cmcfong

Any recommendations for good walking maps of Paris or Bordeaux?

Thank you.

suze

My favorite map of Paris was a free paper one from the hotel lobby! It worked much better for us that any of several we had purchased at home pre-trip.

greg

For Paris, there is a map book a little larger than a cellphone called "Plan de Paris par Arrondissement" you can buy it from pretty any kiosk like shop on streets for about €8. Each open page pair shows each arrondissements with names of ALL the streets listed. No need to struggle with big sheet of map or trying to read a phone map under bright sunlight. http://goparis.about.com/od/transpor...ngParisMap.htm

cmcfong

Thank you, greg, that is just what I was seeking.

As we are renting an apartment, I can't expect to find a great map. Who knows, they might surprise me.

suze

One of the ones we didn't use hardly at all was exactly that, by arrondiseement. It was OK if you were looking for a particular street in a particular neighborhood, because it had good detail, but was useless for planning a day all around the city where you needed an overview, and to see how things laid out all together, not in small sections.

I had no "struggle" using the paper map and made notes on it as we went along. Actually it's been back to Paris a few times since (loaned to friends).

fuzzbucket

Everyone who lives in Paris has a couple of copies of the little blue book mentioned above - "Paris par Arrondissement, L'Indispensable". It is impossible to get lost using this book.

There is lots of information here, if you know how to use the book.
Complete map of the Paris metropolitain area, complete Metro and Bus maps, two-page spreads of each arrondissement with all streets listed (four-page spreads for larger arrondissements), markers for Velib' stations, Taxi stands, Post Offices, municipal buildings, museums, monuments...

They are sold in most newspaper kiosks and many bookstores, price varies by neighborhood and establishment - anywhere from 5 - 8 EU.

StCirq

Paris Par Arrondissement, for sure. I never travel there without it. You should be able to pick up a single Streetwise Map for Paris with everything on one page at any kiosk or bookstore, too. Good for the overall picture.

cmcfong

Thank you the recommendation. It sounds like just what I need.

Is anyone aware of a similar guide for Bordeaux?

StCirq

I don't know of anything like Paris Par Arrondissement for Bordeaux, but the Tourist Office has a variety of good maps, as does any bookstore or kiosk. You can also use this and print out your own:

http://www.infotbc.com/node/4725

cmcfong

Thank you for the recommendations.
The apartment manager provided us with a good walking map for Bordeaux.
For Paris, I bought Paris Plan Eclair, for 8 Euros. It was sold at several kiosks on Rue de Rivoli. It worked perfectly.

FrenchMystiqueTours

The free maps given out by the hotels are not very detailed. They only show the central portion of Paris so are no good if venturing outside of central Paris. They don't show all the streets nor street names. Fine for walking down major streets and boulevards but as soon as you get off a major street you are also off the map.

flanneruk

I've hardly ever found Paris par Arondissement any use at all. Year after year, I dig the thing out, take it with me and tumble over an occasion it 's been worth the trouble at most once a decade (almost always: when a cab driver tells you a couple of hundred yards away from a restaurant that it'll take a lot longer for him to drive the last bit than for you to walk it)

A classic example of self-deluding Gallic non-logic, it's really aimed at Parisians who know that the Au Cour Gascon restaurant is in the vingt et unieme, but can't remember how to get to it from the nearest metro station. And it does that no better and no worse (unless, of course the nearest metro is actually in a different arondissement) than A-Zs do throughout Britain

But, unlike A-Zs, it's completely useless for planning a walk that crosses the artificial boundaries some 19th century dictator invented between these meaningless arondissements. Or when the metro builders had the gall to put stations somewhere PpA didn't think they ought to be

Get a free map from your nearest hotel as soon as you arrive, then pop into any bookshop and browse the range of street maps (assuming the bookseller's got samples that haven't been shrinkwrapped to stop you looking at them) till you find one that suits you. DON'T use a newspaper kiosk, because you really can't easily look inside the books they sell

Envierges

Although those of us who live here wouldn't be without the Paris Par Arrondisement mentioned above, I think it's pretty hard for a first time visitor to use because it doesn't give much of an overview. The new edition with complete city maps of bus routes, tourist bus routes, Sunday buses and so forth tries to overcome that deficiency. The new book even includes the locations of public toilets.

A map book many people like is The Paris Map Guide by Michael Middleditch.

Nikki

I cannot match the poetry, but Flanner described my experience with that arrondissement book perfectly. I have stopped bringing it along. Especially now that I carry all of human knowlege in my pocket and can zoom in on any street or out for a broader perspective on my phone.

One map I have found very useful is the free map available at metro stations with bus routes on one side and metro maps on the other, overlaid on a street map. It is called something like "Grand Plan avec lignes et rues". Not just the regular bus and metro map.