L'open tour bus

Please anybody advised/experiences on the L%26#39;Open tour buses.I%26#39;m thinking to take the tour first without getting off the bus and then decide where to get off.Also read that Cityrama has another on/off tour bus but no as good.

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We purchased a two day pass for the L%26#39;Open bus tours last August. It was totally worth it to us. The Open bus tours are better then the other one( the red buses, can%26#39;t remember their name) as they have 4 routes and way more stops.

We would sometimes just ride part of a route for a rest from walking, while still enjoying the scenery, we sat up top in the open, so it was wonderful, not being behind glass. We purchased snacks at stores and ate on the bus while touring around. We got on and off a million times. I would definately recommend it for a first time visitor, a more experienced traveller might complain that only the top sights are seen( not a problem for someone who has never been to Paris before) and the taped tour guide just touches on the basic sights. As I said, we did enjoy it, it is easy to use, and we never minded waiting for the bus,it was fun to change routes and go anywhere and not worry about being lost. Just look for their special bus stop and hop on, you can pay anywhere. It cost up only a couple of euros more to get a two day pass, which I also recommend as there is too much to see on their routes on a one day pass.

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Cityrama is a partner with Paris city in l%26#39;Open tour hop on hop off tour - as Joan said, you are probably thinking of Les Cars Rouges ( http://www.carsrouges.com )that has a single circuit that takes about 2 hours and basically only covers what is on Tour No 1 (of 4) of l%26#39;Open Tour ( http://www.paris-opentour.com/en/open.htm ) At 25 Euros for one day and 28 Euros for 2 days, Joan is right in saying you should buy a 2 day ticket for l%26#39;Open Tour Cars Rouges is about 22 Euros for one day)

There are 4 separate circuits and there is some overlap of bus stops but you would have to change circuits to see the lot and that could take some coordination on a single day.

1. PARIS GRAND TOUR - 2 hours - central and west

2. BASTILLE BERCY - 1 hour - central and east

3. MONTMARTRE - GRANDS BOULEVARDS - 1 hour - north

4. MONTPARNASSE - ST GERMAIN - 1 hour - South

If you want to stay on the bus for each loop before dipping deeper, you could on the first day link the Grand Tour (No 1) with Montmartre (No 3) one day starting at Place de la Madeleine at the Madeleine Church and switching to No 3 when you get back there. However, for an overview, I would at least get out and look at the views from the Arc de Triomphe %26amp; Eiffel Tower on Tour 1 and at Sacre Coeur in Montmartre in Tour 3, so you get an overview of the city. That would be a minimum of 4 hours plus 3 stops of minimum 30 minutes.

Alternatively, if it was mid to late afternoon when you reached Place de la Madeleine at the end of Tour 3 (last round trip leaves there at about 5pm, so don%26#39;t cut it too fine) you could stay on the bus and go back to Montmartre. Instead of getting off earlier, you could make that your view stop at Sacre Coeur, to watch the sunset and have dinner in Montmartre before catching the metro back to your hotel.

The second day you could do Tour No 2 and No 4 (possibly stopping to see the view from Montparnasse tower). Start with Tour No 4 starting at 4 rue du Petit Pont at St Severin Church in the Latin Quarter and switching to No 2 when you get back there and leaving No 2 at Notre Dame, the second last stop - that would only be 2 hours plus stops and you could join Tour No 1 at Notre Dame and go and explore particular sights that interested you.

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Here is a strong vote for l%26#39;Open tour bus, a great introduction to the city, an enhancement to any guidebook you have -- e.g., you see what the practical distances are, the elevation of Montmartre etc. It%26#39;s also nice to be able to choose your language via the headphones. If you%26#39;re using the tour as an introduction, it also can work as a gentle one for brushing up on your français.

One caution: From at least November to March, it can be pretty chilly up top, and the view from inside (down below) isn%26#39;t great. But it all depends on what you wear...

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Excellant point Firewind, about the time of year one goes. The Open top buses are great if the weather is good, but , in winter one would have to sit inside, which is not as fun at all!

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I was going to purchase a 2 or 3 day Paris Visite Metro pass, but if I decide to purchase a L%26#39;openTour pass;

1. Would purchasing a Metro pass be a waste?

2. Do we still need to buy a Museum and Monument pass? (i.e. Does L%26#39;openTour include admission to museums and monuments?)

I was going to use the Metro to go to all the museums and monuments anyways!

The question sprung up after reading this thread.

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I plan to buy a weekly bus pass and take the bus #69 sightseeing tour. How does this compare with the L%26#39;open tour bus?

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Only know about l%26#39;Open Tour, and CityRama for tours out of town. I don%26#39;t think it%26#39;s been mentioned thet the CityRama Tours also bear the logo of Greyline, for those who are interested.

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I was planning to do this for my one day in Paris. Basically just want to see the main sites - and wont have time to go in any museums. What time does the bus start %26amp; Finish each day? Could I see a lot of sights in a day?

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Eliu36

The open tour only provides access to the bus tours and there is no right to enter museums etc. If you are travelling by metro, forget the open tour

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Thanks Faux!

So either way, we%26#39;d have to buy a museum pass right?

In that case, if one wanted admission to museums, one has to decide either

1. purchase L%26#39;open Tour pass (28euros) + Monuments and Museum pass (36euros)

OR

2. a Paris Visite Metro Pass (18,25euros) + Monuments and Museum pass (36euros).

Well, I figure L%26#39;open Tour pass is guided, so one should expect to pay more. And a Metro pass is more flexible. But as someone in this thread said, the tour a great intro to Paris.

It would be our first time in Paris, 3 nights, Sun-Wed.

Any opinions on what%26#39;s better, or more convenient/flexible/bang for your buck?