Travel & Hotels
Airlines & Flight Schedules by City
To attend all three events we have prepared for the wedding weekend, we recommend taking a Wednesday evening flight (Oct. 30th) out of your base city, arriving to Paris on Thursday morning (Oct. 31st); please see examples listed below. We are more than happy to help you find cheaper flight options as well -- it is significantly cheaper to book nonstop RT flights from NYC to Paris, so those coming from STL, HTX, or Dallas may want to use points/miles to get to NYC, and then book RT flights from NY to Paris on a separate ticket (~$567 RT NYC-CDG).
If you are unable to take Thursday/Friday off work, we completely understand and appreciate any amount of commitment to being in Paris with us! And lastly, we hope this inspires some of you to travel around before or after the wedding to explore more of France/Europe. Peter and I will be arriving on Sunday, October 27th and welcome you to join us ahead of the events too!
Houston: Airfrance/Delta offers daily nonstop flights between Houston and Paris. For Chase Sapphire cardholders, you can transfer points to Airfrance and use those to book!
*Example flight schedule* Departing Flight on Weds, October 30th: Air France #639 out of IAH at 5:05pm (arrive 8:40am in Paris CDG) || Return Flight on Sunday, November 3rd: Air France #636 out of CDG at 10:10am (arrive 2:20pm to IAH)
Dallas: American Airlines/British Airlines, Iberia, and Finnair all offer daily nonstop flights between Dallas (DFW) and Paris (CDG). You can book on the respective Airlines websites. For Chase Sapphire cardholders, you can transfer points to AA and also book through the Chase platform.
*Example flight schedule* Departing Flight on Weds, October 30th: American Airlines #48 out of DFW at 5:55pm (arrive 9:05am in Paris CDG) || Return Flight on Sunday, November 3rd: American Airlines #49 out of CDG at 11:05am (arrive 2:50pm to DFW)
St. Louis: United Airlines offers the most efficient flight path with a one-stop connection via Chicago O'hare airport and you can book it all on one ticket on the United website. Or, if you are a Chase Sapphire cardholder, you can transfer points to United and also book through the Chase platform.
*Example flight schedule* Departing Flight on Weds, October 30th: United Airlines #5741 out of STL at 5pm (arrive 6:22pm to ORD with 1hour layover), then UA #987 at 7:30pm out of ORD (arrive 9:40am in Paris CDG) || Return Flight on Sunday, November 3rd: United Airlines #986 out of CDG at 11:40am (arrive 2:10pm to ORD with 2hour layover), then UA #4626 at 4pm out of ORD (arrive 5:25pm in STL)
Los Angeles: Delta/Air France and a few other airlines offer daily nonstop flights between Los Angeles (LAX) and Paris (CDG). You can book on Delta or Airfrance websites. For Chase Sapphire cardholders, you can transfer points to Airfrance and use those to book!
*Example flight schedule* Departing Flight on Weds, October 30th: Air France #65 out of LAX at 4:30pm (arrive 11:15am in Paris CDG) || Return Flight on Sunday, November 3rd: Air France #66 out of CDG at 10:20am (arrive 1:05pm to LAX)
NYC: for fellow NYC-ers, you have myriad options -- Delta/Air France, American, United and all major airlines have numerous nonstop flights to and from Paris every single day. Currently RT flights on all major airlines are ~$500-600.
Where to Stay
Hotel Room Block - Le Roch Hotel & Spa located in the 1st arrondissement. To book, please email reservation@leroch-hotel.com and mention that you are part of the Garlich-Guffey wedding in Oct-Nov 2019.
Le Roch is within walking distance of Le Ritz (where our ceremony will be held) and some of Paris' most historic landmarks, i.e, the Louvre, Place Vendôme, Tuileries Garden, to name a few. Since it is a boutique hotel there is limited availability, but there are a handful of great alternatives nearby such as Hôtel Ritz Paris, Amastan Paris, Hotel Bachaumont, or La Réserve Paris Hotel and Spa
Meg & Peter's Recommendations - our main events are in the 1st/8th arrondissements, however other events will be in different neighborhoods and truly you cannot go wrong in Paris, any hotel located in 1st, 2nd, 6th, 7th, 8th, 16th, 9th, 3rd or 4th arrondissements will be convenient. To provide some guidance for those new-to-Paris, below are our top recommendations broken out by budget range!
Splurge ($800+) - Le Ritz, Plaza Athénée, La Réserve Paris Hotel and Spa, Le Bristol, Hôtel Lutetia, George V, Saint James
Midrange ($300-500) - Le Narcisse Blanc Hotel & Spa, Hôtel Duc de Saint-Simon, Relais Christine, Hotel Montalembert, L'Hotel, Pavillon de la Reine, Hôtel Vernet
Affordable Luxury ($150-300) - Hôtel des Grands Boulevards, Amastan Paris, Hôtel Récamier, Le Belleval, Hotel Providence, Hôtel Saint Vincent, Hotel Daniel, The Hoxton, Hôtel National Des Arts et Métiers, Hotel Bienvenue, Grand Pigalle Hotel
Airbnb - there are fantastic airbnb options if you are interested in booking a true Parisian experience for a group of 4, 6, or even more.
Haven - rental company that offers one-of-a-kind vacation apartment and villa rental experiences. Haven is Goop-approved and provides travelers with unique rental options in Paris, Provence, Italy, and London that feature luxury in-home amenities and round-the-clock services.
OneFineStay - this company secures affordable yet luxurious properties for its clients. They visit and vet each home in person before agreeing to list a rental on its site.
HotelTonight - You can book this out 1-2 months in advance now if you do not book prior to this time. We have booked our stay for Paris the week of traveling there and always found somewhere amazing and affordable using this app.
VRBO - same as Airbnb
For reference - links below if you want to evaluate additional options!
https://www.cntraveller.com/gallery/best-paris-hotels
goop.com/travel/guides/the-paris-guides/
Transportation Options
By Foot - on our first trip to Paris together, Peter and I did not take one cab or uber. Instead we walked nearly a half marathon a day. This is the very best way to see the city, save money, and get some exercise!
Bike - Velib is their version of citibike.
Uber or Lyft - we'd recommend this over a cab. Cabs are completely safe, but through uber you are able to avoid any language barriers by already having your destination typed in :)
Electric Scooter - this transportation trend is all the rage. Lime is the top choice among locals. I have not done this, but Peter loved it...
Metro - Once in the city, the Parisian metro system will almost get you anywhere you'd like to go. It's amazingly well connected and relatively easy to use. Buy tickets inside the metro stations (single journey or a little booklet of tickets) which can be used both for the bus as well for the metro. Please keep an eye on your belongings to not have anything snatched from you or stolen. This is unfortunately a reality in almost any big city you'll visit.
-You can buy a weekly pass (make sure you go to the little office there to do it so you pick the right week. We wound up buying one for the wrong week since it can be tricky how their scheduling works. And if you do that there is no way to fix it.) You can also buy one way tickets for around $3.
-You can plug the place you are going to into your map on your phone and then switch from car to metro to see what stops you have to hit along the way. Sometimes it will be a straight shot or others you have to get off and get on another train. The stops are named by the metro station name. It is pretty easy to use the metro because you just follow the signs for the metro name instead of needing to know street numbers.