Paris Rail Day Trip from London

London, United Kingdom

Staying in London but want to see Paris? Travel by Eurostar at a convenient time, to discover the "City of Lights" independently or with a guide. Whether it's the Eiffel Tower you want to climb, or a simple stroll down the Champs Elysees, this tour can fill your Parisian dreams - all in one day.

Independent Paris:
This independent tour to Paris is designed to give you freedom while visiting Paris. Arrive into Paris Gare du Nord and the day is yours to explore Paris. Whilst in Paris you can use your ticket on the Hop-on Hop-off City Tour to see the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysees and more at your leisure. Total independence to see what you want, when you want.

Escorted Paris:
This is a fully escorted day tour. On arrival in Paris you will be met (English speaking guide) at the station for a panoramic tour of Paris to see all the main sights of Paris, and includes a stop at the second level of the Eiffel Tower, before taking a break for lunch. On some occasions, queuing time at the Eiffel Tower may be lengthy. Your guide may suggest a visit to the Louvre Museum or Musee D'Orsay (on Tuesdays) as an alternative. If this happens, you will still see the Eiffel Tower and have time for photographs there instead.

In the afternoon, take a cruise down the famous River Seine. Your Paris guide will meet you after the cruise and will escort you to the Notre Dame for a tour of this magnificent Cathedral. Your air-conditioned coach will be waiting to transport you to the Opera District for a spot of shopping, before returning to the Gare du Nord for the train home.

Standard or First Class Eurostar Tickets:
Tickets will be pre-booked in an air-conditioned carriage. You have the choice of traveling with a standard ticket or upgrade to first class (Eurostar Leisure Select) to enjoy complimentary breakfast and light evening meal, wide reclining spacious seats and selection of newspapers and magazines.

Special Offer - Book online and save 11% off the local price - Book Now!

USD $260.70

Traveler Reviews

Review by: av8bjumpjet	April 2012
This was a dissapointing trip. Our tour guide was very disorganized and did not provide much insight into the various attractions we saw. Felt like we would have been better off on our own._br/_ Tour guide was very difficult to understand. The "guided" bus tour did not meet what was advertised. The recorded commentary did not always coincide with the attractions and was difficult to hear._br/_ The tour guide in Paris was rude and unaccomodating to the members of the tour group. _br/_ Not worth the money and would not recommend to anyone.

Review by: Angy	April 2012
The highlight of our trip. We were treated to all the sights and our tour guide was first-rate. We didn't get to go up onto the Eiffel Tower, but we got to go to the Louvre instead so it was a great trade off. I enjoyed every minute of the day and the guide even made allowances for my disability and not being able to keep up with the group as well as the others. He was very personable and made sure that we had all the information we needed when we needed it and then let us go and do our own thing part of the time. The train trip was great and relaxing and the time spent touring this beautiful city was well worth the money. There was no way we could have found all the things without the help of a guide. We also made it to Notre Dame right at 5 o'clock mass which just made it that much more special. LOVED LOVED LOVED the trip.

Review by: Ruth E	April 2012
Sam was a great tour guide!!

Review by: LeeAnn B	April 2012
I enjoyed this trip although it went quite quickly. Our guide met us upon exit of the Eurostar train and immediately put us on a double decker site seeing tour bus of Paris. We exited at the Eiffel Tower but did not get a chance to go up into the tower. We took a river cruise and then were able to see the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral. It would have been nice to have a tour bus specifically for those on this day trip but at times we had to crowd onto the tour bus with others visiting the city so that could be chaotic. I would probably do this again but it's just too much to see in one day. There was the option of getting down then meeting at the Eurostar at the end of the day, but if you are unfamiliar with the city then I would definitely recommend sticking with the guide. She left us at many points during the trip so that we could see things at our leisure but would give us meeting times and places in order to see the next site on the agenda. If you want to see Paris, you really can't see and enjoy it in one day; if you want to shop, I would not recommend a guided tour, but if you want to take pictures, then this tour gave us good opportunities to do so.

Review by: Phillip R	March 2012
The trip was over rated. We did not get to see the Eiffel Tower. We were rushed through the museum tour, we were rushed through Notre Dame tour, not much time for lunch or souvenir shopping. You would think for the money it would be better organized and not just part of the general Hop-on Hop-off tour. Overall it sucked, and I would not recommend it!!

