09:00 – 10:15
Louvre Museum
4.7(371K)· Paris
Former historic palace housing huge art collection, from Roman sculptures to da Vinci's "Mona Lisa."
Paris on a Budget: 3 Days of Free Sights & Cheap Eats
Paris · 3 days · On a budget
Paris has a reputation for emptying wallets, but the truth is kinder: most of its finest hours are free. This three-day plan does the city cheap without doing it badly, leaning on free parks, gardens, and churches, market-priced bistro lunches and crepe-window snacks, and just one paid highlight a day where the ticket genuinely earns its keep.
The route is built to be walked. Each day clusters its stops so you move on foot instead of paying for taxis, from the Louvre and the Tuileries on Day 1 to the Gothic landmarks and gardens of Day 3. Where you spend, you spend on purpose: the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, and Sainte-Chapelle are the three tickets worth buying, and almost everything else costs nothing.
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Day 1 — One Museum Splurge, Then Free Green Space
Start at the Louvre, the single big-ticket item of the day and the one splurge worth budgeting for. A former royal palace turned into a sprawling art collection, it runs from Roman sculptures to da Vinci's Mona Lisa, so buy a timed ticket, go early, and give it a solid morning. Right next door, the Jardin du Palais Royal costs nothing: landscaped grounds around a large fountain, with tree-lined walkways to slow down in after the crowds inside.
Lunch at Bistrot Victoires keeps the classics honest and the bill reasonable, with duck confit and escargot in mirror-lined rooms and lunch plates that undercut dinner prices. From there the day is a free walk: the Tuileries Garden and its Maillol bronzes, then a crossing to the Left Bank for Église Saint-Sulpice, whose painted dome fills with natural light at no charge. Finish in the Jardin du Luxembourg, the grandest free park in the plan, before an easy dinner at Brasserie des Prés. Everything after the Louvre links on foot, so you spend nothing on transit.
Day 1
7 stops
10:15 – 11:00
Jardin du Palais Royal
Free4.7(9.8K)· Paris
Landscaped grounds of a 17th century palace with a large fountain, tree-lined walkways & flowerbeds.
12:00 – 12:30
Bistrot Victoires
€20Lunch4.4(7.3K)· Paris
Duck confit, escargot & classic bistro fare in vintage, mirror-lined interiors or on a terrace.
- 18 min walk · 1.4 km
13:00 – 14:00
Tuileries Garden
Free4.6(118K)· Paris
Expansive, 17th-century formal garden dotted with statues, including 18 bronzes by Maillol.
- 27 min walk · 2 km
14:30 – 15:00
Église Saint-Sulpice
Free4.6(12K)· Paris
17th-century Roman Catholic place of worship with an ornate facade & naturally lit painted dome.
- 9 min walk · 660 m
15:15 – 16:15
Jardin du Luxembourg
Free4.7(127K)· Paris
17th-century park with formally laid-out gardens, trees planted in patterns & statues on pedestals.
19:00 – 20:00
Brasserie des Prés
€20Dinner4.7(8.9K)· Paris
Day 2 — Free Parks, One Great Museum, a Bargain Dinner
Open with Parc Monceau, a free and elegant park dotted with a curved colonnade and small pyramid follies, a calm warm-up before the day's paid highlight. That highlight is the Musée d'Orsay, the old railway station packed with art from the 1800s and 1900s; it is the ticket to prioritize on Day 2, and worth every euro. Break for lunch at La Jacobine, tucked into a snug historic passageway, where onion soup and coq au vin land at fair prices.
The afternoon swings back to free ground at Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, a dramatic former quarry with a lake, waterfalls, and an old iron railway bridge. From there it is uphill to the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre, whose white dome and mosaic-filled interior cost nothing to enter. Cap the day at Bouillon République: bouillons are the classic Paris budget dinner, serving broth, seafood, and dessert at old-school prices, which is exactly why it closes a day built to keep spending down.
Day 2
6 stops
09:00 – 09:45
Parc Monceau
Free4.6(24K)· Paris
Public park with trees, tarmac trails & statues plus 18th-century colonnade & pyramid follies.
- 11 min by transit · 3.3 km
10:30 – 11:45
Musée d'Orsay
€204.8(115K)· Paris
Major 19th- & 20th-century European art collections housed in a monumental, former railway station.
- 18 min walk · 1.3 km
12:15 – 13:15
La Jacobine
€30Lunch4.6(5.4K)· Paris
Traditional French dishes like onion soup & coq au vin in a snug setting in a historic passageway.
- 15 min by transit · 5.1 km
14:00 – 14:45
Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
Free4.6(27K)· Paris
19th-century park in former quarry, with tall trees, lake, waterfalls and old, iron railway bridge.
- 11 min by transit · 3.5 km
15:45 – 16:15
Basilique du Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre
Free4.7(166K)· Paris
Iconic, domed white church, completed in 1914, with interior mosaics, stained-glass windows & crypt.
19:00 – 20:00
Bouillon République
€20Dinner4.7(39K)· Paris
Plush restaurant with an old-world vibe serving classic broth, plus seafood dishes & desserts.
