Note that I have yet to go to Paris; I am going in the spring of 2013. If you would like to measure this book's worth based on a review from someone who has been before, then skip this one. However, I think there is something valid to be said for a Paris newbie trying to navigate unknown territory through a guidebook.
I originally thought that first order of business was finding a hotel. However, I realized later, after learning more about Paris, that I wanted location to be my primary factor, as my husband and I are budget-minded, for time as well as money. Next order of business was determining what part of Paris I wanted to stay.
After reading this guide, (and other literature, too), I winnowed it down to the Marais and The Latin Quarter. Finally, after reading more, I determined that The Latin Quarter was for us, and found a budget but high-rated hotel. I like the concise but well-considered detailed comments in every hotel description. For the hotel I chose, I read that there was a big difference between the renovated and non-renovated rooms. So, when I emailed them, I was able to be specific. I began every email with "Bonjour" and used a few French words sprinkled throughout, mostly the pleasantries that Fodor's recommends. The host country appreciates a few pleasantries in their language! Wouldn't we, too?
A few choice words go a long way, Fodor's book states. Fodor's is all about etiquette and intelligent travel, a balance between culture engagement and seeing those tourist attractions you have always wanted to see.
By the way, although this guidebook didn't specifically state, it is better to email or call the hotel directly. Don't make reservations through third parties such as Venere, Obitz, etc. I do look at Trip Advisor reviews, but I book with the hotel itself. For one thing, third party booking does not give you a better deal. They make you pay in advance, with no possibility of cancellation or change. And just try to call and talk to someone after you've booked third party--you will be on hold and listening to prompts ad nauseum. You can get just as good of a deal--and much better service!-- with the hotel itself for advance pay stays--most of them offer it. But, I was making reservations 6-9 months in advance, and wanted the option of changing my mind if another, better hotel revealed itself. Anyway, emailing the hotels directly made me feel much more in control of the outcome. Fodor's guide gives you the website and phone numbers of the hotels they recommend. They also place a star or write "Best Bets" for the highly recommended.
Fodor's breaks down Paris, for the sake of doable tourism (and what is naturally present), into geographical areas within the 20 arrondisements. Any guide book for Paris is going to be detailed and dense, even overwhelming, because you know you can't possibly go everywhere unless you are going to live there for a vast amount of time. The pictures are lovely, the pages high quality, and it was easier than some of the other guidebooks to navigate. They also include some decent maps to help get you started. Moreover, the metro/RER info is in here, as well as some limited info on buses and high-speed trains (not as detailed as Rick Steve's guide, but you are informed about how to get schedules).
I check-marked many of the Best Bets/starred attractions that compelled me, such as Île de la Cité, home of the beautiful stained glass church, La Saint-Chapelle (especially if you come at sunset or a bright sunny day), and the Notre Dame. Fodor's photos of these places are beautiful. Information on when it is open and closed, and whether a Museum Pass works, is always stated on church/museums descriptions.
Other places that are a must for me are Père Lachaise Cemetery, the Catacombs, the Caranavalet Museum (Paris' History museum), the writers tour through the Latin Quarter--including Shakespeare and Co book store!--and a Marais stroll. And the cobbled streets of Montmartre. I want to turn into a flâneur for the Paris trip, and walk everywhere and combine spontaneity with itinerary. I may skip the expensive (stores) and crowded Champs-Élysées, other than to stroll to the Arc de Triomphe.
The meat of this book is fantastic. All the recommended places are emboldened, and many have a page or two or three of their own, describing the place, or eatery, or museum, etc. You can cross reference with the index. Again, the book is separated into areas: The Islands, Around the Eiffel Tower, The Champs-Élysées, Louvre area (Rive Droite or Right Bank), Les Grandes Boulevards, Montemarte, The Marais, Eastern Paris, The Latin Quarter (Rive Gauche or Left Bank), Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Montparnasse, and Western Paris.
