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.

Citymapper | the most useful travel app

A friend recommended Citymapper to me, and the program has lived up to the recommendation and more! It's the ultimate resource for using public transportation in three dozen popular cities of the world ... including Paris, where we now are.

Just type in your destination, press "GO," and you're given several choices for getting there ... by walking taking the metro, taking a bus, or using a combination of the above. We discovered two really good features of the app.

1. If you're taking the Paris metro, the app will suggest whether to get a car in the front, middle, or back of the train. This will put you in position to get to the preferred exit in your transfer or arrival station.
2. If you're using the map to walk from point A to point B, a symbol on the screen will indicate the direction you're facing. I've been so frequently frustrated reading maps because I don't know which way is north. Citymapper solves that problem in a most elegant way.

Totally free, just download the app to your iPhone or Android device.

copyright  (c)  2016 by David Ourisman LLC.  All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell Travel. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

Paris Metro options | what's the best value?

Karen Fawcett has a great weekly blog, Bonjour Paris, with great content that only an American living in Paris can offer. Check it out, and especially today's article on Free and Inexpensive Paris Activities. I was especially interested in her up-to-date recommendations on getting around in Paris. Of course, the Paris Metro is the easiest way to get to most places in the city!

If you're in Paris for four days or more, the best value is a Navigo Carte (the one-week pass that used to be called the Carte Orange). The price is just 18.85€ per week, and it buys you unlimited travel in zones 1-2 on the Métro, bus, and RER. Some tips for buying your Navigo Carte.

(1) Bring some photos of each family member with you (3 cm tall x 2.5 cm wide). Just take some head shots with your digital camera and, if you're handy with Photoshop or a similar program, you can actually put multiple copies of the photos of each family member onto a single 4x6 print. Buy one print (less than 20¢), cut out the photos, place them in a baggy, and bring with you to Paris.

While you don't absolutely have to get the photos done ahead of time, it's a lot easier, cheaper, and less confusing than using the coin operated photo machines at many Métro stations.

(2) When you get to Paris, go to the ticket window of any Métro station with your photos. The attendant will sell you plastic Navigo Cartes (one for each passenger) for 5€ and attach the photos. At the same time, you can purchase a weekly pass (you'll need a new one each week). Karen advises you to hold onto the receipt, as well as the small ticket which can be used if your Navigo Carte becomes demagnetized.

(3) Swipe the Navigo Carte at the turnstile at the Metro station - or on a bus - and you're good to go!

(4) When you leave Paris, save your Navigo Carte for your next visit (so you don't have to go through the photo routine all over again).

(5) The one-week pass is good for a week beginning on Monday, ending on Sunday.

For shorter visits to Paris, or if your stay straddles the Monday-Sunday week, you can purchase a one-day Mobilis Pass - 6.30€ for unlimited metro and bus rides on a single day. Tickets for a single trip are 1.70€ each. Do the math to figure out the best deal!

One final tip from Karen — the #69 bus. Get on the bus at the Eiffel Tower and get a cheap driving tour of the city, past Les Invalides (where Napoleon is buried), the Musée d'Orsay, the Pyramid in front of the Louvre, the Tuileries (the royal gardens stretching from the Louvre to the Place de la Concorde), Notre Dame cathedral, Sainte-Chapelle, le Marais, the Opera Bastille, and finally the Père-Lachaise Cemetery.


Paris Metro (search here on Google)

copyright (c) 2011 by David Ourisman LLC. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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traffic jams in Paris | April 27

If you're currently in Paris or arriving in Paris tomorrow, please pay special attention to this announcement. This news will affect your ability to

• drive out of the city
• drive into the city

There will be a scheduled demonstration in Paris tomorrow, April 27. Tractors will be blocking vehicles from entering or leaving the city. This will create traffic issues for any travelers wanting to get to CDG, Versailles, etc., by car. If you're flying into Paris, you should expect to have to wait for your chauffeur to arrive.

My advice: plan to take the RER and Metro to and from Paris airports tomorrow.


Paris (search here on Google)

copyright (c) 2010 by David Ourisman LLC. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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