sight seeing in paris

The hop-on-hop-off (HOHO) buses might work well for you. I was in Paris several years ago with my brother, who has circulation problems in his legs, and he loved the HOHO bus. It circles Paris, stopping at all of the major sites and you can get on and off as you like.

I loved Paris after twenty years of wanting to go, but even though I was fairly young when I went (31), I exhausted myself. Part of the problem was the rainy weather (in July), which exacerbates my mold allergy, but I tried to do everything and it was a mistake. In short, you are right to be concerned. I don't have too many specific recommendations, but in general I'd say pick and choose what "big" sights to do, and then spend a lot of time in cafes. Walks can be broken up by cafes, as well as by picnics. I didn't stop in cafes nearly enough. I can't speak to any tours aside from Paris Walks, which may be too much for your husband. But guided tours may be a really good idea for you guys. Also, the boat rides on the Seine are lovely and can be a good way to get from, say, Notre Dame to the Eiffel Tower with less effort.

Christina mentioned stopping in cafes which is really good advice. There are cafes everywhere and it's not only good for a rest but very fun to sit and people watch, especially in nice weather when you can sit outside. It's one of my favorite things to do in any weather. When it's really hot, we do it a lot. You can order one drink and sit as long as you want. Also, do not take the Metro. Lots of walking and stairs involved. I'd recommend taking the bus. It's also very fun for me and you're above ground so you can see Paris while you're riding. The Luxembourg Gardens are one of my two favorite places in Paris, they have comfortable chairs and sitting and people watching there is very enjoyable.

Billie, tomsguidetoparis.com might be useful to you. Lots of tips for those visiting Paris for the first time. There are companies that do one day tours to Normandy (Cityrama is one) so you might want to look in to that. There are two bus routes in Paris, part of the public transportation system, that are really good for having a nice rest and seeing the best of the city at the same time. No 42 and No 69 are great. google: ratp Bus. No 42 schedule & ratp Bus No. 69 schedule. You can print out the route maps if you like. You can buy bus/metro tickets in lots of 10 (carnets). More info on this on tomsguidetoparis.com

Good suggestions, especially stopping in cafes to rest and people watch. How long will you be in Paris?

Depending on how many days you are actually spending in Paris, there's really only so much cafe sitting and people-watching one can do on a first trip to Paris. It takes about 20 minutes for the average person to walk a mile...so do you really want to stop every 20 minutes throughout the day for a cup of coffee or a drink at a bar or cafe? Paris is pretty large. That's an awful lot of cafe stops... The buses, while great, can often be crowded so your view of the landmarks could be blocked by other people standing up. Skip the Metro - too many stairs and at the larger stations you'll do some walking underground to transfer to other lines. Get a private driver/guide as a supplement to the boat rides down the Seine, or the Hop-On/Hop-Off tour bus. There are at least a half dozen operators who run private Citroen 2CV tours around the city. They can tailor the experience to whatever you want to do. And make use of the wheelchairs available at some of the larger museums as the walking inside some of those places can add to your husband's limit, even if he stops to sit down on the benches every few rooms. It may help him to save his energy for when he really needs it as you move outside from location to location.

Billie: To elaborate on my suggestion of using Bus 42 and 69 to sightsee while resting the weary bones, here is what you do. Go to Gare du Nord by metro. Walk around to the back of the station and look for the stand for Bus 42. It is the beginning of the route so you will certainly have your choice of seats. Every bus has an electronic, highly visible signboard telling you what the next stop will be. Get off at Champs de Mars. Lo! there is the Eiffel Tower!! Visit it if you wish. Then cross over to the other side of the Champs from where you got off the No. 42 and look for the stand for the No. 69. It is the start of the route for the 69 so you will again have no problem choosing a good seat with a view. Take the 69 to the end of the line and if you have some energy do a walk-about in the Pere Lachaise cemetery. Have a nice time.

thanks so much to all of you for your great suggestions.
we plan to be in Paris for six days and so do hope to take a one day trip to Normandy and just trying to find the most hassel free way to go. Any suggestions of tour companys that take small groups?

Of course no one can stop every 20 minutes; it's just one option to break up walking. And something I didn't do enough of because I was rushing around.

The Louvre and the Orsay have free wheelchairs for people with mobility problems. You just need to leave photo i.d. (driver's license). They also have folding chairs. I don't know when the Orsay isn't crowded, but the Louvre is open late on Wednesdays and Fridays and usually pretty empty then. Have you considered buying a folding chair to take with you? Most walking tours don't really walk much more than a mile. They mostly stand in place while the guide talks. With a folding chair, that should be manageable. Learn the bus routes and use them. The metro often includes a lot of walking.

You might consider taking a river tour. They have boats with dinner cruises or just top deck seating. The evening tour is especially nice. I took the dinner cruise during the evening. Yes, it's a little pricey, but it's Paris and I had a very enjoyable time. We booked through the hotel and a van picked us up and dropped us off. Paris from the river, lit up at night, was real bell ringer for what I flew over there to see.

Just returned from Paris and Normandy with my 80 yr old energetic dad who has some arthritis in legs. Second the suggestion to avoid the Metro - stairs and long distances. Cabs were more affordable than we thought. St Chappelle and the Concierge required a lot of stairs and walking- stairs being the main problem in St Chapelle- but I had not researched whether there is and elevator or second entrance. There is an elevator in the Arc de Trimuophe but then you have 45 steps to get to the outside. Dad took a folding seat with him- it was designed for golfers - looks like a cane and then has a small seat - He was very glad he did - used it every where and got a lot of envious looks. Also - a very kind security guard moved him and my aunt to the head of the security line at Versailles . Don't know how your husband feels about requesting accomodations like that - we have no qualms about it esp since my son has ADD=PDD and we have had line passes at Disney etc to enable us to go. I would also recommend staying overnight in Bayeaux, Normandy. We used LinkParis which arranged train to Caen, a tour of museum and beaches and then an overnight stay in Bayeaux. Others on the tour returned to Paris the same evening- very late return after a long day. I would recommend planning an overnight stay in Bayeaux- charming town , manageable walking with a hop-on trolley , Dads favorite DDAY museum and then using one of the tour operators others suggested . While our tour was excellent - I think a more private tour would allow more time at the stops. Dad was a little rushed as 20 minutes at a site would take him 5 minutes to get to etc. Also- please be aware that many of the smaller hotels don't have elevators so our first floor room was up one flight of stairs.
It will be a wonderful trip - ours was!

one of you kind and helpful responders suggested ddayhistorian for a tour to Normandy. I have tried multiple times to email this person and my emails won't go thru and I wonder if anyone else has had some success or a suggestion reaching Paul who runs these tours. thanks

We tried the hop on/off buses in Paris; I don't remember a lot other than the surly driver (it didn't seem as pleasurable as the London bus). Just expect to be sit in traffic in the late afternoon if you take a bus (but what else can you do ... you have to get from Point A to Point B, and it looked as though all traffic was at a standstill). We did have a nice time watching people picnicking in the park in the evening with wine and baguettes then sitting on a curb near the Eiffel Tower. Although our days and trips were very limited, what little we did see showed a beautiful and peaceful park system.