Paris' Best View is Free

If you've always dreamed of making your way to the top of the Eiffel Tower and enjoying the view, by all means spend the time and money necessary to make it happen. But if you simply want to experience the thrill of seeing this huge city from a spectacular vantage point, consider the view at Sacre Coeur instead. If you have a Metro pass, you can use it to get to the Abbesses stop on the green line and take a short walk to the Montmartre funicular (two-cabin railway). The Paris Transit Authority operates it, so a Métro ticket or a Paris Visite card are good for passage. Enjoy a tour of the Basilica before or after admiring the view. You'll only pay a small fee if you want to climb stairs to the top of the Basilica dome. By contrast, a ride to the top of Eiffel costs nearly 11 EUR. Perhaps more importantly: you'll spend more of your precious vacation time standing in lines at various levels of the tower.