First timers to Paris usually choose the convenience and utility of a city tour by Bus/ minibus. A bus tour will be less expensive than a mini bus tour but the latter is apt to be more comfortable and can navigate the deadly Parisian traffic quickly. Also a minibus allows a smaller group inside so if you are averse to a larger group then it’s a good choice.
Bus tours are more generic and they focus on showing the main attractions of Paris in a frill-free way. Mini bus tours are speciality oriented; they usually have a lunch/ cruise/ guided tour to a particular attraction factored in. Think about the kind of tour experience you want to have in Paris and then choose the tour type and operator. Many tourists also find it pleasant to do a city bus tour first and then a speciality tour that includes cruise and lunch on the second day to experience both worlds.
You can find great bus and van tours of Paris and book online through this Viator site.
Paris City Vision City Bus Tours
This company has been running since 1929 which makes it one of the oldest city tour providers in Paris. In terms of variety too, the City Vision tours have numerous excursions; you can simply select the offering which appeals to you the most. Paris City Vision is the local partner of Grayline tours and their buses are super comfortable.
Express City Day Tour
In case you are pressed for time and want to see the whole of Paris in the least possible amount of time then the Paris Express City Tour is the best option. The bus lets guests view most Parisian important monuments like Champs Elysees, Arc Triomphe, Notre Dame Cathedral, Luxembourg gardens and Les Invalides and rides across the iconic plazas and squares like Place Opera, Place Concorde, Bastille Square and Place Trocadero.
The bus explores landmark bridges like pont neuf and elite neighbourhoods like Saint Germain des pres…there is a special photo stop in front of the Eiffel tower. Audio commentary with earphones is available in 10 languages including French, English, Spanish, Italian, German, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, and Korean.
A child friendly commentary is delivered in Spanish, French and English by Lulu and Maurice; 2 animated dogs who tell stories and anecdotes about popular figures like Mary Antoinette and Napoleon.
Paris by Night Tours
It’s possible to see a lot more sights in far lesser time when you take a night tour in the absence of the deadly traffic of Paris. Bridges and monuments are beautifully lit up and the City of Lights is at its illuminated best. If Parisian nightlife intrigues you then a Paris by night city tour with an option of dinner and show at Moulin Rouge package or Lido de Paris show is also available.
Many Paris City Vision night tours partner with Bateaux Parisiens for a cruise plus dinner plus night city tour offering or a night city tour plus champagne cruise offering.
All other facilities like audio commentary (but not child friendly versions) are available on night tours. The basic offering here is a standard 2 hour night tour where most of the best Parisian sights are pointed out.
Route
The standard Express city tour begins and ends at the Paris City Vision Agency on 2 rue des Pyramides. The usual route is as follows though sometimes there are changes due to traffic conditions.
Place Vendôme Square – Opera House – Louvre Museum – Notre Dame Cathedral – Pantheon – Luxembourg Palace and Gardens – Orsay Museum – Place de la Concorde Square – Champs-Elysées – Arc de Triomphe Paris – Eiffel Tower – Invalides.
The standard Night Tour route is as follows:
Vendome Square, Opera Square, Comedie française, Louvre Museum, Institute de France, Pont neuf, Hotel des Monnaies, Saint Germain des Prés, Notre Dame Cathedral, Chatelet, Conciergerie, Hotel de Ville, Rivoli Street, Concorde Square, Petit and Grand Palais, Champs Elysees Avenue, Arc of Triumph, Trocadero Square, Eiffel Tower, Invalides, Madeleine Church.
The tour ends at Opera or the Chatelet stop besides the City Vision Agency on rue des Pyramides.
Timings
The 1 hour 45 minute standard express tours are conducted several times in a day but the timings keep on changing according to demand, weather etc. The most consistent slots are 9 a.m., 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 3 p.m.
The Night tour is 1 hour 45 minutes long and starts at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. usually.
