Information updated on
2024/09/09
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A seven-language guide
Staying safe in Paris is a guide with tips for your safety. It includes :
- Recommendations for transport, public places…
- Cab fares for airports,
- Useful numbers,
- Embassies in Paris…
The guide translated into other languages
The right reflexes
- On the street, don't put your wallet or phone in your back pockets, preferring a small shoulder bag to a backpack.
- When getting out of your car, lock the doors and trunk, close the windows and don't leave valuables in plain sight.
- On public transport, don't let anyone pass through the doors behind you.
- In public places, don't handle money in public and never exchange currency on the street, preferring exchange offices.
- At cash dispensers, hide your code by covering the keypad and do not allow yourself to be distracted.
- In restaurants and bars, ask the card to avoid any surprises when paying.
- Lost or stolen documents : photocopy all your identity documents and keep them at your hotel or temporary residence.
- Buy your tickets from official resellers.
- In theaters and cabarets : prefer large institutions that do not approach customers in the street.
Beware of street scams
- This scam is common in tourist areas of the capital (particularly the Latin Quarter and Notre-Dame).
- Girls and boys (often underage, claiming to be deaf and dumb and acting on behalf of associations) approach you with a petition in their hands asking for money in addition to your signature.
- These are bogus petitions: by giving them money, you are feeding clandestine organisations and exposing yourself to risks.
If you buy a product on the sly (items sold on pavements by street vendors), you think you're getting a bargain, or helping someone in need. In reality, you are feeding clandestine organisations and parallel networks.
- The game of bonneteau is played in public with a pack of cards consisting, for example, of two black cards and one red card. It can also be played with dice or cups.
- The master of the game handles these cards and asks the player to bet a sum of money (minimum 50 euros) on the red card, for example, which he must find among the three cards. If he succeeds, he receives double his stake; if he fails, he loses it.
- In practice, the master of the game is assisted by accomplices who pretend to be players in order to recover the victims' stake. The master of the game will win and you will lose every time.
What should I do if I'm a victim?
Most police stations are open 24 hours a day. If you are a victim, contact a police station.
To find one, consult the page Find a police station
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