Travellers to Paris are discovering there’s more to city of love than its amorous atmosphere, for it is also leading the way in bringing free wireless internet in its parks and other public spaces.

Following an initiative launched two years ago, all 20 of the city’s arrondissements are heading towards wireless for the masses as they offer an ever growing number of internet hot spots.The initiative is forcing a number of hotels to stop charging for internet use, although a number are still profiting from the fact that many tourists don’t yet know about the free hot spots, or prefer the convenience of 24/7 access in their rooms (the parks’ service generally runs between the hours of 7 AM and 11 PM), according to webinfrance.com.

As well as the being able to surf and email whilst away, travellers are increasingly relying on VOIP services such as Skype to reduce or eliminate the cost of call back home.

They can even save on local phone calls in France, as well as get a “local” number in any city in the world for incoming calls, so people calling them will not be charged for an overseas call.

Travellers can use the internet to map out routes to landmarks using Mapquest or Google maps, as well as using mobile city guides such as city.mobi.
——-