Indicative prices
11 euros per adult for the express city tour and 18 euros onwards for the City tour plus Seine Cruise, 23 euros for the night tour and 150 euros upwards for the Moulin rouge/ Lido show experiences along with the tour.
Ticketing
Paris City Vision, 2 rue des Pyramides
Toll free phone: 000-0800-100-6999; Booking Website
Hop On Hop Off Bus Tours
This is a great and popular option if you want to see Paris and its major attractions in a day or two and at your own pace. The buses have fixed routes through various attractions in and around the city. You can hop off and then hop on at any stop at your will, take your time to visit the attractions around and hop into the next bus. There are 1-day, 2-day and 3-day passes available. Several of these buses have open tops so that you can see the city sights as the bus moves and take pictures. Audio commentary is also available in several languages.
Check out the best known hop on hop off bus tour providers of Paris and their offerings.
History Bus Tour
The HistoryBus has a unique offering when it comes to City Tours with its multimedia enriched almost cinematic experience. A screen on the bus plays the story of each monument through video clips, narrations and multi-media creations and the monument visits are timed to coincide with the end of each screening. A private guide answers unlimited questions and keeps up the enthusiasm with photo shoots, lights, competitions and history quizzes.
The history buses are unique to look at; the only vehicles in Paris fully covered in turf. Also there is a lot of nice imagery and comfy chairs inside so if aesthetics is what you are looking for then this is a good choice. All buses have free wi-fi and karaoke facilities inside.
The standard History Bus tour runs from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. every day and follows a fixed route. Guests cannot begin/ end the tour from any point apart from the designated spot at Place Concorde. There are many value added offerings of History bus including a skip the line tour of Versailles Palace, priority access and guided tour of Eiffel tower and a history bus tour combined with a river cruise.
Timings
Buses run from 9.30 am to 6 pm daily. The Standard whole Paris history bus is 2 hours.
Indicative price
26 euros per adult and 12 euros onwards per child for the regular tour. Booking online may fetch hefty discounts.
Route
The history bus follows a number of stops across Paris including Place de la Concorde, Eglise de la Madeleine, Opera Garnier, Place Vendome, Palais Royal, Louvre museum, Arc de Triomphe, Jardin Tuileries, Notre Dame, Place Saint Michel, Monnaie de Paris Museum, Pont des Arts, Orsay Museum, National Assembly, Arc de Triomphe, Place du Trocadero, Eiffel Tower, Hotel des Invalides, Pont Alexandre III, Petit Palais and Grand Palais.
The tour departs and arrives at a designated point at Place de la Concorde near Tuileries garden gate at 2.00 p.m. every day.
Ticketing
Tickets can also be bought from the bus drivers and from the reception desks of most hotels in Paris. If you buy tickets online you need to take out a prin of the voucher and then exchange it with an actual ticket in the bus.
Meeting Point
Place de la Concorde – 75008 PARIS
Lines 1, 8 & 12 – Concorde Station
Office
96 boulevard des Batignolles, 75017 – PARIS
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +33 (0)1 85 08 39 39; Booking Website
Minibus City Tour by Paris Trip
The Paris Trip company is a local one; it has been operating in the city since 1997 and has no branches anywhere else. They specialise in Paris and greater Paris-Versailles-Normandy-Giverny day trips, sightseeing city tours and multi-day tours.
If you want effective utilisation of a whole day and don’t want to share your sightseeing trip with a whole lot of people and yet want to adhere to a limited budget then a whole day trip on a minibus by Paris Trip works well… The tour includes the best sights and has the best of many worlds; you get to travel in an air conditioned minibus which can seat 18 people and has super comfortable seats and huge windows offering maximum views. Navigating traffic is quicker with a minibus so you get to see a lot more in less time. The Paris Trip minibus cannot be missed… it’s a cute shiny red with ‘Panoramic’ lettered across it.
