www.ratp.fr is a fantastic resource for maps of neighborhoods. Before leaving home, I print a plan de quartier for destinations in neighborhoods with which we are not familiar. You just enter the address and you'll get a map (you can also zoom in and out) with all the nearby bus stops (and route numbers), metro stops, even taxi stands.

djkbooks,
Yes, I love the ratp website, but I haven't printed up a plan de quartier. That's a good idea! I do plot out the directions to everywhere we want to go, if we're not familiar with it.

Sandy