djkbooks

Just e-mail Michael Osman ([email protected]). Sometimes it takes a few days for a response if he is very busy.

Michael's rate is exceptionally reasonable and he will start as early as you like and stay with you as long as you like for his daily fee.

Highly, highly recommend him - especially with the 17-year old.

Orcas

The Cluny is a gem of a museum that our kids actually liked. It is basically of Medieval History. It has the Lady and the Unicorn Tapestries in it. The original Roman baths are in the lower area. It would be good to do a tour of it, as there are lots of good stories about the items that are in it. It's fairly small scale, too, so isn't overwhelming, like so many other museums.

Ronda

We took my daughter and friend for high school graduation. They enjoyed watching traffic from the top of the Arc de Triomphe (watching the traffic go round), of course the Eiffel Tower, and taking an evening river cruise.

My daughter likes art and thus enjoyed the museums. Her friend did not. I told the friend that I picked the first activity for 1-2 hours and then she got to pick the next activity for 1-2 hours (shopping). Getting them from point A to point B without shopping was a chore and I finally opted to put them in a taxi to get from Point A to Point B and thus shopping was out of the question until the apointed hour.

I second the idea of the museum at Invaldies. If your brother at all likes war "stuff" (uniforms, arms) he will enjoy it. Napoleons horse and dog are in there (stuffed) as well.

They also enjoyed Montmarte although rather touristy. My son, on his first trip, wanted to buy a loaf of french bread and munch on it while walking around.

They all enjoyed walking around the Rue de Buci area and the Latin Quarter and stopping to eat at a Cafe.

Be prepared for cold and rain because nothing is more miserable than listening to a whinning cold 17 year old. I tucked an extra scarf and umbrella in for my son although he insisted he didn't need them; he enjoyed them when the weather turned wet and cold.

A lot of people dislike RS but for first time travelers he is fine. Really helps you hit the ground running with his info.

Paris Walks is a less expensive alternative to a private guide. I hope this is the right link: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pariswalking/

Hope you have a wonderful time! And yes, we did have to eat at Hard Rock Cafe one night.

ira

Hi sh,

Your brother ought to go to the Thorn Tree forum at www.lonelyplanet.com.

He can also post questions here:

(Dear fodorites,
I am going to Paris with my older sister and her husband. All they want to do is hang around museums. What is there for a reasonably cool 17-yr old to do in Paris?)

If you go to
http://www.wcities.com/outside.html?...-roller.com%2F
you will get the rollerblade website in English.

Routes are posted a week in advance.

Also, look at the miniguide to Paris under "Destinations".

sandi_travelnut

My 17yr old loves to just walk around Paris..or Rome or whever we are. He's not much into "site seeing" but will come along without too much complaining. We did let him pick the areas of the Louvre that interested him most but maily gave him and area of the city that he could walk in, even alone.

suze

Just being in Paris is great. As suggested several times above, get him on Lonely Planet's website their BB called The Thorn Tree to talk to other teen travelers about what is cool to do.

I am a firm believer in people-watching as a world-class sport for all ages! Have him pick up a weekly entertainment guide once you arrive and find clubs or music that interests him. Maybe some of the more off-beat tourist attractions like the catacombs? I'm alot older than 17 but don't much care for too much time in museums myself, so he has my sympathy -LOL.

sandi_travelnut

I also agree that there is nothing in the original post that makes this 17 yr old sound like a brat or that he's going to ruin someone's trip. How amny adults do you know that has a limit to the number of museums they want to see or not see any at all? Not everyone is a museum lover. Take him and let him have some free time on his own. Make sure he has cab fare and the address to the hotel so that he can walk around and get back to you at a certain time.

aliska

No one has yet mentioned L'Opentour, which is a tour bus you can hop on/off at leisure that has narrated guide info. We did this for the 1st 2 days of our trip to Paris and really enjoyed it, because you could see everything quickly in an overview and decide what you would want to visit in depth.It was $75 for 3 of us for 2 days, so probably $25 per person.

djkbooks

L'Opentour is fabulous in the nice weather when you can enjoy the sights from seats on the open air upper deck.

I didn't mention this because when the weather is not so pleasant (as in a couple of weeks) it's a rather expensive way to get around, though it is definitely most convenient for getting to the major sights and attractions (keeping in mind that routes travel in only one direction).

Flwrhead

Yes, your agenda is too ambitious, but that's okay - it'll give you more to look forward to when you return! I second the recommendation for rue Mouffetard, cool little shops, lots of creperies, bars, etc. and (most importantly) kids close to your brother's age. Place de la Contrascarpe is great, as is the Latin Quarter. Have a great time!

SAnParis

As a graduation gift for my brother-in-law we 'gave' him a trip to wherever he would like to go (w/in reason of course). He has chosen NYC, & his girlfriend is going to tag along as well. The flights are already booked for Spring, so for XMas, they will be receiving all necessary info & resources to help plan their trip to NY. If you allow the teen to participate in the planning, you may be surprised as to what turns out to be 'cool'. Oh, & I'd take the Metro.

monpetit

There are a lot of funny suggestions in all the posters above.
To mix the "serious" options with something which can interest your brother, there are some of nice expositions in Paris, now and the best way to appreciate them is to reserve a
ticket with an "exact" horary schedule(in the FNAC stores : you can find them in the web site FNAC.com -some of the
stores ne rue de Rennes, near gare Montparnasse,one on the Champs Elysées,one at les halles).
Nice actual expositons :
-cité des sciences : star wars : over 200 items from the original moovie's sets(costumes, engines,...)
-cité de la muqique(near cité des sciences : an exposition about John Lennon: his piano,guitars...
both are at subway station porte de la villette

-Grand Palais : exposition about 1900
Vienna's painters(Klimt,Schiele,Korskova
and Moser)
-Grand Palais also : the melancolie in the arts
both at midway between place de la concorde and arc de triomphe.
-musée Marmottan : the Monets's painting
and actually the Camille Claudel's sculptures..
-à la cinémathèque(subway station Bercy) : a parallelism between Renoir's painting and some moovies of his son, Jean Renoir.

