Paris (Lonely Planet City Guides)

Took my fiance to Paris recently and bought this book for the trip.
Have always been impressed when I've taken one of the Lonely Planet guides on my travels, and this book maintained the high standards that I've come to expect from them.
Doesn't matter if you know a bit about where you are visiting or if you are completely clueless - everything you could need to know is in here.
Well written, easy to use, full of useful information, and yet small enough to fit in a coat pocket.
Highly recommend.

Recommendable for Americans, but not for Europeans (7/8 people found this helpful)

It is obvious to the European reader that this book was mainly written for American tourists in Paris. Most of the information, e.g. from the "Dos and Donts" section, is completely useless for Europeans but at least it is quite amusing. Other parts, however, are very well done: especially the "Facts for the Visitor" and the chapter about "Getting There & Away" or "Getting Around" should be of great use for any tourist. As is the chapter about "Excursions", which I can highly recommend. The maps in the appendix are helpful for the first few days; afterwards, one should better get a "Paris par Arrondisments" map which can be bought in any bookshop in Paris for a fairly reasonable price. Unfortunately, all the "Things to See & Do" are sorted by areas, not by the names of the museums or other tourist attractions, which I personally would find much more helpful. All other parts, like "Places to Eat", "Entertainment", or "Shopping" depend very much on one's personal taste; I myself prefer to find my own little brasserie or cafe while on an aimless walk through the small streets of the town rather than visiting the usual posh places. All in all, the "Lonely Planet Guide Paris" does not live up to my expectations. Other guides from the same edition are much more useful. Nevertheless, I would recommend it to American tourists, for whom it seems to have been edited. In my view, it does not deserve more than three out of five stars. For the literary interested traveller, I highly recommend the book "Walks in Hemingway's Paris" by Noel Riley Fitch.

Out of date and innacurate. (6/16 people found this helpful)

I am assessing this book on it's usefulness, on a trip to Paris, last weekend. On it's recommendation, I stayed at Le Grand Hotel Magenta near the Gare Du Nord train station. It was an absolute tip. The pillows were yellowy brown(covered by a sheet) and the sink area (no plug) had rusty exposed wiring and pipes with mounds of filthy concrete on top. The price was quite a bit more than that stated in the book, even allowing for inflation.
Finding the recommended restaurants was also a nightmare. In hindsight, booking an inexpensive Hotel on the internet would have been a much better option as we have discovered loads since returning.

Good guide but possibly a little narrow minded... (4/7 people found this helpful)

I am generally a fan of lonely planet and on the whole the information in this guide is reliable and useful. However, as I was reading it a few comments by the author disappointed me and seemed out of keeping with the lonely planet. One example of this is the section where women travellers are warned that men in France might actually look at them...am I missing something here? Has the world really become so insular that we're warning people that they might be looked at? If so why do we bother travelling in it at all? I think in one or two instances here a naive singular point of view seems to try and take precedent over a nation and its culture. For me a big let down coming from a reputable and generally broad minded travel guide.

Lonely Planet Guide to Paris( A City Guide) (13/13 people found this helpful)

An outstanding guide book well worth the purchasing. We did't leave our hotel room without it. The Maps were detailed and covered all of Paris. The Subject matter within the book covered all of the areas that were concerning us on our first time visit to Paris. Over all a good clear uderstanding thats presented well.
(Best to know a little french before hand or see back of book!)

Stephen Fallon, Annabel Hart

Editorial Review:

Reader Reviews:

Going to Paris ? Take this. (0/0 people found this helpful)

Recommendable for Americans, but not for Europeans (7/8 people found this helpful)

Out of date and innacurate. (6/16 people found this helpful)

Good guide but possibly a little narrow minded... (4/7 people found this helpful)

Lonely Planet Guide to Paris( A City Guide) (13/13 people found this helpful)

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