Common sense precautions in Paris

It is natural to feel anxious, honestly not sure what possible precautions you can take to prepare for the extremely unlikely event you end up in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Thing about these terror attacks is they are less likely to try the same tactic again, the next one will most likely be in a new city and a different target. I would expect heavy security/police presence at all major attractions in the city of Paris which is a good thing and will likely make any terror attacks there less likely.
You can live in fear or go about your day and not stress about things out of your control.
Still stressful though, I am going in Sept and of course it crosses my mind, I am sure many have canceled their plans to France, I won't be doing that.

I always had an emergency plan when traveling with my minor child, anywhere. Two actually, one if separated at a site, and two if a larger issue. I suggest each person, particularly the minors, always have a card with the name of the hotel in their money belt, and enough money or CC for a taxi to the hotel. And, have a contact in the USA where messages would be left, if necessary. I worked in risk management and my brother lived in LA (think earthquakes) so we might be a little extreme...nonetheless.

While I have not been recently I think you nailed it with your last comment "go ahead as usual, since we can't really have knowledge or control about these things".

You really can't let these kinds of things run your life...be prudent and have a good time.

I think your last sentence says a lot about having a positive attitude. Situational awareness is good no matter where you are traveling.

Since you are traveling with a group it is a good idea to communicate, communicate, communicate your plans with one another. We traveled to Paris last summer with 4 adults and 2 pre teens. We split up a lot but we tried to have a plan for where to meet, etc.

One very fun place for families to explore is the Paris Plage at the Bassin de la Villette, well worth the 20 minute metro ride (Juares) to participate with families enjoying all kinds of summer activities on the canal. If you go on a Saturday or Sunday canal boat rides up to the Cite de Science are just 1-2€. It all begins July 20.

https://quefaire.paris.fr/programme/88354_paris_plages_bassin_de_la_villette

Go and enjoy. If you find yourself in a situation that makes you uncomfortable, then walk away and do something else. Don't worry about what someone else would think or say or do. its about your holiday and you should enjoy it. There is plenty to do in Paris and I cant imagine not being able to find things to do that don't cause you to be nervous.

• Have travel insurance.
  
• Enter France's emergency contact number on everyone's phone - which I believe is 112. Everyone thinks they will remember it, but our minds tend to get frazzled in crisis mode.
  
• Enter hotel info on everyone's phone (hotel name, address, tel)
• Everyone should have the same emergency contact person in the states.
  
• Everyone should have their passports on them at all times
• Pack light so you can "get out of dodge" quickly if needed
• Enroll in Smart Traveler Enrollment Program

But most importantly - HAVE FUN! Don't let the terrorist control our lives.

We were there a couple of weeks ago and there is a huge security presence in all the tourist areas and some off the beaten tracks areas, and I can only imagine it will be even stronger now if that's possible. Presence of security is no assurance that something won't happen, of course, as evidenced in Nice. However, it was reassuring to us to see them there. The events here in the US that occurred while we were in France reinforced that nowhere can offer absolute safety. We have to carry on smartly and enjoy the time and place where we are for as long as we can.

@Pilgrim, I agree with all of these and do them except: I never entered the emergency number or the hotels on my phone. I guess I was low tech in this area. I'll do this for my next trip even though it is a solo trip, kind of. That's a good list for any travel, any time. Wray

As Mona suggest, its a good idea with a large group to have rally points in the event the group becomes separated. That would be a good idea with or without terrorist events. Work out both near term rally points (e.g. museum gift shop) and end of day (e.g. hotel). Given current events, a secondary rally point could be useful in the event that your hotel is in a closed off area.

I have been to Paris many times before but this June we took our kids there for the first time. I was very comfortable taking the metro before, but this time we took the buses more often. Just didn't want to be underground during very crowded times. If you hear police cars go by, don't be afraid to approach the police or soldiers around to ask what's going on. All major sites (including department stores) now have security checks, while the search is not thorough (they barely look in my purse), it's still a deterent. If you're in a crowded museum or attractions, look for exits so you know where to go if something happens.

We had a great time there in June and I'm sure you will too. It was actually less crowded then the previous summers.

There's good advice from many here. I'll just offer that after past events, when people have reported back how they were in Paris when something happened or shortly thereafter, they still had a wonderful time, if a bit subdued and somber. You can look at it as a time to be a goodwill ambassador, and experience the pain that another culture is going through, and that's not all bad. Say bonjour and merci, and show patience and appreciation, that's what they need now. Have a great trip.

I spent a week solo in Paris in mid-May and just went merrily about my business of seeing all the sights and eating all the food. Enhanced security at major attractions and a significant police/military presence was reassuring, and I did not alter any plans or avoid public transport. I did register with STEP and received a few alerts about demonstrations. I avoid crowds anywhere as much as possible to preserve my sanity.

