Electric scooters in Paris

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DqMu_W-wA0s

Traffic in Paris can be insane but the choice is yours.

Have you investigated Fat Tire bicycle tours?

I would not do a tour on wheels -- it's hard enough just managing a scooter or bike through the traffic, crowds and cobblestones, let alone while trying to follow and hear a guide. I would either do a guided walking tour or set out on your own. We've been doing self guided walks for a week and loving it. I did spend a lot of pre-trip time studying maps of Paris for the areas we wanted to visit.

We saw a young girl in a large group hit the back of a bus with her bike yesterday.

Scooters are everywhere (even on crowded sidewalks), but most users seem under 30. Lots of couples double up on 1 scooter. Your boys would probably love it.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DqMu_W-wA0s Traffic in Paris can be
insane but the choice is yours.

Note that this video is a couple of years old, and a lot has happened in Paris in the last two years. Watch this as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI-1YNAmWlk

A bike is more comfortable and easier to handle than an electric scooter. I would not want to ride an electric scooter for more than 20-30 minutes at a time: it is wobbly, you are standing, and it is uncomfortable on cobblestones or rough pavement.

I guess I am being a negative Nelly, but I would really be concerned for safety going around town on those scooters. I am sure the company provides helmets, but I had a good friend suffer an extremely serious leg fracture on a scooter a few months ago.

A guided tour would likely keep you out of the major traffic, better than you could do on your own, I doubt you would be doing a "once around" the Arc de Triomphe, for example. That, or either a bike tour, is not a bad idea in that sights are a bit spread out in Paris, a walking tour would only focus on a neighborhood.

I think it comes down to your comfort with the scooters. If your family has used them, then fine, but Paris would be a bit intimidating for a newbie. Bikes would be better for those uninitiated to scooters.

Of course, haven't been to Paris in a couple years, but at that time scooters were everywhere, to the point of being a nuisance, between unchecked riders and leaving them all over. A tour should present a respectable way to ride them.

Totally agree with you Kim. We hate those scooters. You are always jumping out of the way of younger kids zipping up and down the sidewalks, and there were so many near misses with cars when we were there. They ride those things in tandem, at full speed, and with no regard to traffic. Cars were constantly honking at riders who completely ignored the traffic signals, and crosswalks. We kept talking about the disaster waiting to happen on these things. The worst thing a city could do. A bicycle tour would be much safer. Here's hoping Paris bans those scooters before someone really gets hurt. (Pedestrians included).

The video links are what I didn't know I was looking for. And yes, I was hoping a guided tour would keep us on the best routes and following good practices. Thank you!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qn4-ac0sPDQ

Have a look at this very recent video , on Jay Swanson's Paris youtube channel.
He's not a fan of the scooters because of the cobblestones.

I would choose a bike tour, myself.

If you are looking for something other than a scooter, we are taking this electric-assisted bike tour with our 13-year old this summer. It’s very well reviewed on TA. https://www.parischarmssecrets.com/the-tour

My first day in Paris I got hit by one of those scooters, I landed on my butt. I still have the bruises. those things are dangerous and the people there drive them way too fast.

If you don’t want a walking tour, go for a bike tour. We did one a few years ago and felt very safe. Major, crazy intersections and streets were avoided but we got a good tour and the guide was full of knowledge and trivia. The scooters were not everywhere then but they sure are now! We left Paris Sunday; observed a policewoman stop a scooter rider who tried to snake through pedestrians when he was supposed to be stopped. He got quite the lecture!

We decided to do the electric bike tour with Paris Charms and Secrets instead of a scooter tour. The guide was great and it was like a tour through time. We went on a Sunday afternoon.