First visits to Paris go wrong in predictable ways. Not badly — Paris is hard to ruin — but in ways that cost time, money and the feeling of having been somewhere rather than through it. Most of these mistakes are made before the trip, while planning.
Trying to see everything
The most common mistake, and the one that causes most of the others. A list of twenty sights over three days turns the trip into a relay between queues. You see each place briefly and none of them properly.
Choose fewer things and give them time. The visitors who come home happiest are rarely the ones who saw the most.
Staying near the Eiffel Tower
It seems logical: stay near the symbol. But the area around it is residential, quiet in the evening and far from much of what you will want to see. You will visit the tower once. You will return to your hotel every night.
Stay central — near the river, the Marais or Saint-Germain — and visit the tower.
Not booking ahead
Several major sites now work on timed reservations. Arriving at the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower or Versailles without one, in high season, can mean hours in a queue or not getting in at all.
Book the two or three things that matter most before you leave. Leave the rest open.
Eating next to the monuments
The restaurants with laminated menus in five languages, a photo of each dish and a waiter at the door inviting you in are not where Parisians eat. Walk two or three streets away from any major sight and the food improves while the prices fall.
Forgetting that museums close
Several major museums close one day a week, and not all on the same day. It is a small detail that ruins a carefully planned morning. Check each one before you fix the order of your days.
Expecting to eat whenever you want
Many restaurants serve lunch and dinner at set times and close the kitchen in between. Dinner often starts later than visitors from some countries expect. Plan around it — or use the cafés and bakeries that serve all day.
Skipping the greeting
In Paris, you say bonjour when you walk into a shop, a café or a bakery, before anything else. It is not a formality. Skip it and the exchange that follows will feel colder than it needed to. It is the smallest thing on this list and it changes the most interactions.
Buying from the people who approach you
Tickets, "skip-the-line" passes, petitions, bracelets, games on the bridges. If someone approaches you near a major monument with something to sell or sign, walk on. Buy tickets only from official sites and counters.
Using taxis for short distances
Central Paris is compact. Many journeys that look far on a map are fifteen or twenty minutes on foot, and walking is how you actually see the city. Keep taxis for luggage, late nights and tired legs.
Who this does not suit
If you have been to Paris before, most of this is familiar. Your mistake is more likely to be repeating the first trip instead of discovering a different city.
If you are travelling with young children, add one more: planning the day like adults. One major thing a day, and a park.
What we do not know yet
We do not publish opening days, reservation rules or ticket prices. They change and must be checked on each site's official page.
What does not change is the pattern: fewer sights, booked ahead, central hotel, meals away from the monuments — and bonjour every time you walk through a door.