Lavra,
I agree with all the great advice you've received thus far.

My daughter & I were in Paris last month, during the train strikes & Euro Cup crowds!

Since it was just the 2 of us traveling together, we took, "common sense precautions", by doing the following:

• We always walked together & with purpose.

• We didn't carry a purse & always carried our valuables in money belt.

• We didn't stay out late at night, except the night we went to see the Eiffel Tower light up ( Sunset was at 9:58pm!)

• We prepared our route the evening before, so I knew which Metro or bus routes to take.

• I relied on these very helpful apps while in Paris, & you may want to download them on your
  smartphones (free!).

Bus Routes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ratp/id507107090?mt=8

Metro & Tram:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/next-stop-paris-formerly-visit/id660175477?mt=8

We started using the Metro when we first arrived to Paris, but due to a painful knee, we opted to travel via bus the rest of our stay. We actually preferred the buses mainly because it's a nice way to see the city ;-)

Buses tend to get very crowded at certain times though, usually in the morning 8-9am, & around 4-5pm, when locals are going to/from work.

• One more tip: Pair your children, older with younger. The oldest in the pair is responsible for the younger one.

Many years ago, my oldest brother (an Eagle Scout), along with our mom & my other brother, decided to take our boys (ages 4.5 & 6, at the time) along with all the cousins (9 children in total, ranging from ages 4.5 - 11) on a train trip to Solvang for a few days.

He paired all the cousins, & explained to never lose sight of each other, to always stay together.
He purposely paired the children by age, one older cousin paired with one younger cousin.
The older cousin was made responsible of the younger cousin.

Rule # 1 was to always stay together in the group with the adults.

My boys & their cousins still talk about this trip & they say it was one of best trips ever!

Have a wonderful trip with your family!

I just thought of another item. If your kids are over 18, they are considered adults and you will not be able to speak for them as you did when they were minors. I always complete the "Member's Designation of a Personal Representative" form with my health insurance. By having this form on file with your Health Insurance Company, you will be named as a personal representative who can act on their regard to health care coverage provided by the health insurance company. Basically the health care company will be able to speak to you just as if they were speaking to your adult child. I also do this for my husband (and vice versa). There's nothing more frustrating than trying to get something done and be blocked because they won't speak to you because you aren't the insured. I also do this for any pharmacies we deal with and our doctors.

I also have Power of Attorney (POA) forms completed for me and my husband. POA forms are good to have completed and notarized even when you aren't traveling. You do not have to go through an attorney to get this done - simply find a sample document on the Internet and just insert the appropriate names, etc. I try to re-do ours every 5 years to keep them current. Some doctors and/or hospitals may give you a difficult time if they are over 5 years old.

Once you have these forms completed, I scan them and then email them to myself. If you don't have a scanner, you probably could simply take a picture of it with your camera.

I also make sure a family member who is NOT traveling with us has a copy of our itinerary, flight info, hotel info, and copy of our passports.

Thank you for all this wise advice!

Great advice from all, especially the ones about having points of contact back home in the States, having family meeting points, etc. These are things I haven't considered on my own travels and I usually consider myself a thoroughly prepared traveler. So there's always so much to learn from other peoples' experiences. Definitely register your trip/destinations with the U.S. Dept. of State (you do this online...is this the same as Smart Traveler Program?).

I do this anyway, but always keep some essentials in your day bag in case of an emergency where you can't get back to your hotel. For example, a light jacket or sweater, your medication, some first aid supplies, etc.

Perhaps one of the bigger challenges for some, is convincing friends and family back home that it's OK to still travel to France (or Europe in general) even after all these tragedies.

I worked in risk management and my brother lived in LA (think
earthquakes) so we might be a little extreme...nonetheless.

Wray, I worked in risk management as well and I lived in earthquake country (California) for quite some time. Maybe this is why I am as prepared as you. :D Those earthquakes are SCARY! I don't miss them.

Definitely register your trip/destinations with the U.S. Dept. of
State (you do this online...is this the same as Smart Traveler
Program?).

Hi KC, yes it is the same program.

Thing about these terror attacks is they are less likely to try the same tactic again

I know it's a bit off track, but this issue has long been a pet peeve of mine. After 9-11, beefed up airport security started taking away anything remotely sharp, and reinforcing cockpit doors. So the shoe bomber comes along, and now we all have to take off our shoes. Then a liquid explosive plot was supposedly uncovered, so no liquids of any kind (as well as gels and the like) can be brought on the plane. Fortunately, the "underwear bomber" didn't result in a ban on passengers wearing underwear. But terrorists keep coming up with new methods of destruction that can kill almost as many people as a downed aircraft.