Review by: Nicki	March 2012
This was an exciting whirlwind tour of iconic Paris. Great weather added to the enjoyment. Our tour guide Sammy took advantage of time saved due to no lines at the Eiffel Tower to get us to both the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral. Thoroughly enjoyable, but the pace and flexibility required to "go with the flow" of the tour guide may not appeal to everyone.

Review by: Sheryl L	March 2012
I had an amazing trip! Samy our tour guide was very informative and friendly.

Review by: George B	March 2012
The tour guide Sam was wonderful. He kept us moving all day and we saw so much. Great taste of Paris!

Review by: Bernadette N	February 2012
was a guided tour well the guide was german not easy to understand. didnt seen to know much also her instructions to meet were un clear. 4 hrs free time is way to long for ppl who have never been to paris. Guided tour is that a guide

Review by: Gary L	December 2011
I thought this was a very good way to see Paris in one day. Our guide Sammy was very good, and with his experience he could get us around faster.

Review by: Chris	December 2011
I would have preferred to have done this trip without an escort. It seemed like we were on our own most of the day anyway. The sights of Paris were fantastic!!!! I could have saved some money by doing it all myself without paying for the escort.

Review by: Antonia T	November 2011
Very comfortable fiirst class rail ride to beautiful Paris...tour guide was nice and friendly...worth every USA penny

Review by: Thomas H	November 2011
Excellent and very well organized day trip to Paris-we had complete freedom to see what we wanted and the hop on hop off bus was superb. The arrangements with the Eurostar were flawless and we were very satisfied with the whole experience.

Review by: Sharna	October 2011
An absolute highlight of my trip! Loved it!

Review by: Corrine H	October 2011
A great way to see Paris in a day. Loved it all, especially the Eiffel Tower.

Review by: ALEXANDRE C	October 2011
Fantastic, everything was ok, and the scorted tour was above my expections

Review by: Robert F	October 2011
Everthing was perfect. We had a small group of five people, from three different countries and we all got along very well. Our guide, Mirjana Stankic, took excellent care of us throughout the trip.

Review by: Faye D	October 2011
Other than not being able to locate the agent at the St. Pancreas station, all went well.

Review by: tyronetrp	October 2011
Quick taste of Paris

Review by: PamJR	October 2011
We got to see everything on the itinerary which was fantastic especially given the crowds, but the tour guide seemed aloof and insensitive to folks in our group who couldn't walk as fast as she wanted. Since this was the third Viator tour I took on this trip, it just didn't measure up to the others.

Review by: William R	September 2011
Sammy was wonderful. He was fun entertaining and very aware at all times of the group. Do not miss the chance to take this tour...especially with Sammy.

Review by: Walter B	September 2011
The guide was top notch and the logistics went well. We were able to see a lot of Paris, and the guide was a font of information. The only negative was that the actual tour operator had the seats assigned on the train all mixed up so that couples traveling together were not seated together and we were unable to figure out a way to juggle the assined seats to fix it. Why would I want to sit next to a stranger when traveling with my spouse? - although for some of you that may be a good thing! If you book this tour, spend a little time to find out the actual tour operator and then find out your seat assignments on the train. Tickets are also available for forward facing or rearward facing seats in the event you have motion sickness issues and don't want to ride backwards at 150 MPH. Take care of yourself regarding seats assignments on the train.

Review by: MARIA L C	September 2011
Excellent. We were picked up at the hotel by a taxi driver on time. There was a nice person waiting at St Pancras station with all the information and tickets. We had a good guide during all the day avoiding queues. We had an excellent day using hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus. We became a good group of 7 persons spending a vey nice day and returned at night as booked.

Review by: Patricia E	September 2011
Unfortunately our guide on a guided tour seemed to think that meant escorting us onto hop on hop off tour buses and getting herself a coffee or talking on her mobile phone while we looked around alone. No information or real plan. Too many sights, no plan for lunch and a 3.30 announcement that we could grab something at the louvre in our 1.5 hours there was ludicrous. Wouldn't opt for this one next time, train easy enough to do on yournown, catch the hop on hop off tour on your own...

