20 Top Things to Do in Paris (2026)

Most "things to do in Paris" lists rank by fame. This one ranks by what actually fits a real trip. The Eiffel Tower and the Louvre are obvious. What's less obvious is how many of them belong on a first visit, how many on a second, and which ones eat a day for very little return.

Twenty picks, grouped by what they're for: the unmissables, the museums worth your time, food and wine, free Paris, neighborhoods, and day trips. Each one links to a deeper guide if you want the full plan.

The 4 Paris anchors most first-time visitors come for

These are the ones that show up in every conversation about Paris, and the ones it's hard to leave without seeing at least once.

1. The Eiffel Tower at sunset, from Trocadéro. The climb is overrated for a short trip; the view of the tower is the point. Trocadéro (Metro Line 6/9) or Pont de Bir-Hakeim give you the postcard angle. Free, photographic, hourly sparkle on the hour after dusk.

2. The Louvre. 35,000 works across three wings. Two and a half hours of highlights (Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, Egyptian galleries) gets you the canonical Paris museum visit. €22 for EEA residents, €32 for everyone else. Book a timed slot on the official site two to three weeks ahead. Full breakdown in our Louvre tickets guide.

3. Musée d'Orsay. Impressionism in a converted 1900 train station: Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Degas, Cézanne, on the 5th floor. Smaller than the Louvre, finer per minute, and the one most first-time visitors enjoy more. €16, Thursday evenings €12. See the Musée d'Orsay tickets guide.

4. Notre Dame Cathedral. Reopened in December 2024 after the 2019 fire. Interior is free with a timed slot booked on notredamedeparis.fr. Slots release a few days ahead and disappear fast. The exterior from Pont au Double is the realistic option if slots are gone. The Notre Dame visitor guide covers timing.

Best museums beyond the big two

Paris has over 150 museums. These are the ones worth a return visit or a second day.

5. Musée de l'Orangerie. Monet's Water Lilies in two oval rooms designed for them. 90 minutes is enough, the painting-to-room ratio is perfect, and it's a 5-minute walk from the Louvre. €12.50 entry, combo with Orsay €20. Orangerie tickets guide.

6. Musée Marmottan Monet. The world's largest Monet collection: over 100 works including Impression, Sunrise, the painting that named the movement. Quiet, in the 16th, and the right pick if Monet is the reason you came. Marmottan guide.

7. Petit Palais. Belle Époque palace, permanent collection always free: Monet, Courbet, Art Nouveau, ancient Greek vases. No booking, rarely busy. One of the best free museums in any European capital. Petit Palais guide.

8. Musée Picasso Paris. Picasso's full career in a 17th-century Marais mansion. Different museum from the one in Barcelona: Paris covers breadth (Cubism, ceramics, late work), Barcelona covers formation. €16, free first Sunday of the month. Picasso Paris guide.

For the longer ranking (Rodin, Cluny, Bourse de Commerce, Jacquemart-André), see our 12 best art museums in Paris. For everything else worth visiting, the Paris Museum Pass makes the maths simpler if you plan four or more museums in two days. Note: the Centre Pompidou is closed for renovation until 2030.

Food and wine: the Paris meal you remember

The food on a first Paris trip is the trip. Don't outsource it to chain bistros.

9. A proper bistro lunch in Saint-Germain or the Marais. Budget 90 minutes, around €30-50 per person with wine. Bouillon Racine (no reservation, classic Paris workers' canteen), Le Petit Cler (rue Cler, casual), or Café Constant in the 7th. Rushing lunch is the mistake.

10. A food tour in Le Marais, Latin Quarter, or Montmartre. 3-4 hours of walking and eating through one neighborhood with a local guide who knows which bakeries and bistros to enter and which to skip. The best food tours in Paris 2026 breaks down the formats: Le Marais for cheese and charcuterie, Montmartre for the village feel, Latin Quarter for the classics.

11. A natural wine bar in the 11th or Pigalle. This is where Parisians actually drink after work. €5-9 per glass, no dress code, food usually small plates. Our best wine bars in Paris 2026 lists the honest picks.

12. A bakery breakfast. Du Pain et des Idées (rue Yves Toudic, 10ᵉ) opens at 06:45 and is one of the few breakfast destinations in Paris worth crossing the city for. The escargot pastries are the order. Skip hotel breakfasts; they're never the version of Paris worth eating.

Free Paris and what to do on a Sunday

Not everything good in Paris is paid. Some of the best things are deliberately free.

13. Walk the Seine from the Louvre to Notre Dame. 25 minutes on foot, mostly along the quays. Free, and the view of the Île de la Cité is the city's most reproduced silhouette for a reason.

