Left Foot Tours

Left Foot Tours
Day 2 to 6 in Paris

Personalized Touring for Curious Travelers

Let’s get personal.

Now that you’ve gotten off on the right foot, either on my Right Foot Tour or on your own, you’re ready for further explorations of the rich culture, history, lifestyle and enjoyment of Paris.

But first a warning: With all do respect to those who like detailed hour-t0-hour planning, it’s a mistake to plan Paris as though distinct interests require distinct tours, leading you to spend hours online searching for a series of distinct touring experiences: a chocolate tour, a tour of Montmartre, a French Revolution tour, a church tour, a garden tour, a Jewish tour, a food tour, a wine tasting, a shopping tour, an architecture tour, a something-to-please-my-teenager tour, a day trip to Normandy, etc., each with its own time slot. Let’s instead put all of your interests together for a day or several days that combine those various interests.

So let’s talk.

What follows below are several examples of the variety of customized tours that I’ve created for curious travelers over the years. They’re presented here as one-day tours but my clients typically seek out wide-ranging tours over two, three or more days, not necessarily consecutive. By combining several tour themes and adapting the timing of each, I’ll combine the varied interests of your travel party into an overall, personalized travel experience.

Why is there is no “immediate booking” feature on this site? Because before finalizing any tour, I prefer to communicate by email and/or by phone in order to understand your interests, needs and available time.

Examples of Left Foot Touring

The Latin Quarter, the Marais and Montmartre

10AM-6/6:30PM. 560€ for 2. Add 40€ per additional person 16 and over, add 25€ per younger child.

Do those three–the Latin Quarter, the Marais and Montmartre–go together? They certainly do for those who are interested in getting to know those three essential neighborhoods. Let me know if you’d like to include a cheese tasting, a pastry tasting or a chocolate tasting during any of these tours. Want to end the with a sip of Paris wine culture? Let’s do that as well! After all, it’s YOUR tour.

As with other Left Foot Tours, all food and drink will be paid for directly by the client during the tour, unless included by prior agreement.

A Horrible Tour: Exploring the Dark Side of the City of Light

3 hours. 320€ for 2 + 30€ per additional person 13 and over. This tour is not suitable for children under 13.

Within the beauty and the romance of the center of the City of Light there lurks dark history. As I lead you to major markers in the historic center, you’ll learn true stories of assassination, execution, wartime destruction, genocide, torture, and more. The goal of this tour is not to “entertain” you with dark tales but to reveal some of the important if disturbing events that are as part of the history of Paris as its stunning architecture.

My “Horrible Tour,” a GLK original, can serve as either an introductory tour to the historic center of Paris or a unique second look at the city through the gloomier side of French history. But not all is doom and gloom on this tour. Along the way you’ll also gain an appreciation for major and lesser-known monuments and view. And well-timed café and pastry or chocolate stops will serve as pleasant reminders that the tasty and cheery side of Paris that you’ve also come to visit remains alive and well. Tour can be extended to include a soothing lunch or wine tasting.

Those who would also visit the Catacombs or cemeteries of Paris will certainly enjoy this tour. In fact, this tour can also be extended to include a tour of Père Lachaise Cemetery.

Food and drink stops are at your direct expense. No museums are included on this tour.

The Equine and Equestrian Tour, a GLK original

10AM-5:30PM. 540€ for 2 + 40€ per additional person over 16, 25€ per additional person 16 and under.

Whether your an equestrian or simply a traveler willing to discover the heart of Paris through exceptional sculpture work, this is among the most noble of the many Paris walks that I’ve designed over the years. It’s noble because it will lift your eyes to stunning vistas, iconic monuments and exquisite sculptures. And it’s noble because the figures that you will meet along the way—kings, generals, poets, representations of fame, victory, knowledge and the arts, and the architects and sculptors themselves—will lift your spirit.

Yes, this is a glorious tour. Because that’s what equestrian statues do: they glorify the memory of their riders. And on its own the horse is already a representation of all that is honorable and noble. I therefore recommend this tour only for travelers willing to explore Paris with an open mind, an open spirit, and a sense of joy.

Throughout the day, you’ll see and understand the relationship of these equine and equestrian statues with the major monuments that they decorate or stand near, from Notre-Dame to the Arc de Triomphe by way of a picture-perfect view of the Eiffel Tower, with major sights, views and gardens along the way.

This is a walking tour. Be prepared to walk 5-6 miles over the course of the day.

Lunch options (from fresh and simple to exquisite and luxurious) will be discussed in advance as well an afternoon coffee/tea/pastry stop. Cost of food and drink not included in pricing above.

The true equestrian should inquire about extended touring on the equine/equestrian theme.

