i am debating about the DK Top 10 Paris and the Fodor's Citypack Paris as my main everyday street guide. any opinions of which has proved to be more useful or other similar "pocket" guides. thank you.

i should have qualified that with the fact that i am looking for something that will also have a decent map.

I'm familiar with DK guides but not their &quot;Top 10&quot; series, so no opinion about those. However, I've used the Fodor's Citypack guides for both Rome and Venice, primarily for their maps which I find -- for the most part** -- very well done. <BR><BR>** In a subsequent version of the Rome Citypack guide, Fodors eliminated the helpful more-detailed map of Rome's Centro Storico on the reverse side of the main map. Very poor move, IMO.

ucsun, I have found that another very good series of city guides that includes excellent maps is the AAA Spiral Guide series.<BR><BR>I first used one in London when right after they came out and it was VERY handy. It was small and light enough to fit in my bag and it is broken down into specific areas of a city to help group sights, dining options, entertainment, and shopping in a logical manor. Each section has a basic map and then there is a very detailed street map in the back. Also, due to the fact that it is spiral bound, it lies flat when it is open, which is great when you are trying to plan your next route while having a cup of coffee at a cafe. <BR><BR>I have since used the Rome AAA Spiral guide and will be using the Paris guide in June. Hope this has helped.

I swear by my Streetwise Paris map for 90% of the locations I need (and recommend the Fodor's guide book.)<BR>However, for a compact map plus some very basic tourist info, the Paris Mapguide is an excellent thingy to carry around. It includes an alpha list of streets to find on the map grids. Weighs practically nothing.<BR><BR>

There are three book that I think are excellent for Paris.<BR><BR>1. The Paris Mapguide by Michael Middleditch. This is a little map book (booklet) which has readable size page of Paris by neighborhood. I usually like the Streetwise Map but for Paris the writing is too small because the city is sooooo big. <BR><BR>2. Bistros of Paris by Robert and Barbara Hamburger. This is a must for anyone who enjoys French food. Great reviews and listings of bistros by district.<BR><BR>3. Frommers Paris - Opppps sorry, but I think it was very user friendly.<BR>

For Paris, the best map guide is L'INDISPENSIBLE, Plan de Paris. Easily fits into your jacket pocket and the only guide which lists cross streets and the nearest metro when you look up a street name. And it has street #s as well. Find at most street kiosks in Paris. Downside; the type is quite small.

Good to hear about the Bistro book. I bought it from Amazon a few months ago, and now I will really look forward to using it.

There are three book that I think are excellent for Paris.<BR><BR>1. The Paris Mapguide by Michael Middleditch. This is a little map book (booklet) which has readable size page of Paris by neighborhood. I usually like the Streetwise Map but for Paris the writing is too small because the city is sooooo big. <BR><BR>2. Bistros of Paris by Robert and Barbara Hamburger. This is a must for anyone who enjoys French food. Great reviews and listings of bistros by district.<BR><BR>3. Frommers Paris - Opppps sorry, but I think it was very user friendly.<BR>

The Paris Mapguide is really terrific. The maps are very detailed and even show bus lines on major streets. There are also listings galore for monuments, museums, attractions, churches, markets, etc etc. Amazon has it. 32 pages.

ucsun - Last summer I took the DK Top 10 Paris with me. I like that there are area by area maps, that there is a metro map, and that it is light and compact. Not to mention that it gives you the top ten EVERYTHING in almost every area of the city...<BR>When I was in Munich I took the Fodor's Citypack and found the map to big to be useful, and that there wasn't half as much info packed into the travel guide.<BR>I've used the Top 10 Guides for London, Paris, Berlin, and Barcelona.<BR><BR>Hope you have a great trip!

p.s. I also took a streetwise map with my but didn't use it much...

I never go to Paris without my Paris Mapguide and my Paris Pratique (which you can buy at any magazine kiosque). The Middleditch Mapguide is quite readable and shows buslines; the Paris Pratique divides Paris by arrondissements (5, 6, 7, etc.) so is sometimes easier to find an area in, and it indicates street address numbers. <BR><BR>Oddly enough, I was just in Borders looking for a new guide (esp. on sights) and after considering all the smaller ones, decided on Lonely Planet's condensed guide. There seemed to be a lot of practical info, as well as maps. Both covers fold out into very practical maps, by area, and I think it would be very useful to a traveler not armed with others. All the sights have good detailed info re opening times, costs, etc. It looks like quite a deal to me and like a small guide that I might use quite a bit. (sometimes they are just too perfunctory)

I have used a variety of different pocket city guides. Knopf has lots of maps but lack details. Lonely planet has nice sturdy easy to use maps with good detail. The Dk books are better than Knopf in general. Fodors pocket books are pretty good with a very detailed map which unfortunately is hard to use. None of the pocket books are particularly good for details on places to see, places to eat etc. My favourite <BR>pocket books tend to be Lonely Planet followed by Fodors Citypack.

I would go for the DK Top 10. They are the small sister guides to the Eyewitness series. So similar content but far less bulky. Perfect for a short trip to Paris.

Timeout Paris i think is a worthwhile guide book.

For guide book--DK Guide to Paris and Michelin Green Guide for museums. For streets Paris Par Arrondisement. But have heard so much about Paris Mapguide and particularly having the bus lines shown on the street they go on--it is going on my next trip.

DK Eyewitness Guide to Paris is great for its street finder and detailed maps. As we all know, Paris has lots of those tiny one-block streets - without a street finder you can't find anything.

so would it be prudent to buy something like the Paris Mapguide before going or just buying one of the maps at a kiosk there.

Buy the Mapguide here and hit the ground running. The DK map in the guike book is good but it is bulky unless you take it out of the book. My husband used that last fall. He was willing to carry it!!