Rule # 1 was to always stay together in the group with the adults.

When herding "kids" of all ages if group integrity is a goal, do what wilderness group travelers do. Designate a leader and a "sweep". Job of the "sweep" is to keep the group compact and together assuming that the "sweep" doesn't get lost or separated. Leader should turn around every so often to see if the group is still intact. Loosing a person in the bush can ruin ones day.

The above point of advice came to mind in recalling what happen to a pair of women on the train back to Copenhagen Airport. Train was packed (standing room) with passengers and baggage. The women wanted to exit the stop before the airport. One woman manged to get off but the second was too slow and the automatic doors closed and she got a ride to the airport. Metro type transit doors are not like elevator doors that can be held open. Get your group together before transit stops and if crowded, get near the exit doors.

Metro type transit doors are not like elevator doors that can be held
open. Get your group together before transit stops and if crowded, get
near the exit doors.

Edgar, so true! This happened to us in London. One member of our group casually tried to get off the Tube - only to find the door shut in his face. The rest of the group had to wait for him at the next stop. You need to stay in your group and get off at the same time - without hesitation. The Tube and Metro do not wait for anyone. :D

Good point about travelling on the Metro...
Quite often, some of the group will get excited and rush in the first door they see, and the rest of the family gets left behind because the doors close too fast.
If this happens - and it usually does, at least once - make an agreement that the group on the Metro gets off at the next stop and waits against the wall, right under the clock. That's the easiest place to spot where you can find each other. Then everybody get back on the train together.

Other good points have been made - nobody can predict how, when or where the next attacks will come. But it's probable that we are all in this for the long haul - no matter where we live. I wouldn't advise getting too sombre about all this, since it can have a negative effect on sensitive people and young kids - try to lighten things up as much as you can, and involve everyone in the preparations for your trip.

Everybody should be outfitted with an "information" kit, to be carried securely on their person. This is extremely valuable, because if one of you gets separated and is injured, medical personnel and the police will know how to contact your family.

If you haven't thought about medical insurance, you should. Though costs are far less in France, you would want to be reimbursed for any expenditures you might incur.

If you are injured in France, you will be treated first, and payment questions will come later.

The security alert is at the highest possible level in France. More police have been ordered to report to duty. In the tourist areas, around the monuments, museums and shopping districts, you'll be well supervised. It's probably not a good idea to bring backpacks anywhere right now, unless it's absolutely necessary - and I can't imagine that it really would be. It ties up security lines and many places will not allow you to enter with backpacks, now. Try a canvas or nylon tote bag, instead - or have everybody carry his own.

If you have not already booked lodging, now would be a good time to stay in hotels. This is for the simple reason that there is always someone at the desk who will know what is going on and can give you good advice about possible areas to avoid and recommend things you might do, instead.

Some tourists are complaining about all the police and armed soldiers everywhere. I think this is a good thing. Most of us who live here don't even notice them anymore. If you're here for more than a couple of days, you won't mind them, either.

I'm glad to learn the term "rally point" from this thread --
as a solo traveler, my outlook when spending the day with a group like Lavra's is to dread
the prospect of marching together through the Louvre, instead of just establishing a
rally point and time, so that someone who really just wants to sit in the Tuileries and do their own sketching
can do so while another takes her time doing furniture appraisals in the mobilier wing,
and others can try to conquer the entire museum at a jog, or linger among their favorites.

Note also that it's best to pick rally points and times that make sense -- the gift shop towards the end of the visit,
the lemonade stand around teatime, rather than an obviously major spot at an arbitrary time like the big fountain 85 minutes from now. Those people twiddling their thumbs and checking their phones beneath the bronze general on a horse are going to get impatient a lot quicker than those enjoying a snack or browsing the postcards while they wait.

"Some tourists are complaining about all the police and armed soldiers everywhere."

The sight of police carrying C8 (M16) style weapons or MP-5's is now common even here. Unfortunately that seems to be a reality of life these days.

It is always sensible to have a plan B for getting together or contacting relatives in case of problems. This can be helpful in small situations like getting separated on the metro and in disasters when you need to find each other. Having contact information and ID is helpful. After 9/11, I also made sure my kids could walk 20 miles from their workplace if they had too (they were in DC during the attacks and one had to walk a long way to connect with the other) When traveling we are usually prepared to walk but wearing heels or flimsy shoes can become an issue when you need to flee a dangerous area.

We always use rally points when traveling with a group and splitting up to do different things. And it is great advice to pick a place that is pleasant like a cafe or the gift shop so the person who gets there first is not left standing and waiting.

Travel insurance pretty much always excludes things like terrorism; not sure it makes much difference.

