Daughter alone in Paris after falling out with friend on holiday

[Bollard]

My DD is in Paris with her friend. They are only there for a couple of days. They have fallen out and the friend has ditched her. DD is in the hotel room, wanting to come home. She doesn't feel confident going around Pars on her own and feels the trip is ruined. Any ideas for anything she could do alone, any group thing she could join? She might feel able to do something in the day, but I don't like the thought of her being out alone at night. I don't know Paris at all. She's staying centrally.

She doesn’t know. I’m hoping she’s in contact with her mum and is going ahead with the sightseeing plans they had. But yes, I’m worried about the friend too.

Walk down the Left Bank to the Musee D’Orsay and through the Tuileries Garden. I did this last year and was lovely.

where is the friend? have they made contact?

She can do this! Paris is no more dangerous than any other city. She just needs to keep her wits about her :-)

I second the bus tour, I did it at night as was really unwell and didn't have the energy for sightseeing, she just needs to get herself to the start point.

Agree that this is the time to build resilience. A walk around the Marais shopping district is lovely, quirky safe and the perfect opportunity for “look how much I’m enjoying myself” selfies to send to her friend deserter.

Maybe contact the mum purely out of safety (having just watched the missed call on channel 5)

She just has to be careful. Money well hidden, no need for a phone in public. But she will learn a lot about resilience and coping. I have only been to Paris a few times but I love sitting and watching people, and a bit of culture.

I wouldn't be out late anyway but she can bring a few nice bits back to the room

She can check out AirBnB Experiences for group tours and activities:
www.airbnb.com/experiences

Most of the main tourist places are safe during the day. You just have to be sensible. The metro is easy to use. Just be wary of pickpockets. Just make sure you know the location of the hotel and the nearest metro stop from it and you can get back easily.

At places like Sacre Coeur you get groups approaching you doing some form of begging but you just need to be firm and say no and walk away from them.

I lived in Paris in my late twenties and also visited it alone when I was 19.

Paris is a safe city. The metro is always busy and easy to navigate. It’s a very small city in terms of where the major attractions are, so easy to walk as well. There are lots of museums, galleries, shops, cafes etc. Lots of Parisians will stop in a cafe on their own for a drink to people watch so she wouldn’t look out of place eating and drinking on her own. It’s a fabulous place, and she should try and make the most of it.

If she's not confident eating out alone then she can buy food from Mono'p or Carrefour City - they're the equivalent of Tesco Express or Sainsbury's Local. Loads of them around Paris. They sell boxed salads as well as everyday groceries.

From the Louvre, she could walk through the Tuileries and head to this restaurant: https://lepetitvendome.fr/en

It's absolutely delicious, they have a counter where she could easily eat by herself without feeling inconspicuous. Solo diners also eat at the tables, we were sat next to two separate solo diners last week. And it's open all day, super friendly staff.

If she has time or inclination, the Bourse has a very IG friendly installation going on at the moment:
https://www.pinaultcollection.com/en/boursedecommerce/fujiko-nakaya

There's also the Musée Carnavalet which is free. They have a lovely garden café, if she wants a rest stop in a pretty location:
https://carnavalet.paris.fr/en

She's got an amazing opportunity to test herself and build resilience, as well as being in beautiful Paris.

After the Louvre it's a 20 minute walk to Notre Dame and then another 15-20 from there to the Pantheon. Nice little restaurants on the way up there too. She's in a great part of the city.

Set google maps to public transport and she can find metro/bus/trams anywhere she wants to go.

She needs to get out of the room even just walk up the street to see what is around to build up her confidence before she goes further afield.

Yes I was thinking about her friend. I mean if they had a shared hotel room and the friends not there I would be seeking to make contact with the friend forget the little argument they had. There must be good friends to have gone off. I’d ask my daughter if it was me to throw out a friendly text to her see if they can meet up at the Louvre.

I’m so grateful, thank you for all this. I’ve passed it on. Some excellent ideas.

Feel sorry for your DD and hope she manages to have some nice time there. The 'friend' should be ditched for good once home.

I'd check in on the friend if you can - just from a responsible parenting point of view. They may have fallen out but she sounds young and naive too.

Your DD can have an amazing day in Paris and it will build her confidence for years to come. Agree uber is the way since it's for a short time. Tell her to get an Uber to the Eiffel tower later tonight to see it sparkle. Great atmosphere, blank anyone that tries to talk to her or sell her anything and walk away. Uber back to the hotel.

Sorry meant to say Trocadero square to see the sparkly tower (on the hour from sunet).

I wouldn't want her travelling on the metro alone. It's full of pickpockets.
The Louvre is fine. If she has tickets she should go.
Avoid the Trocadero. Google other areas to avoid.
Hop on hop off bus is a good shout and there's plenty of walkable places.
Boat trip? Browse the bookstalls along the seine.
Try to ensure that she doesn't look like a tourist.

I'd be a bit concerned about her friend. Where would she storm off to? I doubt she could afford an alternative hotel?
Surely she'll have to come back to the room to sleep?

I hope your daughter gets to do a few nice things and hopefully the friend reappears and they make up.

Can she eat at the hotel?

Personally I think the metro or the bus is fine as long as she is careful about where her valuables are (cross body bag in front is ideal). I agree with others that this is actually a great opportunity to build some confidence and resilience.

If she wants a proper meal rather than picking up bits to eat in her room, tell her to have a look at Bouillon - it’s a cheap bistro chain with traditional French dishes, nice interiors, very busy, a lone diner will not stand out somewhere like that.

That sounds brilliant!

I'd advise her to be cautious of going out on her own at night, especially to certain areas like the Sacre Couer. Resilience is one thing, but risk should be assessed sensibly.

But there's lots she can do in the daytime. Even just walking about and having coffees and pastries will be a quintessential Parisian experience! Walk over the bridges, down the Seine.

It's sad they've fallen out but not the end of the world. You've already been given lots of ideas of things to do so I'll just stress that fact that organised tours take place at night as well as during the day so your daughter can schedule in a night tour and be safe because she's in a group. The hotel can help her find a tour or she can find a tourist office or simply google. As has already been said, it'll be good for her to take herself out of her comfort zone and, when she's home and talking to friends about what happened, it'll be satisfying to be able to say she didn't just fall apart but actually went out and enjoyed herself.