impressions from the Seine

I am bringing my 20 something nephew with me on this river cruise as a graduation gift. I want to advise him on the type of clothes he needs to bring. Are shorts allowed in the dining room in the summer? For dinner? (my last river cruise was in late autumn and too late for summer clothes) Regarding the welcome cocktail party and the farewell dinner, can he just wear a nice shirt and slacks? In other words, beside wearing clean clothes, how nice does this kid have to dress?

Also we have a day to spend before the cruise. He is a history buff. Is a trip to Versailles easy to do. Can we get tickets in advance. Will Tauck assist in arranging this. Are there other "WWII" places we should also consider in Paris? Thanks for your help.

Comments

  • Regarding my comment, we are going in August 2022

  • Versailles is included on this tour.

    I would recommend against shorts in the dining area. This is simply my opinion. Wearing them on the sun deck would be fine.

  • Shorts during the day are fine but not recommended for dinner in the main (Compass) dining room. Arthur's bistro at the rear of the ship is more casual. Nice shirt and slacks are fine for dressy.

    Versailles isn't particularly easy to do and doesn't seem to be a good use of your time since the tour takes you there. No Tauck does not arrange pre or post your activities. Not sure of WWII places in Paris considering it was occupied and not a battle zone. There is the military museum and Napolean's tomb which might be interesting. You might pick up Rick Steves Paris pocket guide for some ideas and help in planning. There's also bike or segway tours.

  • I am actually hiring a local guide in April to do the two areas I missed in previous trips the Pere Lachaise Cemetery and Sacre'-Coeur. I can let you know how that works out she is tailoring it for what I want. $200 for 4-5 hours.
    I hear that the Metro is great to take but I am hearing impaired and tough to understand on train.
    This trip years ago started me investigating/learning more about WWII, Tauck does a great job showing you the most important sights in Omaha Beach etc.

  • Thanks for your comments. I researched a walking tour of Pere Lachaise Cemetery because of all people my sister wants to see where Jim Morrison is buried. What can I tell you---a 60's audiophile. I guess we will use local tour guides found online. There are 6 of us so we make a nice little group.

    I will be sure my nephew has a slacks and shirts for dinner (it may become a uniform lol) . I want him to learn what is respectful in certain situations regarding dress and decorum and I believe travelling Tauck will be a good teacher. CATSOOS--would love to hear what your guide tailors for you! I know Tauck has enough to do, but wouldn't it be a wonderful service if they made a list of people that we could contact so that we could use our "gift of time" effectively?

  • Tikeladee, for regular nights at dinner he can wear collared knit golf shirts as well.

    Rick Steve's guide books do include recommended local guides and tours. I like the size and convenience of the pocket guides.

  • Going in September and will be there a day before. Any suggestions as to what to do for the day and where to have dinner not far from the hotel?

  • If your are looking for WW2 era history then the Shoah Memorial in the Marais district should be high on your list. The is a new Paris Liberation museum may also be of interest. If you are looking for something else to do the evening before consider looking at a classical music concert through Classictic.com and if you are there on Friday, the Louvre is open until 945 PM

  • Ben,

    This is an old thread from 2022. OP was going in 2022.

    The 2024 itinerary is a bit confusing for Day 1 because it mentions the Louvre, but it looks like for 2023 and 2024, one of the options for the afternoon of Day 2 is a guided visit to the Louvre.

    In the evening of Day 1, you'll have the welcome diner and in the evening of Day 2 you'll get underway for Versailles, "Spend the evening at leisure as your riverboat charts a course along the Seine for the inimitable Château de Versailles" even though you are headed north away from Paris and Versailles. On Day 3 you travel from Poissy via motor coach excursion back south towards Paris to Versailles, which is just 13 mi. west of the city.

    So, there is no time for an evening visit to the Louvre unless you do a pre or post-stay and timing works out.

  • We have the gift of time in Paris this September. Any recommendations on how to spend the extra day/dinner without running all over the city.

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