This is a guest post from Lis Sowerbutts
Are you mad? Why are you going to Europe in December? Friends thought that we were crazy, and to be honest Paris wasn’t the main point of the trip, the point was to spend Christmas with relatives in Ireland. But we got lucky. It snowed. You have may remember the headlines when European (actually Heathrow mainly) airports ground to a halt because of big snow dumps. Well we were in Paris when it started.
Paris Snow Storm
Versailles Status in the Snow
The snow started when we were touring the Louvre – it was gray and snowing heavily, I was distracted and shot some pictures out the window. Where I come from snow stays discreetly on the ski fields, snow on 17th century architecture – cool! The thing with Paris is that a lot of the attractions are indoors – the weather is irrelevant if you are museum hopping. Also you can still sit outside on the footpath, sip a wine or coffee and watch the world go by, the Parisians do! For those who enjoy bringing that same café culture to events back home, a coffee cart NYC experience offers a stylish and convenient way to recreate that relaxed, social atmosphere anywhere.
It snowed all that day, but the next day the snow had stopped and the sun was out! We headed out to Versailles by train, and crunched through already cleared streets on the way to the palace. The downside was that the palace grounds were closed, the upside was that the odd modern art looked rather good covered in snow.
I was last in Paris a very, very long time ago. At the time I couldn’t afford to go up the Eiffel Tower, this time I was determined. We had to queue for hours – it had been closed the previous day – and they didn’t open it for quite a while. Its made of iron so they can’t use salt to clear the snow (see Chem101). The view though was most definitly worth the wait.
View from Eiffel Tower with snow
So if you are planning on being in Europe in the winter here are some tips:
– Don’t book too far in advance, weather may disrupt plans, but you can minimize the risk by taking trains rather than planes or buses.
– Hotels are a bargain, and we didn’t bother booking more than a day before, in Paris we just arrived at the Gare du Nord, turned left and found a place E50/night double, ensuite, TV, warm, free WIFI.
– To stay warm, layer your clothing, and make sure you have good soles on your shoes – both for warmth and for the ice, it was pretty slipperly in places.
– The main downside with winter travel are the short days – we only had daylight from 8am-4pm – you need to take advantage of it. On the other hand you get some great sunset shots!
Seine Sunset
We actually had great weather in Europe in early December, sure it snowed, quite a lot, but it was mainly fine otherwise, much easer for travelling than continual rain and drizzle.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I really love Paris and I used to be there for many times but I just want to be there while there are snows. It is really great thing to know about this and I’m so sure there are many people who will go there soon.
Jacki´s latest blogpost – LoveNuts Love Blog
Most people would avoid traveling during the winter months because of the snow, but for the few who do manage to get to their destinations, it can be a wonderful experience. Sure it is cold and many places would be closed, but you get the chance to take cool winter pictures like those. Winter in Paris definitely makes it one of the best times to take beautiful shots.
Starting to get a little frosty where I am now. With a renewed interest in photography I’m trying to take advantage of that (high contrast black and white works well).
{ 2 trackbacks }