A “To Do” List To Get To Paris: Part II of III

In Part I of “A ‘To Do’ List to Get To Paris,” you:

1. Determined your bottom line for your trip.

2. Determined when you want to go — during the busy season vs. slow season.

3. Applied for your passport.

4. Determined whether you want to live like royalty or like a commoner while travelling.

5. Investigated airfare prices for one or two airlines and read the fine print of each airline’s website regarding luggage allowance and their rules of carriage (your rights as a traveler).

6. Determined whether you need travel insurance.

PART II

   7.  Buy Rick Steves’ Paris 2015 guide book, or another guide book if you prefer. I personally think Rick offers the best travel advice for first-time and experienced travelers alike – and he’s not paying me to say that. (He does not even know I exist.)

I realize in our digital age many people want to travel without being encumbered by travel books. “A smartphone is so much easier to carry, and I can schedule everything using it,” you say. But what if your phone was stolen? Or you cannot seem to get internet service in Paris (or wherever) – what then? You think that cannot happen in our global, digitized world? It happened to me. Before I left for my trip, T-Mobile told me I would be able to get WiFi service anywhere in France and that I wouldn’t be charged roaming fees. They said that even though they don’t have cell towers all over France, they have partnerships with French companies that do. In places where T-Mobile doesn’t have cell towers, the French partners would provide service; this is why I was supposed to turn on “roaming.” What T-Mobile failed to tell me was that I would need a User Name and Password to access the French partners. As a result, I hardly ever had internet access on my phone outside of my hostel, which provided its own service, was password protected, and free.

  8. Determine where you want to stay (your lodging). I looked through Rick Steves’ Paris 2014 Guide Book in the “Sleeping in Paris” section to see where I wanted to stay. I had already stayed in the 7^th arrondissement, and in an unknown arrondissement 39 years ago, and wanted to discover another part of Paris. The description of Montmartre (18^th arrondissement) intrigued me since it is a village, and sounded like it had its own personality. From there, I narrowed down my lodging choices to six possibilities – three hotels, two hostels, and renting an apartment. (I looked at Hotel Pavillon, Hotel Andre Gill, My Hotel in France Montmartre, The Vintage Hostel & Budget Hotel, Plug-Inn Hostel, and Cobblestone Paris Rentals (apartments)). I decided on Plug-Inn Boutique Hostel because it is easily accessible to Metro (it’s actually between two stops, each close by) and cafes and shops, has a full bathroom in each room, a kitchenette so I could make some of own meals, they provide free breakfast, bed linens, towel, WiFi and internet service, they have showers downstairs for when you want to take a shower while yours is occupied by a roommate, their prices were extremely reasonable, they have no lock-out period (though a chamber maid needs access to clean the room) and they have the most beautiful pictures on their website (which, I should mention, turned out to be realistic). I checked whether they had beds available for when I was looking to travel. But before I made my hostel reservation I booked my airfare. You need to make sure you can travel on your preferred dates before you book your lodging. Another possibility is to pay for 1-2 nights lodging before you see whether you can book your airline reservation during your preferred travel dates, that way you won’t be out much if you have to cancel, but are guaranteed to have someplace to stay for those nights if you can.

This is essentially what I did, though with Plug-Inn Hostel, I was able to make a reservation and pay for it once I arrived. I believe because I was so rushed I misread the reservation (what I printed out), since I mistakenly thought that the total I would be paying for two nights was for one night. When I arrived there, I first paid for the two nights I booked and then for the rest of my stay once I understood my mistake. This is why I had to change rooms several times, and my first Saturday night I had to stay elsewhere. Actually, management came to me before then and said they had a cancellation, which meant I could have stayed there. But I had the opportunity to stay in a 3-Star hotel for half price, and I decided I wanted to see what another lodging in Paris was like. (I was also looking forward to spreading out my belongings on a huge bed and maybe even…watching a little French television to see what words I could pick up. I am not normally a big television watcher, especially on holiday.)

  9. Make a list of travel gear you need to buy. At the bare minimum, most people need:

• suitcase (check your airline’s baggage regulations);

• carry-on (check your airline’s baggage regulations);

• travel blow dryer;

• at least one 220 voltage adapter for electronics;

• 3-1-1 containers for their personal care items (for your carry-on);

• first aid items you often use at home (for sore feet, or if you cut yourself shaving); and,

• locks for your baggage.

