Paris Travel Guide

Getting There By Air

Aéroports de Paris (ADP) (www.adp.fr) is responsible for the two major airports in Paris: Roissy-Charles de Gaulle and Orly.

Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG)
Tel: 3950.
Website: www.adp.fr

The city's main airport is located 23km (14 miles) northeast of the city. There are three terminals: CDG 1 serves international flights; CDG 2 serves national and international flights; and T9 has charter flights only (national and international). CDG 1 and CDG 2 are linked by free shuttle buses. Air France coaches and RER line B (see below) link Charles de Gaulle airport to Orly airport (journey time - 50 minutes).

Airport facilities: Facilities include bars, restaurants and boutiques, post offices, newsagents, chemists, banks, ATMs, bureau de change, Wi-Fi, insurance facilities and car parks. There is no left-luggage facility. Car hire companies at the airport include Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, National Citer and Sixt.

Business facilities: Fully equipped meeting rooms, offices and a VIP lounge are located within the recently revamped Roissy Charles de Gaulle 1 Business Center (tel: (01) 4862 2290), accessible from the departures level near gate 34, by taking the escalators to the shopping level.

Transport to the city: The RER line B (tel: 3246; www.ratp.info) runs frequently throughout the day, departing from the TGV station of CDG 2 to the Gare du Nord, Châtelet-Les Halles, St-Michel and Denfert-Rochereau, where there are métro stations (journey time - 30-45 minutes). Two bus services with SNCF bus de nuit (tel: 0810 020 202), run from the airport to the city center when the train line is closed. One service takes passengers to Gare du Nord and Châtelet, the other to Gare du Nord, Châtelet, Gare de Lyon and Gare d'Austerlitz (journey time - 45-60 minutes).

The Roissybus service operated by RAPT (tel: 3246; www.ratp.info) departs from the three terminals to rue Scribe, métro Opéra (journey time - about 60 minutes). The service operates daily 0600-2300. RAPT bus services 350 to Gare de l'Est and 351 to Nation also serve Terminals 1 and 2.

Air France coaches (tel: 0892 350 820) depart every 15 minutes from CDG 1 and CDG 2 - running daily to Place Charles de Gaulle (journey time - 40 minutes). Buses also depart daily 0700-2100 to Paris-Montparnasse, rue du Commandant Mouchotte, Gare de Lyon and boulevard Diderot (journey time - 50 minutes).

The Blue Shuttle (tel: (01) 3011 1300; www.bluvan.fr) is a door-to-door airport minibus service that is often cheaper than a taxi. Places must be reserved at least two days in advance (journey time - 1 hour 15 minutes). Ticket prices vary according to the number of passengers and the time of booking, the cheapest rate is only available if booked at least three weeks ahead.

A taxi to the city center costs around €50. (journey time - 45-60 minutes).

Paris-Orly Airport (ORY)
Tel: 3950.
Website: www.adp.fr

Orly is located 14km (9 miles) south of the city, on the A6 motorway. There are two terminals linked by navette (shuttle). Orly Sud handles mainly international flights, while Orly Ouest handles mainly domestic flights.

Airport facilities: These include bars, restaurants, Wi-Fi, boutiques, banks, foreign exchange, dry cleaners, supermarket, pharmacy, post office and a hairdresser. There is no left-luggage facility. Car hire companies at the airport include Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, National Citer and Sixt.

Business facilities: The fully equipped Orly West Business Center (tel: (01) 4975 1233) has several meeting rooms, offices and a VIP business lounge in the west terminal. Access is from the departure level, by an escalator located at the entrance to hall three.

Transport to the city: A combination service of RER line C (tel: 3246; www.ratp.info) and the ADP navette (shuttle bus) departs from both terminals and stops at the Gare d'Austerlitz, St-Michel, Invalides and Porte Maillot (journey time - about 35 minutes). The service operates daily.

Orlyval (tel: 0836 687 714) is the Val train shuttle link to the RER line B station of Anthony, which has métro connections to Denfert-Rochereau, St-Michel and Châtelet-Les Halles (journey time - 30 minutes). Trains run regularly throughout the day.

Frequent RATP buses (tel: 3246; www.ratp.fr) stop at place Denfert-Rochereau. The ‘Orlybus' runs to Denfert-Rochereau RER and métro station daily (journey time - 25 minutes). The ‘Jetbus' runs to métro Villejuif-Louis Aragon (journey time -15 minutes).