There is no way to predict where terrorists will strike; when they shot up a concert in Paris last fall they also targeted some bog standard small cafes. It is easy to cause destruction -- it costs little, requires no special intelligence, requires no special materials as we saw in Nice. And you can't know where it is likely to occur.

We will be living this for the rest of our lifetimes. We can go about our business or we can be paralyzed fear. No other choice really.

Janet, good item to point out about comfy shoes - even day to day commuting. We wear comfy walking shoes to work and then change into our dress shoes when we get to work. I had friends that worked in NY during 911 and they had to walk miles and miles to get home.

Was in Paris this past june, with two of our kids and two of their friends.
The kids sre 20-26 and stayed in their own apartment about a mile or so away from ours.

We just carried on as normal, took metro everywhere, and two of the girls went to an outdoor rock concert. ( and bragged about making it home at 1:30 drunk as skunks.😦)

We are the type of people that joke about serious stuff. We told kids if they heard gunshots to duck and run like hell.

Lots of good suggestions.

I just thought of one due to my trying to find news about the current situation in Turkey - install Twitter and learn to use it to find news. Much more up to the second info if something is actually going on.
More basic, I would be sure to have a phone and small data plan -access to communication and info is no longer a luxury. It could be a lifesaver or at least vital in keeping you comfortable and your friends and family reassured of your safety.

Mira! I just did the same thing! I decided I needed to get current and figure the Twitter thing out as the first notifications from the State Department were via Twitter.

There are some really excellent suggestions in this thread. Some I had thought of, some I had not. I do appreciate everyone's practical contributions.

"I just thought of one due to my trying to find news about the current situation in Turkey - install Twitter and learn to use it to find news. Much more up to the second info if something is actually going on. "

That's a good one. It's a Friday afternoon as of my writing, here in SF Bay Area, and all day I was reading about Nice, didn't look at a computer or my phone for a few hours and next thing I know I get a text from my brother telling me about Turkey. Things happen fast, and if you happen to be there or in a situation where it really affects you, knowing right away rather than finding out the next time you are in front of a computer or pick up your phone might make a big difference.

I also follow the US Department of State: Consular Affairs on my Facebook page.

I appreciate Wray's ideas for making sure each child has his/her own card with info on their person, and enough cash for a taxi (and perhaps a drink and a snack). My brother and his family are coming over in a few weeks, and I will prepare this for my nieces.

Another vote for Twitter -- I'm not very good at tweeting, but as far as CONSUMING information, I find it enormously useful. Of course you have to kind of find the people to follow in order to get a twitter feed that provides that kind of information. And you have to separate the junk from the good stuff and be healthily skeptical. But I absolutely learn about things much more quickly there than anywhere else, just as a consumer of information.

Or what my mother did when we visited the Grand Canyon (or Disneyland) many years ago -- my sister and I were dressed in shirts made from identical bandanas, and Mom had one as well, so she could just point to her shirt and ask "have you seen a girl wearing this?"

...my sister and I were dressed in shirts made from identical bandanas....

Or you can use the Japanese and Chinese tour group system that I have observed of having everyone in matching color shirts and caps and the tour leader has a cane with a pendant with the tour group color. When it is time to rally the group, the tour leader just has to raise the pendant and wave it as a signal to rally around the flag.

And in keeping with a parallel post "Hiking alone in the Alps", have everyone in the group carry a whistle. They should blow it three times (or 6) if in distress or lost. Tour leader should respond with two tweets.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/switzerland/hiking-alone-in-the-alps

https://www.amazon.com/Guardian-Children-Protection-Security-Babysitter/dp/B007TW3QG2

Ha!

"Or what my mother did when we visited the Grand Canyon (or Disneyland) many years ago -- my sister and I were dressed in shirts made from identical bandanas, and Mom had one as well, so she could just point to her shirt and ask "have you seen a girl wearing this?"

You know, I was just in Grand Canyon this past May and we saw the exact same thing, only it was backpacks. This entire family (I think they had three kids) of five all used the exact same backpack (style and color). When I was in my younger teens and twenties, I would laugh and think how embarrassingly hokey it was for families and/or kids to dress alike when they're out and about. After having traveled (i.e., matured), these things make much more sense and I would do the same.

Great ideas. We're headed to Paris in two weeks and we're not going to let the news spoil our trip. One rule we always use is that if we get separated, we go back to the last place we remember being with each other. Bon voyage.

Ever so grateful for all of the wonderful comments and suggestions in this post. My RS tour of Paris starts 8/28 and seems every day there is more bad news coming out of France, which my sharp eyed family feels duty bound to inform me of. My response has been that I'm 55, I'm not foolish and I will keep my wits about me. That said, many good ideas here in this post to think about and act on.