I%26#39;m travelling to paris in August (first time) and am looking to see most of the %26#39;big%26#39; attractions as well as doing some shopping and spend some time just %26#39;wandering%26#39;! When we were in Barcelona we did the open top bus tour. I know it%26#39;s a bit cheesy, but it did allow us to see all the major attractions without too much hassle. On here, however,a lot of people are recommending the metro as the best way to get around.
Can anyone give me any advice on the merits (or otherwise) of these ways of getting around?
Thanks in advance. :-)
|||
Hi. I was in Paris last March and we did try the open top bus. It%26#39;s fantastic ( and totally not cheesy)! Going west on Champs Élysée you see the Arc de Triomphe in a truly unique way. It%26#39;s also very relaxing. You can choose to get off at various location or stay on and discover Paris in a totally different way along the 4 routes that they offer. It does not replace the metro as a regular way to go around town because the stops can be long and you can get stuck in traffic. And at 25 euros a day, it is definitely an activity you may want to do only once during your stay. I%26#39;m going to New York this summer with my 13 year-old son and I will take the open-top bus!
Have fun
|||
Just got back yesterday. Would recommend the bus tour the first day and then the metro which is very easy to figure out. They run very often. The only problem with the open bus was that at times it was crowded and we had to wait up to a half hour at some stops. Look into Paris Vision. It%26#39;s not an open bus and I don%26#39;t think you get on and off but it takes you to all the highlights of the city.
|||
If you take the OpenTour bus for one day, it is better value to take it for 2 days as the two day pass at 28 Euros is only 3 Euros more than the 1 day pass.
|||
for a 1st timer i also recommend the open bus tour. we used it on our 1st visit. it gave us a good look at the sights, time to decide what to go back and see later on and more importantly we got a feel for the layout of the city. once you have your bearings jump on the metro.
|||
It will depend on the length of your visit. The PARIS L%26#39; OPEN TOUR double-decker buses are GREAT as %26#39;..excusions..%26#39; that allow you to gain an overview of the city, get around to some of the majot sights and attractions and orient you to the city and its layout...and they are also adequate %26#39;..transportation..%26#39; for getting around while you do so. If you%26#39;ve done these sorts of excursions in other cities and enjoyed them, then you will probably enjoy it in Paris as well. Just don%26#39;t expect too much from it in the form of a %26#39;..tour..%26#39;, as in other cities, They use %26#39;..canned..%26#39; tour information that is often garbled or difficult to hear over surrounding noise and often out-of-synch.
But you need to bear in mind that strictly as an alternative to conventional public transportation system (Metro, buses) these excursions will be limited in their flexibility---routes (four interconnected, transferable, one-direction %26#39;circuits%26#39;) , schedules (they stop running at approx. 6-6:30 PM), stops are spread farther apart.and frequency (wait times between buses run approx. 15-30 mins). They%26#39;re GREAT %26#39;..excursions...%26#39;, a lot of FUN riding around Paris atop an open, double-decker bus and %26#39;..okay..%26#39; as a mode of transportation. They are what they are....but the two really shouldn%26#39;t be confused with inexpensive, efficient, public transportation. These %26#39;excursions%26#39; may well be %26quot;..cheesy..%26quot;...but they do have the merit of being a lot of FUN as well.
|||
-:- Message from TripAdvisor staff -:-
This topic was inactive for 6 months and has been closed to new posts. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one.
To review the TripAdvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html
We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.
Removed on: 12:16 pm, August 29, 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment