Hi There!<BR> I will be leaving for Paris very soon and i am a first timer.<BR>I just wanted to know where i will get directions for going from one place to the other in Paris using bus/trains.<BR>I also wanted to know after i get to Eiffel Tower ...which do i do first....tour the Seinne first?or walk to Arc de Triomphe first?<BR>Mine is a very short trip...<BR>Please do reply as soon as possible<BR>Thanks<BR>Vara

Vara<BR>overall the Metro (the subway/underground, whatever you call it) is the easiest way to get around. It is quite easy to figure out. Pick up a map of the lines and you should not have any problems. You can buy a pass or a carnet of 10 tickets, or just pay as you go. Bus service is also good but I always though just a bit harder to figure out all the schedules etc, but not too bad either.<BR><BR>At the Eiffel Tower (after your visit there) you could get on one of the boat rides down the river - there are docks right at the tower, or you could walk or take the Metro to the Arc. If you want to visit the top of the Arc you can get a pretty neat view and there is an interesting military musuem there as well. The boat ride gives you a nice look at the bridges and buildings as it putters along. <BR><BR>You should also consider Notre Dame, some of the musuems, ets. Too much to list here. If you do not have a good Paris guide book by all means buy one and read it before you arrive. Also get a good map of the center city to have with you - you can pick them up free at a lot of places.

Karl!<BR> Did u mean to say that when i take the boat ride it will end at the Arc?<BR>and also...<BR>isn't there a way to get the train number or bus number to take , from the internet?<BR>like i have these destinations with me and before i reach Paris i would like have all the info...like which bus/train would take me Eiffel tower...Louvre...etc...<BR>Thanks<BR>Vara

http://www.ratp.fr/ParisVisite/Eng/pivi/f_pivi.htm

Vara,<BR>You will need a general guidebook and a map. Fodor's Guide to Paris is good.<BR>Also, if you go elsewhere on this Fodor's website there are a lot of suggestions for getting around Paris and seeing the sights.<BR><BR>When you take a metro you’ll need to consult a station metro map to know the end points of your line, and the end points of any line you will be transferring to. Depending on where you’re starting from, you’ll want to be heading in the Direction of (toward) one end point or the other. When you consult the metro map, find where you are. Then find your destination stop. Then keep your finger moving past your destination point to the end point of that line, that’s the Direction you want to head toward. A Correspondance is an opportunity to transfer <BR>to another line, but again, you need to know which end point you want to head toward.<BR><BR>I have a file on Paris that may be useful; if you'd like to see it, email me.

Assuming you are staying in a hotel, whether it be 1 star or 5 (or even a hostel or pensione), the desk person will give you a city map and will be happy to show you what line to take to whatever. The metro is fastest, but by bus you get to see more. However, as someone pointed out, the bus schedule is much harder to figure out. Again, ask the desk person.

Vara--Invest in a guidebook, a Paris map and do some research. There are some excellent guidebooks for Paris that will give you itineries, how to get around on the metro and buses, daytrips and even self guided walk-thrus for museums. Rick Steves's Paris guidebook is especially good for a 1st time visitor and will answer most of your questions. It is even thin enough to carry, easy to read on the jet over a couple of times and will make you more knowledgable about Paris than 1/2 the people aboard the plane.

I hope you have a few good guide books to read on the flight over so that maybe you can plan some sort of itinerary. The American Express Office is a great place to load up on information. We used the Open Bus tours to get around. Bought a two day pass. They have three seperate routes and you can go on any of them. They are double decker busses that pass by most of the tourist destinations. Our first morning we rode an entire loop to get an overview. Then we got on again and stopped off at the points we were most interested in seeing. The beauty of this is that you can stay at any one point as long as you like, then go back to the bus stop, hop on and go to the next point. It was great! Have a wonderful trip and remember you can't see it all your first time there. Enjoy yourself!

Vara,<BR><BR>One thing to keep in mind regarding the guidebooks, most of them tell you the name of the metro stop to go to for each of the sights, hotels, or restaurants they refer to. For this reason alone, a guidebook is invaluable. <BR><BR>Enjoy!<BR><BR>Lisa

Vara<BR>get a map of Paris and look at it. You will clearly see that the Arc is not on the river at all so of course the boats do not stop there. have you even looked at a map of the city yet? Have you read a book? You seem to woefully unprepared and if you don't do some research and planning before you get there you will have lots of problems in getting around. Simply looking at a map will help you a GREAT DEAL!!!

Vara,<BR>As this is your first visit, I would suggest that you use the Paris Open Top Tour Bus.<BR>Get a two day ticket and it will take you to all the interesting sights in the city. This way you also get to see Paris street life as you travel around -much better than being underground.<BR>You can get on and off as you wish to visit the sights.<BR>Bon vacance!<BR>Regards<BR>Maggie

The boat trips are down the Seine and back so you would be at the same place you began your trip. There is a Batobus which is a water bus that you can get on and off at various stops, but there is no commentary; you could follow along with a map. There is also a canal trip which goes down the Seine into the St. Martin Canal for a three hour ride; it drops you north of the city and you have to take the metro back to the city. It is fun and very relaxing but it sounds as if 3 hours for one trip would be more than you want to spend. I highly recommend the Paris Mapguide by Middleditch; it is a book map and using it isn't quite so obvious as a foldout. I find doing my trip research is as much fun as the trip, so you might want to do some reading before you leave; otherwise you will just be looking at one building or another without knowing its background. One thing to remember is that the tip is always included in the price of a meal; my seatmate on a recent return was telling me how expensive his meals were - he was leaving a 15-18% tip on top of the price. I felt so sorry for him. And, he was changing money for big fees when he could have been using an ATM machine.

URGENT!!! Vera, do some research. Read a guidebook. Look at a map. THEN come back and ask some specific questions!

Have some patience, for goodness sake. She says this is her first time. Some people are new at this. Guide her, not shove her. Vara, where are you staying? How are you getting to the city itself? Do you have all this worked out? If you have time, e:mail the French Tourist Office in NY City; they have a great packet of materials they send, including maps. They have a website you can use.

Vara is leaving this evening so I think the time for questions and research has come to a close