wandering_gal

PLease help me out with an itenerary for my trip in Paris but only using public transportation like trains and buses...I'll be visiting the famed city by next year and Im really into touring with just a few people and not going with group. PLus using public transportation is fun and cheap. I dont even wanna consider taxi, unless its really needed. Thanks.

annhig

hi wandering_gal,

before anyone can help you, i think they're going to need a few more details: when are you going, for how long, what are your interests [assuming you've never been to Paris before from your mention on only using public transport, given that there's no need in Paris to use anything else] whether you are travelling alone or in a group - help us to help you!

wandering_gal

I'll be visiting by next Fall. My interests are food, culture, art, site seeing, architecture as well, history. Maybe we can throw a little bit of activity, but I'm not sure if Paris has a lot of that for tourists. I will be traveling with a friend. And why is there not a need for public transportation. Please dont tell me I need a bike!

annhig

no need to use anything else is what I said, w-g!

there is a terrific underground system called the metro as well as buses. there are also publicly available cycles if you do want some activity, though most people find that the walking they do is enough exercise.

you still haven't said how long you'll be there, but assuming you want to see as much of the major sights as possible, 3 full days would be an absolute minimum, a week a lot better, 2 weeks better still.

I suggest that you have a look at Paris under the destinations button at the top of this board to give you an idea of what there is to see and do. a good trick is then to try to group your choices into areas, taking account of opening time - no point in scheduling the Louvre for a Tuesday, for example, as it's closed. but on a Monday you could for example think of seeing Notre Dame, the concierge, St. Chapelle, and the Louvre; on a Tuesday the Musee D'orsay, the Eiffel Tower, and Les Invalides.

there are also some very good threads going at the moment about Paris - just look at the current european threads and take your pick!

annhig

I should add that you can either buy a pass for the transport system [called the RATP] or buy what is called a "carnet" - a pack of 10 single tickets that you can use for virtually any metro or bus journey in central Paris. [Versailles and the airport and other places outside the centre cost more but unless you're there for a long time that won't matter that much].

you can also buy a museum pass for 24,48, or 72 hours - if you time your visits carefully, they can be very good value and on a short trip they save a lot of time wasted waiting in queues.

wandering_gal

Thanks Annhig...as always uve been very helpful, im planning to stay in Paris for atleast 5 days to a week. I hope I get to experience the best of it.

annhig

5-7 days should enable you to see quite a lot, w-g. if you can get hold of a copy of the Michelin green guide to Paris, you will find suggested itineraries for 3,5,7 days etc. and I'm sure that other guide books do the same.

re your food and walking interests, there are companies who offer cookery and other courses - typically a morning learning to make bread, or a walk around a market followed by a session cooking what you've ought.

if you are interested in that, try starting another thread asking for suggestions; i know that there are several fodorites who have done this.

there are also companies who run walking tours of Paris - again, another thread might get some good suggestions.

finally, i should start looking at accommodation quite soon - we found that we got a really good rate [50% less than if we'd booked late] booking in September for a March trip.

kerouac

All public transportation is revealed here on this secret website: www.ratp.fr

Nikki

I find the trip reports on this message board really helpful for giving me inspiration about things to do, and there are lots of good ones about Paris. You can do a search for Paris, and the trip reports are tagged with a picture of a yellow notebook.

mamcalice

Good idea to check Paris trip reports and requests for Paris itineraries on this board. Many people have mapped out itineraries that might work s\as a start for you. If you stay in Paris for a week, you might consider some day trips such as Versailles, Giverny, Chartres, etc. All can be done by public transportation. You might find that you will do a lot of walking in central Paris and only find the need for public transportation further afield.

Avalon2

Look at Our Paris Forum,http://www.ourparisforum.com/
lots of good info and trip reports. You can read without joining but will have to join to ask questions. Lots of p

Avalon2

lots af Paris residents and regular visitors.

StCirq

Learn everything you will need to know about getting around Paris on www.ratp.fr. There is never a need to take a taxi or a bike anywhere. Get a few guidebooks and a map of Paris. Read all the trip reports here. I have no idea what you mean when you say that Paris may not have a lot of "activity" for tourists...???? It's one of the most heavily touristed cities in the world and of course has thousands of "activities" for them. No clue how to answer that one, sorry. Maybe you can explain.

Nikki

I read "activity" as physical activity, as opposed to sightseeing.

You mentioned bikes, and a lot of tourists do like the Fat Tire Bike Tours. http://fattirebiketours.com/paris

Southam

To go with Kerouac's "secret", www.parisbytrain.com is reassuringly simple and includes photo guides to some of the big terminals.

Christina

I don't know what that means, either,(activity for tourists) but walking around is plenty of activity for most people. I walk miles every day when I am a tourist about any where, you just do.

I think wanderinggal misunderstood some comment about public transportation, no one said there is no need for it. I also suspect she hasn't ever traveled much to big cities, maybe not in Europe, because any major capital city has public transportation so that tourists can get around to major sites that tourists visit. They all just do. So of course you can use the metro and bus system to get wherever you want to do. The only tourist sites that might be more difficult to get to by public transportation are definitely not the top sights on any tourist's lists and would be outside Paris. I can't think of a single important tourist attraction in Paris that you couldn't easily get to by metro or bus, at least within a couple blocks of it.

PatrickLondon

Some points of detail:

Any good printed guidebook for Paris should have the public transport maps and the nearest metro station and bus routes for the attractions they list. But you can also cross-refer those to the interactive public transport map at
http://www.ratp.fr/plan-interactif/

For help understanding how best to use public transport in Paris:
http://goparis.about.com/od/gettinga...ationguide.htm

annhig

I think wanderinggal misunderstood some comment about public transportation, no one said there is no need for it.>>

lol, Christina, i think that was my fault - due to a somewhat involved and convoluted sentence the OP understood the exact opposite of what I meant!

latedaytraveler

Wandering_gal, maybe I missed it, but did you say where you are thinking of staying in Paris? Last summer I stayed in the 6th a few minutes from Pont Neuf and Notre Dame and only took public transportation a few times. Walked for miles.

Let us know how you enjoyed Paris...

wandering_gal

I havent been to Paris yet il be going nxt Fall thats y im doing a lot of research and forums, etc.