See future posts “Selecting Your Best Wardrobe & Travel Gear (For Women)” and “Selecting Your Best Travel Gear (For Men),” coming soon.

  10. Strategize your food spending plan. Rick Steves says in his Paris 2015 Guide Book that you should be able to eat comfortably for $85 per day per person, or for $40 per day if you’re a student or tightwad; in his Paris 2014 guide book, those figures were $80 and $40, respectively. My daily average for food was $55 per day, even with a free breakfast at the hostel. On days I knew I would be eating dinner in a restaurant, I skimped on lunch, often with a sandwich (or two) I made at the hostel using a baguette or croissant I got as part of my breakfast (both were provided daily) and produce I purchased at markets. I was amazed at how much produce I could buy for so few euros. (Though markets closer to my hostel were much pricier: I paid $8.00 for a pint of cherries because the larger market didn’t have them.) If you stay at a hostel with a kitchen and food shop at markets for even part of your meals, your savings can add up. Look through your guide book for meal ideas. Remember, in Paris there are 1,773 hotels and 12,938 restaurants (that are reviewed by TripAdvisor). If a restaurant looks too pricey from its menu posted outside, just keep walking.

  11. Using your guide book, make a list of the top activities you want to do while in Paris, being mindful of which arrondissement they are in. Keeping in mind I’ve been to Paris twice before, my top activities for this trip besides meeting and talking to Parisians and travelers were: 1) a nighttime dinner cruise on the Seine River, 2) Photographic Exhibit that was there while I was; 3) Eiffel Tower; 4) Arc de Triomphe (top);5) become a regular at a restaurant; 6) a guided bus tour; 7) buy a French cape (on the Champs-Elysees if possible); 8) take the “scenic bus routes” as bus tours; 9) food shop at markets (to live a bit like a Parisian); 10) Christmas market on the Champs-Elysees; 11) Musee du Petite Palais; 12 )Mass at Notre Dame; 13) Hard Rock Café; 14) eat bruschetta; 15)Shakespeare & Co.; 16) Alexandre III Bridge (seen in Midnight in Paris); 17) Pere La Chaise cemetery; 18) take a picture of Moulin Rouge (and many others!); 19) eat a crepe; 20) have a few glasses of wine; 21) drink as much cappuccino as possible.

  12. Plan your transportation costs. Many of the activities I planned were clustered together, and I often did at least two things per day when I went out. (I stayed at the hostel some days.) Using your activities list, plan your days for transportation costs. “Metro” tickets are good for bus and subway trips. Some activities, such as a trip to Versailles, will require a train trip (or car rental).

My (ground) transportation costs for a month in Paris were $160.00, which isn’t much. I walked a lot, clustered my activities together, and at times stayed at the hostel during the day. I was there to live and relax, as well as see Paris.

Rick Steves says in his 2015 guide book that you should probably plan for $65 for ground transportation costs per week per person. See my future post entitled “Maps of France, Paris, and the Metro” for more information on Metro and other ground transportation costs.

13. Notify your bank (and any credit card companies) of your travel plans and get it (the fact that you’ve notified them) in writing. Inquire as to whether you will be assessed fees for cash withdrawals and debit/credit card transactions and include these in your spending plan. Banks and credit card companies should be forewarned of your travel plans so they won’t suspect your cards have been stolen once you start using them abroad; you should also inquire about fees for using their card(s) overseas. I called Wells Fargo and gave them my travel itinerary: the countries I knew I would visit and several other possibilities (which were possible day-trips). I also asked them about fees. They said I would be assessed a 1% fee for debit card transactions and a $5 fee for all cash withdrawals. I understood what I was told. Still, once I was in France and thought about it, I was a bit surprised that even though I used ATMs in the Star Network – which Wells Fargo is part of – I was assessed fees. I thought the whole reason a bank was in a particular network meant that you wouldn’t be assessed a fee – otherwise, what’s the point of being in a network?

I paid $60+ for withdrawal and international transaction fees for use of my debit card. Fees might seem like a waste of money, but I didn’t want to have too much cash on hand at any one time, even with a locker. I’ve learned to give myself permission to do what I need to be comfortable.

