Hope to take my only grandchild to Paris- either 2nd or 3rd. week in Sept. or 3rd or 4th week of October. She is 20 and talks mostly about "shopping" Not really interested in history and I am sure she has no concept about the Euro.... I am mainly interested in Art,-especially Impressionists. , We have traveled together since she was 8yrs old..but only in only in US . I have been in 47 states but only once to England and Scotland'
The AAA will handle travel arrangements. in the meantime , I need build a knowledge base so I can make good choices in dealing with the travel agent.. I am so accustomed to making all my own arrangements here in US. I don;t know where to start...
I have Rick Steve's Paris 2009 --Almost too much info.
Have read several books and articles about the Art Museums in Paris.
Do not want to venture out of Paris. I am sure we can manage the Metro--Can it be anyworse than the Subway in NYC?
Will purchase Travel Insurance. --I am a retired Nurse and always worry about medical stuff as Medicare does not cover "out of US" care. We both have valid Passports
Sept.& Oct. dates are ony times she can be away from college projects.
Aiming for 10 day stay -plus one day for travel at each end--Don't think I can afford more.
I know I am asking a lot but really appreciate any advise--even litle bits and pieces.

Start by buying a museum pass, it's sounds like your going to use it. You can buy it when you get to Paris. You don't sound like you'll need advice about museums and the metro is easy.

It's easy enough to make your own arrangements for hotels and airfare. For hotels, what's your budget? Have you looked on trip advisor.

Then introduce your GD to xe.com so she can get used to what the dollar will now buy against the euro. I would point out to the GD that museums, (art my favorite, too) are a lot like shopping. You get to look at beautiful things but you don't have to spend anymore than the price of admission.

Why not rent an apartment? Plus, you'll then save on food. That way, you can eat breakfast in and also some snacks. I even pack a lunch sometimes. There has been a lot of talk on apartments here in the past few days. I've been pretty non-stop busy answering apartment questions the last few weeks or so. You could get an apartment in the 5th or 6th where there are a lot of young people and lots of shopping and great strolling and convenient to walk to a lot of other places, like the Louvre.

Just scroll and read the different threads to get some ideas. Personally, I wouldn't hand my Paris trip over to an agent. There are so many great places to choose to stay at. I remember having to educate the agent I used at American Express Platinum as he's never been to Paris. I helped him plan his first trip to Paris. I used to call him to contact hotels, in other countries, that I'd researched and selected and then he'd call and make the reservation for me. But, I've always handled my Paris trip, and many others, myself.

As for the metro, I find it a lot easier than the N.Y. city subway system. When I've gone to N.Y., in years past, I've dreaded having to deal with the subway system. The Paris stations are very well marked and it's very easy to figure out. You can also take the bus which I find a lot more interesting as you're above ground and can see lots and it helps to get your bearings. Happy Travels!

Go for the September time slot. The end of October might be too cool for you. A part of me says that you are wasting your time taking your granddaughter to Paris if all she is interested in is shopping, but another part of me says that now is the time to convert her. I do agree with the suggestion of renting an apartment. Look up VRBO on Google and you will come across scores of suitable places. I have used VRBO#79965 and found it to be excellent and reasonably priced by Paris standards. Its location is super and very handy for most things.

The apartment suggesting is good one as you'll save money overall. I would arrange my trip by areas of the city: The Historical Center; The Marais; Montmartre; Eiffel Tower/Champs Elysee that sort of thing. If you have a GD that is 20 I'm guessing you're around my parents' age. They're hearty but like a break in the afternoon before dinner. That is a perfect time for your GD to shop on her own. With the metro she can easily explore shopping areas each day and have free time on her own. The metro is easier and cleaner than NYC.

I agree that an apartment is a great idea. I also agree tat you should ditch the travel agent. All you need is to book the air tickets, which you can easily do yourself on the net (start with sites like kayak.com and sidestep.com, and read the airline section Rick Steves' Graffitti Wall) and the apartment - there are lots of threads here on Paris apts. The metro is really easy, and you'll be there long enough to make a pass worthwhile.

Rather than Rick Steves, who is heavy on museums, I'd recommend Pauline Frommer's Paris guidebook. Plus a good map - I use Streetwise.

