You know what they say, Paris is one of the most Romantic cities in the world. The streets, the wine, the dessert… it’s a couple’s dream.

However, I am here to assure you that you don’t need to be in a committed relationship to fall in love with Paris. First of all, I firmly believe that traveling is supposed to help you fall more in love with yourself than anything else. Traveling is a lot harder than it sounds and a lot less glamorous than the pictures you post on Instagram. Traveling is exhausting and there can be many ups and downs, especially when traveling with another person. But at the end of the day, traveling is truly what you make of it.

I have been to Paris twice: once in the freezing cold and grey skies of February, and once in the midst of their vacation season of August. Both trips brought many positives and negatives, however I recommend going to Paris in the warmer months or fall. Paris is best enjoyed when you can be outside, at least in my opinion. Which leads me to an outline of what you should do in Paris for a day.

Bike around the city.
Yes, walking and getting to know the metro is extremely important, however nothing beats seeing a city from a bike. Paris truly makes it easy to figure out how to bike; they clearly label their bike lanes and the do’s and don’t of biking. Plus, you’re able to get some exercise in between croissants! I recommend Le Peloton Cafe; it doubles as a cafe and bike rental shop.
Go on a food tour and have a picnic.
If there’s one thing I recommend doing, it’s exploring all of the different specialty stores Paris has. There are shops dedicated to all of your favorites: cheese, meat, wine, and bakeries with chocolate croissants that will make you dream of them forever. Once you find all of your faves, find a spot near the Eiffel Tower and spend the afternoon there. This will forever be the highlight of my trip.
Try French Onion Soup.
I don’t know if this is a genuinely “French” thing to do, but I definitely recommend it. If you’re a soup person, there are so many places that make a good one. You can always tell a good spot based on their French Onion Soup.
Drink & hang out on the banks of the rivers.
Fun fact: there are no open container policies in Paris. TAKE. ADVANTAGE. OF. THIS. One of my favorite things is getting a bottle (or two) of wine, some snacks, and hanging out on the ledge of one of the rivers. If you can’t tell, I like sitting in Paris, but that’s where the biking comes in.
Have dinner & drinks at a wine bar.
There are so many amazing wine bars in the city. Consider splitting appetizer dishes, such as a meat & cheese board or other small bites, a bottle of wine, and then find somewhere amazing for dessert. One of my favorite spots was Inaro in Republiqué. The menu was set up by what type of wine you wanted, how much and at what quality (good, better, best, excellent) and the same for food. Then, the staff would bring a wine for you to agree to and a meat & cheese board to go with it.
See the Eiffel Tower light up at night.
On the hour every hour for five minutes, the Eiffel Tower lights up and sparkles. It’s one of the magical sights I have ever witnessed, even to this day.