Paris: Impressions, Basics, & Advice
To hear Allie interview AJ about his impressions from his first trip to Paris, listen to our podcost episode on Spotify: “A Non-Francophile's Impressions of Paris.”
The Metro
Pros:
The city is well-connected by metro stations and it is quite easy to get around. It’s also a very walkable city for the main tourist attractions.
The subway stations and trains are mostly cleaner than you would expect for such a large city.
Cons:
It is crowded year-round. It’s either crowded because it’s tourist season, or it’s crowded because it’s cold/rainy and less people are out walking. We have no idea how Paris will be able to handle a huge influx of tourists for the Summer 2024 Olympics. Surely the entire city will implode.
You have to watch your bag. If you have a backpack, we recommend placing it on your stomach and keeping a hand on your purse at all times. Do not leave your wallet in your back pocket. Be aware of your belongings and surroundings at all times!
Buskers and beggars will often hop on the metro and the RER train lines, asking for money. This is usually not a problem if you don’t want to give money: simply avoid eye contact and they will keep on walking.
Restaurants
Pros:
Café culture is so authentically Parisian and takes place year-round. You sit out on the sidewalk and enjoy a leisurely meal while people-watching and absorbing the city through your five senses.
As waiters make a liveable wage in France, you do not have to tip. If service is exceptional, you can leave a few cents, but you certainly do not need to leave 15-20% like in the United States.
Waiters will not hover and interrupt your chewing to ask how you’re enjoying your meal. You will largely be left alone unless you flag them down to request assistance. They are professionals who will keep an eye out for whether you need anything, usually without having to be asked.
You will not be rushed out. The waiter will not bring you the check until you are truly ready to leave and you ask for it.
Menus with prices are posted outside of all restaurants in Paris, so you never have to worry about being surprised by an expensive menu once you sit down. It also makes choosing a restaurant while you’re out exploring much easier, especially if you don’t have WI-FI to look up menus on your phone.
A lot of menus will have “formules,” which are abbreviated menus for a set price (usually a great deal!) that include an entrée + main course or main course + dessert, or even all three. (P.S. an entrée in France is what us Americans call an appetizer)
Cons:
Tables are often pushed really close together. In some cases, the waiter will have to pull the table out so you can slide in behind it, and you are elbow-to-elbow with your neighbor.
It can be hectic sitting outside on the sidewalk, and unpleasant for non-smokers if there are lots of smokers at nearby tables.
While you won’t be rushed out, there is sometimes a lack of urgency in French restaurants. If you are on a time-crunch, you will have to be really assertive with grabbing your server’s attention to order and grabbing the check, or you may decide to opt for take away.
Water is not automatically provided to all tables like in America. Often, you will have to ask. Make sure to ask for a carafe of water, or you may get charged for a bottle of sparkling or mineral water. The water will be room-temperate (ice cubes aren’t really common in France), and the drinking glass that will be provided is much smaller than you’re probably used to - similar to a double shot glass. We often question how French people stay hydrated and why free drinking water isn’t a given when dining!
Small water glasses
Public Bathrooms
Pros:
In recent years, free, self-cleaning portable toilets have been placed throughout the city. Look for large gray cubes on the streets or look for “toilettes publiques” on your Google Maps to find the nearest one. Just make sure that you wait for the green light to come back on after someone exits. After a few long seconds, it will automatically switch to the cleaning mode, and if you walk in right after someone else, you will be sprayed with the cleaning chemicals! It is also useful to know that after you hit the flush button, nothing will actually happen until after you hit the button to open the door and exit. It will flush during the cleaning cycle, which can feel weird to walk out without the toilet having flushed first.
Cons:
There are still a lot of areas where the free public toilets aren’t located, or they may be out of order. This is not a city where you can walk into any business and use the bathroom for free. It is likely that at least once on your trip, you will have to patronize a café or restaurant in order to use a bathroom. Especially in the summer months, you can try walking confidently into a restaurant like you are a customer who is eating outside and head straight downstairs to find the bathroom, but this does not always work.
In a lot of public places, you may have to pay to use the bathroom. We have seen McDonald’s charging 50 cents and the bathrooms by the food court in the Louvre shopping mall charge 1-1.50 euros.
We saw many of the public bathrooms have toilets without a toilet seat. We have no explanation for this.
In some older establishments, there may be a Turkish toilet instead of a modern toilet. Think a hole in the ground and two platforms for your feet. Embrace the experience!
Walking Around
Pros:
We cannot think of another city where the architecture is so stunning everywhere you go. You could easily spend many hours wandering the cobblestone streets or following the Seine River.
Keep an eye out for plaques on walls and brown signs in the shape of oars. These are plentiful throughout the city and will tell you a lot about the history of the buildings and area you are looking at. (Con: These signs are only in French).
You will hear lots of different languages everywhere in Paris, both from immigrants living in the city and from tourists alike.
Cons:
The sidewalks are usually very narrow and make it difficult to pass people. If you have an umbrella?- Forget it.
There is no order when people walk on the sidewalks, up staircases, or in the metros. It is the social norm for people to walk on the right in France, but nobody adheres to this. It is constant chaos and you will be dodging left and right to avoid people at all times. We have never seen a city quite this chaotic in its walking patterns. You know that stereotype about Parisians being rude and cranky? Well we would be too after years of dealing with people on the sidewalks here!
Always exercise caution when crossing the street, even when you have a green walking signal. The bicyclists and electric scooters will not stop with the rest of the traffic like they’re supposed to. If you automatically step out into the street when your signal turns green, there’s a very good chance that you will hear the screeching tires of a bike about to slam into you- this is no exaggeration. Again, there is no sense of order with foot or bike traffic here. There is hardly any order with car traffic, either. Case in point: just look at the cars bumper-to-bumper, half on the sidewalks, all facing different directions, motorized scooters coming at you on sidewalks, etc..
Like any major city, the cars, delivery trucks, and scooters are sure to ruin several pictures of quaint streets. C’est la vie!
Watch out for dog poop!
The People
Pros:
If you make an effort to speak some French and you say “bonjour” when walking into an establishment (a must), the workers will be friendly and helpful (most times).
You will see a lot of community and helpful folks assisting others with their luggage or baby strollers going up and down stairs in the metro.
In Paris, you can get around if you do not speak French. Most workers know at least some English or can grab a coworker who does.
Cons:
Like any big city, there can be rude people or those impatient with tourists. But our experience in restaurants has overwhelmingly been pleasant.
A note about scams
There are many men selling kitschy keychains and light-up Eiffel Tower statues. Watch for men across the street in a circle with balls under cups. You will NOT win by guessing a cup. The only people you see “winning” are in on it, knowing which cup it will be under ahead of time. They make tourists feel confident that they could win too and drive up the pot. You will lose your money and while you are distracted, their associates will also be trying to pickpocket you.
Watch for pickpockets in touristy areas, especially on the stairs in front of the Sacre Cœur in Montmartre. Men will try to forcefully grab your wrist to put a bracelet on you and then pester you to pay for the bracelet. You must avoid these men or be assertive in pulling your arm away.
Anytime you see a woman approaching you with a clipboard, walk away. Do not engage. They are also trying to distract you while someone else pickpockets you. There is no need to be polite with these people or stop to talk. Just keep walking! You are being safe, not rude - we promise. :)
And there you have it, our honest pros and cons of the city based on AJ’s first impressions and Allie’s lived experiences. We hope this helps you enjoy your trip safely and wisely!
