In Three Days

Having survived 2 days in the capital of France, you are by now a veteran Parisian. Now it's time to "Hit the Road, Jack" (or Jill) and head for the single most glorious monument to pomp and pomposity that France ever erected to royal pretensions and kingly vanity. Start: RER line C to Versailles Rive Gauche station.

1 - Château de Versailles

There is nothing in all of Paris to equal this regal wonder, former stomping ground of everyone from Madame de Pompadour, the royal mistress, to Marie Antoinette, the Austrian princess doomed to marry a French king who lost his head. The palace opens at 9am, so try to arrive at that time because it will take a minimum of 3 hours to see just some of the highlights.

A first-time visitor will want to concentrate on the Grands Appartements, the glittering Hall of Mirrors, and the Petits Appartements where Louis XV died in 1774 of smallpox. Other "don't miss" attractions include the Opéra that Gabriel designed for Louis XV in 1748 and the Royal Chapel that Hardouin-Mansart didn't live to complete. There's more. For your final hour, wander through Le Nôtre's "Garden of Eden" -- in other words, the Gardens of Versailles, paying a visit to the Grand Trianon where Nixon once slept in the room in which Madame de Pompadour died, and the Petit Trianon that Louis XV used for trysts with his mistress, Madame du Barry.

2 - Le Potager du Roy

This is one of the best of the middle-bracket restaurants of Versailles. Philippe Letourneur makes it easy for you by offering one of the best, most generous, and well-prepared prix-fixe menus in Versailles, although it's rather pricey. The choice of ingredients is skillful and the preparation inventive. The menu is adjusted to take advantage of the best produce of any season.

1 rue du Maréchal-Joffre. tel. 01-39-50-35-34.

Note: Should your time be too precious for a sit-down meal, you can have a fast lunch on the run and save those dwindling hours to see more of Paris itself. You can visit a deli in the morning before leaving Paris and secure the makings of a piquenique, which you can enjoy by the canal in the Gardens of Versailles after touring the palace. Within various corners of the gardens, you'll also encounter snack bars discreetly tucked away. There's even a McDonald's on the walk back from the palace to the train station, which you'll need to visit anyway to take the RER back to Paris.

Once in Paris, take the Métro to Rambuteau, Hôtel-de-Ville, or Châtelet-Les Halles to visit:

3 - Centre Pompidou

The exterior is controversial, called daringly innovative and avant-garde or else "the eyesore of Paris." But inside, virtually everyone agrees that this museum dominating Beaubourg is a repository of one of the world's greatest collections of modern art. Amazingly, more art lovers visit Pompidou per day than they do the Louvre or the Eiffel Tower. Beginning with Rousseau's Snake Charmer and ending with the latest acquisition from the 21st century, you can view the greatest modern artists of the 20th century: the inevitable Picassos, but also Chagall, Francis Bacon, Calder, Magritte, Matisse, Mondrian, Pollock, Kandinsky -- and the beat goes on. Allow at least 2 hours.

Take the Métro to:

4 - Place des Vosges

Having tasted the glories of such districts as Montmartre and Ile St-Louis, it's time to discover the charms of one of Paris's most enchanting neighborhoods, the Marais. Place des Vosges, one of the world's most perfectly designed and harmonious squares, is found at the very center of the Marais. For those with extra time, we've designed a complete walking tour of the Marais. But most 3-day visitors, especially if they visit Versailles, will not have time to see the entire district.

The oldest square in Paris is flanked by 36 matching pavilions with red-and-gold brick-and-stone facades. Architecturally, this square represents the first time in Paris that an arcade was used to link houses. Balconies were also designed for the first time -- not just for decorative reasons, but to be used. The most famous resident of this square (no. 6) was the French writer Victor Hugo, who lived here from 1833 to 1848 until Napoleon III came to power and Hugo fled into voluntary exile in the Channel Islands. His home is now a museum, which at this point may have to be saved until your next trip to Paris.

Arm yourself with a good map and spend at least an hour wandering the narrow Marais streets to the west of place des Vosges. You can make discoveries on every block as you explore trendy cafes and funky shops. At the northern tier of the place des Vosges, head west along rue des Francs Bourgeois, one of the most historic streets. At some point, dip south to visit the parallel street:

5 - Rue des Rosiers

"The Street of Rose Bushes" (its English name) remains from the heyday of the old Jewish ghetto that once flourished here. The street, deep in the heart of the Marais, is still packed with kosher butchers, bakeries, and falafel shops. In the 1960s, the waves of North African Sephardim radically changed the street. In World War II, despite Nazi attempts to exterminate the Jews, their families survived and are still living in the Marais. A synagogue is at 25 rue des Rosiers.

One more famous neighborhood awaits discovery.

6 - Montparnasse

Take the Métro to Montparnasse-Bienvenüe. Montparnasse was once the retreat of bohemian artists and the working class. Today, it's been as successfully gentrified with urban renewal projects as the Marais. The district teems with cafes (many of literary fame), cinemas, and nightclubs, along with artisan shops and bars. For the best overview, take an elevator to the 56th floor of Tour Montparnasse (tel. 01-45-38-52-56), which, when it was built, was accused of bringing Manhattan to Paris. The tower, completed in 1973, rises 206m (676 ft.) above the Parisian skyline.

After taking in the view, descend on the most famous cafe of Montparnasse.

7 - La Coupole

One doesn't see as many writers and publishers as before, but this is still the best viewing platform for Montparnasse life. In this citadel to the bohemian life of Paris in the 1920s and 1930s, Hemingway, Picasso, and Louis Armstrong once scribbled, sketched, or composed. Chanteuse Josephine Baker would show up accompanied by her lion cub, and Jean-Paul Sartre would dine here. Eugène Ionesco always ordered the café liegeois. Henry Miller came for his morning porridge, and the famous "Kiki of Montparnasse" picked up tricks here to service back in her hotel room. James Joyce patronized the joint, as did F. Scott Fitzgerald when he didn't have much money; when the royalty check came in, he fled to the Ritz Bar. Join the local fauna for the memories if for no other reason.

102 bd. du Montparnasse, 14e. tel. 01-43-20-14-20.

You can order drinks here and sit back to enjoy the cafe scene in Montparnasse, perhaps not as colorful as in days gone by, but still a lively, bustling place to be at night.

For dinner on your final night, head for a restaurant that is a virtual sightseeing attraction as well as a place for food:

8 - Closerie des Lilas

After taking the Métro Port Royal or Vavin, descend on this legend that has been wining and dining some of the most famous figures of the past 2 centuries since it opened back in 1847. It is "The Pleasure Garden of the Lilacs" (its English name), a virtual French monument. Follow the sounds of a jazz pianist and enter its hallowed precincts, heading for the bateau (boat) section for a champagne julep (the bartender's special). You can dine expensively in the main restaurant with formal service or else enjoy the more democratically priced brasserie. Should you be on the strictest of budgets, you can order a coffee or beer at the bar and soak up the atmosphere, the way Hemingway did between royalty checks when he was broke and had to kill a pigeon in the park for his dinner. Today, the lilacs of its namesake no longer bloom, Trotsky has long been assassinated, and Henry James is a mere skeleton of himself (if that). But young Parisians, including rising film stars, models, the pretty, and the chic, still patronize the place, giving you a close encounter with Paris after dark. And, yes, it's still going in August when the rest of the town shuts down. Have a nightcap at the bar and promise a return to Paris.

171 bd. du Montparnasse, 6e. tel. 01-40-51-34-50.