Travel question. Instead of an escorted tour, any of yall ever book at a hotel in

[Major Nikon]

2. I generally don't book anything in advance when I go to Paris

Paris has an excellent public transportation system and is designed for non-native speakers much like other very large cities. You can either buy your Louvre tickets in advance or you can buy them at the museum. The Musée d'Orsay is every bit as good as the Louvre and there's also other great museums in Paris, so I believe you can get a pass that gets you into several of them, IIRC. Any hotel that advertises concierge is going to be able to help you, and most people in Paris speak at least some English, especially in all the businesses that deal with tourists. I'm not sure what all you want to see. One thing that might take a bit of prior planning is a day trip to Monet's home, which is well outside the city, but is well worth seeing if you have the time.