Although it isn’t a well publicized fact, Paris is the second largest European city; sitting astride either side of the river Seine it is one of the world’s most popular cities. Paris short stays are very popular and for good reason as it makes a superb location for a romantic weekend; you can never become bored in this beautiful city.

It is known for its wonderful buildings, style, excellent food and wine; it is the home of the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and many other famous tourist attractions. Traveling around Paris is relatively easy for visitors as well as locals; there is a superb underground rail system called the Metro which is efficient and easy to understand.

No visit would be complete without a trip to the top of the almost 1,000 feet tall Eiffel tower; it provides stunning views from the top and is visible throughout most of the city. You can be assured of an even more beautiful sight if you visit in the evening when it is illuminated; if you are really enthusiastic you can take a tour where the guide will tell you how this beautiful tower was built.

A trip down the Champs Elysees is encouraged when you visit Paris as this is the city’s most famous street; it will present you with many famous designer shops and good restaurants. When you visit this region of the city you will see it is a much more select area; it is also where most of the five star hotels are situated but thankfully hotels tend to be cheaper once you move away from the city center.

A trip to would not be complete without a visit to the Louvre museum; it contains almost a third of a million exhibits and is in fact one of the biggest art museums in the world. On a Paris short stay vacation it would be easy to spend entire weekend here; unfortunately it has so many visitors each year that some people are unable to see their favorite works. What makes Paris special is the number of artists that have been attracted to this great capital; these include Monet and Picasso who very fortunately left some of their work here for all to enjoy.

The Arc de Triomphe another famous landmark was built by Napoleon in 1806; the names of his generals are engraved on its surface and another of those ‘must have’ photo land marks. Many people do not know that an observatory was included in the design which affords great views of the surrounding area; it stands in the place where the city’s main avenues begin including the Champs Elysees.

Of course this article can only give a small sample places to visit; although no trip would be complete without seeing these, they are probably best viewed as part of a guided tour, some of which are actually free. A short stay in Paris will definitely be a busy one even if only a few sights are visited; this article has not even discussed the topic of medieval castles and gothic churches which the city has in abundance.