There are some great suggestions in this article on how to save money in the City of Light. Many are the obvious with lots of picnics and cheap enjoyment of the outdoor museum that surrounds you. However, the issue isn’t whether it’s possible as a parlor stunt, but how could you have a fulfilling Paris experience while skipping most of the things around you.

It’s hard to imagine a once in a lifetime Paris vacation spent entirely outside while trying to avoid museum fees, but there is a free Sunday of the Louvre. There are plenty of places to go (Tuilleries, Jardin de Luxembourg, Notre Dame, Sacré Coeur) that don’t cost a dime.

Best advice if you really want to stick to this budget: get a hotel outside the city on the RER line and zip in in the morning and go back out to sleep. Basic hotel rates will eat the majority of your budget if you stay within the city limits.

Paris on Less Than $100 Per Day

[From Paris on Less Than $100 Per Day: Enjoy the City Without Breaking the Bank | BootsnAll Travel Articles]

The “soldes” are here!

Starting Jan. 7, storming the barricades will take on a whole new meaning in Paris.

That marks opening day of this year’s winter “soldes” (sales), five weeks of frenzied bargain-hunting for the perfect Azzaro cocktail dress or the normally unaffordable monogrammed Noël bed linen — at between 30 and 70 percent off.

[From Globespotters - Paris Goes on Sale - NYTimes.com]

It’s been a long, long time since anyone told an American that “it’s like Paris is on sale,” as they did in the eighties. Even with the recent temporary drop in the Euro, no one said sale. They just said less “pénible.”

Sales occur in Paris, of course, year around, but under French law, retail stores can only run public sales with big “SOLDES” banners only for several weeks in January and July.

The New York Times offers this added advice for the Paris sales:

• arrive early; don’t shop with a parent, spouse or child; eat a hearty breakfast; wear loose clothing and sensible shoes.
• Negotiate the hotel rate. Even discounted prices can come down.
• Think French. The lowest price isn’t always the best deal. Buy one glorious luxury item that will last forever.
• Pre-shop the sales. Do a dry run and check out the layout of the stores and the merchandise before sales day.
• Sweet talk the clerks. With charm and some good luck, you may be able to persuade the sales person to extend you the discount on the eve of the sales, or at least to set the longed-for item aside.

Happy shopping (as if as an American, you actually have any cash left to spend)!

When the Pyramid was new, it took literally hours in line to get into the Louvre through the main entrance. The locals knew that many entrances exist and, while not as I.M. Pei-extraordinary, almost never have a line. The Louvre has a good map with the four other entrances. This blog recommends the Porte des Lions, but we like the Passage Richelieu. Use whichever is convenient and gets you out of the rain faster.

Line ups can be long at the Louvre
but there are multiple entrances.
The entrance in the glass pyramid
is usually one of the busiest.
We prefer the Porte des Lions.
The last time we went,
there wasn’t a line up at all.

[From Daily Photos & Frugal Travel Tips » Blog Archive » Entrances To The Louvre, Paris, France]