Let us tell you about our trip!
We're Jess and Bill, and this is our Rick Steves tour scrapbook! In April 2022, we took the seven-day Rick Steves' Best of Paris tour. These pages and photos tell the story of our Parisian adventure, as well as a few side trips we took on our own. This was our first trip to continental Europe, and we learned a lot on the tour! We included a ton of travel tips, so you can relax and have as much fun as we did. Browse through each individual day of the trip using the menu above. Below, you can find a map of our trip, some more about who we are, and a few highlights.
Nice to Meet You!
Six Reasons We Love Traveling With Rick Steves
“We learned a lot on the tour! We included a ton of tips, so you can relax and have as much fun as we did.”
We chose Rick Steves because we love how easy and relaxed it is, and because we had so many authentic cultural experiences the last time we took a Rick Steves trip. Back in 2017, we went on an incredible tour, traveling around the UK for two weeks on Rick Steves' Best of England & Wales tour. We had an amazing time, exploring cozy villages, and enjoying the beautiful city of Bath.
1. You’re Always With Friends
Everyone in the group gets to know each other, new friendships form, and there’s always someone who is up for a meal.
The guides make an effort to get to know people on the tour, and are always fun and knowledgeable!
2. You Skip The Lines
All your museum tickets are booked in advance, and you enter with a guide so there’s no waiting
in the long queues that are often part of popular destinations.
3. Transportation Is Covered
The group often takes the bus or train together so you don’t need to worry about how to
get around. And our guide Marie taught us how to use the train on our own, so we could navigate successfully on our
free time and future trips.
4. Locals Share Tips and Culture
Our tour guide and museum guides were all locals, so we got insider tips on what
foods to try, what times to go to popular attractions, the history of the neighborhoods, etc.
5. You Try New Things
Rick Steve’s encourages “no grumps” so everyone has the attitude of being open-minded. This
helps the group get a lot done in a day, and we all got to try lots of new foods and experiences.
6. Each Trip is Unique
Each tour is different based on the season, events, availability, etc. The guides always have a
plan B and C! It didn’t happen often, but even when weather or unexpected closures changed the plan, we always
did something interesting anyway.
Map of Our Paris Adventures
Our Trip Highlights
Our Hotel
Every tour is different, but on ours, we stayed at Hotel Londres Eiffel, a stylish boutique hotel in the 7th Arrondissement (district) of Paris, just blocks from the Eiffel Tower and Rue Cler, a beautiful shopping street full of tasty food and flowers. The staff were super helpful: Arnaud at the front desk recommended restaurants and helped us book taxis. The tour group hung out in the breakfast room every morning and we even enjoyed drinks together in the lobby lounge one evening. We also had the pleasure of a rare visit from Samba, the hotel owner’s Golden Retriever (seen above!).
Ready to find out what came next? Follow along as we explore Paris and the area around it!