Paris

Paris is organized into 20 arrondissements that spiral outward clockwise from the Louvre — worth understanding before you book anything, because which one you stay in shapes the trip more than most guides let on. The layout has a specific origin: in 1853, Napoleon III commissioned Baron Haussmann to rebuild the city, replacing its dense medieval core with the wide boulevards and uniform stone facades still standing today. A few reference points are worth knowing too: the Louvre has been a public museum since 1793, Impressionism was effectively born here in 1874, and haute couture started here as an industry in 1868 — history that shapes what’s still on offer today, more than a reason to visit on its own.

Getting There and Getting Around

Charles de Gaulle (CDG) is the main international gateway; the RER B train runs directly into central Paris in roughly 35–50 minutes, though most clients traveling with us are met planeside and driven in, which avoids the RER entirely during peak hours. Orly sits closer to the city and suits some regional and domestic connections better. Once you’re in Paris, the center is genuinely walkable — the 1st through 8th arrondissements are compact enough that a driver is more about comfort and time than necessity, while the Métro is fast but can be crowded at rush hour.

Entry Requirements and Everyday Money

Most passports — including those from the US, UK, Canada, Australia and Japan — allow entry to France and the wider Schengen area for up to 90 days within any rolling 180-day period, calculated backward from each day of your stay rather than from a fixed date; it’s worth checking your passport has at least three months’ validity left beyond your departure date. The EU’s ETIAS travel authorization is sometimes mentioned as a new requirement — it has been delayed repeatedly and is not yet in effect, so nothing extra is needed for visa-exempt travelers at the time of writing, though it’s worth a quick check again closer to your trip. Cards are accepted almost everywhere, including taxis and most bakeries, though a handful of small vendors set a minimum card spend, so carrying a little cash is sensible. Service is included in restaurant and café bills by law (service compris), so tipping beyond that is a rounding-up gesture rather than an expectation.

Practical Notes Worth Knowing

Many smaller boutiques and restaurants close on Sundays and Mondays, and August sees a meaningful share of independent restaurants close for the owners’ holiday — worth checking before building a day around one address. Museum lines can run long at the major institutions in peak season — exactly where private or after-hours access changes the experience, not just the wait. Paris is genuinely comfortable to walk around, day or night, in the areas most visitors spend time in — the more realistic thing to know about is pickpocketing on crowded tourist routes, particularly the RER B between the airport and the city center and the Métro around Châtelet and Montmartre, along with the occasional petition or bracelet-based approach near major landmarks; simple awareness covers it, and it’s one more reason our drivers handle the airport transfer rather than routing clients through peak-hour RER carriages.

If you’re planning a Paris trip, tell us which neighborhoods or interests matter most and we’ll shape the stay, the table reservations and the private access around that — not a fixed sightseeing list.