Day 3 — Gothic Landmarks and Crepe-Window Value
Begin with Sainte-Chapelle, the day's one small ticket and a rare splurge that earns it: a Gothic chapel walled almost entirely in stained glass. A short walk away stands Notre-Dame Cathedral, free to admire from outside for its flying buttresses and gargoyles, the towering church that inspired Victor Hugo's famous novel. Lunch is deliberately casual at Union Square, a warm diner doing burgers, steaks, and draft beer without the tourist markup.
The rest of Day 3 leans green and cheap. Wander the Jardin des Plantes, a vast botanical park with restored 1800s hothouses, then grab the plan's cheapest bite at Chez Nicos, a walk-up window turning out sweet and savory crepes and panini for pocket change. Save energy for the Parc Floral de Paris, with its thousands of plant species, lake, and pavilions, before winding down over dinner at Le Berlioz. Between free gardens and a crepe window, this is the lightest-spending day of the three.
Day 3
7 stops
09:00 – 09:30
Sainte-Chapelle
Free4.6(49K)· Paris
Ornate, 13th-century, Gothic chapel with relics & notable stained-glass windows of biblical scenes.
- 8 min walk · 601 m
10:00 – 10:45
Notre-Dame Cathedral of Paris
4.7(96K)· Paris
Towering, 12th-century cathedral with flying buttresses & gargoyles, setting for Hugo's novel.
- 8 min walk · 568 m
12:00 – 12:30
Union Square
€10Lunch4.5(11K)· Paris
Unfussy, warm diner specializing in burgers & steaks, plus draft beer & signature cocktails.
- 22 min walk · 1.7 km
13:15 – 14:15
Jardin des Plantes
Free4.6(51K)· Paris
Vast park with plant species grown in botanical & alpine gardens & restored 19th-century hothouses.
- 12 min walk · 886 m
15:00 – 16:00
Chez Nicos
Café break4.8(2.8K)· Paris
Basic, compact counter-serve cafe & walk-up window turning out sweet or savory crepes & panini.
- 24 min by transit · 8.1 km
17:00 – 17:45
Parc Floral de Paris
Free4.5(17K)· Paris
Floral gardens with approx 3,000 plant species, artificial lake & pavilions, with summer concerts.
- 28 min walk · 2.1 km
19:00 – 20:00
Le Berlioz
€10Dinner4.4
- That's the trip — time to head home. Safe travels!
Good to know
- Walk it. The whole plan is designed around clusters of nearby stops, so skip taxis and metro fares; comfortable shoes matter more than a transit pass.
- Save your one splurge for a single museum a day — the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, or Sainte-Chapelle — and let the free parks and churches fill the rest.
- Eat your big meal at lunch: bistros like Bistrot Victoires and La Jacobine price lunch plates below dinner, and lean on a window like Chez Nicos when you just need a quick crepe.
- Bouillons, like Bouillon République, are the classic Paris budget dinner — old-school broth and mains at prices that never chased the tourist market.
- Carry a refillable bottle and picnic in the gardens: a market lunch on a bench in the Tuileries or the Jardin du Luxembourg costs a fraction of a terrace.
Best time to visit
Paris rewards visitors in every season, but spring and autumn hit the sweet spot: mild days for the long garden walks this plan leans on, and thinner crowds at the Louvre and Musée d'Orsay. Summer brings the longest daylight for stretching free park time, though the big museums get busier. Winter is the cheapest stretch, with low-season airfare and near-empty churches like Sainte-Chapelle. Because the route mixes indoor culture with outdoor green space, this itinerary works comfortably year-round.
Questions travelers ask
Is 3 days in Paris enough?
For a focused first visit, yes. This itinerary's pacing covers the headline museums, the major Gothic churches, and a wide spread of parks across three walkable days without feeling rushed — roughly two culture stops and two green spaces a day, with sit-down meals in between. If you want more time or different dates, open the trip in the Wayfaro app and regenerate it for your own schedule.
How much of this Paris itinerary is free?
Most of it. Every park and garden — Palais Royal, the Tuileries, Jardin du Luxembourg, Parc Monceau, Buttes-Chaumont, Jardin des Plantes, Parc Floral — is free or nearly so, and the churches like Saint-Sulpice, Sacré-Cœur, and Notre-Dame cost nothing to enter or admire. The main paid stops are just three tickets: the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, and Sainte-Chapelle.
How do I keep food costs down in Paris?
Eat your bigger meal at lunch, where bistros like Bistrot Victoires and La Jacobine price plates below dinner, and lean on cheap counters like Chez Nicos for crepes when you just need fuel. For dinner, a bouillon such as Bouillon République serves classic French plates at old-school prices — a full sit-down meal that still respects a budget.
Do I need to pay for transit on this route?
Not really. The plan is sequenced so each day's stops sit within walking distance, from the Louvre-to-Luxembourg walk on Day 1 to the clustered churches and gardens on Day 3. Comfortable shoes save you more than a transit pass would.
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