marais on rue Geoffroy l'Asnier. Free Entry, weekly guided tours. Second Sunday of the month there is a free tour in English.

    5. Stop 5 · 54 min walk

      Jacquemart-Andre Museum

      Private collection of French, Italian, and Dutch masterpieces in a typical 19th-century mansion.

    6. Stop 6 · 22 min walk

      Guimet Museum

      One of the largest collections outside Asia of Southeast Asian, Indian, Afghan, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean art.

    Eat · Eat near Museums and galleries. Sit down once, keep the rest as snacks.

  5. Day 5

    Day trip toward Chantilly

    Leave Paris for the day. Come back to the same bed.

    1. Stop 1

      Chantilly

      Listed as a next stop from Paris. Check the regional train or bus the night before.

    2. Stop 2

      Chartres

      Listed as a next stop from Paris. Check the regional train or bus the night before.

    3. Stop 3

      Gothic architecture

      Listed as a next stop from Paris. Check the regional train or bus the night before.

    Eat · Pack snacks from town. Do not count on a full menu at a small station.

    Browse Chantilly day trips

Where to stay

Sleep near the walking base. Pick an area, then search hotels by neighborhood.

  • Landmarks

    Walking this plan

    Base here if you want Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, Champs-Élysées on foot.

  • Museums and galleries

    Walking this plan

    Base here if you want The Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Rodin Museum on foot.

Full where-to-stay guide →

Things to book

Tours and tickets that match this plan. Book anything that needs timed entry.

Budget

Rough mid-range spend for 5 days in Paris, excluding long-haul flights. Hotel nights drive most of the range.

  • Budget: about $400 (hostel/budget hotel, transit, street food)
  • Mid-range: about $700 (3★ hotel, sit-down meals, a tour or two)
  • Comfort: about $1,400 (nicer hotel, taxis, paid attractions)

Trip budget calculator →

Transportation

Get in

( ), is the primary airport. Colloquially known as Roissy Airport, it is north of the city and is used mainly for long haul flights. The airport consists of three terminals: Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3, connected by the CDGVAL people mover. It is connected to Paris by train, bus and taxi.

Get around

thumb|Navigo Easy Travel Card Paris has an excellent public transport system that spans every inch of the city. It is well-known for its Métro (short for Chemin de fer métropolitain, "Metropolitan Railway"), RER (short for Réseau Express Régional, "Regional Express Network,"), and Transilien rail networks. The Métro, RER and Transilien are complemented by a large network of trams and buses. Île-de-France Mobilités is the authority that controls and coordinates the different transport companies operating in the Île-de-France region, including Paris.

Optional alternatives

Add one if a walking day finishes early. Don’t stack them onto the same afternoon.

  • French Open

    One of the four tennis Grand Slam tournaments. It is scheduled for two weeks from the last Sunday in May. The event, on clay courts, features the world’s top-ranked tennis players.

  • Paris Saint-Germain

    Paris Saint-Germain is a listed stop in this neighborhood.

  • Stade de France

    France's national stadium has a capacity of 81,338, and hosts concerts and various events. Soccer clubs sometimes play here when their home stadium is unavailable.

  • Maison Européene de la Photographie

    Important center for contemporary photography with a large exposition area having three or four major expositions per year dedicated to contemporary photography. Housed in an updated hôtel particulier built in 1706. There is a large library, auditorium and café. Their archive houses over twenty thousand works of art.

  • Better Paris Photos

    Better Paris Photos offers instructional tours and workshops that combine hands-on learning of essential photographic techniques with guiding to, and commentary about, the most photogenic spots of Paris. Led by English-speaking photographers and instructors, these tours are open to all skill levels and interest.

  • Paris Opera

    Paris Opera is a listed stop in this neighborhood.

Before you go

Questions

Do I need a car in Paris?
No for this plan. The days stay inside walking range, then local transit to XXX. thumb|Navigo Easy Travel Card Paris has an excellent public transport system that spans every inch of the city. It is well-known for its Métro (short for Chemin de fer métropolitain, "Metropolitan Railway"), RER (short for Réseau Express Régional, "Regional Express Network,"), and Transilien rail networks. The Métro, RER and Transilien are complemented by a large network of trams and buses. Île-de-France Mobilités is the authority that controls and coordinates the different transport companies operating in the Île-de-France region, including Paris.
Is 5 days enough?
Yes if you want Paris plus one nearby trip. Use the 3-day plan if you will not leave town.
Where should I stay?
Base near Landmarks so the first walking day starts at the hotel. Search hotels after you pick the neighborhood.
Where do I eat?
Sit down once a day near that day's stops. Keep the rest as snacks.

Other Paris trip lengths

Daily stops compiled from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA), and Wikipedia. Updated 2026-10-06. Edited by Lina Varela.