Paris Greeters

Yes, I used Paris Greeters last October. It was great. I'm not sure what exactly you want to know or what your concerns are. Maybe you can clarify?

We just used them in mid-June; we had an exceptional tour of Le Marais, its history and architecture, where we stayed; flawless English for our group of four-my wife and I with our son and his wife. I'd try to schedule at least one every other day in Paris.

As they are volunteers leading these tours, I don't know if it would be possible to schedule one every other day. That seems like it would be taking advantage of a free service. You can donate to their organization, but that is optional.

Thank you very much for your comments and advice. We will schedule one tour. It is great to have a free tour in Paris.

You should register with them 3-4 weeks before your trip. The application will ask about your interests. They will then try to match you up with someone that will take that into account. You then get an email when they come up with something, detailing their proposal. You can accept or reject it. If you reject it because it doesn't seem of interest they will try to come up with something/someone else. I first received an email that I accepted, but then they immedidiately emailed saying it was no longer available. I then got another proposal for a walk through the Marais with a man who had grown up there. I accepted that and was provided with his email address. It was then up to me to contact him to make arrangements as to time and meeting place. It was a fantastic 4 hours we spent with him. This was my 3rd trip to Paris, but my friend's 1st. Although I had been in the Marais before, but I learned so much. The guides don't accept tips, but we took him out for a drink as a thank you. Have a fantastic time in Paris!!

My husband, son and I will be in Paris in October. I have scheduled a tour with Paris Greeters for the Marais area on a Sunday. I haven't had confirmation yet, but glad to hear that someone has visited this area with a guide and that it worked out great. Thanks for the info.

I guess not everyone has the same pleasant experience with Paris Greeters. Take a look at this article. A skeptical Parisian journalist signed up with Paris Greeters to find out how successful they were at dispelling Paris' reputation for being rude. She didn't get what she expected. Or maybe she did... http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/blog/2008/dec/02/paris-greeters I think I'll give it a try anyway!

Of course there are rude people everywhere, including on this helpline. I didn't read the article, but in my experience people generally treat you the same way you treat them. The man who took me and my friend around the Marais could not have been any nicer. We were very appreciative that he took time out of his day, with no compensation, to share the city he loves with us.

My husband, then 8 yar old and i had a great great experience with Paris Greeters. We Spent about two hours seeing her neighborhood, then we took her Out to lunch at her favorite local pub and afterwards we ventured under the ring road to a cool flea market. One of our favorite days.