There is a live guide on the minibus for all tours who speaks Spanish, English, French, Portuguese and Russian. Pick up and drop from all Paris hotels is provided. The group size is less than 18 so all questions are likely to get answered and the experience is personalised.
Their city tour based offering is the Panoramic Paris Sightseeing Tour that covers most important Parisian sights in about 2 hours. Guests can only get down at the Notre Dame for a brief stop and at the Eiffel for a photo shoot but most other sights like opera Garnier, Les Invalides etc. are just pointed out.
The Paris City tour, Eiffel tower lunch and a guided skip the line Versailles tour might tempt you if you want a more extensive experience. This 8 hour tour includes lunch at 58 Tour Eiffel restaurant and entry fee at Eiffel and Versailles (plus a palace and garden guided tour) along with a live multilingual guide for the whole journey plus hotel pick and drop.
Other variations are Paris City Tour, lunch at Eiffel Tower and skip the line Louvre tour/ Paris city tour with 1 hour champagne cruise on the Seine.
Timings
The 2.5 hour Panoramic tour happens thrice in a day; 9.15 a.m., 1.15 a.m. and 4.15 a.m. The 8.5 hour Paris minibus plus Eiffel lunch plus Versailles tour starts off at 9.15 a.m. every day and so does the Louvre tour. Timings are subject to change.
Indicative Price
48 euros onwards for the 2.5 hour Panoramic Paris city tour. 216 euros onwards for the city and Versailles palace tour and Eiffel lunch, and 212 euros per person for the Louvre tour plus Eiffel Lunch and city tour.
Route
2.5 Hour Panoramic Paris sightseeing tour
Eiffel tower stop and photoshoot and then a ride down Champs Elysees from Arc Triomphe to Concorde and then to Opera Garnier, Les Invalides and Notre Dame for a short stop. There is an audio guide on this tour and guests can listen to recorded narrative via headphones.
8 hour Eiffel Lunch plus Versailles priority access Tour
Place Vendome, Orsay Museum, Louvre and La Madeleine are pointed out to guests while guide provides necessary information. The mini bus stops for 5 to 10 minutes at the Notre Dame and then guests are whisked off to Eiffel with skip the line entrance and then 58 Tour Eiffel (restaurant on first floor of Eiffel Tower) for lunch. Post lunch minibus drives to Versailles Palace and Gardens for a complete guided tour.
Guests have to assemble at 41 Avenue De La Bourdonnais (closest metro stop Ecole Militaire Line 8) for all tours.
Ticketing
The best option is to book online; there is a good discount almost always. Print out the voucher and show a signed copy to the service provider at the beginning of the trip.
Information centre
41, avenue de la Bourdonnais 75007, Paris
Phone: +33 1 86 21 96 91; Booking Website
Minibus Tours by GrayLine
Grayline is a globally recognised tour and travels company that has been operating Batobus hop on hop off tours in Paris since ages. For city bus tours and minibus tours their partner is Paris City Vision. Their Grayline luxury minibus tours are a newer offering and much higher priced. The luxury of travelling in a comfy air conditioned vehicle in a smaller group with a trained guide on board plus priority access to important monuments and meals at landmark locations are some things you can expect out of Grayline Mini bus tours.
All tours include hotel transfers to central Paris (hotels bearing pin code 75000) and the services of a multilingual tour guide. Some tours have an audio narration in French, English, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Chinese…with earphones.
The Grayline luxury minibus tours are meant for groups of 8 or lesser people and can be privately booked at will. They offer customised schedules for private bookings and some thoughtfully selected tour plans that let guests view the city of lights from various perspectives. None of these are short tours though; if you are in a hurry and want a 2 hour sightseeing trip then this isn’t the right service provider.
The shortest minibus tour is the 3.3 hour basic Paris tour that takes guests through Notre dame, Eiffel and Montmartre and includes only the services of a driver guide.
