3 days in Paris: a day-by-day sightseeing plan

Paris is a city to walk, but its big sights are spread out, so this plan groups them by area and uses a short taxi or metro ride where the gap is long. Day one runs from the Eiffel Tower to the Arc de Triomphe and down to the Petit Palais, Concorde and the Orangerie, day two is a long one with the Louvre and the Musée d'Orsay before Sainte-Chapelle and Notre-Dame, and day three starts at the Opéra and Montmartre and ends in the Latin Quarter.

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Day 1

The Eiffel Tower, the Champs-Élysées and the Orangerie

5 stops

09:00
Eiffel Tower
About 2 h
The plan puts the Eiffel Tower first thing and gives it a full two hours; if you want to go up, book a timed ticket ahead, as security and the lifts take time. For the classic view from the ground, walk onto the Champ de Mars or look across the river from the Trocadéro.
Taxi, 4 min
11:05
Arc de Triomphe
About 25 min
Reach the arch through the underground passage, never across the roundabout, and look at the carved reliefs and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath it. The roof terrace looks straight down the Champs-Élysées toward your next stop.
Taxi, 4 min
11:35
Petit Palais
About 1 h 40 min
Built for the 1900 World's Fair, the Petit Palais is the city's fine arts museum, with paintings, sculpture and decorative arts under painted domes. Its curved garden courtyard is a lovely place for a break before the short walk to Concorde.
Walk, 8 min
13:25
Place de la Concorde
About 25 min
The largest square in Paris has the Luxor obelisk at its centre, with a fountain on either side. Stand by the obelisk to see the straight line from the Arc de Triomphe to the Louvre, then walk into the Tuileries Garden.
Walk, 4 min
13:55
Musée de l'Orangerie
About 1 h 35 min
This small museum at the corner of the Tuileries was built around Monet's Water Lilies, shown in two oval rooms designed for them, with more Impressionist and early modern paintings downstairs. It is a calm, manageable visit to end the day, with the Tuileries Garden outside the door.

Day 2

The Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, Sainte-Chapelle and Notre-Dame

5 stops

09:00
Louvre Museum
About 3 h
The world's most visited museum works on timed reservations, and the plan gives it the whole morning, enough for the Denon wing with the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory and the large French and Italian paintings plus one more section. Leave the rest for another trip rather than rushing it.
Walk, 2 min
12:05
Palais-Royal
About 30 min
Across the street from the Louvre, the square opens onto the Palais-Royal, built for Cardinal Richelieu. Walk through to its courtyard of black and white striped columns and the quiet garden framed by arcades, then cross the river to the Musée d'Orsay.
Walk, 13 min
12:50
Musée d'Orsay
About 3 h
The former railway station on the Left Bank holds one of the largest collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art, from Monet and Renoir to Van Gogh and Cézanne. Start on the top floor, where the Impressionist rooms are, and stop at the great station clock for its view over the Seine before the walk along the river to the Île de la Cité.
Walk, 23 min
16:15
Sainte-Chapelle
About 35 min
This royal chapel was built in the 1240s to hold relics, and its upper chapel is almost entirely walls of stained glass. Entry is through the security check of the Palais de Justice, and it comes late in the day here, so book a timed ticket and check the last entry.
Walk, 7 min
17:00
Notre-Dame de Paris
About 1 h
Notre-Dame reopened in December 2024 after the 2019 fire, and the restored stone and glass make the interior brighter than many visitors remember. Walk around the outside along the river to see the flying buttresses and the rebuilt spire.

Day 3

The Opéra, Montmartre and the Latin Quarter

5 stops

09:00
Palais Garnier
About 1 h
The opera house built under Napoleon III is worth seeing inside even without a performance: the grand staircase, the gilded foyer and, when the auditorium is open, Chagall's painted ceiling. Visits can be limited on rehearsal and performance days, so check before you go.
Taxi, 4 min
10:05
Sacré-Cœur
About 50 min
The white basilica on top of Montmartre has a wide view over Paris from its steps. Inside, look up at the large mosaic of Christ in the apse, then take a short walk through the village streets behind it around the Place du Tertre.
Taxi, 6 min
11:05
Musée des Arts et Métiers
About 1 h 40 min
One of the oldest museums of science and technology in Europe, partly set in a medieval priory church where early aeroplanes hang in the nave and a Foucault pendulum swings. It is an unusual, easy-going visit after the morning's monuments.
Taxi, 6 min
12:55
Panthéon
About 35 min
The neoclassical temple on the hill of Sainte-Geneviève is now a national mausoleum, with Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo and Marie Curie buried in the crypt and a memorial to Josephine Baker. Under the dome, a copy of Foucault's pendulum shows the Earth turning.
Walk, 11 min
13:45
Luxembourg Palace
About 30 min
The palace houses the French Senate and is rarely open, so the real visit is the Luxembourg Gardens in front of it, with the Medici Fountain, the central pond and its green chairs. It is the last stop, so take a chair and stay as long as you like.

Good to know

Book timed tickets ahead for the Louvre, Sainte-Chapelle and going up the Eiffel Tower; walk-up queues at these three can be long.
Walk within each area and use the metro or a taxi for the longer gaps, such as the Opéra to Montmartre and on to the Latin Quarter on day three.
Day two pairs the Louvre and the Musée d'Orsay, two very large museums, so pick a few rooms in each rather than trying to see everything.
Several museums close one day a week, so check before you fix which day you do what.
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3 days in Paris: a day-by-day sightseeing plan

Eiffel Tower

Arc de Triomphe

Petit Palais

Place de la Concorde

Musée de l'Orangerie

Louvre Museum

Palais-Royal

Musée d'Orsay

Sainte-Chapelle

Notre-Dame de Paris

Palais Garnier

Sacré-Cœur

Musée des Arts et Métiers

Panthéon

Luxembourg Palace

Good to know

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