But for those looking for a more inspired scenario that won’t evoke images of Tom Cruise proposing to Katie Holmes (at the Tower), here are a few romantic spots to consider, depending of course on you and your partner’s style.

Geting romantic in Paris:
• The best romantic hotels in Paris for budget travelers
• Save big on a fun shopping spree in Paris
• Enjoy a romantic meal without blowing your bank account

Proposing in Paris

Paris Luxe

Brides in white flowing dresses with husbands in tow can be seen along the Pont Alexandre III (pictured, top) taking their photos after their weddings — but why not start the engagement there? When we think of Paris, we think of the Champs Elysée, gold-domed buildings and splendid views of the river. The Pont Alexandre III offers it all.

A bridge over the Canal St. Martin. Photo: Sylvain Bourdos

The most ornate bridge in Paris with glowing globe lights and gilded statues, it’s one of the perfect places to get romantic at night as the Eiffel Tower glitters in the distance and the lights of the boats reflect off the Seine. It’s a jolt of old world glam that never seems to die in Paris.

Bohemian Paris

If you like the idea of something less glitzy but more gritty and real, head to the Canal St. Martin and choose one of the arching bridges for your special moment. The neighborhood is known for many artists and bohemian-bourgeois locals that dress shabby-chic with carefully de-coiffed hair.

The pedestrian bridges have a rustic, quaint feeling that evokes Amélie skipping stones along the still water. Local picnickers along the banks of the canal will surely applaud if your partner says yes and then you can share a romantic meal at the trendy Hotel du Nord, ending the evening with a candlelit dinner among the other bohemian lovers that fill the neighborhood.

Fairytale romance

For something a little more whimsical, head to the top of the Parc Buttes Chaumont. Crowning this little man-made hill is a gazebo fit for Rapunzel that, despite the graffiti, can be a splendid place for the question. The views overlooking the park and the rooftops of Paris are simply breathtaking, like looking upon some far-off kingdom where the animals dress you in the morning. You even catch glimpses of the gleaming white Sacré Coeur basilica to the north.

The tip of the Ile de la Cite. Photo: Tom Flemming

If all goes well, have the picnic and obligatory bottle of Champagne ready to celebrate a fairytale engagement.

Historical Romance

As featured in the 2009 film An Education, the tip of Ile de la Cité overlooking the famous Pont des Arts and the Louvre, can be a very intimate spot to say, “I do” while being surrounded by the best of Paris. It has been a popular place for romance ever since the 1600s when King Henry IV brought his lovers here, which is why the square is called Galant-Vert, an allusion to his many mistresses at an old age.

This historical spot, in the shadow of the Pont Neuf, Paris’ oldest bridge, boasts magnificent views and could be the perfect place to slip the ring on his or her finger.

Fit for a King or Queen

Just outside of Paris in Versailles, the possibilities are endless. It’s not free to enter, but if you’re going to make a special trip to the chateau and its gardens, stop over at the Trianon, Queen Marie Antoinette’s private getaway. The aptly-named Temple d’Amour is a beautiful Romanesque gazebo tailor-made for royal wedding proposals.

Afterward, a romantic stroll through the vast gardens is the perfect way for lovers to steal a kiss, like the countless royals that have courted lovers in days long gone.

Related: 8 fantastic day trips less than an hour from Paris

Your proposals?

So what do you think? Do you have any other ideas for places to pop the question? Propose some more locations in our comments section!

The post Proposing in Paris: 5 romantic spots to pop the question appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

This boater-hat happy place, called La Maison Fornaise, serves up traditional French cuisine on an island in the Seine. Eating at this restaurant, combined with a stroll along the sunlit island and a visit to the attached impressionist museum, is a perfect fix for anyone interested in impressionism and the Belle époque period in France.

But be aware that due to the restaurant’s popularity, it’s important to call ahead and make reservations, even if you just want to grab a drink on the terrasse.

