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Courtesy of
Paris Eiffel Tower News
for the guests of
Hôtel de la Paix
"I love Paris every moment.
Every moment of the year, I love Paris.
Why! Oh why do I love Paris?
Because my love is here..."
Frank
Sinatra
Explore Paris
Welcome to Paris! This "Paris monuments" page was
designed for you, hopefully a future guest of Hôtel de la Paix, who may visit Paris for the first time. The idea is to give you pieces of advice
to acquaint you with the City of Light, and help you prepare for this exciting trip.
Read on!
Prepare well for a stroll
Once you have settled down in your comfortable hotel
room and are getting ready to take your first stroll, take some
time to dress appropriately.
First, put on a really good pair
of walking shoes to feel comfortable in the Parisian streets. Walking in Paris
means stopping often to look at amazing details and buildings. This constant stop-and-go
will wear you down if you aren't comfy in your shoes.
Visiting the Eiffel Tower means waiting often over
30 minutes to gain access to the ticket booth, then waiting some more for the elevator
on the way up, and waiting some more for the elevator on the way down. So to your
feet, a pair of good shoes will make a big difference!
Parisian weather is fickle in springtime and during fall:
what starts out as a great clear day can turn rainy and chilly in the afternoon. Pack
a sweater and a rain breaker if you are visiting during these seasons. Summer is usually
fine (70-85°F), August is generally hotter (80-95°F). Winter is rainy and cold, almost
as cold as in NYC.
In any case, take your umbrella
along, it may become your best friend -- especially if you intend to take pictures
of everything. Rain and camera lenses don't like each other.
Street-savvy tips
Now that you're dressed and all ready to venture outside,
here are a couple of useful tips:
- Avoid taking a taxi during
the day, and notably in the morning until 11:00, and in the late afternoon
from 4:00 to 8:00. Streets are jam-packed during those periods, and seeing the meter
run while you're a sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic is a disheartening experience.
- Taxi fares: taxi
meters show your fare and one of three letters: A, B, or C. If you are within Paris
and on the ring outside Paris (the peripheral boulevard), the A rate applies from
6:00 PM and 8:00 PM, and the B rate turns on from 8:00 PM till 6:00 AM. When you leave
Paris intra-muros, the driver will turn on the B rate during the day and the C rate
from 8:00 PM. If you are far from Paris, the C rate always applies. You will pay extra
for every luggage you load in the trunk and if you take the cab from an airport. Don't
try to hail a cab in the street too close to a train station: taxi drivers can't load
passengers within a 100-meter radius from the train stations. Go to the station taxi
head instead, or further away from the station.
-French people do lunch
between 12:00 and 1:30 PM, and dinner between 7:30 and
10:00 PM. If you wish to avoid the crowd, lunch at 12:00 tops and dine out from 6:00
to 7:00 PM. Restaurants rarely serve between 2:00 and 6:00 PM.
- Having a drink at the terasse
of a sidewalk cafe is a necessary experience in Paris (skip it between November
and March though,except if weather permits). However, terasse drinks are often charged
premium prices.
- Although they are saddled with a reputation,
cafe waiters are not necessarily rude: they're just in
a hurry. So don't take offense if they are impatient with you. Smile and show them
what you want on the menu. They won't return the smile, but you will get your order
quickly.
- In Parisian restaurants,
it is not customary for your waiter to come back to you once you are served to see
if everything is allright: they assume this is the case. So don't feel you are ignored:
just call the waiter when you wish to have your bread basket replenished. If you dine
out at an expensive restaurant, waiters will tend your table diligently. Otherwise,
it won't be the case.
- Gratuity: your
restaurant/cafe check already includes a 15% gratuity. If you feel like giving an
extra tip to your cafe waiter, leave EUR 1 ($.97) on the table. In a restaurant, you
may leave EUR 3-5 ($2.7-4.5, more if you are in an expensive place) but again, that's
not expected in either case. Your credit card receipt won't show any gratuity line.
Armed with these few basic advices, you are ready
to conquer the asphalt. On to places to visit!
