Local Tours in Paris

Hello,

My famiy of 4 adults is planning to visit Paris for 4days in mid Aug. for the first time. We are looking for a local guided tour package with transportation included to visit the attractions below. Please advise on any local tour guides packages. Thank you so much!!

Eiffel Tower

Louvre

Notre Dame

Versailles Castle

Arch de Triomphe

Luxembourg Park

Sacré-Coeur

Pantheon

Thanks,

HKC

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Packages depend on how you%26#39;re going to visit the city. Except for the Versailles Castle which is outside Paris, A hop on / hop off bus tour will allow you to see all those tourists spost.

If you prefer walking, try the Digi-Guide (www.digi-guide.com/uk or http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187147-i14-k645927-GPS_guided_Walking_Tours_I_ve_tried_it-Paris_Ile_de_France.html)

You also have to know taht public transportation in Paris is so easy that you don%26#39;t need to hire a tour guide including transportation (unless you want to spend time in the traffic)

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To get to the Palace of Versailles you will need to go by the RER/suburban train. The station is only 10 minutes from the Palace. Plan on at least 6 hours for your visit, including the gardens.

Guided tour packages are offered by a number of companies; the two largest, I think, are Cityrama and ParisVision. In Paris you would go by bus; so taking the hop on/hop off bus would be just as good and considerably less expensive. It has the advantage of allowing you to stop and visit the sights for as long as you want instead of being herded through.

I doubt that any packages include the Louvre--you just go there on your own and pick up a guide at the information desk in the lobby.

Do you have a guidebook yet? I highly recommend the Michelin Green Guide to Paris.

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Thank you so much Underhill and FranParis for your advise. Being first timer, I had no clue traffic is bad in Paris. I guess then we will take the public transportation.

Do you know of any websites that has the Paris metro/rail maps or bus maps? I%26#39;m trying to locate a hotel that%26#39;s near both bus/metro. How does the public transportation system work in Paris? Is there an ALL DAY pass we can purchase?

Please advise.

Thank you!!

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All hotels in Paris are close to metro and bus stations. I mean you can not walk 500 meters in Paris without finding a metro station (I would say 200 meters for a bus station).

You can find metro and bus maps on the RATP site : www.ratp.fr (it is the name of the metro and bus company in Paris).

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Thanks so much!!

We%26#39;re looking into Open Bus Tour w/ Cityrama: www.graylineparis.com/en/paris_open_tour seems like a good deal too.

Thanks,

HKC

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We prebooked a cityrama tour of Paris for the afternoon of the day we landed in Paris...great tour...except we were so overcome with jetlag and slept thru most of it....we ended up doing the tour again( a night one) before we left for home....so wait until you have had a decent nights sleep before getting on a bus!

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Thanks for the info, I bet we will experience jet lag as well!

When you prebook Cityrama open bus tour, did you just go to the nearest stop they have then show your receipt online? How did it work for you?

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We had booked thru American Airlines as an optional tour. I remember having the hotel just show us where the nearest citiline tour stop was and yes just showed our receipt to the driver...there is a definite time when the tour leaves...they did not pick us up at the hotel and I don%26#39;t recall if that was an option or not. I really like those tours ...it helps you to get your bearings as to where are are and what you want to return to see.

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hkc....I was laughing about that bus tour with my girlfriend... she reminded me that our teenage girls were sitting in front of us...they fell asleep just about as soon as the bus pulled out...she and I kept this running dialogue going about what we were seeing to keep from falling asleep ( I think we were even slapping each other)but she said the next minute I was a goner and the next thing we knew we were back at the homebase...I have never felt so drugged in my life...we were powerless! It was that gentle swaying of that bus that did it.....great memories though...have fun!

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Thanks KG for the advice!