Pro tips for the best guided tours of Paris in English
Guided tours are one of the best ways to get to know an unfamiliar city. And Paris is one of the best places to take a guided tour. Between the crowds in peak season and the range of sites and landmarks to visit, it’s easy to miss out on some of the best spots. An experienced guide can help point you in the right direction.
Read on to get our pro tips on the best guided tours of Paris in English. With our advice, you’ll soon have inside knowledge of the French capital to rival Arsene Lupin, the fictional gentleman thief and master of disguise who recently starred in the Netflix series Lupin. This should help you stay one step ahead of the police and the bad guys — or in your case, out of the tourist traps and ahead of the hordes of tourists.
This blog post gives you the lowdown on:
- The sights you can visit with guided tours
- The types of guided tours you can take
- Tips on picking the right tour guide
- And things to consider before you book
What sights can you visit with guided tours?
Many tour guides specialise in a neighbourhood or monument of the French capital.
For the Eiffel Tower, here’s one highly recommended guided tour of Paris’s most famous landmark. This tour gives you guaranteed access, options to go right to the summit, and insights into the history of this architectural wonder.
If the Louvre Museum is more what you’re after, the Highlights & Mona Lisa tour with an art historian lets you skip the long wait lines and see all the best masterpieces on display. You’ll find similar guided tours like this one for Versailles Palace.
But perhaps you’re short on time and would prefer to take in multiple iconic sights of Paris in a single day? Our private boat tours provide live guided commentary in English. They allow you to see a different side of the Eiffel Tower and Louvre Museum as well as Notre-Dame Cathedral, Orsay Museum, and many more sights. All in 1 go, and all with your feet up.
For more about our guided boat tours, just follow the button.
Types of guided tour in Paris
Consider the type of tour you want. Are you looking for a free guided tour or the extra services of a private tour? Do you want to spend an hour at a sight or a whole day exploring a monument? Do you want to tour the city on foot, by bike, by bus or by boat? Would you prefer to be outside in the streets or inside the museums? Are you more interested in art, culture, history, or food? For example, there’s the Paris Walking Food Tour for foodies and the Versailles Palace Bike Tour for cycling enthusiasts.
Our personal favourite — we would say this, wouldn’t we 😅 — is a private boat tour of Paris with live guided commentary in English. This lets you combine food, drinks, relaxation, and sightseeing. Which is handy if you’re traveling with children or have had enough of traipsing up and down city streets.
Picking the right tour guide
First off, check that your tour guide speaks English. Most tour guides now display their languages on their website or on platforms like Tripadvisor.
Your tour guide also needs to be friendly and knowledgeable. Local tour guides grew up in the city, making them a mine of information if you’re visiting Paris for the first time. But don’t discount tour guides who aren’t local to Paris — they too were once visitors to Paris, so they have a good feel for what other visitors like you might appreciate the most.
Of course, you can’t know for sure what a tour guide is like until you take the tour. So look at ratings on Tripadvisor or directly on the guide’s website. If most people are happy, there’s a fair chance you will be too.
Things to consider before booking a guided tour of Paris
If there is a particular reason you are visiting Paris — for the food, wine, art, culture, or history of the city — be sure to pick a guided tour that caters to your interests. In Paris, you will find tours to match your every whim and desire. So be selective.
If you want to visit one of the big monuments like the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre Museum, look for guided tours that contain the words “skip the line.” The wait lines in peak season can be monstrous. Pick the right guided tour and save yourself a long and boring wait.
Are private tours worth the extra cost?
The big guided tours are undoubtedly more affordable for travellers on a budget. But private tours give you a more personalized experience away from the jostling crowds.
At My Paris River, we run private boat tours that allow you to take in many of the major landmarks while you put your feet up, sip a glass of champagne, and listen to your favorite music.
Sound like something you might be interested in?
How to book guided tours of Paris in English
You can book directly through Tripadvisor or similar tourist websites. Do click through to the guide’s website if you can. You may find better deals and better customer support.
The price of a guided tour of Paris varies enormously. There are free guided tours available, for example the Montmartre Free Walking Tour. Cheaper guided tours cost between €40 and €65 per person. All have terms and conditions, so check these carefully before you book.
And then there are private tours such as our boat tours with live guided commentary from our skippers. Expect to pay between €60 and €100 per person, depending on the number of people you book for and the itinerary you pick. You can also postpone or cancel your tour. Just make sure to do so 48 or 96 hours ahead of time.