Review by: SIANG PING L	September 2011
The visit to each Sightseeing places were very brief. We were asked to paid for our lunch even though we have selected and prepaid the tour with lunch included. Nevertheless, the tour guide in Paris was pleasant and helpful.

Review by: Karen B	September 2011
It was a wonderful experience. I have always enjoyed my viator tours. Our tour guide was wonderful. We needed more time at the Eiffel Tower because it was croweded but overall the experience was great!

Review by: Vee	August 2011
The instructions were easy to follow. We had a free day allowing us to chose the [ace we wanted to take. Great day however one day is quite rushed and not enough time to relax and enjoy the whole experience.

Review by: Warragul	August 2011
A letter is in the mail (email)._br/_ The experience you offered was extremely stressfull and such low standard of professionalism that I will NEVER tour with your company again, will certainly recommending to family and friends donot, My rating minus (-5) 5 stars

Review by: Vincent S	August 2011
First class on the Eurostar was a real treat...good service and the scenery was beautiful. Paris tour our Eiffel was terrific, but whole tour when downhill from there. We were told no time to eat at a table, so grabbed a sandwich only to perch on a bench for an hour. We arrived last to the boat tour of the Seine and had to sit outside in the rain as there were no seats left inside. Then went to the Louvre, but outside only...not even a peek at the Mona Lisa! Then to a shopping mall where they sold high end goods, but could not afford to clean their toilets. Yuck! Our guide (Sammy) took us to Notre Dame and said "have fun" and left. We got to the train station with 2hours to kill before our train...guess he had a hot date.

Review by: Laura L	August 2011
I would give it more stars if I could. My friend and I chose the escorted option and we were very glad we did. We got Sammy as our tour guide and took good care of us from the minute we got off the train, making sure no one was left behind. He was very knowledgeable (since he grew up in the city) and enthusiastic! My favorite part was that we didn't have to wait in line to get up to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. Breezed right past the endless line of people! I got to see all the other landmarks I wanted to go to with plenty of time to look around on your own as well. Definitely would recommend this to my friends and relatives.

Review by: Terel C	August 2011
busy day in paris thank goodness I took the guided tour option. First class eurostar trip as did not have to worry about both breakfast and dinner meals. unfortunately did not tour the second level of the Eiffel tower as line too long according to tour guide.

Review by: Demarco B	August 2011
My only complaint about this tour was that 1 day is not enough to really experience Paris. We did get to see a lot but because of that we didn't spend much time in one place. The time spent on the boat ride would have been better spent at the other locations on the tour. THe hotel pick-up was great... but don't forget about the return trip. I had to book it to catch the last tube train to avoid an expensive cab ride. In addition, make sure you are early to all pick-up points during the tour as a few members of our tour were left behind and had to find there way back to the train station on there own. All in all this was a good tour and i am happy that i did it, but it did have its faults.

Review by: Anonymous	August 2011
Overall, this was a good choice when you have limited time. However, it was often hard to hear the tour guide and for some to keep up with the walking pace. Too much time wasted waiting for a few who were not at the designated place by designated time.

Review by: Rich	August 2011
this was the first of 4 Viator booked side trips during 5 weeks in Europe. pick was on time from our hotel - all well organised and having someone get tickets and bypassing long lines was well worth it.

Review by: LUIS F	August 2011
Paris is always nice, guide did a good job of explaining and answering questions.

Review by: Ricky C	July 2011
A lot to squeeze in one day, but it can be done! Our guide, Sammy, did a wonderful job of making us feel at ease in Paris. I would have liked to have photos of the Champs Elysees and the Arc from the ground instead of on top of a tour bus, but that would be my only complaint. Thankfully we met at a souvenir shop after lunch, as that was our only time/place to shop while in Paris. Overall, a very good trip!

Review by: Grant N. G	July 2011
We had a very good trip to Paris on the train, with a few problems._br/_ We did not have seats together on the train even though we booked early in January for the July trip. The meal time for lunch was short and in a restaurant that was very busy. In spite of the few problems we had a very good guide and the trip was enjoyable, although a little rushed.

