My day trip to Paris

I and a friend will be in London in September and very much want to plan a day trip to Paris. We hope to arrive in Paris about 9:00 a.m. and return to London on the lastest train that eurostar has scheduled. I have taken from a guide book an itinerary of sights to see that includes the following: Tour Notre-Dame and Sainte-Chapelle; Arc de Triomphe; walk down the Champs-Elysees and through the Tuileries Garden; tour the Louvre and ending at the Eiffel Tower with time to asend and take in the view. My question is, since this is our first trip to Paris, is the Metro easy to figure out and easily maneuverable to these sites for first-timers, or should we depend on a taxi? I have also looked into a L%26#39;Open tour bus as an option since one of the stops is the Gare du Nord train station. Since our time is limited I want to make sure we use it wisely.

I would also appreciate some advice as to a restaurant or brasserie where we could enjoy a parisan meal to top of a memoriable experience. I have checked out the website for Le Restaurant Le Coupe Chou located at 11, rue de lanneau, which looks %26quot;magnifient%26quot;. I really would like the advice of two places, one for a late morning/early afternoon meal, as well as an evening meal.

Your reponses are greatly appreciated.

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Although it makes for a very full day, it can be done. You can book the Eurostar yourself or many tour agencies put together package deals wich include a Paris Visite one day Metro Pass. You can also buy a Metro pass at the Eurostar gate in Waterloo Station. Another source for package deals is Lastminute.com.

The Metro is easy if you remember that trains are named by their END destination. Therefore, look for the last station in the direction you want to travel and follow the signs.

L%26#39;Open bus tour gives you a good overview but if you want to save time and beat the traffic, use the metro.

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I highly recommend l%26#39;OpenTour for day trippers. I also recommend that you pop into a bookstore and look at the Lonely Planet guide to Paris. They list a pretty good itinerary for a Paris day trip, and it may be worth it to do the research.

For example, I%26#39;d say the the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysees could be seen from the bus, giving you time to stay on the bus and also see the Opera, Louvre and a few more spectacular bldgs.