Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #90384 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-27
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

Synopsis
The Rough Guide to Paris is the definitive handbook to one of Europe's most glamorous and romantic destinations. This edition includes a 24 page full-colour section introducing the city's highlights. There are evocative accounts of all the sights, from the magnificent Louvre to the atmospheric streets of the Marais. The guide includes incisive and up-to-the-minute reviews of all the best cafes, bars, restaurants and hotels and hand-picked listings of shops and markets, clubs kids' attractions - presenting the reader with the bestParis has to offer, for every budget. A further chapter includes in-depth coverage of day-trips from the city, including Versailles and Disneyland Paris. "All the help and advice you'll need" Business Traveller Magazine

Excerpted from The Mini Rough Guide to Paris by Amy Brown, Rachel Kaberry. Copyright © 2001. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved
WHEN TO GO The best time to visit Paris is largely a question of personal taste. The city has a more reliable climate than Britain, with uninterrupted stretches of sun (or rain) year-round. However, while it maintains a vaguely southern feel for anyone crossing the English Channel, Mediterranean it is not. Winter temperatures drop well below freezing, with sometimes biting winds. If you're lucky, spring and autumn will be mild and sunny; in summer it can reach the 30s°C (80s°F). In terms of pure aesthetics, winter sun is the city's most flattering light, when the pale shades of the older buildings become luminescent and long shadows criss-cross the parks. By contrast, Paris in high summer can be unpleasant, with the fumes of congested traffic becoming trapped within the high narrow streets, and the reflected light in the city's open spaces too blinding to enjoy. One of the quietest times of year to visit is during the French summer holidays from July 15 to the end of August, when large numbers of Parisians flee the city for the coast or mountains. However, a lot of Paris's shops and restaurants will be closed during this period. There is, too, the commercial calendar to consider - fashion shows, trade fairs and the like. Paris hoteliers warn against visiting during the months of September and October, and finding a room even at the best of times can be problematic. Early spring, autumn if you book ahead, or the midwinter months will be most rewarding.

Customer Reviews

Great even for a seasoned Paris-traveller
I've been to Paris more times than I can count. We spent our family summer holidays there, I went there on school trips, I've been with friends, so when my boyfriend suggested a week there I thought 'surely I've seen all Paris has to offer?'.

We had a week in which to show him, a first-timer, all the sights and to also amuse me.

The Rough Guide was invaluable. I read it through and made a note of everything we might want to visit - all the main sights, all the galleries, the shops, and also found quite a few things I didn't know about like the magic museum.

I planned an itinerary (yeah, OK, i'm a bit of a Monica) and we raced round the city seeing EVERYTHING.

We found the restaurant reviews really helpful, and I enjoyed finding new corners of a city I thought I knew backwards.

The Rough Guide map was also brilliant - that paper really is indestructible.

Buy this book even if you think you know Paris, because you're bound to find something you haven't discovered before.

Invaluable Guide to Paris
I have just returned from a two day trip to Paris, during which I managed to pack in pretty much everything I wanted to do. Paris may be a well discovered city with landmarks as recognisable as your own house, but as this was my first trip to the city, I needed all the help I could get with metro lines and advice.
This book was invaluable. With a rough idea of the places I wanted to go, this book really helped me to form a decent plan from the moment I landed in Paris to the moment I departed. Add a couple of to the stated prices, as they have of course already increased, and this book will be your Bible for discovering the city, particularly if time if of the essence.
Nevertheless, one thing I failed to find whilst reading through this book, was the suggestion of taking an open top bus tour, of which there are four routes covered by one ticket; the main tour takes in all the most famous sights, apart from the Bastille, Sacre-Coeur and Moulin Rouge, but these are covered by the other buses. For a first visit with little time, that is a fabulous way to see the city, and personally I think it should have been included.
But nevertheless, if you are going to Paris, buy this book!! It will tell you all you need to know, and more.

Up-to-date Paris
This guide provided the most up-to-date information about Paris and surrounding areas and was essential reading for those not familiar with the capital.

However, although many people seem to think guides are pretty useless for a well-known well-discovered city like Paris, this particular guide is also invaluble to the seasoned and expert travellers who might learn a thing or two from the new reviews of places to visit.

As far as I was aware, there are not many mistakes within the book and was my Bible in the capital, despite travelling to the area previously.

Beginners too are introduced to Paris in a very effective way and enables them to get the most out of the trip.