Paris Insiders Guide Editorial Policy

Morning street cleaning on Rue Montorgueil – Mark Craft, 2010

Paris Insiders Guide is an independent travel publication devoted exclusively to Paris. For more than 25 years, we've returned to the city to research the places, activities, hotels, restaurants, events, and practical information we write about. First-hand experience is central to our work, supported by careful research from authoritative sources.

Our editorial decisions are our own. We choose what to cover based on what we believe will be useful to travelers planning a visit to Paris, not on whether a company pays us or an affiliate relationship exists. This policy explains how we research and verify information, choose what to include, and keep our guides current.

Our Editorial Standards

Accuracy, independence, and usefulness guide our editorial decisions. We write for travelers who want reliable information about Paris and enough specific detail to make informed choices about their time in the city. Our coverage reflects our own editorial judgment, informed by first-hand experience and careful research.

We describe places and experiences as accurately as we can, without exaggerating their importance or overlooking practical limitations. We don't accept payment for favorable coverage, and commercial relationships do not determine what earns a place in Paris Insiders Guide.

Our standards also mean being willing to change our minds. A hotel, restaurant, tour, or activity that once earned our recommendation may be revised or removed when our experience, new information, or changes in Paris give us reason to reconsider it.

How We Research Paris

First-hand research begins with being in Paris. We return often, revisiting neighborhoods, museums, markets, restaurants, hotels, and attractions, as well as trying new activities and guided tours.

Not everything can be researched first-hand, particularly exhibitions, festivals, concerts, and other events that take place after we have returned home. For those subjects, we research the details through museums, event organizers, cultural institutions, transportation authorities, and other primary sources.

Our research continues between visits. We follow developments in Paris throughout the year, check information as guides are updated, and return to the original source when dates, opening hours, visitor policies, or other details need verification.

Sources & Fact-Checking

We go to the source whenever possible. For museum exhibitions, we check the museum; for festivals and special events, the organizer; for transportation, the operator or public authority. Official sources establish dates, opening hours, locations, closures, visitor policies, and other details that can affect a trip.

We also consult additional sources when they add useful information or help us understand a subject more fully. But for facts that can be verified directly, we prefer the organization responsible for them rather than relying on travel blogs, aggregated listings, or information repeated from one website to another.

Before publishing time-sensitive information, we check the details against the most current information available. When information is preliminary or has not yet been officially confirmed, we try to make that clear rather than presenting an expectation as a fact.

How We Choose What To Include

Little Dancer by Degas at the Musée d'Orsay – Mark Craft, 2024

Not everything we research earns a place in Paris Insiders Guide. We choose hotels, restaurants, tours, activities, museums, neighborhoods, and day trips based on our experience, our research, and whether we believe they deserve readers' time and attention.

For tours and activities, we look closely at what is included, the quality of the experience, the operator, the itinerary, and practical details such as timing and group size. For hotels and restaurants, location, quality, consistency, and value all matter. We also consider whether something adds useful choice to our existing coverage rather than simply repeating what is already there.

We don't publish favorable coverage in exchange for payment. If something no longer meets our standards, we may revise what we've written or remove it from the guide altogether.

Affiliate Relationships & Editorial Independence

Paris Insiders Guide is supported in part by affiliate relationships. Some links to tours, activities, hotels, and other travel services allow us to earn a commission when a reader makes a booking or purchase, at no additional cost to the reader.

Those relationships do not determine what we cover. We choose the tours, activities, hotels, and other services we feature based on our own research and editorial judgment. We do not accept payment for favorable reviews, rankings, or recommendations.

Affiliate revenue helps support the research, writing, photography, and ongoing work required to publish Paris Insiders Guide. Our editorial decisions come first.

Keeping Paris Insiders Guide Current

Travel information has a short shelf life. Museum schedules, exhibitions, restaurants, hotels, tours, transportation, opening hours, and visitor policies can all change. We review our guides regularly and update information when new details become available.

Seasonal coverage receives particular attention. Our monthly guides, Christmas and New Year coverage, exhibitions, festivals, and other date-specific information are researched and revised for each new season or year. Evergreen guides are reviewed as needed when we learn of significant changes or return to a subject during our research.

Updating sometimes means removing rather than adding. Recommendations that no longer meet our standards, events that have ended, and information that is no longer useful are revised or deleted. When we find an error, we correct it.

Continue Planning Your Paris Visit

Where To Stay In Paris →
Paris Neighborhoods →
How Many Days In Paris →
Paris For First-Time Visitors →
City of Paris: Events & News →