Best Tours and Classes

This wine-tasting class has sessions ranging from one to two hours.
Ex–New Yorker Richard Nahem offers walking trips for up to four people. He designed three shopping trips specifically for us—downtown, uptown and bohemian.
We at the Girls’ Guide to Paris offer spectacular and affordable DIY downloadable walking trips. Our 10 unique trips cover the key arrondissements and quartiers ladies love. Among them you’ll find three gourmet trips and one intensive shopping trip, plus trips that combine a mix of shopping, architecture, history and foodie finds. Get the complete set for a significant reduction. Watch the video of two ladies taking one of our trips here.
Take a Segway trip to see the classic sites and the main monuments of Paris. If you have a child or a teen along, or a friend who is traveling to Paris for the first time, this is an ideal and really fun choice. The Segways are not hard to learn to operate and you undoubtedly won’t want to give yours back. You’ll see the usual sights (Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Tuileries Gardens, etc.) but because you are on the Segway, it will seem fresh again! This company (based in Austin, Texas) also offers great bike trips.
Paris By Appointment Only is a personal shopping service and bespoke trip company that opens the door to hidden Paris. Conceived and run by expat American journalist Zeva Bellel, Paris BAO offers unique opportunities to visit a handpicked selection of artisans and innovators, from handmade lingerie designers to custom jewelers. Zeva can get you into the insider’s Paris, which she has uncovered in her 10-plus years of living there. We also love Zeva’s blog.
Meeting the French offers gourmet trips as well as the opportunity to have dinner with Parisians in their homes. This company also offers cooking classes, trips of the flea market and good bed-and-breakfast options.

Here is a clever idea: trip Paris in a deux chevaux Citroën (pictured above), one of the cutest old French cars around. We recently took a chilly trip of the 12th Arrondissement. We would recommend this trip only in the summer or on a fairly warm day because they leave the roof open on the Citroën, which is wonderful because you can see the sights and the buildings above you. If it’s raining it’s not ideal. They offer a large grouping of trips all over Paris. The guides are very friendly, but they are not historians. Nevertheless, you will enjoy this retro way of getting around Paris. This is a great choice for someone who can’t walk well or is older.
Rated the No. 1 activity in Paris by TripAdvisor and profiled in Rick Steves’ new Paris book, Cook’n with Class is one of our favorite foodie options. They offer pastry, baking and regular cooking classes, which include a trip to the market. Book early because they sell out quickly. We recently took the pastry class with Pino and had a ball learning how to make crème brûlée, soufflés, madeleines and more.
Pour Vous Paris is an interesting idea. This is a membership organization that offers encounters with Parisians, such as a crêpe party, a walking trip or just a chance to practice your French in a café. This is an affordable way to see the insider’s Paris.  

Paris Segway Trip The most fun you’ll ever imagine having on a trip!

Eye Prefer Paris Trips Trips that combine shopping, history and architecture, led by Paris insider Richard Nahem.

Day Bike Trip One of the first and best bike trips in Paris

This is a martial arts school famous for its classes given in the Buttes-Chaumont park. There are other classes indoors. Prices are 10–15 euros per class. This is an unusual yet healthy thing to try in Paris and will help work off some of those croissants.
Irene Adamian sets up whatever kind of trip you want. Perhaps you’d like to go to a marché and take a cooking class and then shop in the afternoon and have some tea—she’ll set it all up for you.
For a trip of Da Vinci Code Paris, try Classic Walks. They also offer a French Revolution walk and a World War II walk. We like this company for its professionalism.
Food critic and blogger Rosa Jackson will set up a foodie itinerary for you. For 20 euros, she offers prepackaged itineraries of the Latin Quarter, St.-Germain and other areas, or, for a personalized food trip, you can hire one of her “food gurus” as a guide. She can customize something for you for 200 euros for a day—which isn’t terribly expensive if you have a group.
If you speak French, check out La Belle École for an array of French living classes, from wine tasting to flower arranging.
These trips, given by scholars and experts, focus on areas such as the art and architecture of Gothic Paris. Or try the Paris Food Crawl or Marais Mansions. We really like this idea, especially for those who already know quite a bit about Paris.