hi wandering_gal,

before anyone can help you, i think they're going to need a few more details: when are you going, for how long, what are your interests [assuming you've never been to Paris before from your mention on only using public transport, given that there's no need in Paris to use anything else] whether you are travelling alone or in a group - help us to help you!

I'll be visiting by next Fall. My interests are food, culture, art, site seeing, architecture as well, history. Maybe we can throw a little bit of activity, but I'm not sure if Paris has a lot of that for tourists. I will be traveling with a friend. And why is there not a need for public transportation. Please dont tell me I need a bike!

no need to use anything else is what I said, w-g!

there is a terrific underground system called the metro as well as buses. there are also publicly available cycles if you do want some activity, though most people find that the walking they do is enough exercise.

you still haven't said how long you'll be there, but assuming you want to see as much of the major sights as possible, 3 full days would be an absolute minimum, a week a lot better, 2 weeks better still.

I suggest that you have a look at Paris under the destinations button at the top of this board to give you an idea of what there is to see and do. a good trick is then to try to group your choices into areas, taking account of opening time - no point in scheduling the Louvre for a Tuesday, for example, as it's closed. but on a Monday you could for example think of seeing Notre Dame, the concierge, St. Chapelle, and the Louvre; on a Tuesday the Musee D'orsay, the Eiffel Tower, and Les Invalides.

there are also some very good threads going at the moment about Paris - just look at the current european threads and take your pick!

I should add that you can either buy a pass for the transport system [called the RATP] or buy what is called a "carnet" - a pack of 10 single tickets that you can use for virtually any metro or bus journey in central Paris. [Versailles and the airport and other places outside the centre cost more but unless you're there for a long time that won't matter that much].

you can also buy a museum pass for 24,48, or 72 hours - if you time your visits carefully, they can be very good value and on a short trip they save a lot of time wasted waiting in queues.

Thanks Annhig...as always uve been very helpful, im planning to stay in Paris for atleast 5 days to a week. I hope I get to experience the best of it.

5-7 days should enable you to see quite a lot, w-g. if you can get hold of a copy of the Michelin green guide to Paris, you will find suggested itineraries for 3,5,7 days etc. and I'm sure that other guide books do the same.

re your food and walking interests, there are companies who offer cookery and other courses - typically a morning learning to make bread, or a walk around a market followed by a session cooking what you've ought.

if you are interested in that, try starting another thread asking for suggestions; i know that there are several fodorites who have done this.

there are also companies who run walking tours of Paris - again, another thread might get some good suggestions.

finally, i should start looking at accommodation quite soon - we found that we got a really good rate [50% less than if we'd booked late] booking in September for a March trip.

All public transportation is revealed here on this secret website: www.ratp.fr

I find the trip reports on this message board really helpful for giving me inspiration about things to do, and there are lots of good ones about Paris. You can do a search for Paris, and the trip reports are tagged with a picture of a yellow notebook.

Good idea to check Paris trip reports and requests for Paris itineraries on this board. Many people have mapped out itineraries that might work s\as a start for you. If you stay in Paris for a week, you might consider some day trips such as Versailles, Giverny, Chartres, etc. All can be done by public transportation. You might find that you will do a lot of walking in central Paris and only find the need for public transportation further afield.

Look at Our Paris Forum,http://www.ourparisforum.com/
lots of good info and trip reports. You can read without joining but will have to join to ask questions. Lots of p

lots af Paris residents and regular visitors.

Learn everything you will need to know about getting around Paris on www.ratp.fr. There is never a need to take a taxi or a bike anywhere. Get a few guidebooks and a map of Paris. Read all the trip reports here. I have no idea what you mean when you say that Paris may not have a lot of "activity" for tourists...???? It's one of the most heavily touristed cities in the world and of course has thousands of "activities" for them. No clue how to answer that one, sorry. Maybe you can explain.

I read "activity" as physical activity, as opposed to sightseeing.

You mentioned bikes, and a lot of tourists do like the Fat Tire Bike Tours. http://fattirebiketours.com/paris

To go with Kerouac's "secret", www.parisbytrain.com is reassuringly simple and includes photo guides to some of the big terminals.

I don't know what that means, either,(activity for tourists) but walking around is plenty of activity for most people. I walk miles every day when I am a tourist about any where, you just do.

