Hey everyone, I'm Antoinette and welcome back to my channel. Today we're going to talk
about some of the frequently asked questions about planning a trip to Paris
and about traveling to Paris in general. The first question I received is, "are
they mean to Americans? Are the French rude?" In my experience I didn't find
anyone to be rude on my vacation. In fact, as soon as I jumped off the Metro I had
a huge suitcase and it was nice that some random stranger carried my suitcase
all the way up the flight of stairs for me - and that was my introduction to the
people in Paris. I didn't have any issue with anyone being rude to me. If you're
rude to them of course they're gonna be rude back to you, that's just human
nature; but in my experience, nope, I didn't have an issue with anyone while
travelling. "How do you get from Charles de Gaulle airport to the city centre of
Paris?" What can you do? Well, there's a couple of different options. You can take
a train, a bus, a taxi, an Uber, or have a private car pick you up. The
possibilities are endless. I took public transportation, which is
the cheapest option, and I did a whole video on cheap ways to travel around
Paris. So go ahead, the link is down below. I'll also put it in a card above. Check
that out before you go; but, essentially if you're gonna take public
transportation you jump on the RER B train and that'll take your happy butt
with an airport ticket to Gare du Nord or another station in the city center of
Paris. "So what exactly do you wear?" I mean, there's a lot of French designers, of
course, are in Paris and so people tend to think that you need to be super chic
and wear, like, the most expensive designer items and that's not true. For
your makeup, just wear something that is natural and still elegant and chic.
As far as your clothing goes, wear comfortable shoes. They don't have to be
clunky running shoes but something ... you know, ballet flats are completely
acceptable. You know, skinny jeans are a thing there. Natural colors, you know -
your off-whites, your neutrals, all those are just fine and pretty much
anything you wear is gonna be alright. Another question I received is: "What is
there to do in Paris?" I've just finished an entire video
on Paris itinerary ideas, again, check that out in the card above, or one of the
links down below, or after this video; but essentially, of course you have the
Eiffel Tower. Second only to Japan, Paris and France in
general - they have the highest number of three Michelin star-rated restaurants in
the world. Not to mention it is one of the pastry capitals of the world so
you definitely have to eat! You can also take day trips the Champagne region as
well as the lavender fields in Provence. There's a lot of things to do. So check
out the video and you'll get a whole number of ideas. "Will I be a victim of a
scammer or a pickpocketer?" Whether it's somebody putting a ring on your finger,
or a bracelet on your wrist, or asking you to sign some type of petition while,
you know, they pick your pockets. I did run across a couple of people
asking me to sign a petition and you know what? I said "no" and I walked right on
past. That was it. if you're that worried about pickpocketers and scammers
then definitely take with you a cross-body bag that's super small, and
lightweight, and that zips fully shut. I wouldn't carry an open tote. I also
wouldn't carry around a bunch of designer bags, so much so that you're
juggling all these things around and, you know, bags fall then somebody can
snatch your bag. So I wasn't flashing electronics. I wasn't flashing money, you
know. I didn't reach out of my pocket and drop a bunch of $100 bills trying to
figure out what the cost of a service was in Euros. I didn't do any of that.
I carried a credit card with me with an RFID blocking sleeve, and I did a video
on the top gifts for travelers so check that out ... but I generally, you know, just
walked by scammers. That was it [laughs] that was all there is to it. "So is Paris
expensive?" That's another question I received and quite honestly, I didn't
think Paris was that expensive compared to London. I thought London was expensive
but Paris was not. You know it depends on the exchange rate at the time that you
go. It can be as cheap or as expensive as you want. You can stay at a hostel or you
can stay at the Ritz-Carlton. You can eat street vendor food
and get a couple of specials at each of the restaurants - a nice dejeuner, a nice
lunch special where you have a three-course meal for a set price or you can go to a
three-michelin-star restaurant and spend $150 just on a main course for lunch.
It's really up to you. Question number seven, I heard this question a
lot. It's, "do they speak English in France?" To me, if you're traveling to a different
country you need to at least make some effort to learn the language. You don't
have to learn it fluently, but a couple of different phrases and gestures will
really help you out. In my experience, it was really a 50/50 mix. Oh, a perfect
example of this was I walked into a restaurant and I spoke, of course, in
French. You know, "hello how are you doing?" and "I'd like a table." The person
replied back in French, but then she switched to English because she can
probably tell that I'm from America. We had a delightful conversation, I
received my food, all was well. But halfway through my meal her shift was
over and so she went home and another waitress took over. This waitress did not
speak any English at all. So then the little French I knew kicked right on in
when I was done I flagged her off and said, "Excusez-moi, j'ai fini,
l'addition s'il vous plaît." I would not assume that everyone speaks English in
France. I think that's a mistake to make, so don't be that traveler who makes that
mistake and end up making a fool out of yourself. Do your best to learn a
little bit of the language. People will help you out and it's really not that
bad. This ties into the first question I had earlier in this video, "are
they mean to Americans?" If you go over to a different country and expect
them to speak the language that you speak that's really unfair to ask of
somebody. Just think - if somebody from Japan came over to America and then got
mad at you for not knowing Japanese ... like, that's ridiculous.
Don't be that person. So when you meet somebody or greet somebody ... in America, you
know, if you go up to a fast-food counter or any type of service
establishment we usually get there and the persons waiting on us. We say,
"okay I'd like a number four with cheese, fries, and a drink - thanks." But in Paris
when you meet somebody or when you're greeting a service attendant its, "Bonjour" -
good morning, good day. Or "bon soir" or "bon après midi" - Good evening or
good afternoon. Then you make your requests known. Other than that it might
seem like you're demanding things. Some people might just speak English right on
back to you and keep it moving; but again, don't demand everybody speak English.
That's a faux pas. Don't do it. The final question I get is, "Is Paris dangerous?" and
I didn't find it to be very dangerous. I went on a six-day solo adventure so I
was by myself pretty much the entire time. I walked the
streets and went on the metro. I went to all of the major sites. I went to some
sites outside of Paris. I walked everywhere and I didn't have a
problem at all. Granted, I was very safe when I walked. I didn't walk anywhere in
the middle of the night. I also was not drunk or under the influence when I was
walking around by myself. And again, like I mentioned earlier, I didn't have any
flashy or large electronics. I kept it light, kept it tight, I stuck to the
daylight hours and I wasn't bothered. I felt very safe. I never felt threatened
at any point in time; but again, like any major city or any place really in the
entire world, where you go can dictate whether or not you feel safe. If you're
gonna go to a sketchy neighborhood and be half drunk then ... that is on you and,
you know, hey, stuff can happen ... but just play it safe. So that's it! That's all I
have for you. If you like this video please give it a thumbs up and share it
with anyone who's planning a trip to Paris. If you have any questions,
yourself, that you would like me to answer put them in the comments below
and I will answer them for you. Don't forget to click that subscribe
button to be notified for when my next video will post and, like I always like
to say, now that you know about Paris and some of the frequently asked questions -
and those had those questions answered - it's time for you to have the courage to
pack up and get yourself to Paris! Get planning, get started, and then go and
have an amazing time there. I'll catch you in the
next video, bye
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