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Safety, Paris

Disney studio at night - Paris
Disney studio at night
by Manyana
Safety tips posted by real travelers and Paris locals.
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• 47 Reviews

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Safety: SAFETY and SECURITY
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  • Lady_Mystique
  • Updated By Lady_Mystique on September 1, 2006
  • Paris Page by Lady_Mystique
  • Montparnasse station - Paris
    Montparnasse station
    by Lady_Mystique
    PROTECTING YOUR VALUABLES:

    To prevent theft, don't keep all your valuables (money, important documents) in one place. Label every piece of luggage both inside and out.
    Don't put a wallet with money in your back pocket.
    Never count your money in public and carry as little as possible.
    If you carry a purse, buy a sturdy one with a secure clasp, and carry it crosswise on the side, away from the street with the clasp against you.
    A money belt is the best way to carry cash; you can buy one at most camping supply stores. A neck pouch is equally safe, although far less accessible.
    Keep some money separate from the rest to use in an emergency or in case of theft.

    PICKPOCKETS:

    In city crowds, especially on public transportation, pickpockets are very good at their craft.
    Rush hour is no excuse for strangers to press up against you on the métro. If someone stands uncomfortably close, move to another car and hold your bags tightly.

    Be alert in public telephone booths.
    If you must say your calling card number, do so quietly; when you punch it in, make sure no one can see you.

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    Safety: It's Easy To Trip Over One Of These!
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  • ChrisRJ
  • By ChrisRJ on April 4, 2005
  • Paris Page by ChrisRJ
  • Safety - Paris
    by ChrisRJ
    As there are so many great structures and buildings to look at in Paris, you find yourself looking up a lot. Then right when you're not expecting it one of these tiny little cars gets caught under your feet and you go down for the count. So be careful and watch out for them.

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    Safety: Something positive about Paris
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  • By fullerand on November 24, 2003
  • Paris Page by fullerand
  • I'm writing this to let you know that it is not definate that you will be robbed blind, scammed and conned in Paris!

    I checked through the Warnings/Dangers list before travelling and it made me paranoid to see all the bad stories. However, in reality you'll get along just fine with a bit of cop on. I was there with my girlfriend for 5 days recently (November), and experienced no incident, nor any feeling of danger.

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    Safety: Hotel Winding Stairways
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  • CALSF
  • By CALSF on May 26, 2005
  • Paris Page by CALSF
  • A worn, winding staircase @ Hotel Verneuil - Paris
    A worn, winding staircase @
    Hotel Verneuil
    by CALSF
    Paris is an old city. And many of the small, cozy hotels were converted from former residences. However, the buildings themselves are usually left in their original state.

    One thing you will notice is that the (stone) stairways are not always straight. In order to save space alot if not all hotels have winding staircases from top to bottom. They can be a little dangerous if you are not careful where you step.

    Be sure that you take your time as the inner part of the staircase is pretty narrow. Also due to centuries of wear and tear the staircases can be worn out and uneven causing you to lose your balance if you are not careful.

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    Safety: Look Before You Cross the Street!
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  • CALSF
  • By CALSF on May 29, 2005
  • Paris Page by CALSF
  • A busy Parisian instersection - Paris
    A busy Parisian instersection
    by CALSF
    Paris is not as horrible for pedestrians as it is in Italy (my observation however). Or does it take a puzzling moment or two to figure out which way to look before you cross a street as it is in the UK due to the right hand driving.

    But it is a bit dangerous to cross the streets anyway. Even though there are pedestrian crosswalk signals you have to be careful. The Parisian drivers are pretty hyper and don't have much patience in waiting for pedestrians to cross and will zoom past you even if you have the right of way. However, I noticed and have experienced that they do stop in time before running into you. ;)

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    Safety: Les Halles at night
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  • fossettes
  • Updated By fossettes on March 25, 2003
  • Paris Page by fossettes
  • Be careful if you go to Forum Les Halles (the huge underground mall) at night. We recently went to a movie there, and as we were leaving were caught in a mob of young thugs having a brawl. There were broken bottles and ripped beer cans being used as weapons (as well as fists!)

    Les Halles is the center of gang activity in Paris. Best to stay away at night!

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    Safety: Unsafe for single women
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  • Manyana
  • Updated By Manyana on December 2, 2006
  • Paris Page by Manyana
  • Disney studio at night - Paris
    Disney studio at night
    by Manyana
    We met two nice gentlement who offered us to carry our bags in the metro station! I was a bit reluctant at the beginning but they were in their late 30s and my friend was more than delighted to take their offer,lol..so i had to give up. They warned us not to walk as single women in late evenings especially in touristic areas. That was very true.

    We lost our way back to the hotel. So I asked a french guy from where to catch the metro to our neighbourhood. It was only 8pm in the evening. The guy couldn't speak english, so we just left him. My friend a half an hour later told me, 'there's something horrible i wanna tell you'. i was too cheerful to bother with what she was saying as we met two girl friends from london:D and so i asked her to tell me later. but she couldn't put it off as she pointed out at FOUR freak youngesters who had been following us for the last half an hour!!!!!! i was terrified as this never happened to me even in london! we changed two stations and they were still following us. so we just made very clear that we were aware of them. and then they left the metro! i wasn't sure if it was a trick while there'd be someone of them remaining in the metro with us. so we just ran for our lives, praying...even my atheist friend, she prayed too,lol.

    So have the emergency number ready with you (221 i think), just in case. Always have a company if you'd like to walk around at night...i know night walking is lustfully charming but do have a company.

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    Safety: Warning to all Mona Lisa Groupies
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  • bpacker
  • By bpacker on March 18, 2005
  • Paris Page by bpacker
  • Protected Smile - Paris
    Protected Smile
    by bpacker
    Mona Lisa Groupies, be forewarned that your idol is encased at the Lourve in a bulletproof box with triplex glass, built-in air conditioner, 9 pounds of silica-gel and God-knows what else to foil a would-be art robber! On top of that you'll be allowed to look at your idol for only a nano-second as they've hired rude, burly African guards to usher you along in a queue..

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    Safety: Watch out for the drunks and bums in public
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  • TravelerM
  • By TravelerM on November 20, 2004
  • Paris Page by TravelerM
  • Paris is great, but it is also full of crazy bums and weirdos!! I got harrassed a lot whenever I wore a nice dress. I even got attacked once! It totally freaked me out!!!! So I always dress down--just simple tops and jeans. I know it's a pity not to wear your beautiful clothes in such a city of fashion, but for safety, it's wiser to do so when you are traveling as a solo female. For Asian travelers, watch out when you are visiting the red light district in Northern Paris. I've heard guys get robbed during the day!!!....let alone at night. Stay alert.

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    Safety: safety in paris
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  • pascale_paris
  • By pascale_paris on May 6, 2004
  • Paris Page by pascale_paris
  • Basically, there is really no problem related to safety in Paris. This kind of problem takes place in some areas of the suburb where tourists never go.

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