France Travel

Are you looking for a hotel that is centrally located, near all the major Paris attractions? Try staying at the Royal Magda Etoile, located in the 17th arrondissement of Paris. You'll find the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Élysées close by.

The staff is friendly, and helpful. No matter what you plan on doing while you're in Paris, they will provide assistance to make your stay a pleasant one. If you want to relax, this is the place to do it - a comfortable lounge awaits, along with well appointed rooms and suites. Offering 37 guestrooms, as well as 10 suites, the rooms are equipped with telephones, mini bars, desks and satellite TV. Plus, every room has a bathroom - no sharing necessary!

This hotel is obviously very beautiful; some people claim it’s one of the nicest they have seen in Europe, for the price. It's also convenient that so many restaurants are close by too. Plenty of choices, no matter what you are looking for. Do you need to wash clothes while you are here? Not a problem - there's a laundry facility within walking distance. The other nice thing? Getting around the city is easy - the underground subway is close by, next to the Arc de Triomphe. After staying at the Royal Magda Etoile once, you'll want to stay here again next time around! Highly recommended.

The Arch of Triumph, the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre are all, in their own right, recognizable symbols of this amazing city. For me, nothing feels and looks more like the Paris of my imagination that Notre Dame.

The cathedral sits in the heart of Paris on the Ile de la Cite amidst the densest sightseeing portion of the city. From the first time I saw it while walking along the left bank, I was enthralled. The cathedral is as awe-inspiring when viewed from across the Seine as it is up close. The west front of Notre Dame is where visitors queue up to enter the cathedral. Take a little time to look at the West Rose Window (dedicated to the Virgin Mary) and the three portals on this side of the building. You could easily spend hours studying the carvings around the portals, the lurching gargoyles perched high on the ledges, and The Kings’ Gallery (the 28 kings of Judah look down from over the main door) without ever going inside. Once inside, make sure to spend some time looking at the South Rose Window and make your way to the Virgin and child statue, Notre-Dame de Paris (Our Lady of Paris), for which the cathedral gets its name. The second time I went to Notre Dame, I paid to view the treasury housed on the south side of the cathedral and was glad I did. This collection is relatively modest (especially by Vatican standards) but nevertheless conveys a sense of how rich the catholic church was…and still is.

No trip to Notre Dame is complete without a walk around to the back (east face) of the cathedral to take it the amazing 15 meter (50 ft.) high flying buttresses.

The Marais district of Paris started as a swamp, was the location of much of medieval Paris, then became a Jewish neighborhood, and now bears a new name: Gay Paris. This old Jewish quarter now synonymous with the gay community is awash wimaraisth great shopping, pleasant bistros, tasty cafes and more than a few museums. The neighborhood is in both the 3rd and 4th arrondissements (districts) of central Paris with the upper Marais in the 3rd arrondissement being the (relatively) quieter of the two.

Shoppers should go to the area around St. Croix de la Bretonnerie to take in not only some of the best shopping in Paris, but also the rainbow-flag-draped streets reminiscent of San Francisco’s Castro area. You can choose to shop at the high-end stores in this area (Martin Grant, Diesel, Yukiko) or wander in and out of the second-hand stores and surprisingly affordable small shops in the area. When you finish, continue on to Rue des Rosiers and watch the bon gout (‘good taste’) transform into another form of good taste: delicious Jewish delis.

If you are keen to get in some sightseeing, Notre Dame, Hotel de Ville (Paris’ City Hall) and the Picasso Museum are all in the Marais area. You can have a tasty breakfast, visit a museum, shop, sip coffee at a café, see Notre Dame, and have a fabulous dinner all in one easy day… all in the Marais.

Just a few miles from Nice, Monaco and Cannes, the tiny town of Villefranche-sur-Mer sits on one of the deepest bays in the Mediterranean. This is the Riviera that you think of when you hear “French Riviera.” In addition to the hills and the remarkably clear, clean Mediterranean water, the town of Villefranche-sur-Mer offers a chance to see some history, visit a chapel designed by Jean Cocteau (a prolific writer, artist, director and surrealist), and hang around some of the most beautiful people on the French coast (which is saying something). The influence of nearby Italy is strong here, so you can enjoy two of the best wine and food cultures in Europe all in one place.

Spend your day at the beach — don’t worry, there really is room for everyone — or take a hike up the hills around town to the fort on Mont Alban to see the stunning view of the ocean with the peninsula of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat stretching out into the blue. Walk around the Promenade des Marinieres, soak in the Mediterranean sun, do some people watching (even the police are tanned, good looking and wearing shorts), and end your walk at the impressive 16th century Citadel which now houses the Town Hall, a few museums and an open air theatre. The old town retains medieval charm so a stroll through the narrow streets makes for a nice afternoon break from the beach… if you need a break from the beach.

The centerpiece of Villefranche is the chapel designed by Jean Cocteau. It features inspired frescos that meld biblical imagery and the idealist bygone life of Villefranche. The chapel sits on the main square in town and is a must-see on your visit.