Visiting any capital city is bound to be relatively costly. Paris, in particular, tends to be renowned for its high prices. However, believe it or not, if you’re savvy with your spending, there are ways to make a trip to the French capital affordable! The key to saving some of your hard earned and converted Euros is organisation and local know-how. Luckily, that’s where we can come in to help. Here are some sage money-saving tricks to make the trip of a lifetime to the City of Lights just a touch more affordable.
Accommodation
Where you stay can make or break your trip. We all know that. After all, you want your accommodation to be clean and comfortable at the least. So it’s not surprising that people are reluctant to opt for budget hotels. However, you don’t need to turn your back on anything that falls below five stars. In fact, you probably better start looking around because the five-star places in Paris are a fortune! Simply reading through reviews, recommendations, and previous customer comments on any given accommodation can help you to clear the good from the bad. Generally speaking, when it comes to Paris, no matter how much you pay, many hotel rooms will be tiny thanks to the characteristically small allocations for living space in the inner city. So you may be best off looking for an apartment. This will give you the most space for your cash, allowing you to actually stretch out and relax when you return in the evenings and are getting ready in the mornings. Visit this site for property info: https://www.myparisapartments.com.
Transport
Sure, you can get taxis in Paris, the same as everywhere else. Uber is alive and kicking in the city. However, you will save a lot of money (and often time) by using the Metro and RER: Paris’ brilliant public transport systems. They are specially designed to get locals and tourists alike to some of the region’s most famous and frequented locations, so no matter where you want to go, there will be a simple and fast route there and back. At the moment, trips around central Paris are just €1.90 each journey, which is much cheaper than many other capital cities offer.
Museums and Cultural Hotspots
You can save so much money when visiting Parisian museums with just a little inside knowledge. If possible, save your museum trips until the first Sunday of each month, when entry to all museums in the capital is completely free. Sure, you may find yourself trying to fit a lot in, but you will save a small fortune in entry fees. If you’re under 26 and an EU citizen, you can gain free access to the museums on any given day at any given time during opening hours, so make sure to take your passport or other proof of ID with you! Also look out for discounts at other attractions. Places such as the Eiffel Tower offer discounted rates to individuals under 24, students, the elderly, and other commissions. It’s always worth asking before paying the full sum.
Disneyland
Now, we’ve saved a special section aside for trips to Disneyland Paris. Why? Well, because Disneyland Paris is essentially a world of its own, working outside of the parameters of the rest of Parisian life.
Entry
Before you consider going to Disneyland, you need to decide whether you’re solely going to be spending time at Disneyland or will simply be adding a day trip to the theme park onto your existing trip to the French capital. If you’re going for a Disney-only trip, you could benefit from booking well in advance of your intended stay. Promotions frequently pop up offering outstanding deals, and you can save huge amounts of money by engaging with them. If you’re planning on going to Disney for the day, you don’t need as much pre-planning. However, rather than paying for your entry on the door, buy tickets online. While adult entry on the door can reach up to €100, online tickets can go for as low as €35.
Accommodation
The next thing to consider is where you will be staying. Now, there are huge benefits to staying within the park in one of the on-site Disney hotels. First of all, if you’re going to Disneyland, we assume you love Disney and will revel in the themed decor. It’s also handy to have somewhere nearby where you can leave your bags, as there’s no storage for luggage should you want to go on any of the rides. However, all in all, you’re looking to spend a whole lot on Disney themed accommodation than you would spend staying off-site. If you’re looking to save, staying off-site is definitely the way to go. There are plenty of brilliant, high-quality hotels nearby, which often prove cheaper than staying in more central locations of Paris (Disney lies on the outskirts of Marne la Vallee). Transport links are brilliant (as we will discuss below), so getting to and from the resort should be no hassle at all.
Transport
Transport around Paris is some of the best that there is, and this doesn’t change as you start to reach the outskirts where Disneyland is located. In fact, you can even get the Eurostar directly to Disneyland Paris from the United Kingdom! That’s how far the world-renowned brand has gone to ensure easy and fast access to the attraction. Wherever you are, simply look for the A line of the RER and jump on to Marne-la-Vallee Chessy. It’s as simple as that! The bonus? The RER is cheap, so won’t hit your pockets hard in the same way that calling a taxi might.
Dining
Once you arrive in Disneyland, things get pretty expensive pretty fast. Food is no exception to this. The variety of food on offer around the park isn’t massively extensive. In fact, it’s exactly what you’d imagine: popcorn, candy apples, crepes, cakes, and waffles. The kind of stuff that kids and grown-up kids alike love. But you’ll be charged a pretty penny for what (at the end of the day) are mass produced, relatively low quality, sugar-filled goods. If you don’t fancy splashing out on this (or have multiple hungry little mouths to feed while you’re in the park), you might want to consider taking some snacks of your own in. Disney policy allows this. You simply can’t take too much. While this description is vague, it essentially means no picnic hampers stuffed with meals. There are plenty of eateries on site where you can get a large meal, but again, this will prove expensive, so you might prefer to take your main meals off-site.
As you can see, there are plenty of expenses to bear in mind when it comes to visiting the French capital. However, if you’re sufficiently organised, book in advance, and always ask whether discounts or concessions are available, you could save a lot of money throughout the duration of your trip. You can put your saved cash aside for some chic souvenirs!
