SEATING YOURSELF AT A RESTAURANT

When you go to a restaurant, don’t make a beeline for the nearest table. In Paris it is customary to wait for a waiter to show you to your table. However, you may be able to change tables if the one initially assigned is not to your liking.

STANDING ON THE LEFT SIDE OF AN ESCALATOR

The bigger the metropolis, the more frenzied the pace. If you stand on the left – the fast lane – of an escalator in one of the Métro stations or department stores, expect Parisians to give you that reproachful look!

WALKING AROUND IN DANGEROUS NEIGHBOURHOODS

Most suburbs in the north, east and some southern areas of the city in particular are to be avoided. This also applies to the vicinity around the Strasbourg-St-Denis, Stalingrad and Châtelet-Les Halles Métro stations. The area around the Porte Dauphine and the Bois de Boulogne (areas for street prostitution) likewise have a bad reputation.

DRINKING BEER AT TOURIST TRAPS

If you crave a beer or two anywhere on the Champs-Élysées, Place du Tertre or the majority of other tourist attractions, you’ll be in for a nasty surprise. The bill at such places can be steep, sometimes as much as three or four times higher than elsewhere. Also beware: a démi is not a half litre, but only 0.25 l.

FALLING FOR THE ‘POOR TOURIST’ SCAM

Be wary of people who lurk around the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe claiming they are tourists who have had their credit cards stolen. They accost unsuspecting tourists for money in order to get back home and offer what they pass off as brand name clothing in return. Anyone who falls for this trap pays dearly.

EATING PIZZA

Although there are exceptions, the quality of pizza in Paris leaves a lot to be desired: doughy, greasy and often lacking in proper ingredients. There are a few places that serve pizza from a wood stove, though prices are predictably higher.

DRIVING IN THE CITY CENTRE

Paris is bogged down with traffic like no other major city. Apart from tourists attempting to get accustomed to the driving style in the city where the law of the jungle applies, massive traffic jams are also a bane for Parisians and a reality in their daily life.