I highly recommend that you check out vacationinparis.com which rents apartments. A lot of us fodorites use that agency and it won't be overwhelming to go through their list of apartments. I noticed from your post that you seem overwhelmed with all the Rick Steeves information, so I'm trying to make things very easy and not overwhelming for you.

VBRO has lots of nice apartments, yes, but their lists are very long and payment is in Euros.

vacationinparis.com is located in New Jersey and you can call them and chat with them. They're very nice and SUPER easy to deal with.To get the apartment that I rented last spring, I just went on their website, picked out the apartment that I wanted in the area that I've stayed in since the early 80s, called them to see if it was available and it was, mailed them a personal check for $300. to hold it, mailed the check to their office in New Jersey , and that was it. They mailed out the invoice. Then 60 days before my scheduled arrival date, I mailed them the balance, again by personal check and in U.S. dollars, and 2 weeks before leaving home, they mailed me the keys to the apartment along with the name of an airport shuttle company that they use. They're the only rental company, that I know of, that mails out the apartment keys. I like having the keys and not having to meet a rep as I seem to be on flights that don't arrive on time.

As for the airport shuttle company that they recommended, I booked the shuttle, round trip, and paid for it online, and that was it. Upon arrival into Paris, after getting the luggage, I went upstairs to the phone and dialed the toll free number that is provided by the shuttle company. I told them that I had arrived and they told me what door to go to and wait for the driver to come around. He was on the other side of the airport looking for some other passengers. I waited, he came with a sign with my name on it, and in I went into the shuttle alone. The other passengers he couldn't find. I had booked a shared shuttle, at the shared shuttle price in hope of getting the shuttle to myself which I did in both directions...from the airport and back to it.

If you click on my screen name, you'll see a thread entitled, "Guenmai's Paris Apartment Rental Experience". I've written a very detailed thread, for those interested, to refer to . I rented apartment #122 through vacationinparis.com which would be absolutely perfect for you and your granddaughter. It's in the 6th, bordering the 5th, and is in a young area. Plus, you can walk to Notre Dame, the Louvre, and lots of other places from there. The location is excellent and there's plenty to do within steps outside the apartment building door. It's a very popular apartment, so if your're interested, you need to jump on it. I reserved 9 months in advance for the end of March of last year. I also recommend that you read Yellowrose477's thread entitled, "Which Apartment Would You Choose?". I helped her, for many weeks, with her trip. She and her husband just arrived Paris and she posted a message to me day before yesterday. You can read about her experience of choosing an apartment. Remember that hotel rooms in Paris are VERY small, so if you get an apartment, you'll probably end up with nearly double the space and at about the same price as a cramped hotel room. Apartment #122 is 40 square meters big and my hotel room in the same district is probably around 25 square meters if that. Both were about the same price.

So,if I were you, I'd hold off on AAA, check out the apartment situation and go the apartment route, get on line and check out airfares yourself before handing it over to AAA to do. Check out igougo.com. Then when you have an apartment and airfare the rest is just figuring out what you want to do when you get there. Paris is a very easy city transportation wise and it's easy to walk. Just make a list of 5 things that you absolutely want to do while there and have your granddaughter READ a travel book and list her 5 things and NOT include shopping on her list. Then at least the two of you will have a foundation to work from.

As for September/October and weather. Weather, in Paris, is unpredictable. For about a good decade, I went during the summer. Then I got tired of the crowds and for the next two decades or so started going in the spring. In 2003, I think it was, I went Thanksgiving weekend and the weather was beautiful and a lot warmer than it was last spring during the last week of March. Now, this past October, it was cold in October, because a close Parisian friend e-mailed me here in L.A. and said he'd had it with the cold and very spur-of-the-moment bought very cheap plane ticket, on Northwest, and landed at LAX on Oct 31st. I picked him up at LAX and he stayed with me until Nov 12th. He was out swimming in the Pacific Ocean and couldn't believe that it could be absolutely beautiful and warm in November and dreaded going back to cold Paris. So, one never knows about the weather.