Paris monuments and hallmarks
This world-famous landmark was built for the Universal Fair of 1889, held to commemorate
the centenary of the French Revolution. It stands 1050 ft high. Admission (elevator
to the top) is EUR 9.90 for adults, EUR 5.30 for children under 12. Opening hours:
Jan 1-Jun 13: 9:30am-11pm daily (stairs: 9:30am-6pm); Jan 14-Aug 31: 9am-midnight
daily.
Work on the Hunchback's gothic home began in 1163 AD and was completed circa 1345
AD. The house of God can accommodate over 6,000 worshippers. Admission in the Cathedral
is free, going to the towers costs about EUR 6. No elevator, people with a heart condition
should abstain. Opening hours: 8:00AM-6:45PM daily. Towers: 9:30AM-6:45PM daily. Masses:
8AM, 9AM, 12AM, 6:45PM.
Champs Elysees and the Arch of Triumph:
The Champs Elysees avenue probably only deserves its nickname of "most beautiful
avenue in the world" for its lower section, starting Place de la Concorde and ending
at Grand Palais. The rest of the avenue mainly features overpriced shops and restaurants
- with a few exceptions in the side streets. Walk to the Arch of Triumph, at the top
of the avenue, and visit the 50-meter high structure built to commemorate Napoleon's
victories. Admission is about EUR 6, and free for children under 12. Opening hours:
9:30AM-11:00PM daily from April to October, and 10:00AM-11:00PM daily from Nov-March.
Montmartre and the Church of the Sacred
Heart:
The Romano-Byzantine basilica crowns the Montmartre hill. Its construction began in
1875 and was completed in 1914. Admission is free, except for the crypt and dome (about
EUR 5). For a fun ride, go to the Anvers metro station, walk to "Rue Tardieu" and
take the "funiculaire" (a one-car train which brings you almost to the top of the
hill). Montmartre itself used to be a village outside Paris. The hill is famous for
its architectural landmarks, its artistic life, and more recently, for 'Amelie'. It
counts no less than 7 museums!
http://www.tecnilog.com/cartes/cpa/montmartre/mont.htm
Its building started in 1671 under the reign of King Louis the XIVth, and about 30
years later. From its inception, the place was designed to serve as a home to impoverished
soldiers and wounded veterans of the French army. It comprises the veteran hospital
itself, a church, several museums, and the tomb of Napoleon I. Admission is EUR 6
for adults, and free for children under 12. Opening hours: October to March 31: 10AM-4:45PM,
April-September 30: 10AM-5:45PM
http://www.invalides.org/
Located on Ile de la Cité, the construction of this gothic church started under
Louis IX in 1240 AD to house relics believed to be Jesus's Crown of Thorns and parts
of the Holy Cross. Amongst other remarkable details, the tall stained-glass windows
which are mainly original work. Admission is about EUR 6. Opening hours: 10:00AM-5:00PM.
Its construction started in the early XVIIth century under Henri IV. It was completed
in 1612. Initially named 'Royal Square', it was renamed 'Place des Vosges' by Napoleon
I as an homage to the inhabitants of the Vosges region who had been particularly quick
to pay their taxes. The square is remarkable both by its style (it is lined with 36
buildings, all dating from Henri IV) and by its shops and its little park where Parisians
like to loaf on sunny Sundays.
Find more comments on Paris landmarks and monuments
at www.paris-eiffel-tower-news.com.
Walking in Paris
Paris offers a number of interesting itineraries for
strollers. You can follow the waterways (river Seine, St
Martin Canal, river Bièvre) or the 17-km long railway transformed into a most
surprising walkway
hung some 50 feet above the hustle-bustle of the city. You can also spend some quality
time in any of the large public parks which the city counts (Luxembourg, Buttes-Chaumont,
Montsouris, Georges Brassens), discover the gardens
of the 14th district, or else decide to learn live history and architecture in
areas like St-Sulpice and St Germain-des-Prés.
A lively and interesting city
This is but a glimpse of the many places you will
want to visit during your stay in Paris. Guests of the hotel are offered a Complimentary
Pass to the Members Only section of the Paris Eiffel
Tower News website, which features a lot more information on Paris.
The Complimentary Pass can be retrieved from the Thank
You page which displays after your reservation request has been received by the hotel.
The hotel personnel wishes to be of service to you
during your stay in Paris. |
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