Logistics

Travel time:
25 minutes from central Paris

How to get there:
Take the RER A to Chatou-Croissy

Travel costs:
€4 from Paris RER station Chatelet Les Halles

Other day trips

This is just one of our recommended day trips from our guide to “Fantastic Day Trips less than an Hour from Paris”. Click below to read more:

• Saint Germain en Laye

• The Saint Denis Cathedral and market

• Chateau de Vincennes and Parc Floral

• Chateau Malmaison

• Parc de Sceaux

• Saint Maur des Fossés

• Drink, dance and boat along the River Marne

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Now a summer in Paris institution, this year’s Paris Plages runs from July 20 to August 18, at the original site on the right bank near the City Hall and the Bassin de la Villette in the 19th arrondissement that opened in 2007. Car traffic is banished and the beaches are open for business and pleasure from 9 a.m. to midnight daily.

In addition to nearly a kilometer of sandy Seine-side beaches, complete with palm trees, lawn chairs and parasols, activities include tai chi and dance lessons, boules and mini golf, live concerts, riverside cafes, a lending library, water-based activities at the Bassin de la Villette and more.

All activities are free and open to the public. Note that topless sunbathing and swimming in the Seine are not permitted.

Photos of Paris Plages from previous years

Walking along the Paris Plages in 2009. Photo: gelinh

The beaches erupt into music and dance. Photo: philippeleroyer

You can even construct a sand chateaux. Photo: cedriccousseau

The plages attract sunbathers and snackers. Photo: passionleica

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While they’re definitely worth shelling out for, there are a few different options to sift through. Here’s our Cheapo guide to choosing the Seine river cruise that’s right for you… and your budget.

Bateaux Parisiens

With departures from both Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower, the Bateaux Parisiens offer the most basic of the “bateaux mouches.” With pre-recorded audioguides detailing the sights along the one-hour trip, it’s a perfectly fine and basic way to experience Paris from the water. Just be sure to go later in the evening or night when there are slightly fewer groups crowding the docks.

At just €13 (€14 from Notre Dame) and €5 euros (or €6) for children, it’s not a bad choice, even if it can feel a bit over-the-top touristy at times.

Vedettes de Pont Neuf

There’s something about having a real human commentating that makes this company seem a bit more interesting, even if the poor commentator might still not have every English conjugation under their belt. The one-hour tour offered by the Vedettes de Pont Neuf are a bit less of a cattle call than the Bateaux Parisiens and leave centrally from their dock off the Pont Neuf. While passing by all of the same monuments, the boats have the added advantage of ending up back at the Pont Neuf, smack in the center of the city.

Deals on their website might allow you to score tickets for €8 instead of the normal €13 ticket price. Pre-buy if possible!

We love the Batobus for its hop-on-hop-off service. Photo: AndyRobertsPhotos

Batobus

My pick for exploring the river, the Batobus is Paris’s water taxi, taking tourists from major attraction to major attraction. Its eight stops include the Musée d’Orsay and the Jardin des Plantes, meaning you can get off and wander a bit before hopping back on to the next dock. Or just grab a spot on the deck and watch the city go by. You can stay on all day if you want! And there’s no pesky commentary in several languages to distract you.

Tickets start at €15, but Groupon can be your friend here!

Canauxrama

While the Seine is the main aquatic thoroughfare in Paris, don’t forget the canal which runs through the east of the city, meeting the river by the Bastille neighborhood. The trendy area is worth a visit from the Canauxrama, the slow-moving cruise that passes through the old lochs and even underground, while offering commentary in several languages. Kids love watching the water rush in and out as the boats pass up and down the canal.

While canal cruises cost €16 for a 2.5 hour cruise, online tickets are reduced to €13.50. For further savings, try Groupon, which regularly discounts the boat tickets up to 50%.

Your favorite way to cruise?

Do you have a favorite way to see Paris by boat? Share your experience with us in the comments section.

The post Paris River Cruises: Which bateaux mouches is the best deal? appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Many travelers opt for Eurostar for its sheer convenience. With a headline travel time of just 2hrs 16mins from the heart of London to the middle of Paris, Eurostar will invariably be the fastest option. Others favor the international rail service for its reasonable fares. Book when tickets first go on sale (four months before travel on the London to Paris route), and you’ll surely catch a bargain.

