I'll be in Paris, France all next week. Any tips?

[Dr Fate]

Tips? Out-of-the-way places to go?

All comments and advice is appreciated!!!

Doc

[trof]

1. Don't drink the water. The wine is WAY better.

;-)

[Dr Fate]

2. As Pappa Fate once said: "Water will rust your pipes, son..." n/t

n/t

[MonkeyFunk]

3. No matter how much they pretend otherwise

they all speak English. Just be sure to talk really loud.

[Dr Fate]

6. LOL! I've been practicing my "Ugly American" routine for months now..

You are right-LOUD is the key- LOL!!

[Omphaloskepsis]

11. This works really well on the Metro...

Actually, try for a few seconds to speak the language. Just fuck it up really bad it. Most people speak English they just like it when you try. And the KFC about six blocks south of Gare du Nord is awesome.

[xchrom]

39. the funny thing is -- if you wind up asking for help from someone who doesn't speak any english --

you will each -- s-l-o-w-l-y start speaking louder at each other -- thanking each other and excusing yourselves all the way.

it's happened to me several times over seas -- i walk away -- wondering why we were talking so loud at each other.

at least in france -- someone usually intervenes and rescues me.

[MrCoffee]

4. don't get pissed on in the Paris Metro

i did. it was not the highlight of my trip.

[bicentennial_baby]

5. Go to the Catacombs

It's so worth it...

Musee d'Orsay is better than the Louvre, imho.

Crepes are the bomb in Montparnasse.

If you want a copy of The Nation, go to one of the newspaper stands near the St Michel Metro station.

Pere Lachaise cemetery is incredibly beautiful

I am so jealous! Have a great trip!

[Dr Fate]

8. I'll take all that to heart- I'll be there for 8 days...

...we were debating the catacombs- I think you just swayed me...

[bicentennial_baby]

9. It's really a unique experience...

The designs created in some of the bone piles are really cool... :D

Oh, and watch out for pickpockets on the train :)

[Dr Fate]

12. I'm used to theives- always on the alert- but thanx!!! n/t

n/t

[grace0418]

20. Eight days! That's wonderful! You'll have a chance to really get to know the city.

I've been there three times and each time could've stayed another week at least (if not forever).

[distantearlywarning]

7. Tip: Buy a museum pass

One of the orange ones. It gives you admission to most museums and attractions and in many cases will allow you to bypass long waiting lines.

Also, watch yourself on the Metro. There are pickpockets. I met a tourist while I was there this summer who had her bag slashed with a razor in the station closest to the Eiffel Tower. They opened it right up and took her wallet out and didn't touch anything else. She had no idea it happened until an hour later when she went to purchase something.

Best guide book I found was "Rick Steves' Paris".

And if you have time, visit Saint Chapelle. The stained glass was amazing!

Other than that, have a great time. I loved my Paris trip this past July and definitely want to go back again.

[Dr Fate]

10. The pass is already taken care of- thanx for the other great advice.

I've seen a lot of Steve's blurbs on the web- so I am familiar- thanx!!!

[grace0418]

19. I'm glad you got the pass. I made the same suggestion.

You won't be sorry. I wish Florence did the same thing. I'm going there next month and they have a stupid reservation system. What if the day I pick to reserve a time at the Uffizi is the only sunny day and I would prefer to be outside? Dumb way of doing things IMHO.

[pink-o]

29. Really? A res in Fierenza? I don't remember having to do that

...but the last time I went thru the Uffizi was in 2001. Actually we arrived on a Monday when everything was closed (It's true in all of Europe: museums closed on Mondays; make sure you've got something else planned) so we walked all over the town and found a church with monks singing Gregorian chants! It was awesome!

But back to Paris: if you have 8 days, catch the train to Monet's Gardens in Giverny. It's less than an hour outside of the city, and you go to the station at St Lazare. The tix into the Gardens cost about 6 Euros only! And the carte you got for the Louve, Versaille, et al might actually work there, I'm not sure.

Also, I'm with the other posters: D'Orsay and St Chappelle are better than their large counterparts, but don't forget about the Rodin Museum (really, the house his patron owned, which is now set up with all Rodin's sculpture, including the gates of hell.)

A little reminder...took this pic in May



http://render2.snapfish.com/render2/is=Yup6lQQ%7C%3Dup6RKKt%3AxxWtUq4P0-0frj%3DQofrj7t%

[bicentennial_baby]

30. I loved both the Rodin and the Picasso museums

:)

[grace0418]

44. Yep. If you don't make a reservation for the Uffizi and the Accademia you can

wait 2-3 hours to get in now. Most hotel concierges will do it for you but you still have to book in advance. Like I'm going next month and I probably already should've picked the day. I just find that annoying because I would much prefer to wake up and say "Oh, it's cloudy, let's go to the museums today. Don't forget your pass, honey!" That's what we did in Paris and it was great. The only way I could see getting around it would be to take our chances (not a good idea) or make several reservations and choose a day when we get there (expensive). I'm sure it will be fun, I just don't like my visit to be that structured.

[grace0418]

18. I'd rather skip Notre Dame and see Saint Chapelle if I couldn't do both.

Saint Chapelle is absolutely mind-blowing. But they have short hours, so check ahead of time.

[Shakespeare]

13. I hate you.

Okay, no, I don't.

Well, yeah, I really kinda do. ;-)

Have fun! :hi:

[Sequoia]

15. Me too!!

They get more vacation days than we do. NO FAIR !

[Pierre.Suave]

14. I have a tip

dont come back, it is much nicer there.

[Lionel Mandrake]

16. Watch where you step.

French people love Jerry Lewis and dogs. Jerry Lewis doesn't shit on the sidewalk, but the dogs do.

