Extending before and after RS tour

It will be nice to have almost two weeks in Paris, if that's the plan. Most tour members will reserve for the advance night at the tour hotel. It's by far the most convenient plan and your hotel information should be included in your tour booking confirmation. Whether or not you stay in the same hotel for an additional 5 or 6 nights is going to be influenced by the hotel price, as well as availability (for instance, if they have another tour coming in).

katzooma - I think it is a great idea to extend your trip. It is smart to arrive at least a day early but I really like your idea of extending the trip on the back end. This way you will be able to go see those lovely things you find you don't have time for during the tour itself. The tour guide may have some excellent suggestions as well.
We had a wedding to return to so we had to put all of our extra time on the front end of our trip, and while that was great fun, we missed having a few more days in Paris when the tour ended.
I'm not sure if RS tours stay in other arrondissement than the 7th, so you might read the France threads regarding Paris and see if anything strikes your fancy.
If I were you I would call the RS office and talk with them.

It is usually easy to extend your stay. One day on the front end is good and I would think you should be able to easily. Contact the hotel directly via email and definitely tell them you are on the RS tour. We got the RS rate because we told them. You will find out the first and last hotel after signing up for the tour. If you are staying for many days at the end, you may want to do some research and change hotels for a different area and to experience a different neighborhood. I would recommend researching hotels on tripadvisor to get a feel of the hotel that RS tour uses and whether you want to possibly change. Go to both hotel's web sites to get a feel of what you are reserving. good luck!

It's very easy to extend your stay pre or post tour. I did it in October for the Spain My Way tour. I arrived in Barcelona several days before the tour was to start there because there were far too many things to do than could be covered in the 2 days that the tour would be in Barcelona. Either contact the hotel directly or, as I did, use booking.com or another booking service and when making your reservation, there is usually an option to "send a message to the hotel". I used this option to advise that I would be staying X nights before the RS tour began and that I was a member of the tour. Had no problems whatsoever on checkin. Stayed in my same room for the entire visit.

FYI, I was traveling solo as well.

About 6 wks before the tour starts you will get a list of your hotel(s). That's when you can contact them for pre and post tour additional night reservations.

Regardless of whether it is a scheduled tour, cruises, etc., we always arrive three or four days and sometimes a week early and often stay a week or more at the end. We like going earlier to adjust to jet lag on our time schedule and not some tour schedule. And planning an early arrival gives flexibility should your original flight from the US get canceled or re-routed. Very rare but a possibility. That why when the tour starts you are relaxed and ready to go.

Oh yes, as others have confirmed this would be very easy to do. I always go early and stay a few days after.

Since you have 2 weeks, it seems, have you considered doing the Paris and Heart of France tour?

However...having said that I will tell you that I did the Best of Paris and also extended it by a week. I met up with a friend the 2nd week. I loved not feeling pressure to see everything in a few days and that extra time made me feel so comfortable in Paris!!

We like arriving at least one day early before a tour and try to extend our vacation by a couple days too. We did stay in a different hotel before our tour started and also a different one at the end of the tour. I do regret this decision, especially after our tour ended in Paris. We moved to another hotel in Paris that was also in the same area. The hotel we stayed at with the tour was much much nicer! There wasn't even that much of a price difference. I think the week long Paris tour will be nice and staying a whole week afterwards will certainly allow you do repeat things you enjoyed. You could also make a quick connection to London, Brussels, Strasbourg, etc.

just so you know, if the daily price to extend your stay after the tour (which can get from the hotel in an email, as is usually explained in the tour info RS sends you) is higher than you find elsewhere, ask the hotel if they have less expensive rooms.

On a RS tour that ended in Nice the hotel (a nice one, with great views) seemed pricy compared to ones I found a few blocks away so I changed hotels. At the front desk this came up when I was checking out, and they told me there were less expensive rooms w/o a view and in fact some at about what I was paying at the other hotel. Don't know why they didn't mention this in their response to my email, but now you know to ask.

Arriving a day in advance is important so that you have a little time to get over the jetlag and be more physically and mentally ready for the tour. Extending as much as possible after is a great idea, since you'll have the "lay of the land" then and be comfortable getting around on your own. I would consider booking a room in a different part of the city after the tour. First, it will give you a chance to get to know another neighborhood; second, it could save you money. For instance, if the RS hotel is in the Rue Cler area or look to the Marais or Latin Quarter.

September is a big month for trade fairs in Paris. While that doesn't affect tourist sights, it does impact room availability, so you should book as early as possible to get the best choices. Make sure your booking can be cancelled, just in case you need to make a change.

The third weekend in September is European Heritage Days. Sites that are closed to the public are opened to all on these 2 days a year, giving you the opportunity to see the stunning palaces of Paris. I would recommend taking the tour that ends on Sept. 16, so you can take advantage of this very special opportunity.

Also consider day trips that you can easily do on your own - Basilique Saint-Denis (by metro 1/2 day), Giverny, Chartres, even Reims for the champagne.

I absolutely endorse your plan.. I felt so sorry for those on our tour who were jumping into taxis to go to the airport on the last day of our Europe in 14 day tour ( which ended in Paris ) , two or three other couples remained behind ( as my daughter and I did ) and a few were travelling on to other countries or cities.

We stayed at the tour hotel for one more night.. then we moved to another hotel for 7 nights. I am not unfamiliar with Paris so I found a cheaper one a bit closer into the area I wanted to be in.. it was easy to move. We simply packed up our luggage and grabbed a taxi off the street to the other hotel, where we were able to check our luggage in early, and we then proceeded with our sightseeing day.. it took maybe 45 minutes out of our day in total.

I also think its crucial people plan to arrive at least one night before any tour. On our tour which started in Rome, one family planned to arrive morning of first tour day.. but their plane was delayed and they didn't get into till the next day.. so they missed one whole day in Rome.. and the tour was only there for 2.5 days to begin with.. !!

Arrive a day or two ahead of time to get over jet lag etc.. and yes, I do think staying at the tour hotel for the start makes good sense ( we did ) .. and if you only plan on staying an extra 2-3 nights after tour then perhaps stay at tour hotel again.. but more nights than that I would have no issue with moving around.

The best part of staying after the tour was that for the inexperience ( prior to tour) travellers, they had a lot more confidence after the tour.. they had already been shown how to use the metro by the tour guide and had already got the basic lay of the land,, so felt a lot more at ease. A single mom and daughter on our tour felt more then capable after the tour, she had worried about her plan to stay a few extra days before she had taken the tour, but was so glad she had.. we met for dinner after the tour too.. so she wasn't " all alone" really .. she had dinner plans with someone she knew (us, from the tour!) .