When in Paris (or Amsterdam)....

[DrChinese]

My wife and I will be traveling to Paris this Friday for 5 nights. We plan to see the usual tourist attractions & museums, and will be staying in the Opera district. If any of you know of good restaurants/bars in the area which should try, please pass it on!

Similarly, we are going to Amsterdam for 3 nights. Staying close to the Central Train Station, any restaurant/bar recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

 

[BvU]

We enjoyed this one at a very central location -- a Michelin star plus a great view on the Dam palace and the national monument

 

[ChemAir]

Not sure about Amsterdam eating, as it has been a few years, but if you have time and inclination, I would encourage visiting the Rijksmuseum (Rembrant and other Dutch Masters), and the Van Gogh museum if you are interested in art. They are both interesting, even if paintings aren't your thing. Both are within walking distance of the train station. Van Gogh is a little farther walk from memory. Anne Frank house isn't too far, either, but I haven't been there. I'd check beforehand to be sure no renovations have them closed.

Authentic Dutch food is not my favorite, so I tended to eat Italian, German, French, Asian, or general pub fare while I was there. There are loads of places. Hotel concierge gave me the best places to go.

Sounds like a neat trip.

 

[DennisN]

If any of you know of good restaurants/bars in the area which should try, please pass it on!

I don't, but I have visited Paris many times so I felt like mentioning some of my favorite places. Apart from the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Arc de Triomphe and Notre Dame, there is the Sacré-Cœur Basilica pretty close to and north of where you will be staying. If you go up to the basilica you get a very, very nice view out over the city. Walking along the Seine is also very nice, there are a lot of nice banks by the river and bridges. Champs-Élysées is also worth a visit, a very impressive avenue. Personally I also like the Latin Quarter (where there are many restaurants) which is located around the Sorbonne university. Edit: This is also the area where the Panthéon is located.

It's very nice to walk around in the city, but the city is pretty large in area, so there is a very good metro system for longer trips.

Edit 2: The city is full of cafés and restaurants , particularly the central parts of it.

 

[berkeman]

I'm no help on restaurants or attractions in Amsterdam, but I can offer an important safety tip...

I was in Amsterdam about 10-15 years ago to give a talk at a technical conference, and after I took a taxi from the airport to the hotel and got settled, I headed out to take a walk around the area to see what it was like. I was walking down a path next to the road, checking things out, and I noticed that the locals were sometimes doing a double-take at me as they walked along another path near the one I was on. I started thinking, "Wow, what nice people". They can probably tell that I'm not from Amsterdam, they probably realize I'm some tourist-type person, and they are wondering if they should ask me to see if I need directions or anything. What a friendly and kind people they are.

sssszzzzzZZZZOOOOMMMM! At that moment, a moped sped by me from behind and spun me around on the path. Yikes! Turns out I was walking on the bike/moped path that runs next to many sidewalks in Amsterdam, and I didn't realize what the path was used for. So that's why the locals were looking at me funny, probably trying to decide whether to give me some friendly advice, or just wait to see what was going to happen next.

In the picture below, you can see that the paths are now very clearly labeled. Probably took a few tourist ambulance rides before they decided to label them...

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/48/d0/f5/48d0f592494ff2c3ef8a0f8e6d37e6a4.jpg

 

[PSRB191921]

Hi,
There is a lot of place to visit in Paris, but Paris is a big city. The best way is to use the Subway.
what to visit: https://en.parisinfo.com/what-to-see-in-paris
take the subway: https://www.ratp.fr/en/plans-lignes/plan-metro
Vous adorerez la ville lumière ...
PSR

 

[S.G. Janssens]

In the picture below, you can see that the paths are now very clearly labeled. Probably took a few tourist ambulance rides before they decided to label them...

OP: Are both of you comfortable on a bicycle? If yes, then you could consider going around by bike:

https://www.iamsterdam.com/en/plan-your-trip/getting-around/rental/bike-hire

The above website is also part of the official tourist information. A physical office can be found right opposite Centraal Station.

Also, not too far from Amsterdam there are lots of things usually fancied by tourists, such as de Keukenhof (if you come soon, otherwise the flowers are gone) and de Zaanse Schans. However, probably you already have more than enough to see for a three-day visit.

Feel free to ask questions, welcome and I wish you a pleasant visit

EDIT: You asked about places for dinner. Here are a few.

• Given your nick name, you should probably try one of the Nam Kees. Don't mind the lack of decoration, it is about the food.
• https://www.museumcafemokum.nl (I think it got renamed, may be worth passing by to check it out).
• This is a well-known steak house (both beef and horse, if you object to the latter, be sure to ask for the former).

Of course there are many more, depending on what you are looking for. Best to check reviews.

 

[pinball1970]

My wife and I will be traveling to Paris this Friday for 5 nights. We plan to see the usual tourist attractions & museums, and will be staying in the Opera district. If any of you know of good restaurants/bars in the area which should try, please pass it on!

