Paris : Les Cars Rouges

You know my love of the "Hop On Hop Off" bus tour, I've blogged about it twice, and I think they're a great idea.

We did lots (and lots) of walking on our first day in Paris and decided that a few hours sitting in the sun whilst having a guided tour of the sights seemed like a very good idea.

We lobbed up to the Les Cars Rouges bus stop and asked about tickets.  They only sell a two day ticket and the price is €27/person.  Now, that's double what Diane and I paid in Rome a few weeks ago.  We bought the tickets and climbed aboard, snagging some seats on the top deck.

The tour was okay, but probably the most average one I've done.  It was heavy on music and light on information.  There were nine stops and they seemed to park the bus, turn the engine off, and sit at each stop for about 5 minutes, longer at some places.

I guess if you used the bus over both days, it might be worth it, but for us with only one afternoon available it was a bit of a rip-off.  I think they should sell one day tickets, or cheaper tickets (like they do in Rome), if you're just going to do a loop and get off once.

If you're looking for a cheap way to get around, try the Metro (the underground train system).  It's very easy to understand - I even managed to catch it all by myself (with my legendary poor sense of direction and total lack of French) and ended up exactly where I hoped I might.