Paris Prioritized Accessibility Ahead of the Paralympics—but Has It Delivered?

Paris has changed a lot in the last few decades. Not so long ago, the tourist circuit was limited to a small number of famous locations and you’d find few locals who spoke more than a handful of phrases in English. These days, Paris is a more worldly, cosmopolitan place. However, the densely packed French capital still has its distinct way of doing things. Parisian culture places huge value on food, beauty, and leisure, and many of the faux pas (at least in the eyes of Parisians) made by visitors occur when these sacred principles are infringed. From dining etiquette to public transportation dos and don'ts, here’s your easy guide to navigating the City of Lights the Parisian way.

Over the past couple of years, I've fallen in love with France and all it has to offer.

Passengers heading to Paris will soon lose a popular daytime service that departs from the U.S. in the morning and arrives by evening.

You'll no longer be able to have breakfast in New York and dinner in Paris.

The Olympic Games in Paris generated a lot of excitement around the cleanup project of the Seine River, where triathlon and swimming competitions took place. And there’s more to come: Mayor Anne Hidalgo plans to open three public swimming spots on the Seine by next summer, and similar projects are in the works in Boston, London and Amsterdam.

Stifling heat across Europe this summer has made the thought of multi-day mountain trekking an unappealing prospect.

You might assume hosting the Olympics is great for a city's economy thanks to an influx of visitors staying in hotels, dining out, and enjoying the sights.

There’s never a bad time to go to Paris, and Air France agrees, giving away a pair of roundtrip flights and a wardrobe incroyable so travelers can live their best French lives.

Europe’s ancient cobbled cities are not necessarily renowned for accessibility, but if you know where to look, Paris has reliably accessible places to visit. The bus system is fully accessible, with frequent services to most areas in the city. Many of the major activities or venues in the city have elevators, ramps, and staff more than willing to help. Plus, most of the museums and cultural activities in the city are available for free or at a heavily discounted rate for people with disabilities and their caregivers.

London is in its global hotel brand era: In the last year, it’s added a Raffles, a Peninsula and a second Mandarin Oriental; a Waldorf Astoria, a St. Regis and a Six Senses are on their way. This new guard is taking over historical icons and throwing up gleaming towers, and it’s upping the ante on amenities, too. A posh afternoon tea is no longer enough, it seems; now, five-stars come with signature scents, subterranean spas, museum-worthy art and long-stay residences. Rooftop bars, a rarity here a decade ago, are now seemingly obligatory (Bar 33 at the Emory wins for views, with everything from Big Ben to Battersea Power Station in its sights). But there’s still room for the occasional independent hotel, like the Broadwick, a maximalist love letter to the owner Noel Hayden’s hotelier parents and the creative Soho of the ’90s in which he came of age. “It’s a bit of a sensory overload,” Hayden says. Naturally, there’s a rooftop bar there, too.

Low-cost Icelandic airline Play is celebrating the unofficial end of summer with a Labor Day sale tempting travelers with 25 percent off flights to Europe.

We’re back with another edition of the brands and properties that have caught my eye this season.