The Paris Essentials Tour plus cruise is a 5 hour program that includes skip the Elevator tickets to 2nd floor Eiffel tower or Montparnasse tower 56th floor. An hour long Seine river cruise and city tour of famous monuments like Notre Dame, Pantheon, Bastille, Orsay museum etc. in luxury minibus are other inclusions.
Another variation is the 5 hour Paris essentials tour plus lunch at Eiffel where the city tour is followed by lunch at 58 Tour Eiffel restaurant.
The Paris City Tour plus Lunch plus Seine Cruise is an 8 hour program that includes a guided tour of Montmartre with Artists Square and Sacre Coeur part of the tour besides lunch at 58 Tour Eiffel. Tickets, pre-set lunch prices, guide services, pick up and drop etc. are all covered in the tour price.
Other variations include a Paris city tour plus lunch plus guided tour of Versailles/ Louvre etc.
The inclusive lunch at 58 Tour Eiffel is 3 course and you can get the menu on the Paris City Vision website. There is even a child friendly option for kids plus limited number of drinks/ beverages.
Tours that include cruises partner with Bateaux Parisiens so you can expect a glass encased good quality double decker boat with audio guide.
Timings
The Paris basic Eiffel Notre Dame Montmartre tour is 3.3 hours long and is offered at 8.15 a.m. and 1.15 p.m. everyday.
The Paris city tour plus lunch and cruise begins at 8.15 a.m. every day and ends around 4.30 p.m. The Paris essentials tour (cruise) begins at 1.15 p.m. every day and ends at 6.15 p.m. while the Paris essentials (lunch) tour begins at 10 a.m. and ends at 3.30 p.m.
Indicative Prices
69 euros per person for Eiffel, Notre Dame Montmartre tour. 133 euros per adult for the Paris essentials tour plus cruise and 126 euros per adult for Paris essentials tour plus lunch. 212 euros per adult for the Paris city tour, cruise and Eiffel lunch.
Route
Paris Eiffel Notre Dame Montmartre basic tour
Place de la Concorde, Palais Garnier, Louvre, Quays and bridges of Seine, French academy, Ile de la Cite are some of the sights pointed out before the minibus stops at Notre Dame for a 20 minute break. The hotel de Ville, Latin quarter, Pantheon, Champs Elysees with Arc de Triomphe are the next sights before the bus stops at Place Trocadero for a 15 minute break…. guests can admire the Eiffel from here. The minibus continues to Les Invalides and then stops at Montmartre where there is 30 minutes of free time to check out Artists Square and Sacre Coeur.
Paris Essentials Tour with Lunch
Montmartre tour with Sacre Coeur and Place du Tertre. A stop at the Eiffel with lunch followed by sightseeing of Louvre, Notre Dame, Opera, Vendome, Bastille, Pantheon, Luxembourg palace, Orsay museum, arc Triomphe, Les Invalides.
Paris City Tour plus Seine Cruise plus Lunch at Eiffel (8 hours)
Notre Dame Cathedral (20 minutes) is the first stop and guests will have some time to click photos. Other attractions are Marais District, Louvre, Opera Garnier, Vendome Square, Concorde Square, Arc Triomphe, Champs Elysees and Les Invalides. Lunch at 58 tour Eiffel is next and guests can explore Eiffel. Post this there is 1 hour Seine cruise and then a tour (half an hour) through Montmartre and its quaint shops and cafes along with Sacre Coeur and the Place du Tette/ artists square.
Ticketing
It’s always advisable to book online from the original website. You will get a voucher on receipt of payment and that has the name and number of a local company representative whom you can contact in case of any issues. Print out the voucher and exchange it for a ticket at the beginning of the tour.
Paris City Vision (Local partner)
2 rue des Pyramides
Phone: +33-14-455-6100; Toll free Phone: +1-800-472-9546
Email: [email protected]; Booking Website
A travel addict. Still celebrating the day when he quit his high-profile corporate job to pursue his passion for travel writing.