How much does it cost to travel to Paris?
If you've been asking that question,
this video might give you some answers.
Hi, I’m Juhui
I started this channel to share my tips and experience
on how to have a memorable and exciting trip
and how to become an avid traveler.
And today, in this video,
I'd like to talk about
the budget that doesn't break the bank
nor ruin the fun.
Quick heads up,
the budget that I'm going to share today
is optimized for mid-tier travelers
like standard travelers
you know, people like us
But don’t worry if you’re a luxury or a budget traveler,
this video can still be useful.
You can use this as a guideline or reference
to plan where to save more or where to spend more.
So without further ado, let’s get into it.
First of all, let’s talk about flights.
The rule of thumb of getting a good deal on airfares
Number one, you need to avoid traveling during the peak season
which is between June and August.
And number 2, you need to buy a ticket in advance.
However, these are pretty general rules
and they don't always apply to everyone.
For example,
if you have children in school,
I'm sure the most ideal time for you to travel
is during the peak season.
If that’s the case, try to book flights as early as you can
like way in advance.
Because as an early bird
you're almost always guaranteed
to get cheaper rates and more options.
On the other hand,
if you have more unpredictable schedule and spontaneous lifestyle,
you can also take advantage of being a last-minute traveler.
I know it sounds quite risky
to plan an international trip last minute
but sometimes the best deals come to the last-minute travelers
because airlines and hotels wanna get rid of their
unbooked rooms and seats.
Now let me talk about my own experience
and how much I spent on flights.
I traveled to Paris in September last year
which was right after the peak season.
And I started to shop around my flights
about a month before the trip.
And I found this non-stop roundtrip tickets from New York to Paris
for around $500 for economy class.
This ticket included one red-eye flight going to Paris
which wasn't great, but
for the price range that I was going for
it seemed impossible to avoid one red-eye flight.
If you're wondering if I had jet lag
oh yes I did.
If you're curious what to do on the first day in Paris
when you're feeling jet lag,
please check out my Paris 7-day itinerary video
in the link above.
Typically, roundtrip tickets from New York to Paris
would cost between $300 up to $800.
So if you’re seeing a price that is beyond this range,
that is quite unusual.
So you better make sure that you're not overpaying
or you're not risking your life on an utterly cheap flight.
Seriously.
Another cost you shouldn't forget to budget here is
the transportation from and to the airport.
I used Uber
the trip to the airport and back to my place in New York
cost around $75 each time.
And I paid around 50 euros in Paris to travel between the airport and hotel
on Uber.
We had 2 carry-ons which were free-of-charge
but then we had one luggage to check in
which cost $35 each flight.
The total expense related to airfares
comes to be around $1350 for two travelers.
Now let’s move onto the most essential part of planning
the accommodations.
The cost of accommodations can vary dramatically
especially in a city like Paris.
I'm sure you've seen some photos of bougie hotel rooms
with a balcony open to an unobstructed view of the Eiffel Tower on instagram, right?
Those dreamy suites can cost around $1000 per night.
At the same time, you can stay in Paris for 50 bucks per night,
if you don’t mind staying in a youth hostel in a less desirable neighborhood.
As for mid-tier travelers like us,
you can either stay in a boutique hotel or an airbnb apartment
in a downtown area of Paris for around $150 - $200.
I stayed both in a boutique hotel and an airbnb apartment.
Here're the reasons why I loved staying in a boutique hotel.
Boutique hotels in general are cheaper than standard hotels
because they don’t come with full amenities.
I mean I don’t care much for hotel amenities.
If anything, I'd like to stay in a more vibrant neighborhood
where I can just go out and stroll around day and night
and explore the city like a local Parisian.
It's just one block away from our hotel.
The good thing about boutique hotels is that
they're mostly located in vibrant, trendy neighborhoods
such as Le Marais
where you can find diverse food,
art galleries, chic shops
and even landmarks.
So if you're interested in staying in a boutique hotel in Paris,
here's your quick tip.
Search newly open boutique hotels in Paris.
Because they might have a special price for their grand opening.
That being said,
there's one downside with staying in a boutique hotel in Paris.
Like any other buildings in Paris,
boutique hotels have very small rooms
which aren't ideal for longer stays.
Let's say if you're staying for more than 3 days in Paris
I think you're better off renting an airbnb apartment
in a quieter area of downtown in Paris
so you can have more space and more privacy.
Staying in a airbnb apartment in a quieter downtown such as the Latin quarter
allows you to travel at your own pace.
For example, you can have a cup of coffee in the morning in your pajamas,
before heading out to an intense adventure in Paris.
And that's a great perk.
The bottom line is
how much did I spend on both accommodations.
Interestingly,
the hotel and the airbnb
cost about the same.
They were both around $150 per night.
So my husband and I spent another $1350
for accommodations.
Next let's talk about food.
If you are traveling to Paris
you know that you will spend some money on food
because if not Paris where else?
I mean seriously
Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to go out for every meal
but you definitely don't want to miss out on eating well while in Paris.
So, this is what we did.
Our maximum budget for food was $100 per person per day,
I'd like to emphasize that it was the maximum budget.
We didn't always spent up to $100 a day.
This budget allowed us to eat pretty well. For example,
we're able to eat at a restaurant with a glass of wine
or a huge plate of oysters with a nice bottle of wine
and we were able to eat at a cafe
we'd order a galette or savory crepes
we also had some nice pastries and nice desserts all in one day.
At the end of the day,
we didn't feel like we had such a lavish trip
but at the same time
we were able to enjoy ourselves
diverse French cuisine and
delicious pastries and awesome wine that Paris has to offer.
In total, we spent less than $1800 for two people
Lastly,
there will be some miscellaneous fees
such as museum fees, boat tour fees local transportation etc.
One question I got often asked was
whether or not I bought the museum pass in Paris.
The short answer is I did not.
Because I didn't wanna go to more than 2 museums while in Paris.
I mean this is kind of a hard-learned lesson for me.
The first time I went to Berlin
I was so enthusiastic about hitting all the museums
especially the Nazi ones.
Of course it was rewarding to learn all the history
but at the same time
I realized all the memories and the knowledge started to get mixed up in my head
and I definitely regret that I didn't spend enough time outdoors.
Unless you're a big museum goer
or a huge history buff
I don't think you wanna spend too much time in museums when you're in Paris.
Another question I got often asked was
how I got around in Paris.
I mostly used Uber.
Because, to my surprise, Uber was almost the cheapest way
to get around.
Since I was staying in very convenient locations
such as Le Marais and the Latin Quarter,
most Uber rides cost us only 6 euros.
That's like 3 euros per person.
I think subway might be cheaper than that
but considering the convenience of a Uber ride,
3 euros per person was totally worth it.
I also didn't move around a lot within a day.
So once I arrived at the main area to explore
I walked around a lot.
In other words, I didn't take Uber for 5 times a day
but more like twice or three times a day.
This is why it's so important to make an itinerary for Paris trip
because Paris isn't small
and you definitely wanna minimize the moving distance throughout the day.
That being said, if you haven't watched my 7-day Paris itinerary video,
please do so because it will definitely help you plan your Paris trip better,
Total amount I spent on these miscellaneous items was around
$400 for two travelers.
One thing I'm not gonna go in details in this video
but something that you definitely wanna consider in budgeting your trip is
shopping.
I mean Paris is the best and cheapest city
to buy luxury goods.
So I did it.
So the total amount we spent on our 9 nights and 10 days Paris trip was
$4,900 for two travelers.
Do you think we spent too much or too little?
Let me know in the comment below.
Also if you have any questions about Paris trip,
feel free to comment below as well.
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Thanks for watching. I'll see you next week.