[grace0418]

17. Go to Rue Cler. It's a lovely little market street.

Not far from the Eiffel Tower. The smells and sights and sounds are wonderful, not to mention the tastes. Sigh...

And get the Paris museum pass. TOTALLY worth the money. First of all, not having to wait in line at the Louvre makes it worth the price right there. Secondly, there are so many amazing little museums tucked away in neighborhoods that it's great to be able to stop in without paying a fee. Especially when you just want to look for a few minutes. You wouldn't bother to pay if you had to pay cash, but with the pass you think "why not?" I thought the Gustave Moreau museum was awesome and worth seeing, but may not have seen it without the pass.

Have a wonderful time! Paris is AMAZING. And the people were no more or less rude than the average Chicagoan. As long as you say "s'il vous plait" and "merci" and "bonjour" and "au revoir" you'll be fine.

[Deja Q]

21. Resist urges to copycat?

:rofl:

[Deja Q]

22. Stay out of the Hilton, Paris!

(it's contagious...)

[Reciprocity]

23. France is the host nation for the Rugby World Cup.

Not a thing to miss in my opinion. Also you may want to give your respects to Jim Morrison over at Pere Lachaise Cemetery. Maybe throw back a absinthe or two. You can buy it at.......
The Hôtel Royal Fromentin (11 rue Fromentin, 75009 Paris, tel. [phone]) serves absinthe at their historic bar, a former cabaret at the foot of Montmartre. Visit in the evening for a presentation by the staff of the history of Absinthe.

[Dr Fate]

33. Already on to that one, Mr. Mindreader. Thanx!

I've been wanting to try the stuff since reading Hemingway as a teen...

There is also some heavy metal bar that does the whole routine- but the hotel sounds cooler...

[Reciprocity]

34. There is also a museum. This info is from Rick Steves.

Absinthe: The Myth and the Reality
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/france/absinthe.htm

The Musée de l'Absinthe (44 rue Alphonse Callé, 95430 Auvers-sur-Oise, tel. [phone], about fifteen minutes outside Paris) is open on the weekends and holidays and sports all sorts of memorabilia and paraphernalia from absinthe's heyday. The train from Gare du Nord goes directly to the town.

[Critters2]

24. They prefer it if you speak French. nt

[pitohui]

25. here's something cute you might not think of

pretty near notre dame there is a flower market, on sundays it's a bird market

i realize you won't be buying birds or flowers but you can take photos if you don't use flash

[seemunkee]

26. Been there it was fun.

[Pied Piper]

27. I'm so jealous

I guess I'll just have to wait for my own trip to Paris in November.

If this is your first time, you should see all of the obvious things: Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, etc. But since you're there for 8 days, you might want to check out some of the following: any of the cemeteries (they're all beautiful - Pere Lachaise is worth a whole day, but some of the smaller ones are good for a 2-hour diversion), Parc des Buttes Chaumont (beautiful park on the northeast side of the city. I agree with bicentenial_baby above, see the catacombs. Also the Musee d'Orsay is doable in a day - be sure to have lunch there.

When you get to Paris, find a tobacconist and buy a pocket-sized copy of the Plan de Paris. You can find them everywhere. The one I like best is published by "Editions L'Indispensable" with a black cover. I bought it on my first trip, and it has become my favorite souviner. It has become well worn over the years, because I can relive my vacations every time I open it up. It has Metro and bus maps, as well as an index of streets and individual maps of each arrondissement. If you can read a bit of French, it's the best guide book you can buy. Seriously.

The first time I went, we saw all of the standard hot spots. The second time, we explored parts of the city that are off the beaten path. When I go in November, we are there for 10 days. We plan to rent an apartment or stay in hotels in two different neighborhoods.

Have a great time! And we wanna see your pics when you get back!

[seemunkee]

28. Sainte Chapelle

Beautiful stained glass windows in a wonderful church near Notre Dame.

[Cabcere]

31. Take me?

:hi: I actually don't have any advice, other than to have a really great time! (And maybe take lots of pictures that you can share with us.) ;)

[Dr Fate]

32. Thanks everyone-this is great! I'll let you all know how it was when I return. n/t

n/t

[zonkers]

35. The Museum of the Cinema in Paris is amazing (read on)

It the development of film from the first "pantinoscope" and the work of the Lumière brothers to the cult films of the present day. It was created by Henri Langlois, who began in the 1930s to collect anything and everything connected with photography and the cinema, including posters, film sets, film scripts and costumes. Film buffs will be thrilled by the props from famous films of the past - costly dresses from "Gone with the Wind", John Wayne's hat from "Stagecoach", bizarre street scenes from Robert Wiene's expressionist silent film "The Cabinet of Dr Caligari", Fritz Lang's robots from "Metropolis".

[Zywiec]

36. Go to the Dutch Bar

This place never disappoints:

http://www.parispubs.com/pub2.php?id=1

[Kutjara]

37. Don't forget Pere-Lachaise Cemetery.

It's a great place to hang out if the weather is nice. Some of the great literary and artistic figures are there, including Oscar Wilde. Oh, and Jim Morrison, if you're a Doors fan.

[Reciprocity]

38. If you have the time Versailles is an easy day trip from Paris.

It was a great outing for us the first time we went to Paris. I loved it. Spent hours mulling around. Always something new to see around the corners.

Also if you get the chance to go up in the Eiffel Tower at night the city is unbelievably beautiful.

Rick Steves.
The Palace of Versailles
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/france/versailles.htm

[applegrove]

40. Rodin Museum.

[xchrom]

41. you'll have a great time -- best city i've ever been to.

[RevolutionaryActs]

42. I have no advice.. just wanted to say.. Take me with you!

:P

[EstimatedProphet]

43. Try the food

It's really supposed to be good.