Paris with a Broken Leg!! Suggestions needed
Jan 26th, 2012, 10:46 AM
#21
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You all have been so helpful, but there is one decision I still am struggling with: hotel location. Do we stay in a hotel close to a number of the things we want to see and close to some favorite small cafes but far from most of the places we want to have dinner? or do we stay close to the dinner places, recognizing I am apt to be tired by evening, and cab/bus to our daytime destinations? thanks in advance
Jan 27th, 2012, 03:27 AM
#22
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I guess the way I would think about this is:
Which will you be more disappointed to discover you really weren't able to do because of your leg?
I think there is a chance that when you get to Paris, you may have to scale back some of your ambitions. You'll be moving at a slower pace and more easily tired.
Think you'll be happiest having seen the things you want to see and having hung out in your favorite cafes, even though, come dinner time, you skipped getting into a cab repeatedly to go to distant restuarants, and instead at the same bistro down the street repeatedly?
or
Think you might feel a bit sad to have come all the way to Paris and end up missing out on those new restaurants you wanted to try because you really were too tired to get into another cab at the end of the day?
One other thing to consider is whether you think you might want to go back to your hotel during the day.
Will restaurants in Paris cheerfully call you a taxi after dinner? Or will you have your own cell and speak French?
Which will you be more disappointed to discover you really weren't able to do because of your leg?
I think there is a chance that when you get to Paris, you may have to scale back some of your ambitions. You'll be moving at a slower pace and more easily tired.
Think you'll be happiest having seen the things you want to see and having hung out in your favorite cafes, even though, come dinner time, you skipped getting into a cab repeatedly to go to distant restuarants, and instead at the same bistro down the street repeatedly?
or
Think you might feel a bit sad to have come all the way to Paris and end up missing out on those new restaurants you wanted to try because you really were too tired to get into another cab at the end of the day?
One other thing to consider is whether you think you might want to go back to your hotel during the day.
Will restaurants in Paris cheerfully call you a taxi after dinner? Or will you have your own cell and speak French?
Jan 27th, 2012, 08:02 AM
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PS: If you find out it is really not the norm for a restaurant in Paris to call a taxi for you (although I would think if you are carrying a cane they might relent if you provided them with the taxi service number), then make sure that any hotel you are considering "close" to your wish list of restaurants really is close enough to walk, given that you might be considerably slowed by your leg and walking at night. Don't forget, too, that it rains in Paris.
If you already know of a hotel that is just a few steps away from an affordable restaurant you really love, consider booking there, on the outside chance that at the end of every day, you will only want to walk a few steps for dinner. If it turns out you have more energy than that, you can take cabs.
If you already know of a hotel that is just a few steps away from an affordable restaurant you really love, consider booking there, on the outside chance that at the end of every day, you will only want to walk a few steps for dinner. If it turns out you have more energy than that, you can take cabs.
Jan 27th, 2012, 08:26 AM
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You can call TaxiG7 http://www.taxisg7.com/?tg7=d18e1192...28ca7e904cd9b5
Their number is 01.47.39.47.39, which gets you an English speaking operator. Be advised that the meter starts when the cab is dispatched, so there will be a charge already on the meter when they arrive.
Their number is 01.47.39.47.39, which gets you an English speaking operator. Be advised that the meter starts when the cab is dispatched, so there will be a charge already on the meter when they arrive.
Jan 27th, 2012, 08:54 AM
#27
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JMK38, we just returned from a Christmas week in Paris. Because of an on-going knee issue, we made some modifications to our normal transportation mode, like avoiding the metro. And if there were too many steps at a venue, without a sufficient pay-off, we'd just "take a pass". We think that there are a lot of good suggestions above. Here are a few ideas which worked for us:
-Staying at a hotel in the 6th, surrounded by many cafes and restaurants, gave us the option to return to our hotel and walk only short distances for dinner. One other practical note: the restrooms in many cafes and restaurants are in "basement levels" or on second floors, involving sometimes tricky steps. If this is an issue for you, another advantage of having a hotel located in an area close to restaurants is that you can use the facilites in your hotel.
-As other have suggested, the Paris buses are convenient, and have low (almost curb level) entrances, making them easy to access. If you are going to one destination, e.g. a museum, a specific bus route is convenient. In our case, since this trip was mainly to enjoy the Christmas atmosphere, we wanted to get around the whole city, with short stop-offs in different areas, so we found the Hop On/Hop Off buses convenient. And we made use of taxis. We found that, contrary to NYC or other big US cities, in Paris you can't just "hail a cab". The cabs line up at specific taxi stands. (At first, they were a bit tricky to find because they're green metal posts with "Taxi" on them, but only about 4 or 5 ft. tall.) If you call a cab, you are charged from the cab's point of origin; using the taxi stand, your charge starts when your ride begins.
We have a couple installments of a Trip Report posted under the title of: Our "Christmas in Paris" Experience, where we describe a few more details.
We wish you a happy trip to a wonderful city!
-Staying at a hotel in the 6th, surrounded by many cafes and restaurants, gave us the option to return to our hotel and walk only short distances for dinner. One other practical note: the restrooms in many cafes and restaurants are in "basement levels" or on second floors, involving sometimes tricky steps. If this is an issue for you, another advantage of having a hotel located in an area close to restaurants is that you can use the facilites in your hotel.
-As other have suggested, the Paris buses are convenient, and have low (almost curb level) entrances, making them easy to access. If you are going to one destination, e.g. a museum, a specific bus route is convenient. In our case, since this trip was mainly to enjoy the Christmas atmosphere, we wanted to get around the whole city, with short stop-offs in different areas, so we found the Hop On/Hop Off buses convenient. And we made use of taxis. We found that, contrary to NYC or other big US cities, in Paris you can't just "hail a cab". The cabs line up at specific taxi stands. (At first, they were a bit tricky to find because they're green metal posts with "Taxi" on them, but only about 4 or 5 ft. tall.) If you call a cab, you are charged from the cab's point of origin; using the taxi stand, your charge starts when your ride begins.
We have a couple installments of a Trip Report posted under the title of: Our "Christmas in Paris" Experience, where we describe a few more details.
We wish you a happy trip to a wonderful city!