My duaghters have apprecied a lot 1900
Vienna's painting, Star wars and Marmottan.
You can also go to Beaubourg : there is an exposition about the Dada movement and you can eat at "Le Georges" at the last floor : not so expensive and you have the view on Paris.
Erik

monpetit

I forgot an superb suggestion to find in this forum : the passages.Just write
"passages" on the cadre up and click on go and you'll find : a rainy day occupation...the passages.It's an itinerary which englobes quite all the passages of paris and it's really
nice...
Erik.

has250

I have scanned the other answers and agree with quite a few... One thing I would do it to DEFINITELY buy a Carte Musee--the museum card(available at the bigger metro stations) this allows you entrance into probably 100 monuments and museums without any line!! In fact, you can go back over and over again!this allows you to explore different places like the towers of the Notre Dame, the archeological dig in front of the N.D., some of the smaller museums which are not so intimidating, etc. DEF go to the catacombs which is an underground burial vault that bodies were moved to from Les Halles area(now stores) after they started to float up and into peoples basements, etc. Pere LaChaise is really interesting--you can just walk through for hours--very beautiful and eery(and he will like to see Jim Morrison--although the site is ess. bare). Have a falafel in the Marais. DEF eat ice cream just across Ile de la Cite from the back side of the ND. go into the jail building where Marie Antoinette was kept(cant remember the name but on the card). and here is one suggestion to keep him unbored: spring for the audio guide at the museum tht you want to see the most. Picasso Museum in the Marais. Street performers outside the Sacre Couer. The Rodin Museum!!! EVen the most jaded kid can't help but be impressed seeing The Thinker! Versailles was on the card when we went a few years back! It was great--felt 'free' and NO LINE! Def. get the audio here. and go all the way out to Marie's little play area. Very neat. You shoulnd't have any trouble keeping extrememly busy! enjoy your trip!

Subway_Scoundrel

For a 17 year old, of course, go to the Eiffel Tower, but one thing that might make it more enjoyable would be let him plan the Subway routes to take. Give him a map and have it be his job to get the gang to the next place. Paris has one of the best subways and you can get anywhere in 2 stops. So it is like an underground city so let him make the decisions and yes, getting lost is half the fun. Just remember, the double decker trains are suburban trains and the single story are metro trains. He might also enjoy Versailles. Huge house and fun to explore, plus you take the train for 30-45 minutes to get there. Another place I think is cool is go to the Cluny-Sorbonne station (Line number 10 I think) and walk toward the Gardens. There is a little city park and when walk down the small street, the park is actually a Roman amphitheater. It is almost 2000 years old. Finding it is half the fun plus you are in a college area and has some funky things just like all college areas.

djkbooks

Do NOT purchase a museum pass for the 17-year old. Admission is free or reduced at most places included for those under 18.

Daniel_Williams

Hi

I remember when I went to Paris on my own when I was 18, only a year older than your brother. My parents were living in Nigeria at the time, and there were no direct flights, so we had to go through a European hub along the way.

I was a pretty silly teenager at the time. I quickly discovered that even though I'd gotten A's in French in high school, that gosh darn it, French people spoke so quickly I could barely follow a word they said; even those newscasters, supposedly easy to understand, seemed to zoom along at lightening speed.

I never considered myself big on museums at that age, but then to be in the majesty of Paris, the world seemed so much bigger than American Top 40 (despite some French teenagers who were singing Roxette walking into the Louvre). I felt compelled and awed by museums, stopped to see an opera performed in front of Catedrale Notre-Dame, and was inspired to see all the youth around enjoying it equally.

I enjoyed seeing my fellow French teenagers, who dressed and acted differently from the people I knew back home.

Anyhow, I think once he's in Paris, he might find himself inspired. I know I did. I wanted to *be* French after visiting and plotted every way possible to move there. Didn't end up happening, but am in Montreal now, which I love tremendously also (although enormously different).

Cheers and bon voyage! DAN

PatrickLondon

On the roller parade, use the link at the top of the screen which says 'parcours' - that page will show you whatever route has been agreed with the police for that week. It tends to go up only a day or so beforehand, so you'd need to find an internet café in Paris and trace the route against a map to find a good spot. Bear in mind they get round pretty fast - for anywhere within about a kilometre, you need to be there about 10pm. Or alternatively you could just go to the starting point at Montparnasse - there's a map which shows it, and although it's a busy station, my guess is there will be plenty of people on rollerblades to give you a hint as to where to go.

One point for this time of year - it does say that if it's cancelled due to the weather, this will be announced at the starting point.

Another idea might be to get your brother interested enough for him to try to puzzle out the website himself!

I have a link to a small video clip I took in June, at www.patrickwallace.me.uk/france.htm (bottom of the page).

PatrickLondon

To be precise the starting point (prompt at 10pm every Friday night) is Place Raoul Dautry, 14th arrondissement, which is the space between the Tour Montparnasse and the station. Metro lines 4, 6, 12 and 13 – station Montparnasse Bienvenüe.

Kate_W

I think they also do the rollerblade trip on Sunday afternoons, since about 500 people skated by my office the other day ...