From edgy and unloved landscapes…

But there is quite another reason why canny travelers bound for Paris are so inclined to hop on Eurostar. This journey has a remarkable cinematic quality. Climb aboard, settle down in a comfortable window seat and just watch.

The departure from St Pancras is a gentle piece of theatre. Then tunnels and light interact, with screenshots of edgy and unloved landscapes in Essex and north Kent. Cut from a scene of the old automobile plant at Dagenham to a late Saxon stone church stranded on the Essex marshes.

… to the garden of England

The train zips under the Thames then over the Medway, suddenly entering a green and pleasant land, a more rural England than we have seen in the first part of our journey. The railway plays cat and mouse with the Downs, here and there diving through tunnels under chalk hills.

Along the way, there are gorgeous scenes of Kentish orchards and pasture land. This is pure therapy.

Flanders fields

On, under the English Channel, and you’ll be in France within an hour of leaving London. Here the landscape has a more expansive demeanor.

Cassel, a magnificently-situated hill town in the distance, is a reminder that Flanders is not totally two-dimensional. Dashing south from Lille, the line cuts through territory defined by its rivers. We bridge the Scarpe and the Somme. This is a journey that evokes memories of too many wars. But it captures too the blessings of peace.

Arriving in Paris

Two hours out of London and we are into the final act. Paris suburbs are pushing north into fields where not so long ago sugar beet was grown.

We surf the city, making tracks for the Gare du Nord. But watch carefully, for just before arriving at the terminal, the River Seine has a minor walk-on role. You’ll catch a glimpse of it on the right as the train cruises south through St Denis.

Just over two hours of pure cinema. And like all good movies, it’s one worth watching time and time again.

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Book browsing along the Seine.

Getting there

The Saint-Michel Metro stop will allow for a little bouquiniste browsing as you make your way. Along with a book, pick up a sandwich at a nearby boulangerie or even a compact but oh so filling crêpe fromage! I’m not the first to propose the tip of the Île de la Cité as the perfect spot for a little pic-a-necking, and I certainly won’t be the last.

The bridge: Pont Neuf

Still curvaceous and fabulous at 403-years-old, the “New Bridge” is actually the oldest standing bridge in Paris. Created by Henri IV, it was the first to be built without houses or shops (i.e., “firetraps”) lining it.

As the king of the original urban re-do, Henri also banned timber construction throughout the city, promoted symmetry in its public architecture, connected the Tuileries with the Louvre, and created Paris’s first city square! Thank Henri’s Place des Vosges for getting the party started in the Marais. Even today, this very stylish square is still a prime place to see and be seen.

Henri IV, avec cheval

As you promenade across the bridge, stop and cool your heels in one of its nook-like bastions. Originally these niches were created for the safety of pedestrians seeking to avoid being run over by passing carriages clattering madly by.

Jolly Green Giant: Statue of Henri IV

The bridge cuts across the island connecting the Right and Left Banks of the river. In its very center, you’ll find a huge bronze statue of Henri IV on horseback. Some folks consider the square around it the very center of Western Civilization. I don’t know about that, but I can vouch for it as a great place to make momentous decisions. See, Cheapos, this is where my paramour proposed to me! (I accepted.)

You’ll find the King’s square directly below. Just follow the steps.

Le Square du Vert-Galant

What’s in a name? Le Square du Vert-Galant

For the love of vitality, admiration, and gossip, Parisians gave the little tear-drop-shaped park the flamboyant King’s nickname, “Vert-Galant,” or “Gay Blade,” since he was larger than life, compassionate, and wildly loved. Mad about music, wine and women, Henri would horse around here with his friends, entertainers, and favorite mistress, Gabrielle d’Estrée. As he liked to say, “Great cooking and great wines make a paradise on earth!”

