Les Bateaux Mouches

Paris sunset cruise, © 2012, Joan Klau

I strongly recommend taking a bateau mouche tour along the Seine a) on your first night to orient yourself, and b) at or just past sunset to truly appreciate why Paris is called the City of Light. The sun sets late in Paris (9:30p in early May), so eat dinner first (sit outside to enjoy the golden hour light bouncing off buildings and filtering through the plane trees), then stroll along the river to your bateau mouche. Every hour on the hour, the Eiffel Tower does a 2 minute light show, so time your ride accordingly. Fair warning: in warm weather, students like to hang out, drink and sing along the riverbanks from Notre Dame east, so you may get flashed.

There are several companies that run river cruises, and some offer dinner cruises. I've only done the Bateaux Mouches down at Pont d’Alma because they run the latest rides, but it requires a cab ride there, and a long walk up to either the Metro or a long line for a cab home. Next time I’m in Paris, I’m going to try the Vedettes du Pont-Neuf, which have a much more convenient location, and cheapest fares.