Paris_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Lonely Planet [299]
UK embassy ( 020-7073 1000; www.ambafrance-uk.org; 58 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7JT); consulate ( 020-7073 1200; www.consulfrance-londres.org; 21 Cromwell Rd, London SW7 2EN)
USA embassy ( 202-944 6000; www.ambafrance-us.org; 4101 Reservoir Rd NW, Washington, DC 20007); consulate ( 212-606 3600; www.consulfrance-newyork.org; 934 Fifth Ave, New York, NY 10021)
Embassies & Consulates in Paris
It’s important to realise what your own embassy – the embassy of the country of which you are a citizen – can and cannot do to help you if you’re in trouble. In general, it won’t be much help if the trouble you’re in is even remotely your own fault. Remember that you are bound by French law while visiting Paris. Your embassy will not be sympathetic if you commit a crime locally, even if such actions are legal in your own country.
In genuine emergencies you might get some assistance, but only if other channels have been exhausted. For example, if you need to get home urgently, a free ticket home is exceedingly unlikely – the embassy would expect you to have insurance. If you have all your money and documents stolen, it might assist with getting a new passport, but a loan for onward travel is usually out of the question.
The following is a list of selected embassies and consulates in Paris. For a more complete list, consult the Pages Jaunes (Yellow Pages; www.pagesjaunes.fr, in French) under ‘Ambassades et Consulats’ or the website of the tourist office (www.parisinfo.com).
Australia embassy (Map; 01 40 59 33 00; 4 rue Jean Rey, 15e; Bir Hakeim)
Belgium embassy (Map; 01 44 09 39 39; 9 rue de Tilsitt, 17e; Charles de Gaulle-Étoile)
Canada embassy (Map; 01 44 43 29 00; 35 av Montaigne, 8e; Franklin D Roosevelt)
Germany embassy (Map; 01 53 83 45 00; 13-15 av Franklin D Roosevelt, 8e; Franklin D Roosevelt); consulate (Map; 01 53 83 46 70; 28 rue Marbeau, 16e; Porte Maillot)
Ireland embassy (Map; 01 44 17 67 00; 4 rue Rude, 16e; Argentine)
Italy embassy (Map; 01 49 54 03 00; 47-51 rue de Varenne, 7e; Rue du Bac); consulate (Map; 01 44 30 47 00; 5 blvd Émile Augier, 16e; La Muette)
Japan embassy (Map; 01 48 88 62 00; 7 av Hoche, 8e; Courcelles)
Netherlands embassy (Map; 01 40 62 33 00; 7 rue Eblé, 7e; St-François Xavier)
New Zealand embassy (Map; 01 45 00 24 11; 7ter rue Léonard de Vinci, 16e; Victor Hugo)
South Africa embassy (Map; 01 53 59 23 23; 59 quai d’Orsay, 7e; Invalides)
Spain embassy (Map; 01 44 43 18 00; 22 av Marceau, 8e; Alma-Marceau)
Switzerland embassy (Map; 01 49 55 67 00; 142 rue de Grenelle, 7e; Varenne); consulate (Map; 01 45 66 00 80; 13 rue du Laos, 15e)
UK embassy (Map; 01 44 51 31 00; 35 rue du Faubourg St-Honoré, 8e; Concorde); consulate (Map; 01 44 51 31 02; 18bis rue d’Anjou, 8e; Concorde)
USA embassy (Map; 01 43 12 22 22; 2 av Gabriel, 8e; Concorde); consulate (Map; 0 810 264 626; 2 rue St-Florentin, 1er; Concorde)
Return to beginning of chapter
EMERGENCY
The following numbers are to be dialled in an emergency. Click here for hospitals with 24-hour accident and emergency departments.
Ambulance (SAMU; 15)
EU-wide emergency hotline ( 112)
Fire brigade ( 18)
Police ( 17)
Rape crisis hotline (Viols Femmes Informations; 0 800 05 95 95; 10am-7pm Mon-Fri)
SOS Helpline ( 01 47 23 80 80; in English 3-11pm daily)
SOS Médecins ( 01 47 07 77 77, 24hr house calls 0 820 33 24 24; www.sosmedecins-france.fr)
Urgences Médicales de Paris (Paris Medical Emergencies; 01 53 94 94 94; www.ump.fr, in French)
Lost Property
All objects found anywhere in Paris – except those picked up on trains or in train stations – are brought to the city’s Bureau des Objets Trouvés (Lost Property Office; Map; 0 821 00 25 25; www.prefecture-police-paris.interieur.gouv.fr/demarches/article/service_objets_trouves.htm, in French; 36 rue des Morillons, 15e; 8.30am-5pm Mon-Thu, 8.30am-4.30pm Fri; Convention), which is run by the Préfecture