And speaking of big appetites, this is also where Hemingway relaxed with books, wine, and sausages while watching the fishermen. “They always caught some fish,” he wrote, “and often they made excellent catches of the dace-like fish that were called goujon. They were plump and sweet-fleshed with a finer flavor than fresh sardines even, and were not at all oily, and we ate them bones and all.” For more park ideas, read about our seven favorite parks.

Tip of the Île de la Cité

The tip of the Ile de la Cite

Just beyond the le Square du Vert-Galant, you’ll find the downstream tip of the Île de la Cité. Pick a spot on the stone ledge and then settle yourself down for some smooth bateaux-cruise watching from underneath the weeping willow. I’ve been told that this tree is always the first in Paris to leaf out each spring! Notre-Dame, the Louvre, and the (currently closed) grand magasin Samaritaine pop up like a panoramic all-star photo shoot surrounding you.

Clipping from Hemingway, Cheapos, “There is never any ending to Paris and the memory of each person who has lived in it differs from that of any other.”

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Regardless, there’s quite a bit to be said for the real bridges (“ponts“) in Paris. Join us, as we stroll from the Ile St. Louis to the Eiffel Tower, crossing over some of the city’s best bridges.

A river runs under it

Bicycle man

We start at the Pont Sully (built 1876), at the very eastern edge of the Ile St. Louis. Down below on the banks, this section of the isle is an ideal location for sunbathers on a clear day. After gazing out to the east of Paris, take a stroll westward through what has become one of the city’s most fashionable addresses.

The Pont St. Louis (completed 1970) is a tiny bridge connecting the Ile St. Louis with the Ile de la Cité. It sits in the shadow of Notre Dame, across the street from one of the many places selling the famous Berthillon ice cream (though not the original, at 31 rue St. Louis en Ile). This bridge is prime real estate for musicians and other street performers. On a recent afternoon, a crazy French clown and his amazing trick bicycle entertained a crowd of a few dozen, while a rock band was only too glad to take over once the clown’s show finished.

Everything old is new again

Continuing west off the Ile de la Cité, the next major bridge is the Pont Neuf. Despite it’s name, it’s actually the oldest bridge in Paris, completed in 1607. Just north of the bridge is the Samaritaine department store, closed since 2005 for safety-related renovations. The tip of the island to the west of the Pont Neuf is popular with picnickers. Although alcohol is officially “interdit,” gendarmes tend to look the other way if you pour your beverage into cups and hide the bottle.

Looking towards the Pont des Arts

No cars allowed

Following the Seine west, the next bridge we encounter is the Pont des Arts (completed 1984), an iconic footbridge anchored by the Louvre on one side and the Institut de France on the other. Taking a cue from the bridge’s name, many artists and craftsmen set up shop here to display their creations.

A little ways down is another pedestrian bridge, today called the Passerelle Léopold Sédar Senghor after the first president of Senegal and the first African to be a part of the Academie française. Completed in its latest incarnation in 1999, this bridge arcs right down to the edge of the Seine.

Bridging the gap

The Paris city hall website calls the Pont Alexandre III “Paris’s most elegant bridge.” It can be a little hard to appreciate the fine sculpture work, however, with all the cars and buses roaring up from the Avenue de Maréchal Galliéni. The bridge was built between 1896 and 1900.

Between the Pont Alexandre III and the Eiffel Tower there is not much to see aside from the Passerelle Debilly, a pedestrian bridge built for the 1900 World’s Fair. Still, a walk along the southern bank of the Seine is quite pleasant, as it’s mostly a tree-lined strip of a park.

La Tour Eiffel

Get over it

We have finally reached the Pont d’Iéna (completed 1814), which was originally conceived to commemorate Napoleon’s 1806 victory in the battle of Jena. The bridge is an excellent spot for taking photos of the Eiffel Tower. Across the river, the steps of the Palais de Chaillot are probably the best place to watch the tower’s evening light show that takes place every hour from sunset to 1 AM (2 AM in summer).

Your favorite bridge?

Do you have a favorite bridge in Paris? How about a favorite spot along the Seine? Tell us in the comments section below.