Jewish Paris: The Marais and Beyond

7-8 hours. 560€ for 2 + 30€ per additional person over 16, 15€ per additional person 16 and under

While the Jewish history of Paris is often mistakenly reduced to a few streets in the Marais, the city’s Jewish life and heritage extends well beyond there. The Jewish history of Paris goes hand in hand with important moments in the history of Paris and of France overall. It can be glimpsed not only in synagogues but also in sights as varied as Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Pantheon and the Sainte Chapelle and in neighborhoods beyond the Marais. We will indeed visit the Marais as part of this tour, but rather than examine Jewish history as separate element to be viewed apart from the rest of Paris as on many Jewish-oriented tours, my tour allows visitors to see and understand that history in the wider context of French history, even European history through a variety of sights and neighborhoods.

As with all of my tours, this one is also customized, so I look forward to speaking with you about the variety of your interests and Paris aspirations in order to create a day (or more) that reveals of the history and contemporary life of Jews in the French capital.

Travelers interested in Jewish life and heritage in Paris should read these articles of mine

Gardens and Garden History of Paris

7-8 hours. 560€ for 2, includes transportation by taxi and metro. Add 40€ per additional person over 16, 30€ per person 16 and under.

We’ll visit four of four famous gardens of Paris—the Tuileries, the Luxembourg Garden, Parc Monceau and Butte Chaumont—that reveal the history of green spaces in Paris while also getting a sense of the development, evolution and treasures of the surrounding neighborhoods. We’ll travel from garden to garden by metro or taxi then walk through the given gardens and neighborhood.

We’ll stop for lunch (cost not included) and later in the day for coffee/tea/pastry or wine. Cost of food and drink at the travelers’ expense.

The starting time, anywhere between 9am and noon, is up to you, depending also on the season.

I’ve also created audio tours so that you can visit the Luxembourg Garden and the Tuileries Garden on your own by downloading the tours that I’ve created for the VoiceMap app? Download The Left Bank’s Most Elegant Park: Exploring the Luxembourg Garden and The Tuileries Garden: The Royal Walk from the Louvre to the Champs-Elysées. You might then wish to continue with The Champs-Elyseées: From Place de la Concorde to the Arc de Triomphe.

The Doctor is in… Paris

When I was growing up, my father told me and my four brothers that he would support us in becoming any kind of doctors we wanted to be. As my brothers pursued their medical degrees, I chose to become a travel clinician of sorts, intent of improving the enjoyment and knowledge of travelers to France. After a prolonged internship of life in Paris and travel throughout France, I came to have the know-how and experience to provide prescriptions (i.e. travel articles and advice) and exclusive treatments (i.e. touring).

A good number of my readers and tour clients are many medical professionals. With them (and with my father and brothers) in mind, I wrote this two-part article about Paris’s extraordinary medical and hospital history, and I’ve had the opportunity to create unique and off-beat tours for medical professionals on vacation in Paris, both with their families and as small groups.

In planning a trip to Paris, physicians don’t typically dream of seeking out points of medical interests. Rather, they (and their spouse) imagine themselves leaving their work interests back at the office. However, physicians do seek out insightful and entertaining touring, and travel is always more rewarding when we find a personal connection in it. Therefore, whether as part of more general touring or as more focused day of medical discoveries, when the doctor is in Paris as well as elsewhere in France, he or she ought to consider exploring the city’s medical and hospital history– with other sights, great food and good drink along the way.

This is another GLK original. Read the medical-oriented travel article above and let’s talk about treating the doctor… to the best of Paris.

Contact me with details of your interests (not only medical) and available time so that we can discuss the possibilities.

Communities and Identities, Professions and Hobbies

Travel isn’t just about where you’re going, it’s about where you come from. It’s about connecting with your destination based on your own identity and interests. It’s about the human connection. Though I’m wary of closing oneself into a community or identity approach when traveling abroad–after all, there’s so much to be learned and enjoyed from encountering what’s foreign, unknown and unexpected–I particularly like helping travelers get in touch with that important piece of themselves that they’re curious about in a foreign land, even if just for a part of a larger tour.

You’ve seen above, for example, a tour of special interest to medical professionals and another of special interest to Jewish travelers. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to design many other customized tours that examine specific communities and identities, as well as professions and hobbies: Black history and communities, LGBT, Catholic, Protestant, atheist, lawyers and the legal system, photographers and photography, collectors of contemporary art, and others.

I am not an expert in all of these. I work with specialized guides and arrange for encounters with those able to share their experience, knowledge and insights into the community, identity, profession or hobbies of interest.

What part of yourself would you like to explore in Paris and beyond? I look forward to hearing from you.

Let’s start planning!

Use this form to pre-book a tour or to request further information about specific tours, event planning and consulting services for Paris or elsewhere in France. The more you can tell me about your interests and your travel party, the better I can personalize a response.

Provide your phone number if you would like me to call you for a 10-minute no-obligation chat about your upcoming trip.