My husband, 5 year old daughter and I leave for Provence and Paris in 3 days. We having been planning this trip for a year, and I broke my leg in December. I can walk now, but I'm slow and just can't walk too far. I have a U.S. handicapped parking permit, and I'm wondering if I can use it in France? Does France have handicapped parking places, and how does one qualify to use one? What can I expect in terms of being a handicapped person in France? Please don't tell me to postpone the trip--I'm going!!! Thanks.

sorry about my "having" typo--i blame it on my happy packing fatigue

..you must forget Paris in terms of any organized handicapped access..I did not notice any handicapped spaces. The metro isnt suited..only a few stops have elevators.

There's some current information on the bonjourparis.com web site, which has a thread on Disabled Access in France. France does have handicapped permits, but the process for getting one is not easy, and I don't know whether visitors would qualify in any event.

Why not rent a wheelchair while you're in Paris? They're available at pharmacies, and some buses have lifts. Otherwise you'll need to take taxis (as I do, because of a bad knee)--the metro system is mostly inaccessable because of many stairs and long walks to change lines.

You'll be able to get a wheelchair at the major museums.

I don't remember where I read it but you can use your handicapped permit in France. I took mine for my hip and used it in Provence for a week. We rented a car there. In Paris we got a hotel close to the buses and also used Taxis. Even so I still had to do a lot of walking in Paris. Museums had wheel chairs I used.