I think wanderinggal misunderstood some comment about public transportation, no one said there is no need for it. I also suspect she hasn't ever traveled much to big cities, maybe not in Europe, because any major capital city has public transportation so that tourists can get around to major sites that tourists visit. They all just do. So of course you can use the metro and bus system to get wherever you want to do. The only tourist sites that might be more difficult to get to by public transportation are definitely not the top sights on any tourist's lists and would be outside Paris. I can't think of a single important tourist attraction in Paris that you couldn't easily get to by metro or bus, at least within a couple blocks of it.

Some points of detail:

Any good printed guidebook for Paris should have the public transport maps and the nearest metro station and bus routes for the attractions they list. But you can also cross-refer those to the interactive public transport map at
http://www.ratp.fr/plan-interactif/

For help understanding how best to use public transport in Paris:
http://goparis.about.com/od/gettingaround/tp/paristransportationguide.htm

I think wanderinggal misunderstood some comment about public transportation, no one said there is no need for it.>>

lol, Christina, i think that was my fault - due to a somewhat involved and convoluted sentence the OP understood the exact opposite of what I meant!

Wandering_gal, maybe I missed it, but did you say where you are thinking of staying in Paris? Last summer I stayed in the 6th a few minutes from Pont Neuf and Notre Dame and only took public transportation a few times. Walked for miles.

Let us know how you enjoyed Paris...

I havent been to Paris yet il be going nxt Fall thats y im doing a lot of research and forums, etc.

Activities (easy for tourists to join):
<>Sunday evening salsa lessons - Tino Rossi Square on Quai Saint-Bernard (not sure how 'seasonal' this may be)
<>Number of bike tour companies (we enjoyed BikeaboutTours); there is also Fat Tire, which offers both bike and Segway
<>Short lessons/classes on French conversation, cooking, etc at http://en.meetingthefrench.com/category/tours-and-experiences_98.htm
<>Take a sketch book or journal and create your own 'memories' of your trip

Happy new year people.

Travelnut, thank you! you are the only one who understood that point. These are the activities im talking about. I will definitely check that out! Do you know any short cooking classes, like a afternoon long cook class? in Paris, Rome, or Amsterdam.

<I think wanderinggal misunderstood some comment about public transportation, no one said there is no need for it. I also suspect she hasn't ever traveled much to big cities, maybe not in Europe, because any major capital city has public transportation so that tourists can get around to major sites that tourists visit. They all just do. So of course you can use the metro and bus system to get wherever you want to do.>

Christina, I havent been in Paris that is why I started this topic. I have been to CITIES, if you dont acknowledge Tokyo, HongKong, Macau,and LA as big cities . I ve been living in Dubai, with trains,buses and all but still its convenient to travel by car. And any city is different coz what I heard is that streets, roads, etc in paris are narrow and most people ride bike, if not walk or use public transpo. So sorry if im not well traveled like u. Im just asking for public opinion which is the main purpose of forums. peace.

Latedaytraveler, I havent decided yet coz my friend is planning to get move to Paris from Amsterdam. Hopefully its somewhere near a train station.

Just to clarify - There is excellent public transportation in Paris. The major streets are not narrow but, in some cases, very wide. The center of the city is fairly compact and many of us walk between major sights, sometime miles a day because Paris is so beautiful we want to take everything in. But to go greater distances, the metro and buses are excellent. While many ride bikes, most walk or take public transportation.

Paris public transportation is probably the easiest in the entire world!!
Guide books will tell you how to use it.
There is an excellent guide by Michael Middleditch for both buses and metro (subway). The buses are nice to use because there isn't the need for walking long corridors underground for some connections. But it is excellent and easy to navigate.
As someone said, however, in the central areas of Paris it is just fun to walk from one site to another.
I like the DK Eyewitness Guide to Paris for being able to "see" an area of Paris and the things you can get to within that area.
It is hard to understand the statement that there "may not be much to see in paris for architecture"!! Definitely need to get a guide book and start reading!! LOL

We took a half day cooking class with Cookin with Class. They have lots of options from half day to full day. We did the macaron class, which we loved. Google their website and see if it fits what you are looking for. We will definitely do another class with them on a future trip, FWIW.

also, Catherine, the chef at Reed Restaurant offers classes. Bon Appetit!