Similarly, we are going to Amsterdam for 3 nights. Staying close to the Central Train Station, any restaurant/bar recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Just so many little side streets and bars I always get disorientated, lovely place to get lost.



I Made the mistake of trying to eat a burger in Dam sqr and was hijacked by pigeons



The guys will have better suggestions than me with regards to food but the Ann Frank Museum is a 20 minute walk from Central Station if you have time



You can only get these on line



https://www.annefrank.org/en/museum/tickets/



A few museums within walking distance of each but I have only been to this one



https://www.tiqets.com/en/amsterdam-c75061/van-gogh-museum-l144593?&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=1417957325&utm_content=62900739351&gclid=CjwKCAjwtYXmBRAOEiwAYsyl3OvhxUOhxWh5gER06MoJXx8Xbm__TakdyBBbPWikLYQ3yAdjGKckqhoCzZ8QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[DrClaude]

For a true Parisian experience, I recommend the open-air market on rue Mouffetard (5e) (mornings, every day except Mondays). There are also some good restaurants on that street, along with the nearby rue du Pot-de-Fer.

If you have any specific questions about Paris, don't hesitate to ask me, either in this thread or by PM.

 

[DennisN]

@DrChinese, I've been to Amsterdam twice, but rather briefly, so I don't know the city so well so I don't have any particular suggestions. I've visited the Van Gogh museum and that was nice. What I remember from Amsterdam is that it is a quite cosy city, and the canals are of course famous and very nice. I also remember it was a difficult city to get a hold of when it comes to navigation; it is an unusual city since the inner parts (canals and streets) almost run in a circle, which mess up the north/west/south/east feeling in the brain . The streets and canals run in every direction except north, west, south and east .

If you take any photos from the Paris and Amsterdam visit, it would be nice to see .
I wish you and your wife a good trip!

 

[f95toli]

de Plantage in Amsterdam is a very nice restaurant. My wife and I ate there a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it.
http://caferestaurantdeplantage.nl/en/#home

 

[Mark44]

Personally I also like the Latin Quarter (where there are many restaurants) which is located around the Sorbonne university. Edit: This is also the area where the Panthéon is located.

My wife and I stayed at a small hotel in the Latin Quarter a couple of years ago, the Senat. The staff was very friendly, and our breakfast there was buffet-style, with lots of choices. While we were there, we visited the Panthéon, and walked around in the Jardin du Luxembourg, a very nice park.

 

[DrChinese]

@DrChinese, I've been to Amsterdam twice, but rather briefly, so I don't know the city so well so I don't have any particular suggestions. I've visited the Van Gogh museum and that was nice. What I remember from Amsterdam is that it is a quite cosy city, and the canals are of course famous and very nice. I also remember it was a difficult city to get a hold of when it comes to navigation; it is an unusual city since the inner parts (canals and streets) almost run in a circle, which mess up the north/west/south/east feeling in the brain . The streets and canals run in every direction except north, west, south and east .

If you take any photos from the Paris and Amsterdam visit, it would be nice to see .
I wish you and your wife a good trip!

Thanks to you and everyone who took the time to reply! We are back now, and did visit the Van Gogh Museum (as well as the Rijksmuseum). Hit a bunch of places in Paris too, including a short cruise on the Seine (in background on one photo). Pretty much were standard tourists eating and drinking our way through the towns (as can be seen in one photo from Amsterdam).

PS the one with me on the steps is in Paris. Those are the steps where Owen Wilson's character in Woody Allen's excellent "Midnight in Paris" slips back in time to the 1920's. In the photo, I am slipping back in time to the 1927 Solvay Conference. (Of course I'm in the wrong city for that, but I am taking artistic license.)

 

[DrChinese]

...I have visited Paris many times so I felt like mentioning some of my favorite places. Apart from the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Arc de Triomphe and Notre Dame, there is the Sacré-Cœur Basilica pretty close to and north of where you will be staying. If you go up to the basilica you get a very, very nice view out over the city. Walking along the Seine is also very nice, there are a lot of nice banks by the river and bridges. Champs-Élysées is also worth a visit, a very impressive avenue. ... The city is full of cafés and restaurants , particularly the central parts of it.

Basically, we did all of the above. LOL. Loved Sacre Coeur and Montmartre. We ducked into a place there and killed off a bottle of wine.

 

[DennisN]

Basically, we did all of the above. LOL. Loved Sacre Coeur and Montmartre. We ducked into a place there and killed off a bottle of wine.

That sounds nice! I hope you had a great time! There is a lot to see and do in Paris, and that's why I have visited it so many times, 7 or 8 or something like that . And it's also one of my favorite cities I've been to in Europe, along with Venice and Edinburgh. One thing I like with Paris is that I think it's quite cosy even though it's such a big city.

 

[DrClaude]

One thing I like with Paris is that I think it's quite cosy even though it's such a big city.

Paris is almost more like a collection of villages than a city. No matter which arrondissement you live in, you will have your local baker, your local café, your local newsstand, your local supermarket, etc. There is no real "downtown," even though some parts have a busier nightlife than others.