Distances

Hi -

I%26#39;m planning to spend a few days in Paris in late August and have been overwhelmed by all the info concerning the various arrondissements and where to stay. Ideally, since it is my first time, I would like to be in a hotel with a view of either the Eiffel Tower or L%26#39;Arc de Triomphe. However, I was wondering, are the various attractions/sites eaily accessible by walking?

Does anyone have any recommendations as to maps that give an idea where everything is located so that I can see approximate distances?

Thank you.

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Generally speaking, la Tour Eiffel and l%26#39;Arc de Triomphe are among the two remotest of the major tourist attractions in Paris. Most of the other sites are walkable, but it wouldn%26#39;t be an easy or quick walk. Public transportation in convenient, cheap and easy, but if you insist on being in easy walking distance, you should be looking in the 2nd, 4th, 5th or 6th.

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Maybe you could work with some of these....

www.sitesatlas.com/Europe/France/parismap.htm

http://www.paris.org/Maps/MM/

…provencebeyond.com/listparis.html

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If you are going to spend a few days in Paris, a real map will come in handy anyways. I think the $ 10 or so investment is worth every penny. So go to your local big chain bookstore, buy yourself a blue Michelin map of Paris, or a less detailed Streetwise map. They have scales, you%26#39;ll figure out the distances and lay of the land before you leave home, and, believe me, it%26#39;s quite useful!

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I%26#39;ll second Bob%26#39;s recommendation and add that you%26#39;d do better to make sure your map includes the entire city. Many tourist maps only include the central arrondissements and can leave you wondering how to get to Père Lachaise or Montmartre, for example. Michelin would be a good choice, although the detail may be more than you want. The little fold-out maps tucked inside Fodors or similar guides are basically worthless.

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We have found that the Invallides area is a good central location to stay. there are two good and reasonable hotels on rue de Bourgogne(sp?) the Varennne and the hotle du Palais Bourbon. Hotel Montana-same street- is more expensive but a good location. The street runs from the musee Rodin to the Assemblies Nationale.

jhgrady

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Re best map Paris%26quot;

I bought this month Streetwise from Amazon per advice here. OK but small print requires a Hubble to consult at a glance, and Sacre Coeur relegated to %26quot;back%26quot; of Streetwise.

Tonight, I found a laminate National Geographic DestinationMap for Paris and it is for my purposes far superior to Steetwise, Michelin, DK and every other Paris street map i%26#39;ve seen. By far clearer outline of Metro lines, landmarks are highlighted in much more eyecatching format than in any other. Plus Sacre Coeur is not relegated to %26quot;back%26quot; of map as in Streetwise. Price US $8.99 plus tax (if any). I have used NG counterpart laminate state maps for US business travel for years and they beat the competition in that field hands down.

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If you want to be within walking distance of most tourist areas, do not stay near Eiffel Tower or Arc de Triomphe.

The most central arrondissement is the first and IMO the best location is near Louvre.

From there you can walk everywhere (except Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and Montmartre unless you want to spend several hours walking each day) and you can also hop on many buses or take metro.

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If you have specific addresses, you may find the distance and walking directions at:

www.mappy.com

Select %26quot;Pedestrian Routes%26quot; and you may find a great deal of detailed information about walking between two points.

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As long as you are resonably healthy, and walk faster than Mrs Wiz (she walks fast enough, but only from window to window, if you get my drift) most places with a %26quot;75%26quot; postcode are walkable within an hour.

Tourist Paris is a small area - about the size of the borough of Mahattan. This means that any hotel is within walking distance of everywhere youre likely to want to go.

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The Wiz must have some really long legs.......

Paris %26quot;intra-muros%26quot; - that is the 20 arrondissements inside the Peripherique - measures about 12 km north/south X 13 km east/west. So walking e.g. from the famous flea market at Porte de Clignancourt in the north all the way down to Parc de Montsouris in the south would take about 4-5 hours (since you have to follow the streets - not the route %26quot;as the crow flies%26quot;).

Now a walk like this would really justify a BIG serving of my favorite confit de canard and some serious dessert - and a bottle of Pomerol to wash it down with.....