Paris
 

I will be visiting Paris in June with my 16 yr old. Can anyone recommend a boat tour. leaving from the Eiffel Tower area. Also, any great little bistro's, and suggestions for a three day stay would be greatly appreciated.

You can find all of the suggestions you need on this board by using the search function. Just put "Paris bistros" or "Paris Itineraries" or "Seine Cruises" in the search box. You should alse check out Paris in the "Destinations" section of this forum and get yourself a good guide book. Eyewitness guides are good and we like the Michelin guides as well.

I recommend Bateaux Parisiens for a tour company. http://www.bateauxparisiens.com/
They have two locations, Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame, I took them from ND and liked the boat and company. To some extent, I don't really then any of them are that different--the main difference I see is that most of them are fairly small boats and then the main one (Bateaux Mouches) which leaves from pont d'Alma (so isn't where you want) had larger boats. I like them both.

People can't recommend bistros very well without knowing what location you would like. Paris isn't that small that you would want to run all over town for dinner, at least I wouldn't.

Bateaux Mouche boats leave from more or less across the Seine from the Eiffel. The night trips are spectacular, but it doesn't get dark until fairly late in June.

We wouLd need to know more about the specific neighborhood where you are staying to make recommendations on places to eat and shop.

Hi pg,

check out www.batobus.com

((I))

The Bateaux Parisiens excursion boats have their main departure and arrival point next to the Eiffel Tower, on the Seine River. The Bateaux Mouches, the largest and oldest company, has bigger boats that I find nicer, but they are over by the Alma bridge, a bit upstream, whereas the Bateaux Parisiens are very close to the Tower. They cost about the same. The Bateaux Parisiens have a glass roof that can close if it rains (although it hasn't rained in ages), but the Bateaux Mouches have an open deck on top and a closed-in deck on the bottom and they are nicer in good weather.

Is your 16 year old male or female - does he or she like history? art? if into military/martial type stuff I would definitely recommend Les Invalides and the Musee d'armee there - lots of great weapons and interesting history that a teen might like. Honestly I'd skip the Louvre with a teen - my boys would not have liked Versaille but I suspect a girl would not to be too stereotypical. outside of Paris there are some great castles that are fun too

The company we have used several times and like is at this website http://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/ . You can print either a discount coupon or prepurchase a ticket on their website. We do the prepurchase as it brings the cost down to 8 euro per adult instead of 13 euro, and there is no set date or time, so you just use it whenever you feel like it.

mms,
I like the vedettes du pont neuf boats also but the OP needs it to be by the Eiffel Tower I think.

michelle--Thanks. I meant to mention it, but forgot before I hit submit. Oh well, maybe it can help the OP or someone else who is deciding:)

My son is the 16 year old, and we are staying in the 7th district.

On the rue Cler?

if your son is like ours I would again recommend the musee d'armee and the Invalides with Napoleon's tomb - we didn't do the catacomb or sewer tours, but suspect a 16 year old boy would like those - of course Eiffel tower and walking around the Latin quarter, the Pantheon maybe. If he has read Hemmingway take him to Deux Maggots in St. Germain de Pres where Hemmingway liked to hang - we got a kick out of it. enjoy!