Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
22,
www.edible-paris.com
,
rosa@rosajackson.com
).
Paris By Mouth
offers more casual
and frequent group tours, organized by location or flavor (€95/3 hours, includes tastings,
AbiketourisafunwaytoseeParis.Twocompanies—BikeAboutToursandFatTireBike
Tours—offer tours, sell bottled water and bike maps of Paris, and give advice on cycling
routes in the city. Their tour routes cover different areas of the city, so avid cyclists could
do both without much repetition.
Bike About Tours
Run by Christian (American) and Paul (New Zealander), this company offers easygoing
tourswithafocusontheeasternhalfofthecity.Theirfour-hourtoursrundailyyear-round
at 10:00 (also at 15:00 June-Sept). You'll meet at the statue of Charlemagne in front of
Notre-Dame, then walk to the nearby rental office to get bikes. The tour includes a good
back-street visit of the Marais, Rive Gauche outdoor sculpture park, Ile de la Cité, heart of
the Latin Quarter (with a lunch break), Louvre, Les Halles, and Pompidou Center. Group
tourshavea12-personmaximum—reserveonlinetoguaranteeaspot,orshowupandtake
your chances (€30, €5 discount with this topic, maximum 2 discounts per book, includes
helmets upon request, private tours available, see listing on
here
for contact info). They
also offer a day trip by bike to Versailles (€80, see website for details).
Fat Tire Bike Tours
A hardworking gang of young anglophone expats runs an extensive program of bike, Seg-
way, and walking tours (see Classic Walks listing, earlier). Their high-energy guides run
four-hour bike tours of Paris, by day and by night (adults-€30, kids-€28, show this topic
to get a €4 discount per person, maximum 2 discounts per book, reservations not neces-
sary—just show up). Kid-sized bikes are available, as are tandem attachments that hook
on to a parent's bike.
On the day tour, you'll pedal with a pack of 10-20 riders, mostly in parks and along
bike lanes, with a lunch stop in the Tuileries Garden (tours leave daily rain or shine at
11:00,April-Octalsoat15:00).Liveliernighttoursfollowaroutepastfloodlitmonuments
and include a boat cruise on the Seine (April-Oct daily at 19:00, less frequent in winter).
Both tours meet at the south pillar of the Eiffel Tower, where you'll get a short history les-
son, then walk six minutes to the Fat Tire office to pick up bikes (helmets available upon
to Versailles and Giverny (reservations required, see website for details). Their office has
Internet terminals with English keyboards.
