A Paris shopping excursion is a fundamental part of a Parisian vacation Paris, like most European cities, is built around a river.  The Seine, to be precise. Fashion style is organized around the river, believe it or not. In Paris, the Left Bank (Gauche) is the funky, perpetually gentrifying part of the city.   The Eiffel Tower is on the Left. Notice how gauche has come to mean tacky and maybe loud? It just means left in French. The Right Bank (droit) is posh.  It’s where the Louvre, the Presidential Palace and Champs Elysees are located.  The shopping in Paris reflects that cultural divide. Fast fashion will be on the…

Starring Dante the Dog, JuJu, and a Real Live Mummy One of the consequences of living in Los Angeles is that you develop a true fear of temperatures below 60 degrees. Not kidding. We are really bad at sub 70 degree temperatures. Try tearing your drawers apart finding matching socks when you spend your life in flip flops. Never mind remembering gloves, scarves and turtlenecks. It was worth it though because visiting Paris in the winter is a look at the real Paris. There are far fewer tourists. It’s a northern European city, after all, a city with an underground transport system, out of the weather, well-heated museums, and hundreds…

Ten Paris tips to get your Paris vacation started. Fodor’s recently released their “10 Things You Need to Know Before You Go to Paris” list. It is a good article. Here is our own top ten Paris tips list. 1. Dining in Paris – Paris Tips Hot Pick: You do not need to tip when dining in a Parisian restaurant. Enjoy the freedom of not tipping! It is wonderful once you get used to it. I’ve been to Paris over 30 times. It took me at least fifteen trips before I felt fully comfortable not leaving a tip after a meal. There is no reason to wait! When I finally…

Visit the Museum of Aeronautics at Bourget in Paris Since 1975 France’s Air and Space Museum has delighted the world with a host of attractions. The museum was originally situated in Meudon, founded right after WWI. It moved to the Bourget in 1975. Why Bourget? Well it just happens to be the place where Charles Lindburgh landed after his 33 hour flight from Long Island. The Main Gallery, where the oldest aircraft are displayed, offers a collection of over 180 machines giving a complete panorama of the aerospace era, from the original “heavier than air” glider Massiat-Biot (1879) to the Ariane rocket. Connected to the Main Hall is a remodeled…

LinkParis.com is an authorized Rail Europe agency, let us book all of your European rail for you, call us toll free in the US at 1-424-386-5222 or email.  Major Paris Train Stations Paris has six major train stations. If you are traveling outside of Paris or to another country by rail you will indeed pass through one of these six stations. Gare d’Austerlitz, Gare de l’Est, Gare de Lyon, Gare Montparnasse, Gare du Nord, Gare Saint Lazare. Here is a list along with popular destinations each station serves: We offer day tours to many place in France from Paris, see our top five train trips from Paris. Other France Train Information If…

Take a Custom World War One Tour from Paris with Us Though the living memory of World War I has faded, touring the famous sites of the ‘War to End All Wars” is easily done in a day trip from Paris, mostly just little more than a two hour drive. Below are three sample tour itineraries, but we can organize your day any way you like. World War One Tour Option 1 – America in World War I – The Battle of Belleau Wood After the Russians surrendered to the Germans on the Eastern Front, the Axis powers were free to focus exclusively on capturing Paris. France was surely doomed.…

NOTE: ETIAS won’t be active until late 2026. No date has been set yet. What is ETIAS? The European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) is a new pre-travel authorization required for visa-free visitors to 30 European countries, including France. Similar to the US ESTA system, it’s designed to enhance security and streamline border checks. Who Needs ETIAS? Citizens from 59 visa-exempt countries will need ETIAS, including travelers from: When Does ETIAS Start? ETIAS will become mandatory in late 2026. The EU will announce the exact date several months in advance. Key Details: What You’ll Need to Apply: Important Notes: More information at the official ETIAS website. Check out our…

Get to know the French rail system If you have never been to France before, understanding the French rail system seems a bit overwhelming.   At home, we are used to taking our car on long journeys, or using a nimble carrier like Southwest Airlines or Alaska to get to a regional city.   Although Easy Jet and others have made inroads, Europe is fully committed to rail, and then some.  Getting between most European cities by rail is easy, and often faster than air travel, because you don’t have to go way out of town to the airport, wait for security and otherwise be hassled, as with air travel. For example, Eurostar…

A chronicle of a one day visit from Paris to the Loire Valley When I was a kid I considered Europe to be a place where knights and damsels and castles were still the way people lived, with some peasants picturesquely gathering wheat in the background of a jousting tournament.  There was definitely a guy with a lute hovering nearby. How that exactly makes sense given you have to take a plane to get there, well, that is kid logic.  The Europeans don’t take planes.  We do! It’s a big Medieval Times restaurant, right? You could just about think that on a trip to the Loire Valley, which has 300…

The Founding of Paris Long before it became the “City of Light,” Paris began as a humble settlement founded by the Celtic Parisii around the 3rd century BC on the marshy banks of the Seine. Centuries of strife with Roman legions led to Julius Caesar’s conquest in 52 BC, embedding the fledgling city—then called Lutetia—firmly under Roman rule. By 508 AD, the Frankish king Clovis I consolidated Gaul and chose Paris as his capital, honoring the Parisii who first recognized the promise of this strategic island on the Seine river. Over the Middle Ages, Paris flourished. Construction of Notre Dame began in the 12th century, and the Sorbonne opened in…