carless Sundays in Paris | good news or nightmare?

Paris without cars (c) 2017 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

No cars are allowed within Paris on Sunday, October 1, 2017. What's your take on this? Do you consider a car-less Sunday to be...

... the worst possible nightmare? One poster on fodors.com took this point of view, opining that a car-free day "may be your worst nightmare..."

... or the most wonderful way possible to experience Paris? October 1st is your chance to explore Paris without private passenger cars congesting the streets or polluting the air with exhaust fumes.

My personal opinion: it's a great idea, Paris essentially transformed into a pedestrian mall — an opportunity to walk to your heart's content without dodging traffic when crossing the street. Here are a few Parisian walking tours suggested by Virtuoso travel partner Aristo's Tours Paris.

Notre Dame and Ile de la Cité
Saint Germain des Prés
the Latin Quarter
the Marais
Montmartre

The Metro will be running, so getting around will be no problem. Should you need to get from the airport to your hotel on Sunday, ask your hotel for a "justification de domicile;" this will permit your car service to drive within the city limits. And speaking of hotels, we can secure exclusive, money-saving amenities for you at these 20 five-star Parisian luxury hotels ... and at many four-star hotels as well. You get complimentary daily breakfast for two, hotel credits, room upgrades (sometimes at time of booking!), and more.

copyright (c) 2017 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.