I think that it's wonderful that you're taking your daughter to Paris and, so what, if she says she only wants to shop. She's a 20-something who seems to need some international travel experience and cultural exposure and it's great that you're taking the time to give it to her. When you get there, she'll probably change her tune. One of my best male friends said he wants to take his niece to Paris this summer after she graduates from high school. He's been to Paris a lot over three decades and has even lived there. She's totally clueless to a lot of things and has a VERY narrow, almost non-existent vision of the world, due to how she was unfortunately raised....definitely not coming from his side of the family which is very worldly. So, he figures if he doesn't take her and expose her to something other than her VERY narrow world, then who will. So, he's planning a trip for this summer which his sister is very much in favor of as it's her husband, and his family, who also has a VERY narrow vision of the world and is locked into their very small world. So good for you to care so much about your granddaughter to go through all of this for her. Happy Travels!

I took each of my neices to Paris when they turned 16 (everyone should see Paris, it should be a law). The most important thing for me was to stay in a central location that was good for evening walking (teenagers and college kids like staying in the 5th, so that is where we based -- when I'm there on my own I prefer the 6th or the 3rd), and I had a list of "required" museums and sites that they had to visit, but otherwise we tried to focus on their individual interests. The fashionista girl wanted to window shop all along the fashion houses on the Rue St. Honore (ended up being very cool - something I would never have done on my own), and the other wanted to explore cemetaries! I made sure to set aside a half day for each of them for shopping at Galleries Lafayette, which took care of the "but I HAVE to go shopping!" need in a fabulous setting, and we alternated days of great sit-down lunches with days grabbing baguette sandwiches and walking in the park. If you don't buy the museum pass in advance (you can do it online and have it mailed to you), I would suggest getting it at one of the less-crowded museums (my favorite small one is the Cluny for the unicorn tapestries, and there is never a wait). If you are staying just in Paris 10 days almost seems like too much time (not that I would complain if someone wanted to take me to Paris for 10 days!). You can trim your trip to 5 or 6 days, and still have time to fit in all of the "must sees" and have time for a trip to Versailles. 5 days is plenty of time to get a feel for the city.

I've stayed in Paris for 10 days and didn't regret it. Just base yourself, in Paris, and then take day trips out of it. You can go to the Champagne houses in Epernay/Reims, by train, in less than an hour, Versailles takes up a day, Giverny where Monet's house is a nice excursion, and I even jump on the Thalys at Gare du Nord and head for Belgium for the day-just remember you'll need your passport. It's an hour and a half, non-stop train ride to Brussels. From there you can go to beautiful Bruge or stay in Brussels and explore. There are so amny things to do. Right across the street, from the train station ( the second stop train station), there is one of those buses where you can jump on and off at different sites around the city. Then have lunch in Brussels and head back to Paris in the evening. Happy Travels!

Correction: "many", not "amny". Happy Travels!

Guenmai - You are giving me ideas about Brussels! You say 'have lunch' there - Please can you give us a few recommendations that are not too pricey? I would want to naturally go for mussels but don't want to end up there in another Leon de Bruxelles.

Hi 24,

>She is 20 and talks mostly about "shopping".... I am mainly interested in Art,-especially Impressionists.<

Sounds like a class of cultures.

Is there a particular reason for going with a TA? You are just going to/from one city.

YOU will, of course, want to make these musts on your list:
http://www.musee-orangerie.fr/
http://www.marmottan.com/francais/Collections/index.asp
http://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/home.html

You both might like the Jacquemart-Andre’ Museum http://tinyurl.com/p9pol
If you are there on a Sunday, have Brunch as well

Your GD can visit
http://departmentstoreparis.printemps.com/
http://www.treeslbm.com/#home
as well as the fancy shops along the rue St. Honore

The museum pass will probably work for you. You can buy it at your first museum.

The following threads will help you:
Paris Superthread
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...2&tid=34519236

100 Great Things to Do in Paris
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...=2&tid=1277898

Degas’s Paris Walks
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...2&tid=34712768

Kerouac’s Ethnic Walk
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...2&tid=35095155

The Paris metro is easier than the one in NYC. You buy a ticket from the ticket machine or agent (a carnet of 10 gives you a discoount). Insert ticket into turnstile, retrieve and walk through. There are signs giving you the direction in which the train is going and the stops along the route.

I like the Streetwise Paris map as it has the metro routes.

www.ratp.fr will give you directions for bus and metro.

In Paris, we always stay at the Hotel Bonaparte, 61 Rue Bonaparte in the 6th. From 134E twin w/bkfst. It is just around the corner from Place St. Sulpice, near 3 metro stops and 4 bus routes. Has AC and an elevator.

