Paris

Most people do not recommend the Paris Pass, as it's very expensive, and hard to make it pay off. Beware: there are several similar sounding passes for Paris. There's the Paris Pass, the Paris Museum Pass, and the Paris Visite pass. The museum pass is often (but not always) a good deal; the other two rarely are. However, with any pass, you have to do the math yourself. Add up the cost of what you are definitely seeing, and compare it to the cost of the pass. Only then can you know. Many passes dangle lots of attractions, and say something like "This pass costs 120 euros for 2 days, and if you saw everything on the pass, it would cost you 300 euros!" The catch is, in two days you couldn't possibly see a fraction of the covered items, and the ones you actually will see in 2 days don't cost anywhere near the 120 euros you pay for the pass. The more days the pass covers, the cheaper each day becomes, so that's a good way to start - how much is each pass day going to cost, and can you recoup this?

When we were there 5 years ago (oh, it's been far too long!), we got Paris Museum passes. We evaluated which sights we would go to with or without the pass and added up the cost. I believe the pass was only 5 or so more euros for us (but it was 5 years ago...maybe it actually was cheaper), and so we got the pass because it enabled us to skip lines and it also gave us the ability to stop by museums we wouldn't have otherwise. For instance, we spent 30 minutes or so in the gardens at the Musee Rodin, and then went inside quickly to see The Kiss. We wouldn't have gone without the pass, but it made it worth a quick look. But, as I said, it was close to the same price, or slightly better. That's the best way to evaluate if the pass will be a good choice for you. Plan your itinerary and which sights you want to visit, and then compare it to the various passes. Only get it if it works in with your plans.

Thank you so much.

Thank you so much.

My sister and I will be in Paris for a week and I did research to see if the six-day Museum Pass was worth it. We want to go to 5 museums plus Versailles. I did the math and the Museum Pass comes out to 5 euros cheaper than paying admission to all those places, plus we get to skip the lines. It's basically breaking even but skipping the lines make it worth it for us.

Another "hidden" advantage to the museum pass is that there are places you might not go to otherwise. You can pop in for a look-see, and/or leave after a short visit, and not feel you've wasted your money. There are also a number of other sights than museums included in the pass. . . Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame towers, etc. Also if you are in marathon-mode, there's something open every evening.

I also think that the Paris Pass is not a good deal because the Paris Visite transportation pass that comes with the package is overpriced. If you wish, buy a 2- or 4-day Paris Museum Pass. If you plan to explore a bit on foot, buy ten-ticket carnets (€12.70) as needed. Each ticket is good anywehre the Metro goes (some lines end in zone 3) and on the RER in zone 1 (all of central Paris). A ticket provides unlmited transfers until you exit the system. A ticket allows for bus transfers up to 90 minutes after boarding the first bus, but you cannot transfer between bus and Metro/RER on the same ticket. A ticket also is good on the Montmartre funiculaire that goes up the hill to Sacre-Coeur.