Fees charged by Wells Fargo wasn’t the worst part: Even though I notified them of my travel plans, and even though I received an email from them verifying my travel itinerary, and even though this travel itinerary was clearly visible in my account documents online, Wells Fargo froze my account twice while I was in Paris. They demanded that I recount each and every transaction I had made (twice) in painstakingly slow conversations that increased my cell phone bill. While the customer service reps (Ha!) told me they could see in my account documentation that I had filed a travel itinerary with them, they COULD NOT tell me why they chose to freeze my account twice; I was even hung up on when I kept asking for the reason. I contacted Wells Fargo about this after I returned to the States: Their regional manager never followed up with me to tell me what he found out about why the bank froze my account, twice, even though I gave them a travel itinerary, and even though I emailed him a copy of my itinerary upon his request.

   14. Verify your cell phone plan includes international calling, and how much it is per minute. Consider getting a SIM card in France. I had to buy a new smartphone just before I departed for France because mine simply stopped working. I made sure I had an international plan. The employees at T-Mobile told me that customers do, from time to time, mistakenly think they have international calling as part of their plan.

Rick Steves suggests that if you are going to be travelling for an extended time, you should pick up a SIM card (with an activated phone!) in France for $5-$10 and save on calls. If it weren’t for all of my other challenges I would have done this. But too many things went wrong for me to deal with yet something else. Also, when I inquired about this at T-Mobile before I left the U.S., I understood more about it after reading the guide book than the employee I spoke to. He first tried to tell me I didn’t need a plan—my phone activated–to get a SIM card in Paris. Only when I narrowed him down and talked about what I had read in the guide book did he finally state his misinformation succinctly: he said “the plan would come with the SIM card.” “Not for five dollars, it won’t!” was my response.

15. After doing your research, develop your spending plan for your trip. In addition, it would be helpful to give yourself a 10% – 15% cushion for unexpected expenditures, such as lost or stolen items. Also, be sure to factor in cell phone calls (or calls, period). You might decide to try to make as few calls as possible and then have an emergency that keeps you on the phone for an extended time. Sometimes, the best laid plans are all for naught.

 The following is my spending plan for my month-long trip during the slow season:

Airfare:             $   850.00        Turkish Airlines

Lodging:              1,015.00*      Plug-Inn Hostel

Food:                    1,650.00

Clothes/Gear:        500.00        (Baggage, travel purse, other travel gear, clothes)

Passport:                  221.85

Transp.                     100.00*      (Cab, Metro, Bus) (I planned to walk a lot)

Attractions:                60.00*      (Attractions are free on first Sunday of the month)

Souvenirs:                200.00*      (For myself and others)

Int’l Bank Fees:          50.00*      (Withdrawal fees and int’l purchase fees)

Cell Phone & Calls    150.00*      (Bill and int’l calls: I planned few calls)

London Trip:              300.00       (Eurostar, Hotel, Underground, Food, Bus to Paris)

Emergency Fund       500.00

Spending Plan $5,596.85

 

My actual spending in categories with an asterisk* differed from my spending plan. My actual spending is listed below, with marked categories in bold and the reason(s) for the difference in parentheses.

Airfare:                 $   850.00

Lodging:             1,102.50* (+ 87.50) (Had to stay one night in a hotel)

Food:                       1,650.00

Clothes/Gear:           500.00

Passport:                     221.85

Trans.                      160.00* (+ 60.00) (Cab to hostel more; van return trip)

Attractions:             38.00*   (- 22.00) (I only paid for one)

Souvenirs:             350.00* (+150.00) (Sent gifts and replaced lost items)

Int’l Bank Fees:       61.63*    (+ 11.63) (More withdrawals than planned)

Cell & Calls              168.49*   (+ 18.49) (Wells Fargo froze my account 2x)

London Trip:               300.00       _________

Actually Spent  $5402.47  ($327.62 difference) (From Emergency Fund)

 

Emergency Fund Left  $  194.38

 

We will finish your To Do List to get to Paris next post!

 

Salut!

 

 

Image of smartphone (LG-GC900) courtesy of Flickr. Photo by Viewty Smart, taken on 3.21.09. CCBY 2.0.