Help! single woman traveling to Paris alone

Salut,

What do you mean by ‘stand out’ ? Is it ‘not looking American too much’ ? 🙂 Cos that’s easy 😀 Just stay clear of :

a) wide ugly shorts
b) big ugly American sandals that only you people wear — but which, I noticed, tend to conquer the rest of the world as well
c) speaking English too loud in public.

Are you really staying in Paris only ?? If so, why are you getting Eurorail ? For use of public transportation in downtown Paris, take a look at http://www.ratp.fr — I believe they have an english translation of their website. Very helpful. I’d advise you to get either the Paris Visite ‘cinq jours une zone’ or the ‘carte orange hebdomadaire une zone’.

Weather right now is pretty good, we had two wonderful days of bright sunshine and high temperatures, and I think it should last for a while.

If you’re to wander alone in downtown Paris, avoid the far northeastern part of town, especially at night.

Bon voyage !

kime: I would echo crc95’s comments. If you like art, or even if you don’t, make sure you see the Louvre, and the Musee d’Orsay (and have lunch there on the upper floor), also see the stained glass windows at St. Chappelle as well as the Concergerie, and the Cathedral of Notre Dame. Take time to just hang out at one of the many braserries. If the weather is nice, take in the Eiffel Tower. The Cluny Museum is also facinating. You will love Paris. Donerail

Hi. Good advice above for sights. If you’re there for a week, you might want to purchase the Carte Musées Monuments (Museum Pass) for the various Paris museums. You can buy it at a major Metro stop when you get your Metro tickets. The major museums like the Louvre or the d’Orsay usually have very long lines. If you have the pass, you can walk right past the line and go in the door. It is great.

The Metro has different kinds of passes. The only part of the RATP web site mentioned above that is in English sells the Paris Viste Metro pass. It’s fine but a little expensive. The Carte Orange is a much better deal but it only works from Monday to Monday so if you arrive on Wednesday, you’ve lost two days and that makes it more expensive. The easiest way we’ve found is the "carnet" of ten Metro tickets. Just ask for a carnet. You get ten tickets. If you use them, you can buy more. If you don’t use them, save them for your next trip. With the Carte Orange, the following Monday, it becomes useless. Same with the Paris Viste Pass. It is good for only one, three or five consecutive days.

Sights: My favorite place in Paris are the Tuileries Gardens right outside the Louvre. It’s a great place for people watching and there are usually art exhibits tucked into different corners of the garden. The Luxembourg Gardens are another favorite. The Place des Vosges is a square in the Marais and is just gorgeous. The Victor Hugo Museum is in the Place des Vosges too.

If you haven’t seen the Rodin Museum, it is wonderful both inside and outside in the gardens. Behind Notre Dame (across a tiny street) there is a little park. If you walk in, you will notice some steps going down. This is the Museum of Deportation, the Paris version of a Holocaust museum. It is underground and very striking. It’s free, takes only a half hour and is memorable.

I know this sounds silly, but you might also enjoy the cemeteries. Père-Lachaise, Montmartre and Montparnasse are the most famous. They are beautiful and really are tourist attractions. There are maps available for visits to tombs of Stendhal, Berlioz, Truffaut (Montmartre), Baudelaire, Sartre, Maupassant, Zadkine (Montparnasse) and Chopin, Colette, Balzac, Haussmann, Molière, Piaf (Père-Lachaise).

Also, find the church St. Germain des Prés. Across the street is a sculpture by Zadkine and in the little garden beside the church is a Picasso sculpture. The Café Deaux Magots is across the street, Café La Flore a couple doors down and Brasserie Lipp across the street. You will be very comfortable eating alone in any of these. (They are very touristy, but there will be Parisians there.) Actually in Paris, people often eat alone so I think you’ll be fine with that. They encourage you to take a table for one (yes, they exist) and/or they will direct you to a table for two. If you take a table for four, you will probably be moved. Don’t take it personally; this happens to everyone. You get a table for the number in your party. It’s a little different than the US. If you haven’t been to France before, you will have to ask for the check when you are finished. If you don’t ask, they will not interrupt your meal by giving it to you. The table is yours until you wish to leave. Occasionally we forget that and sit and chat far longer than we had planned.

Do enjoy your trip. Paris is my favorite city!

I will be going to Paris alone. I was wondering if any one could recommend a hotel that would be safe and close to the metro and airport