About the author: Liz Webber is a freelance journalist living and working in Paris. She has previously worked for the International Herald Tribune and Budget Travel.

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Boutique or bouquiniste?

Gifts from museum shops or boutiques can be expensive. So, we suggest looking for inspiration at any of the city’s museums or art galleries, and then purchasing your souvenir posters at a riverside bouquiniste.  Similar in look to outdoor newsstands, these green stalls are located along the river Seine and sell vintage magazines and newspapers, as well as old maps of Paris, art reproductions, and French books.

We especially love the colorful turn-of-the-century advertisements for liquor, cigarettes, cocoa, and milk, as well as the cabaret posters of the same era. Most wares will run you less than €10.

Souvenir savoir-faire

The first Seine-side salesmen appeared in the 19th century on quai Voltaire and sold many of the same items you still see sold today. In 1993, President Jacques Chirac created legal standards for the wooden stands. Today, around 250 vendors—bouquinistes—can be found in the city of light. Peppered along the right bank, on Pont Marie, at Quai du Louvre, the left bank, at Quai de la Tournelle, and the original quai Voltaire, they carry cheapo souvenirs in abundance.

We’ve also got a post on 5 gift ideas for less than €5 for some more souvenir tips.

Calling all Cheapos: Do you recommend buying souvenirs from a Parisian bouquiniste? Tell us about your experience below, or suggest another cheap Parisian souvenir!

Also see: Our list of recommended budget hotels in Paris.

The post Paris cheap souvenir: Art posters and vintage books appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Here’s a list of our top five favorite free attractions.

1) Père Lachaise Cemetery

Frédéric Chopin, Guillaume Apollinaire, Honoré de Balzac, Édith Piaf… This cemetery is a “who’s who” of famous names, and not all of them French (Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and other expats are buried there as well). Bring flowers to leave graveside or just stroll the cobblestone paths and well-landscaped grounds. Better yet, take a virtual tour on the cemetery’s web site. Check out Baron Haussmann’s mausoleum! Very schmancy.

Open: Monday through Saturday 8 AM to 6 PM and on Sundays from 9 AM to 6 PM.
Note: When sundown occurs before 6 PM, the cemetery closes at dusk.

2) The Seine and Islands

Man, if this river could talk! It has certainly seen its share of history, revolution, and passing love interests. Take a walk along the Left Bank and browse the local bookseller wares. The Seine’s stream flows to name a few). Cross the Pont-Neuf bridge for an added plaisir and visit Île de la Cité. Behind Notre Dame, cross the Pont St. Louis to visit the charming Île St. Louis.

3) The Eiffel Tower

Now, wait: Before you get all worked up, yes, it costs €11.50 to ride the elevator to the top of the tower. But, it costs rien de tout to take one of those novelty photos where you look like you’re giving it a pinch or kissing its pointer. And, here’s an added bonus: Each night at sundown, the Eiffel lights up the sky until 1 AM (2 AM during the summer months). Each hour on the hour after sundown, there’s a ten-minute light show, too.

4) Victor Hugo House

We first fell in love with Hugo when we read Les Misèrables (we finished it–we swear). Jean Val Jean is like a personal hero. Today, you can visit all permanent collections in Hugo’s first home—at the Hôtel de Rohan-Guéménée, which sits proudly on the gorgeous Place des Vosges in the Marais. Hugo lived here from 1832 to 1848. The collections, which are free to visit, showcase an impressive array of ancient Chinese pottery, original furnishings and beautiful classical paintings. Just don’t steal any bread.

Open: Tuesday through Sunday from 10 AM to 5:40 PM.

5) Sacré-Coeur Basilica

Sit on top of the world, or at least Paris, when you trek up to the glistening white “Sacred Heart” basilica, perched 420 feet above the City of Lights. While it costs €5 to climb up the spiral stairs of the famous white dome, there’s no charge to walk through the gorgeous Byzantine-style Basilica, built in 1875 after the Prussian and German invasions. Afterward, you’re free to traipse through the picturesque streets of Montmartre.

Open: Daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

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