14. Promenade Plantée. 4.5 km of elevated railway-turned-garden in the 12th arrondissement. Built 15 years before New York's High Line and still less famous. Open from sunrise.

15. Parc des Buttes-Chaumont (19ᵉ). A 25-hectare park with a lake, a waterfall, and a cave. Locals from surrounding arrondissements treat it as Saturday morning territory. Most visitors never reach it.

For more on free options and Sundays specifically (which museums are free on the first Sunday of the month, which national museums are free year-round for under-26s with EU papers), see free things to do in Paris.

Neighborhoods worth a half-day

Paris is best walked. These are the neighborhoods that reward two or three slow hours instead of a sprint.

16. Le Marais (3rd and 4th). Medieval streets, the Musée Picasso, Place des Vosges, the best falafel in the city on rue des Rosiers, and the highest concentration of independent shops in central Paris. A half-day fits comfortably.

17. The Latin Quarter (5th). Roman amphitheater (Arènes de Lutèce), the Cluny medieval museum, Shakespeare and Company, and the bouillons. Older than anything north of the river. Skip the rue de la Huchette tourist trap and walk one street back.

18. Montmartre and Sacré-Cœur. Sunday or early weekday morning only. Saturdays the village turns into a portrait-painter trap. The view from the basilica steps is free; the funicular runs on a Metro ticket. Walk down via rue Lepic for the boulangerie that Amélie was filmed in.

The honest one-day plan

If Paris is one day, accept the trade-offs. One museum, one neighborhood walk, one sunset, one long dinner. The hour-by-hour Paris in one day itinerary maps it out: Louvre at opening, Tuileries walk, Saint-Germain lunch, Orsay or Orangerie, Seine walk, Eiffel at sunset, dinner in the 7ᵉ or 6ᵉ. Pre-book the museum slot the day before. Walking up at 10:00 without a ticket costs you the morning.

Day trips worth a full day

If you have more than three days, a day trip is the highest-leverage way to spend the fourth.

19. Versailles. 45 minutes by RER C from central Paris. Palace plus the gardens fills a comfortable half-day; serious visitors add Marie-Antoinette's hamlet for a full one. Versailles tickets guide 2026.

20. Champagne (Reims or Épernay). 45 minutes by TGV from Gare de l'Est. The right day trip if you want a structured tasting at a major house plus a town walk. The Champagne day trip from Paris guide covers Reims vs Épernay and which houses to book.

A bonus pick if you have a fourth full day: Bordeaux. TGV 2h05 each way, possible as a day trip and better as an overnight. Our Bordeaux day trip from Paris guide breaks down when the day trip works and when it doesn't.

Frequently asked questions

What are the top things to do in Paris on a first trip?

Four anchors fit any first visit: the Louvre or the Musée d'Orsay (pick one, not both), Notre Dame from the outside or with a free timed slot, the Eiffel Tower at sunset from Trocadéro (not climbed), and one long Paris meal. Everything else (Marais, Latin Quarter, Montmartre, day trips) is a second or third day.

How many days do you need in Paris?

Three is the honest minimum to see the main sights without sprinting. One day forces hard cuts (one museum, one walk, one sunset). Four to five days lets you add a Versailles or Champagne day trip and a slow neighborhood morning in Le Marais or the Latin Quarter.

What's the best free thing to do in Paris?

The Petit Palais. Permanent collection (Monet, Courbet, Art Nouveau, ancient Greek pottery), always free, no booking, open Tuesday to Sunday, and rarely busy. Notre Dame's interior is also free with a timed slot booked on the official site, and the exterior view from Pont au Double costs nothing.

Is the Eiffel Tower worth climbing?

Not on a short trip. The climb burns two to three hours, the line at the elevators runs 45-90 minutes after sunset, and the photo most people actually want is the tower itself, best seen from Trocadéro or Pont de Bir-Hakeim. Climb it on a second or third visit, not the first.

Is the Centre Pompidou open in 2026?

No. The Pompidou closed in September 2025 for a five-year renovation and is targeted to reopen in 2030. Pompidou-Metz (90 minutes from Gare de l'Est) shows rotating selections from the main collection. The new Pompidou Brussels opens November 2026.

What day trips are worth it from Paris?

Versailles is the obvious one: 45 minutes by RER, half a day of palace plus gardens. Champagne (Reims or Épernay) is 45 minutes by TGV and rewards a planned tasting day. Bordeaux works as a day trip on paper but is better overnight. Giverny (Monet's gardens) runs April to October only.