4 days in Paris - average costs for 3 people

Hi,

Am coming to Paris for 4 days in July with my 2 adult daughters. We are staying at Splendid Etoile on CHamps Elysees, but am trying to get an idea of how much I should budget on spending.

We plan to do standard tourist things, like museums, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and the river cruise alongisde eating out for all meals.

I do not want to do this on a shoestring, so was thinking a budget of around £1,000 should be sufficient for all of us, does this sound reasonable?

Thanks

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Ooops meant to clarify this is just for spending money, hotel is already paid but does not included breakfast.

Thanks

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Your budget should be okay, not shoestring but not extravagant, provided you don%26#39;t dine in expensive establishments. I%26#39;m assuming an at par exchange rate - 1 euro equalling 1 GPB, so you would have roughly 80 euros each per day.

Have a look into the Museum Pass to see if it would be beneficial for you.

To get a general idea of costs, I would plan for 10 euros each for breakfast (it will likely be less, since breakfast usually just consists of a pastry, juice and coffee. You can get lunch in a cafe for between 10 and 15 euros, and dinner at a cafe with wine would probably be around 25 euros each.

Try not to dine in restaurants or cafes that are really close to tourist attractions as the cost is always higher. Have a walk around some of the smaller side streets, and check out the menus which are posted outside all restaurants. Also, takeout baguette sandwiches are great for lunch (usually around 5 euros) and you can enjoy them in a nice park.

Museum and monument entrance fees are usually between around 8 to 12 euros each. How old are your daughters? I believe students with an EU passport under the age of 26 are free in several museums, although I%26#39;m not completely certain on this. Perhaps someone else can confirm. Not sure of the Eiffel Tower cost but I think I remember it as around 15 euros each.

A Seine boat cruise without dinner is 12 euros each, but you can book in advance for just 7 euros if you go on:

www.vedettesdupontneuf.com

Have a nice trip!

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You can get breakfast at Pauls (lots of them around), they have small areas to serve sitting down, and the cost used to range from about 3 euro to about 10 euro, depending on what you had. Hotels usually run more than that. also Brioche Doree - lots of them around town. Some cafes are reasonable, but I have seen if you have something like eggs and whatever they might be as high as 12 euro. Then some neighborhood bakeries have coffee and you can buy breakfasts pastrys and have your own put together breakfast back in your room and sometimes even at the bakery. I just got back and found that for food I was spending between 30 and 50 euro a day, depending if I had a %26quot;real%26quot; lunch and if I had wine with supper. I paid cash for my museum admissions and some of them offer concessions, sometimes for school kids/college student, seniors etc. Admissions ranged from 8 euro to 12 euro.

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I think your budget is reasonable. The Paris Museum Pass can be good value if you plan on visiting two or more museums and/or monuments per day (doesn%26#39;t cover the Eiffel Tower though), it also allows to skip ticket lines. EU citizens under 26 don%26#39;t need the Pass (www.parismuseumpass.com/en/pass_averts.php).

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The link says %26quot;reduced rates%26quot; for 18-25 year olds, this has changed: %26quot;Please note that as of 4th April 2009, all National Museums will be free of charge to all EU citizens under the age of 26. To claim their free entry they need to queue up at each museum and show their passport at the ticket desk. They will not be able to use any fast track facilities.%26quot;

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If you can%26#39;t do without a big breakfast (as opposed to continental breakfast) have it at your hotel and skip lunch or settle for street food such as crepes or sandwiches at lunch time. It won%26#39;t cost you more than breakfast at Paul%26#39;s or any other chain bakery, it will be tastier (I find Paul%26#39;s offerings well below average) and the money you%26#39;ll spend on breakfast will be saved on lunch.

If not, go to the nearest café, have one (coffee) with a croissant and buy more at a real bakery on your way if you%26#39;re still hungry.

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Thanks for all replies, really appreciate them.

Just so I understand Museum Pass situation since my daughters are 16 and 21 (21 year old is a University Student and 16 year old still at schoo). If I buy the MP that means they cannot come with me through the MP entrance, but have to queue, is that right?

Also, we are flying into Pari Beavais, assume we just get bus to centre of Paris and they will no doubt stop somewhere along Champs Elysees for the Splendid Etoile?

Thanks again.

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They ask the 18 to 25 yearolds to show ID to verify their age, if your older girl looks young maybe they%26#39;ll just let you through. Not all museums have long lines (d%26#39;Orsay and Versailles often do).

The bus from Beavais goes to Porte Maillot.