How I did it: Since I was unemployed at the time and had been for a while (damn economic recession), I thought it would be impossible for me to actually do it. Boy was I wrong! I got a cheap flight with RyanAir from a secondary airport, which cost only £10 each way and went for a week! Found a cheap, clean hotel near to transport links in Montmartre, ate picnics out of supermarkets for lunch and had cheap drinks in the evenings. It IS possible to have a fairly cheap holiday in Paris, despite it being such an expensive city! Now I know where I want to move to when I get some money together, and even just as a holiday it is incredible.

Lessons & tips:

• Search online for a cheap flight, there are plenty out there
• Make sure you research your hotel fully, Paris has a reputation of having unclean hotels and bad service.
• Coffee and alcohol are charged at different prices depending on whether you want to sit inside or outside, the trick is to go up to the bar/counter and pay for an inside drink, then simply take it outside.
• If you plan to use the metro a lot, buy a Carnet, 10 tickets in one, it works out cheaper.
• When visiting Versaille, buy a combined train and entry ticket, it's much cheaper that way and you avoid long queues
• Get to the Louvre as early as possible as it WILL take you the whole day to see it all
• Use cheap supermarkets such as Champion or Leaderprice for picnics, the food is actually really good
• Use the Key Guide: Paris book for walking tour ideas around various areas, you see the areas you wouldn't normally see as a tourist and find cheaper restaurants and pubs that way (no jacked up tourist prices)
• Coffee with milk is much more expensive, I recommend just getting black coffees
• Make an effort to speak as much French as you know, however little that might be. The French people have a reputation for being rude, but I've found that it's only the case if you don't make even a vague effort to speak their language
• Look in your guide book and the internet for areas to avoid, some parts of Paris are dangerous, such as the Tuileries gardens at night
• It might be expensive, but take a boat tour on the Seine, you won't regret it!
• Make the most of the city, there's so much to see!

Resources: Key Guide: Paris

Dec 05, 2008, 09:14AM PST | 3 comments | 6 cheers