Booking Tours in Paris

[dep0515]

Hello, Paris Experts! I followed you all from TA and am really enjoying this website. I have a question and hopefully you will not think it a silly one. My mom and I are travelling to Paris for the first time in October and we are planning to book several trips/outings...to Versailles, Moulin Rouge, and are planning to use Paris Walks. My question is this: when do I need to book these trips? Should I be booking them now, or wait until we get closer in case we want to change our loose "agenda" around? I just don't want to wait too long and miss out on anything.

I would appreciate your advice and hope to contribute more than I ask once I have experienced Paris first-hand!

[dep0515]

I just re-read my post and realized it sounds like I am planning to use Paris Walks to book my tours....I do not mean that. Just meant that we are booking those other tours and plan to participate in some of Paris Walks excursions as well!

[Truffaut]

You've got plenty of time. Is there a website for "Paris Walks?" I'm not familiar with the company. You may find that you really don't need an organized walking tour to enjoy some of these places.

[dep0515]

Thanks for your reply...I feel much better now. I am an over-planner by nature and tend to get a little carried away with it sometimes.

Yes, there is a website for Paris Walks. It's ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pariswalking/. The company was highly recommended by several people on TA.

I am not certain if we are going to use them or just walk around on our own (we will certainly be doing a lot of that anyway). I thought that we might get more interesting information on places if we tagged along with a tour.

By the way, I love this website and am glad that there is still a place where I can take advantage of the expertise of you and the others!

[GitteK]

Moulin Rouge: it is not too early to book. Go to their website and book from there.
www.moulinrouge.fr/home-flash-gb.html
No need to pay for a bus and a guide. AND don't buy the show with dinner at 19:00. The food is much too expensive for what it's worth, they say. If you want to eat first, book for the show at 21:00 (even though it will be an early dinner, as you are supposed to be at MR ½ hour at the latest before the show). There are LOTS of lovely bistrots around, e.g. up in Rue Lepic or futher up in Rue des Abbesses. Only 10 minutes walk back to Moulin Rouge - downhill !

Versailles: You could of course buy a tour - with bus and guide and the whole tabernakel. But it is in fact quite easy to get out there on your own - and cheaper. You can buy a combined chateau/park/train ticket called "Forfait Loisirs Chateau Versailles" at the major train stations in Paris, e.g. Gare d'Austerlitz. The ticket includes free audioguides for the chateau. The train line is RER C5 - direction "Chateau Versailles Rive Gauche"
Look - print it out and take it with you to the station (maybe best to print it out in French !):
www.transilien.com/web/site/accueil/citylien/forfaits-loisirs/Chateau-de-Versailles/lang/en
Versailles is only 10 minutes from the train station - and it is the ending station, so you cannot go too far by mistake !
But of course, if it gives you more peace of mind to go on a tour, I would choose that. Maybe it would be better for your mother also - how old is she ?

I have booked a trip to Reims this summer with Cityrama. There are 2 major tour companies in Paris. They are both super professional and reliable.
www.cityrama.fr/en/
www.parisvision.com/index.php?langid=en

For this September, when I go to Paris with my mother and another elderly lady, I have booked a bus tour with Parisvision around in Paris after dark "Illuminations" - you might like that !

Also remember a boattrip on the Seine after dark, I always use Vedettes du Pont Neuf, as the landing place is super-central:
www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/

Good luck - and welcome to the forum. PLEASE keep asking questions !!!

BTW I wholeheartedly DISAGREE with The Reverend Truffaut on this matter - it is NOT too early to book....... (guess who is also a neurotic overplanner AND who already booked her apartment for summer 2008 ?!!)

[dep0515]

Thanks, GitteK! Yes, we are planning to do the Paris Illuminations tour (combo boat and bus) as well. I know that a lot of people have said to do Versailles without a tour, but I also read that going with a tour company saves you a LONG wait in line. But maybe it won't be so long in October?

Thank you so much for all your input. We are doing the show only for Moulin Rouge and will take your advice regarding where to find a restaraunt.

I'm sure I will have more questions as I near my trip (137 days and counting!). You may be sorry you asked me to keep them coming!

[annettecinca]

We've been to Versailles twice in October, and didn't have to wait in line either time. We went on our own, taking a mid-morning train. Maybe we just lucked out on the particular days we went, but I suspect there aren't huge crowds that time of year.

[dep0515]

Thanks! Maybe we will try it on our own and save some money.

[GitteK]

dep0515 - the combined chateau/park/train ticket "forfait loirsirs" allows you to skip the lines at the ticket window in Versailles, so in that way it is faster.
No ticket whatsoever will allow you to skip the lines at the security check - but after that you can go straight into the palace. There may also be línes at the stand where you collect the audioguides - but they are worth waiting for.

[dep0515]

GitteK,
Your vast knowledge continues to amaze me! Thank you all for your input.