Day Trip to Paris from London

Today I want to share my guide to how to take a day trip to Paris from London. This is one of the best day trips from London if you love the UK and France in equal measure. Getting to Paris from London is easy, and spending a day in the French capital is a lot of fun. Read on for my guide to how to take a day trip from London to Paris. It has helpful information on how to get there, what to do in the city, and how to make the most of your time in the City of Light.

First things first. This trip is not for the faint of heart. It’s a long day and a lot of traveling. But a day trip to Paris from London is worth it if you have a limited amount of time to see the French capital and you want to get as much out of it as you can.

It can also save you money on things like hotels, and it can spare you having to carry your bags to and from France. In short, there are a lot of reasons to spend a day in Paris.

How to Get to Paris from London

If you want to see the City of Light in a day, the best way to get to Paris from London is by train. In fact, it’s one of my favorite day trips from London without a car.

Taking the Eurostar from London St Pancras International to Paris Gare du Nord is an easy way to get from the heart of the UK capital to the center of the French one. If you book well in advance, tickets can be cheap, too.

The train takes just over 2 hours and 15 minutes to get from London to Paris. If you take the first one of the morning on a weekday you can get to Paris just after 9 o’clock.

The last train departs Paris around 9 o’clock at night on weekdays and Sundays, leaving you with 12 hours to explore the city.

It’s a good idea to stay at a hotel near St Pancras the night before your day trip to Paris from London, as you’ll need to arrive at the station early to check in and go through passport control. You can book one on Booking.com here.

If you’re not staying near St Pancras, make sure to check public transport schedules to see if the tube, train, or bus (or combination thereof) you need to take to get to the station starts running early enough to get you there.

If it doesn’t, you’ll probably want to book a taxi or car service the night before.

What to Do on a Day Trip to Paris

Once you’re in the City of Light, your day trip to Paris from London can begin.

How you spend your time in the city depends on your interests, energy levels, and other factors. I’ll share my ideal itinerary for a day in Paris with you here, and you can modify it to fit your preferences.

Starting at Gare du Nord, you can walk to the Canal Saint-Martin. There are lots of shops, restaurants, and cafes along the Quai de Valmy and around the Jardin Villemin, so it’s a good place to get a meal or snack if you’re hungry after the train ride.

The area around the waterway is an atmospheric place to walk, too. You can stroll all the way down to the Place de la Republique and into the Marais. This historic quarter on the Right Bank is a great place to soak up the local Parisian scene.

There’s lots of good shopping in the Marias, and places like the Place des Vosges are hard to beat when it comes to beauty. L’As du Fallafel is an institution if you want a quick snack or lunch, too.

From the Marais it’s a short walk to the Seine, where you can head over to the Ile Saint-Louis and the Ile de la Cite to see Paris landmarks like the Notre Dame. Ice cream at Berthillon is always a good idea, too.

From there it’s a quick hop to the Louvre, where you can visit the museum or admire it from the outside. The adjacent Jardin des Tuileries is a great green space to take a rest in if you need a break.

After that you can walk or take the metro up to the Champs-Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe, from where it’s a short metro ride or a scenic stroll to the Eiffel Tower.

Your time will probably be up by then, so you can have a quick dinner on or around Rue Cler on the Left Bank and hop on the metro to get back to Gare du Nord for your train to London.

I created a map of the itinerary and walking route, and you can find it here. I hope it helps you navigate the city.

Tips for Day Trips to Paris from London

One day is a short amount of time to see Paris. If that’s all you have, I’ll share my 5 top tips for how you can maximize both your experience and your enjoyment of it.

First, factor in the time of year you’ll be taking your day trip to Paris from London. Days are short and daylight hours few in the winter months, so prepare yourself for darkness.

On the other hand, traveling to Paris in summer will mean daylight during your whole visit. You can check sunrise and sunset times before you book to see how much light you’ll see (or not see) during your day trip.

Second, plan a Paris day trip itinerary and check opening hours for the places you want to visit before you leave London. With such limited time in the city, you’ll want to make sure everywhere you plan to tour, eat, and see is open.

If you want someone else to plan your itinerary for you, you can take a day tour to Paris with GetYourGuide. They offer a full-day luxury day trip to Paris from London and a day trip with a lunch cruise and sightseeing bus tour of Paris.

Third, try not to pack too much into your day trip to Paris. You’ll probably be tired from waking up early to travel, so allowing yourself some time to relax is a good idea. You can always return in the future to see more of the city.

Fourth, research how to get around before you depart. The metro and RER are quick and easy ways to cover long distances in Paris. The same is true for bus tours and boat trips on the Seine. They’ll help you see more than you could on foot.

Fifth, be aware that service in restaurants and cafes can be more leisurely than what you might be used to at home.

It’s a good idea to factor in more time for meals or plan to eat quick ones at markets or street food stalls if you don’t want to spend a lot of your time eating.