janetsb

Please give advice for the best bus tour in Paris. Also, would one or two day be better. Thanks. I am here now.

adrienne

What do you want to see on a bus. There are lots of tours but the "best" would be one that goes to sights you want to see.

Here's a link to a couple of reputable companies.

http://www.pariscityvision.com/en/paris
http://ecityrama.com/

I think the best tours are walking tours.

http://www.paris-walks.com/

kimharp

I don't know if it is the best, but we recently did L'OpenTour (http://www.paris.opentour.com/en/) at the recommendation of our hotel, and it was great. I have to admit to being very skeptical at first, but it turned out to be a really relaxing and fun way to see the city. Very easy to hop on and off, and you can plug in ear buds to hear the commentary in your choice of languages. I think the number of days would just depend on how much time you want to spend doing it.....

RonZ

Here is a self guided circular city tour of Paris using 4 bus lines, starting at Opera. Note that like the Metro, lines have names at the end to indicate direction of travel, and every stop has a name.

Walk down the Ave. de l’Opera and left on rue du Quatre Septembre [second street] and board the 29 bus [direction Gare du Nord]. You will pass the Bourse, Place des Victoires, Centre Pompidou...into the Marais...passing Musees Cognacq Jay, Picasso & Carnavalet; and the Place des Vosges.

Get off at Bastille [the stop after Bastille-Beaumarchais], walk a few steps to the next stop, and take the 69 [direction Champ de Mars]. This is the best of all the bus routes.

A better idea is to get off before Bastille at the Place des Vosges [stop after Payenne] and walk through, maybe stopping for a coffee at Ma Burgoyne. Proceed through the center south exit and down the street to the corner and left a few steps to the 69 bus stop on rue Saint Antoine.

Soon you’ll be on the rue de Rivoli, passing the Hotel de Ville and close to the Palais Royale before going left through the Louvre complex [between the pyramid and the Arc du Carrousel] and crossing on the Pont Royale. Now it’s past the Musee d’Orsay, through the Place des Invalides, past Rue Cler and into the Champ de Mars.

Get off at the end of the line and walk to the Eiffel Tower, then straight across the boulevard and board the 82 bus [direction Neuilly-Hopital Americain], getting off at Porte Maillot. Then walk around the corner to the right and board the 73 bus [direction Musee d’Orsay].

You will be going around the Arc d’Triomphe [thankful that you’re not driving a car] and then down the Champs Elysses. Get off at the Rond Point Champs Elysses and board then 42 [same stop].

Now it’s down down past the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais and through the Place de la Concorde. Then up Rue Royale to the Madeleine and back to Opera.

janisj

Here is the correct link for kimharp's post . . .

http://www.paris.opentour.com/en/

(WHY do people think they need trailing parentheses . . . or ANY parentheses for that matter? they screw up the links.)

manouche

I take the bus nearly every day in Paris. There is nothing romantic about mass transit in this city. If you are planning to use the city bus as a sight-seeing vehicle, you need to re-consider.

If you are lucky enough to get a window seat, there are times when you can glimpse some architecture or even a monument or two. However, most of the time, you'll be travelling through very narrow streets, where the only thing you will see is first-floor shop windows and parked cars.

A lot depends on the time of day, but there are only 28 seats on the average city bus - chances of you getting one of them are slim. Many people will bring strollers, grocery carts and luggage - there is not much room in the aisle. Standing requires you to hold on tight, since it's not a smooth ride, by any means.

Depending on the route and day of the week - as well as protest marches, road work, detours and the phases of the moon - you might wait 3 to 25+ mins between buses. Though in an ideal world, you should be able to cross town in about 40 mins, it could well take twice that amount of time.

If you're still thinking about using the bus, you need to plan your route using either "Le Bus Parisien - L'Indispensable"- available at any newsstand - or the website www.ratp.fr You should also keep an eye out for news about protest marches, which often bring traffic to a standstill. Any information about detours, etc will unfortunately be posted on the bus stops in French.

Personally, I would recommend L'OpenTour. Buy your ticket on the bus - don't buy ahead, since bad weather wouldn't allow you to get the view. You'll definitely get a seat, and if you sit upstairs, will definitely get to see what you came here for.

LBloom

If you are on a budget or want to save a few bucks, take the No. 69 bus. You can use a bus pass and get off/on to what attracts you. It starts at the Eiffel Tower and runs all the way to Pere LaChaise cemetery. Doubtful you will want to sit on a bus all day, but a good way to inexpensively see quite a bit of Paris and save your money for yummy bakery treats, chocolate and lunch/dinner.

http://www.parisperfect.com/blog/201...ghts-in-paris/

Sarastro

Balabus is arguably the best bus tour in Paris. It is also the cheapest at only the price of a single ride ticket, ticket T+.


http://www.ratp.fr/informer/pdf/orie...balabus&fm=gif

It operates on weekends and holidays only.