Paris in 3 Days: An Itinerary From Two Paris Locals' Video

On a first visit, three days in Paris can cover the Louvre and the Right Bank landmarks on Day 1, Notre-Dame, Sainte-Chapelle, the Left Bank and the Eiffel Tower on Day 2, and Montmartre on Day 3, with Versailles as an alternative full day. That is the plan Les Frenchies recommend in their video guide, and because each day stays in one part of the city, you are not crossing Paris back and forth.

Below is their route stop by stop, built only from what the creators show and say, with links to the moments in the video where each stop appears.

How Les Frenchies built this 3-day Paris itinerary

The source is The Perfect 3-Day Paris Itinerary (Built by Locals, Tested on Tourists) by Les Frenchies, published in February 2024. Their goal is the itinerary they wish they had on a first trip: not overpacked, realistic about jet lag and without missing the essentials. In the video, Colleen walks through each day.

A few things to know before you follow it:

• Hotel location matters less than you think. The attractions are spread out, the creators say, and with taxis, ride-hailing and the Metro, you can get around easily wherever you book.
• The days are long. On Day 1, they say 20,000 steps is not unusual, so good walking shoes are essential.
• The video gives an order, not a schedule. There are no set times, so the tables below list stops in sequence.
• Some links are affiliate links. The video description says so, which is worth knowing when weighing the tours and tickets it points to.

Each day stays in one area of the city, the same idea our guide to planning an itinerary by neighborhood is built on.

Day 1: The Louvre to the Arc de Triomphe

Start at the Louvre, the world's largest art museum and home to the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the glass pyramid. The creators note it now limits visitors per day, so book a timed ticket or, better, a guided tour.

After lunch, walk to the Palais-Royal, Louis XIV's childhood home, then through the Tuileries. Depending on when you visit, the garden hosts a summer fair and what the creators call the largest Christmas market in Paris. Place de la Concorde comes next: the largest public square in the city and the site of guillotine executions during the French Revolution, including Marie Antoinette's.

Walk along the Seine to Pont Alexandre III, which the creators call the most photographed bridge in Paris, then pass between the Grand Palais and Petit Palais to the Champs-Élysées. It is full of luxury shops and very expensive, so check the menu before you sit down. The Arc de Triomphe stands in the middle of a huge intersection, reached by an underground walkway, and the creators say the view from the top is worth the trouble.

Day 2: Notre-Dame, the Left Bank and the Eiffel Tower

Skip the hotel breakfast and pick up a chocolate croissant from the nearest bakery. The creators' tip is to look for one labeled artisanal, which they say means higher standards of quality and freshness.

The video was filmed before Notre-Dame reopened in December 2024 after the 2019 fire, so it doesn't show the interior. Entry to the cathedral is free, and you can book an optional free time slot on the official Notre-Dame site, which warns that guides and agencies cannot sell entry tickets. Climbing the towers is a separate visit with a paid ticket (€16 as of October 2026), booked through the Centre des monuments nationaux. Nearby Sainte-Chapelle is small but known for breathtaking stained glass; you need a ticket, and the creators suggest buying it in advance.

Grab lunch on the way to the Jardin du Luxembourg, planning ahead to avoid tourist traps. The garden has the Medici Fountain, a sailboat pond, places to play and one of the city's Statue of Liberty replicas, and locals come here to nap, read or people-watch. Then walk about 10 minutes to Le Bon Marché, where the creators say the real draw is the Grande Épicerie food hall and its desserts.

From there, it is a 20-minute walk to the Eiffel Tower, or take the Metro from Sèvres-Babylone to La Motte-Picquet-Grenelle. Rest or picnic on the Champ de Mars lawn, and buy tickets in advance if you want to climb. Then cross the bridge to the Trocadéro terrace for the classic view. The creators suggest dinner on the Eiffel Tower side of the river.

Day 3: Montmartre and a final evening

Montmartre is the bohemian part of Paris: the setting of the film Amélie, with street artists, the Moulin Rouge, Sacré-Cœur and Place du Tertre. The creators say the best way to experience it is on foot, and warn of stairs and cobblestones.

1. Start with a walking food tour. They suggest beginning the day with one to taste the neighborhood with a local guide. Their favorite is run by Vincent, whom they introduce as Antoine's brother, so weigh that family connection.
2. Stay on the hill afterward. Get a sketch done by an artist in Place du Tertre and listen to music on the Sacré-Cœur steps.
3. Visit Sacré-Cœur. There is no entrance fee, but expect a line. For a small fee, you can climb to the top of the dome, a view the creators say is really worth it.

For the last night, the creators suggest some downtime and packing before a special dinner, ideally with a view of the Eiffel Tower lit up. Their ideas include an upscale dinner cruise on the Seine, a restaurant at the top of the Montparnasse Tower, a Michelin-starred restaurant such as Joël Robuchon, or a show at the Moulin Rouge.

Alternative day: Versailles

The creators offer a day at Versailles as a swap for any of the three days, and they schedule nothing else but dinner that day. Start early, since the palace is outside the city and gets very crowded, and book a timed ticket, especially in the busy May to September season.

What the creators recommend

• A timed ticket or guided tour at the Louvre.
• The view from the top of the Arc de Triomphe.
• An artisanal bakery breakfast instead of the hotel buffet.
• Sainte-Chapelle's stained glass.
• A slow break in the Jardin du Luxembourg.
• Desserts at La Grande Épicerie.
• Montmartre on foot, ideally with a food tour.
• A guided tour at Versailles.

What the creators say to skip

• Overpacked itineraries. The video opens by warning against unrealistic, overpacked plans.
• Pricey terrace cafés and dinners on the Champs-Élysées. Check prices before you sit, and eat a little away from the avenue unless you want an expensive meal that may not be worth it.
• Tourist-trap lunches near the big sights. On Day 2, they suggest you plan lunch ahead.
• Relying on the free Versailles audio guide. Colleen says she couldn't figure out the instructions and recommends paying for a guide.

They also warn that you may meet pickpockets and scammers around the Eiffel Tower and Trocadéro, so keep valuables close there.

Check before you go: the video was filmed in early 2024, and opening hours, ticket rules and visitor limits at the Louvre, Notre-Dame, the Eiffel Tower and Versailles change. Confirm them on the official sites before you book.

Turn this video into your own plan

Les Frenchies' video is one of the picks in our roundup of YouTube travel guides worth planning a trip around. The video gives the order of stops but no times or costs, so a natural next step is to turn this same video into a plan tailored to your own trip on Vidtrip: pick your trip length, budget, pace and interests, and get a day-by-day plan with times, costs and the creators' picks linked to the video. To do it yourself, our guide on how to plan a trip from a YouTube video covers the manual method.