The staff speaks English well, and is very helpful. They can arrange a shuttle pickup to/from CDG for you.

Tel 33 1 43 26 97 37
FAX 33 1 46 33 57 67
[email protected]
www.hotelbonaparte.fr

For more info, enter "Hotel Bonaparte" in the "search the forum" box.

Enjoy your visit.

PS:

Clash, not class of cultures.

Tod-I don't remember the names of the places that I've eaten at in Brussels over many decades. Whenever I'm there, I just walk and if something looks interesting, then I eat there.

The last trip there was in the spring of 2005 when I zipped up there to go to the Museum of Central Africa which is outside of Brussels. They had a great exhibit there that people from all around Europe were going there to see. I was telling the owner of the restaurant that I eat at in PAris that I was going up there for the exhibit and two of the other diners overheard the conversation and one of them had gone up there for it.

The museum is housed in Leopold the second's summer palace. It was a well worth day trip. After getting off the train, I transfered to I think a subway and then a street car that went through a really nice neighborhood and when I got to the stop that I needed to go to I walked a bit through a forest before getting to the museum. It was very easy to do.

The museum has a very nice restaurant, with an African theme, and interesting dishes. If interested, I can try to find the directions on how to get there.

After taking in the museum, you could also go back to the main train station, in Brussels, and get on that jump-on-off bus that goes around the city. I didn't do that as I stayed at the museum pretty long to absorb it all and then went back to Paris. Happy Travels!

Your grandaughter will fall in love with Paris! The museum pass is a must and if you are most interested in the Impressionists, the Musee D'Orsay is also a must as well as another museum whose name escapes me on the outskirts of Paris(check Rick Steves). There is also the Picasso Museum. And touristy as it is, Montmarte is a great place to soak up some artsy atmosphere. A walk around the hill top will take you to Renoir's home, to Lapin Agile where many artists drank and argued politics and to the gorgeous Sacre Cours cathedral. Nine days is a pretty long city stay. You could easily take a day to visit Monet's beautiful home and gardens at Giverny and the nearby Museum of American(!) Impressionism. I concur with the apartment idea.
In defense of travel agents(I am one), a good agent can arrange airport transfers, city tours, and transportation passes as well as Giverney, or Versailles day trips or even a full day excursion to see the Chateaux country in the Loire Valley. You can, of course search the internet, but an experienced travel agent can save you a lot of "surfing" and steer you away from bad locations, allowing you to prepay many of the services you'll need.
Your grandaughter should have not trouble finding great places to shop.. Have a great trip.

The wonderful thing is that, even though you are feeling a bit overwhelmed with planning here, with 10 days you will have enough time to see a few things, take a break, and revisit or redirect what you'd like to see without feeling too short on time.

Perhaps offer your granddaughter some sort of guide to Paris for her to peruse; somewhere in a guide something of interest may click with her. And even if she did nothing at all but sat on benches and/or took walks around the city all day, she would be able to absorb the colors, beauty and history around her and have some sense of a cultural experience. She'll figure out that while shopping there is very nice, there is also much more to experience in Paris.

For tours of Paris and the outskirts there's always cityrama.com that's been around for decades. Buses leave from the Cityrama office on the rue de Rivoli. Tickets can be bought directly at the office.

There's americandriverinparis.com for those who want a private driver.

There's of course the metro, buses,by foot and with a good travel book.

And there are many other tours that I'm sure many fodorites have been on and will post about. Happy Travels!

hi traveler24,

what a wonderful idea for you and your granddaughter!

DH and i went to paris last year and i too was overwhelmed with all of the details.

skim any tourbook to get the lay of the land. once you've got a handle on that, start perusing through trip reports from other fodorites. those are absolutely INVALUABLE ... better than any tip found in any guidebook IMHO. the new forum set up allows you to separate regular threads from trip report threads. definitely check them out.

also, i wholeheartedly suggest getting an apartment. book SOON. my biggest surprise was how quickly the 'good' apartments book up. there's a whole thread here about paris apartments.

happy researching! that's almost always half the fun!

lilaki

here's my trip report:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...s-in-paris.cfm

there is also a huge thread with a bunch of other france/paris trip reports from fodorites:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm

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