Recommendations for a guide in Paris
 

Most of the time my wife and I enjoy exploring on our own, but we have found that a knowlegeable and engaging guide can make the museum experience more enjoyable (especially for our teenage daughters who quickly became bored with our self-guided tour of the Vatican last year, but loved the professionally-guided tour of the Borghesee).

As we finalize plans for our Paris trip in March, I would like to engage the services of a guide for our visit to the Louvre (and possibly the Orsay as well). I had hoped we would be able use Michael Osman (who has been recommended on this board), but I have been unable to reach him via e-mail for the last couple of months.

So, if you know of a good guide in Paris (or if you know how to contact Michael Osman), I'd love to hear from you.

Thanks!

Call Michael...he is wonderful. We have toured w/him the last two summers. My brother in law toured w/ him, as did my son & his wife.
I think you will have better luck calling him than emailing him.

Michael has been having serious computer problems. We've just booked him for a day in Feb , for thr 3rd time in 1 and 1/2 yrs. You might try calling him in the evening ( Paris time) as wren suggested.

I hear rave reviews about Michael, but no one mentions how much he charges? Are his tours private or are you in with other people? I would prefer the latter if it lessens the price. We will be in Paris at the end of May.

We payed him 75 euro for a very long day...9:30---8 or 9. He gives you the whole day and customizes it to whatever you want to do. He is both versatile and flexible. I can recommend him w/o any qualms!

Jody and Wren, thanks for your replies. I called Michael as you suggested and confirmed that he has been without internet access but hopes to have it restored soon.

If you want another suggestion, you can email me at [email protected]. I have a friend who is a veteran ParisVision guide of Paris who also freelances. She is amazing (but I don't feel comfortable listing her email on a public forum).

Thanks for the offer StCirq. If Michael turns out to be unavailable for our dates of travel, I will send you an e-mail requesting the contact info for your friend.

I've never met him, but Anthony Atkielski and I have had considerable e-mail correspondence. He is an accomplished photographer, a very articulate guy, and highly knowledgeable about Paris. His web site is

<b>http://www.atkielski.com</b>

And he has published a guide to the intricacies of the RATP:

http://www.atkielski.com/PDF/data/ParMetro.pdf

I think everybody likes Michael a lot, haven't used him myself, but I think he just kind of does that as a hobby rather than a business and that's the reason he doesn't respond sometimes. He just is selective in what he wants to do. The internet access problem sounds questionable as he routinely and often posts on other travel web sites and forums and has done so recently, within the last few days, including today.

Christina, it is his business, not his hobby. It is his livelihood. Sometimes he is busier than others and he doesn't answer his mail. But he seems to get to it eventually, and has always attempted to accomodate us.

I am not holding a grudge and I wish him well with other clients, but no, he doesn't always get to it eventually-- since I didn't get any responses to any of my two very polite emails or two faxes, I found I had to make other decisions and arrangements.

I can confirm that Michael's internet access problem is real. The bad storm last month knocked his modem out.

I wish some of you folks would pause before you assume the worst about people you do not know.

Michael is as nice a person as you will ever meet--and will give you the tour of your life. He was with our family in October and showed me things I had never seen in many trips to Paris. He has been extremely busy this year. Our adult kids absolutely fell in love with him. His tours are so much more than a canned variety--lots of background and history and lore. And for museums he, as an artist, is superb. I told him he should be a teacher--his explanations are so clear and complete.

Just how do you get in touch with Michael? email address? phone #?

[email protected]

I was miffed about Michael not returning my emails or faxes which were sent weeks ago, but I just heard from him today, and he apologized for the delays which were due to technical difficulties. He'd made a walk reservation for me, but unfortunately because I hadn't heard from him we've already made other plans for that day, so we have to decline. But, it seems the stars and computers were not in alignment, and he otherwise would have responded much sooner. So, perhaps next time I will try again.

The owners of the apartment that we are renting in Paris sent us an information pack and in it is the recommendation of using Michael Osman for a guide.
We will not need him but we might get him for a day with our son.

Great news, Scarlet. Where is the apartment?