Review by: Allen J	July 2011
As outlined the trip did provide a basic overview of Paris with access to the Eiffel Tower, a Boat ride on the Sceine, visit to Notre Dame, Louvre etc BUT there were several issues which we were not happy with._br/_ 1. The trip did not contain a visit along the Champs Elysees or visit to the Arc de Triomphe_br/_ 2. Travel by the Eurostar was fast and comfortable BUT the ticketing arrangements were a shambles as my wife and I were not allocated adjoining seats. Although we were assured by the Tour staff that we could easily be changed at the Eurostar desk prior to departure this was not achieved with the staff concerned being unable (or unwilling) to assist and advising us that we could make suitable arrangements once we boarded the train. _br/_ This was done but it involved three families having to change seats for simialr reasons._br/_ It seems that because the bookings were made in a block allocation to the Tour Operator, Eurostar would not go out of the way to reallocate seats even though individual names were clearly shown on each ticket. Surely someone allocating the tickets could see the similarity of names and arrange for adjoining seats for each trip without pasengers having the negotiate with other passengers (who experienced the same problem) after boarding the train.

Review by: Sue	July 2011
The day in Paris included all of the activities we could hope to do. This taste of Paris made us want to return to spend more time at especially the Louvre and Notre Dame.

Review by: Grant N. G	July 2011
We had a very good trip to Paris on the train, with a few problems._br/_ We did not have seats together on the train even though we booked early in January for the July trip. The meal time for lunch was short and in a restaurant that was very busy. In spite of the few problems we had a very good guide and the trip was enjoyable, although a little rushed.

Review by: Younus I	June 2011
it was ok

Review by: Ron M, United States of America	June 2010
If you only have the one day, this is a great way to see Paris. All of the major sites are visited, getting around is easy, the guide was very good, and there was even a bit of time to be on your own. It is a very long day, but worth it.

Review by: Anonymous, Australia	June 2010
A very simple and comfortble trip.

Review by: Raquel H, Canada	May 2010
It was a great trip and very well organized. Great way to see Paris when you only have 1 day.

Review by: LYNN K, United States of America	May 2010
The day trip was very well planned. The driver arrived at our hotel as scheduled, deliverying us to the station on time. The train ride was great. The tour guide met us at the station in Paris and coordinated our sightseeing perfect We were taken to the front of the line at all the sights. Ample time was allowed for experiencing each attraction. For a quick, non-hastle tour of Paris and a ride on the Eurostar, I would recommend this this trip.

Review by: Bernard C, United States of America	April 2010
The trip was excellent, but not as described online. Our guide stayed with us the whole day which I preferred rather than giving us an option of a drop off at the Louvre and a tour with a museum guide or any free time. I guess we could have just left our group only 10 of us, but when you only have a very short amount of hours, this is the best way to maximize the day. The guide was excellent. I do wish he had asked people their names, but then again we could have all introduced ourselves without his prompting. If you are only doing a day trip I do recommend doing it this way.

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	January 2010
Highly recommended for a single traveller or travellers who love independence & dare to explore a place where most people don't speak English. I'm so glad I took this trip without a tour guide; the group I was with on the train told me wish they had more time. I really enjoyed every minute I had on my own seeing magnificent Paris! You'll enjoy it more when you're on your own!

Review by: Reginald D, United States of America	December 2009
The trip was fabulous,nothing to complain about. We would never have gotten to all the sites without our guide. He made us feel comfortable and supported through such a fast and overwhelming City. We wouldn't have done it independently, especially during the holiday season. The day was long and exhausting but we knew it would be....can't get around that.

Review by: Glen H, United States of America	December 2009
The trip description was very accurate. If it's your first trip, take the guided tour as it was well worth it. You will seevisit many highlights and will get a good feel for the city. Part of the guided tour is the Eiffel Tower, in which you get to skip past the 3 hour waiting line... this alone makes the guided tour well worth it and will save you a lot of time. You will be given ample time for shopping in souvenir shops as well as time for dinner before the train ride back to London. I also recommend the first class Eurostar ride. It gets you breakfast and dinner airline style but is also a much more comfortable ride. Only constructive feedback I would give is that nothing stated where to meet in the morning at the station. There is a small desk with a small label for "groups". It's very easily missed and can cause confusion.

Review by: Deborah W, United States of America	December 2009
Great time! A busy day. Our tour guide was very helpful. I would definitely recommend this. Met some new friends from West Virginia, California, etc. taking the tour with us.