Fodor's highly recommends getting a Museum Pass, if not to save money, then to avoid the long lines getting in. The Eiffel doesn't accept the pass, but you can actually make a reservation and avoid the wait. Dusk or early morning has fewer people, and early morning is actually recommended for many of the museums (or after 5, on the days they stay open late). The Louvre, as well as many other museums, is closed on Tuesday. If you want to take a day trip to Versailles, don't go on Tuesdays, as it is more crowded then. And don't go to Versailles on Mondays, as it is closed. Musée d'Orsay is also closed on Mondays. Speaking of--the d'Orsay isn't so humongous as the Louvre, and it is in a charming old converted train station. It is filled with Impressionist art. Fodor's also shows you where the Impressionist art is in the Louvre, if that is your thing.
There is art everywhere you walk or drive. There's a taxi tour, if you'd like to get an overview, or the Batobus, where you get on and off the river bus on specific spots, and several 1-2 hour boat tours on the Seine, or the Canal St Martin. Fodor's lists walking, bus, river, and taxi tours, as well as bike tours, from the budget-minded to the fancy. There's quite a comprehensive list.
As far as eateries, there are plenty in here. Fodor's does warn about the expensive and often mediocre food in the touristy areas of the Latin Quarter. Paris, although brimming with delicious food, is also spilling over with mediocre fare, too. Unlike Rome, where it is hard to get a bad meal, you have to be careful in Paris. Fodor's helps you through the maze. Something I read in Rick Steve's that stuck with me: If a restaurant has a menu posted in seven languages, avoid it! And it is expensive to eat in Paris. Ne way around it is to go to a boulangerie (for bread) and buy a bottle of wine at a grocer's or little shop, and sit at the park, like the lovely Luxembourg Gardens, and eat while you people-watch, and maybe grab a puppet-show there if you come on the right days.
I definitely plan to cross the Pont Saint-Louis bridge to Île Saint-Louis, walk around the quays and maybe even watch the sunset there (a suggestion from a book I read by flâneur David Downie, called Paris, Paris, who said watching the sunset here is heaven). And, get an ice-cream cone at the delicious Berthillon.
Fodor's gives price tags--$ to $$$$$, on hotels, eateries, shops, even transportation and phone calls, so this book is helpful whatever your budget.
Besides the major chapters on sights, I was also impressed with the many details that are helpful to a tourist. For instance--and this is important--purchases. You are charged a VAT tax of about 19.5%, so if you buy a scarf for 100 euros, add 20%. However, if you spend roughly 185 euros in the same shop, you are eligible for a VAT refund. Fodor's goes into detailed explanation on how to do this. The important thing I learned is that, if possible, when buying souvenirs, try to find a shop that you can ring up that amount, if you are planning on spending several hundred, anyway. Tips like that are wonderful. You are also given numbers for emergency medical help, what to do if credit cards or passport is stolen (but always keep copies of your passport in each piece of luggage!)
Want to know where the bathrooms are? Fodor's gives us the website of The Bathroom Diaries--well, actually, that is one of their errors. They gave the wrong website, but I was able to find the right one by googling "Bathroom Diaries." The other very small error I found was re Hotel des Bains in Montparnasse. Fodor's states there is no online booking, but there is, actually. It was one of the hotels I almost booked.
This review is getting long, but I can't help it! There is so much I want to share already, just from reading this book. At times, I get what I call a giggle-shudder, when I feel transported to Paris, just from imagining the places that Fodor's talks about and frequently photographs. I am trying to reconcile myself to the fact that I can't see everything. I don't have time to spend two weeks or even two full days at the Louvre, not if I want to explore widely. So I am bookmarking some specific art pieces that Fodor's recommends. Truly, I don't even care about the Mona Lisa, where the crowds are apt to be insane. There is so much art there, I may just walk aimlessly and gaze and stand in front of these great pieces that are everywhere, including the Garden, located between the Louvre and the Place de la Concorde.
So many beautiful gardens in Paris! Cafes; bars; patisseries; chocolate shops; windy, cobbled streets; momentous views; lavish opera houses; funky, offbeat museums; clothing stores, including vintage and resale. I plan to take this book with me, as a guide through the exhilarating but sometimes overwhelming City of Lights. I plan on making Paris a place we return to, again and again.
Other books I recommend that I have been reading:
Paris
Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light
Rick Steves' Paris 2013 or Rick Steves' Paris 2012