We were so happy to have found Michael for our trip to Paris last year. I was worried about keeping my two boys interested in the art at the Louvre and at other museums in the city. They really loved having Michael around to explain everything we saw at the Louvre and in Paris. We all learned so much from him. I'm trying to find a similar guide to help us in Rome and Florence this year. Would love any suggestions.
Ellie

Giancarlo Alu is a wonderful guide in Rome, extremely knowledgeable. I don't have his contact info but Bookchick does. I'll make sure she sees this.

I e-mailed Michael this morning and I have already received a wonderful reply. I am looking forward to his services on our trip to Paris in March.

Michael has provided great touring services for us in the past. He is very flexible and can customize your day with ease. Yes, he is busy (his days are long) and sometimes does not respond right away. Peresever - it will be worth it

OP here to report, that I was finally able to reach Michael and book a tour with him. I had to be persistent with phone, fax, and e-mail, but ultimately we did connect, and last week my family and I spent a wonderful day with Michael touring the Louvre and d'Orsay.

Michael has a low key approach to touring that made us feel we were spending the day with a knowledgeable friend, rather than being lead around by a tour guide. Michael never presented us with a canned speech or rehearsed presentation. Instead he simply talked with us about the artists, their lives, and their work. As the day progressed and he learned more about us, Michael would point out the things he thought would interest us most.

It is obvious that Michael loves what he does, and clear that he stays very busy doing it. I am glad that I didn't give up when Michael wasn't able to provide the immediate response I was expecting.

A slightly different approach: Anthony Atkielski simply accompanies you and puts his local knowledge at your disposal. If you just need help with language and logistics, Tony's your man.

<b>http://www.atkielski.com</b>

He has also published a superb guide to getting around Paris by public transport in a free pdf brochure you can print:

<b>http://www.atkielski.com/PDF/data/ParMetro.pdf</b>

Hi newesttraveler! I am glad to hear about your good experience with Michael. My husband and I have him scheduled on May 30th. I also wanted him to go to the Louvre with us. From the looks of his website or our email exchange his area of interest and education is in art history. We also want to do a walking tour of the Marais with him and leave enough time for him to show us some of his favorites. I am really excited about it. By the way, did you buy his lunch or dinner when you all toured?

I had a wonderful day with Michael Osman in early February. I told him I wanted to see a number of areas I had not been to (Parc Montsouris, Les Batignolles, Les Buttes Chaumont) and he designed a fantastic day to cover them all. I invited him to join me for lunch in the Marais and paid for him because his full day's fee was only 75 Euros and it is his livelihood.

Like others, I had trouble at first contacting him because of computer or email problems. I know these are real because after I got back I emailed him to thank him, he replied and then I emailed back but it &quot;bounced&quot; - &quot;email delivery delayed&quot; then became delivery failed. Let's hope he gets a better ISP or computer. It would be a shame for people to miss having him as a guide. By the time we parted, he seemed like an old friend.

To ilovetulips...

Yes, I did buy lunch for Michael, and also paid for his admission to d'Orsay (he is a member at the Louvre so his admission was covered there).

I felt he more than earned his 75 euro fee and gave him another 15 euro as a tip.

Salut newesttraveler,
I've heard great things about a group called Paris Muse, www.parismuse.com---you can arrange for a tour of a certain museum or a themed art visit. On their home page, you can even check to see what special museum shows will be up during your trip, or read profiles of lesser-known museums.
Bon voyage!

My family just spent a remarkable week in Paris, and hired Michael Osman to be our private guide for six days. I would enthusiastically recommend him to anyone visiting Paris for any amount of time. He is absolutely flexible, extremely knowledgeable, friendly and an expert on art and art history. He managed to keep my wife (artist), myself (easily bored) and two sons (ages 15 and 10) interested and eager to come back to Paris again. By the second day I was able to manage the Paris Metro and buses by myself if need be, and we saw more in that week than we could have in a month. I didn't have to refer to a map once, and our own personal guide through The Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, Versailles, Giverny, Musee Picasso, etc. etc. etc. was priceless. THANK YOU MICHAEL OSMAN!!!