Air France coaches (tel: 0892 350 820; www.airfrance.com) operate daily, stopping at the Porte d'Orléans, Gare Montparnasse, Duroc and Gare des Invalides (journey time - around 30 minutes).

The Blue Shuttle (see Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport above) runs into the city center (journey time - 1 hour). Taxis from the airport to the center of Paris also cost around €40-45 (journey time - 35 minutes).

Approximate flight times to Paris: From London is 1 hour 10 minutes; from New York is 7 hours; from Los Angeles is 10 hours 30 minutes; from Toronto is 7 hours and 20 minutes and from Sydney is 23 hours 25 minutes.

Getting There By Road

Traffic in Paris drives on the right and the minimum driving age is 18 years. Speed limits are 130kph (80mph) on motorways, 110kph (68mph) on dual carriageways, 90kph (56mph) outside built-up areas and 50kph (30mph) in built-up areas. A national driving license, the car's registration document and a red warning triangle must be carried at all times, or the driver is liable for a fine. EU nationals taking their own cars to France are strongly advised to obtain a Green Card, without which insurance cover is limited to the legal minimum. All headlamp beams must be adjusted for right-side driving by use of beam deflectors or by tilting the headlamp bulb-holder. The Automobile Club de France (tel: (01) 4055 4300; www.automobile-club.org) can provide information and might offer reciprocal benefits to members of automobile clubs in other countries.

Emergency breakdown services
Auto Charonne Dépannage (tel: (01) 4024 0329) - on motorways, dial 112.

Routes to the city
The Anglo-French Eurotunnel shuttle services allow drivers and passengers of cars and coaches to cross the Channel Tunnel (journey time - 35 minutes) from Kent in Southern England to Nord-Pas-de-Calais in Northern France. Tickets are available for purchase at check-in on the day of travel or pre-booked with Eurotunnel (tel: 0844 879 7379, in the UK; www.eurotunnel.com). Alternatively, there are numerous daily sea crossings to France. From Boulogne (near Calais), the A16 leads directly into Paris. The E19 motorway leads from Brussels into Paris (via the A2 and A1). Lille is linked to Paris via the A1. The N10 leads from Bordeaux to Paris, while from Marseille, drivers should take the A7 to Lyon, after which the A6 leads north to Paris.

Driving times to the city
From Lille - 2 hours 30 minutes; Brussels - 3 hours 30 minutes; London - 5 hours (excluding the Channel crossing); Bordeaux - 6 hours; Marseille - 7 hours 30 minutes.

Coach services
The majority of international coaches arrive and depart from the main coach station, Gare Routière Internationale Paris-Gallieni, at Bagnolet, 20th. Reservations can be made with Eurolines (tel: 0892 899 091; www.eurolines.fr), with links to Paris from Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels, London, Rome and many other European destinations.

Getting There By Rail

Rail Services
Paris is served by six major stations - Gare du Nord, rue Dunkerque, 10th, Gare de l'Est, Place du 8 Mai 1945, 10th, Gare St-Lazare, place du Havre, 8th, Gare de Lyon, place Louis-Armand, 12th, Gare Montparnasse, boulevard de Vaugirard, 15th, and Gare d'Austerlitz, boulevard de l'Hôpital, 13th. Gare du Nord is the French terminus of the international Eurostar train that runs from London Saint Pancras. Thalys's services from Brussels Bruxelles-Midi also terminate here. Eurostar also runs from London Saint Pancras to Disneyland Paris.

Rail Operators
Eurostar (tel: 0843 218 6186, in the UK; www.eurostar.com) runs high-speed trains to Paris from London. Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer (SNCF) (tel: 0892 353 535; www.sncf.com) is the national railway service, which is fast, efficient and generally reliable. A state-of-the-art high speed railway network (the TGV) spreads out from Paris to most major French cities, including Lyon and Marseille. Information on the French rail network is available directly from SNCF or from Rail Europe in the UK (tel: 0844 848 4064, in the UK; www.raileurope.co.uk).

Connections
From London - 2 hours 20 minutes; Brussels - 1 hour 30 minutes; Nice - 5 hours 30 minutes; Lille - 1 hour; Marseille - 3 hours.

Getting Around in Paris, France

Public Transport

The Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP) (tel: 3246, in France only; www.ratp.fr) is an integrated, five-zone system of bus, metro and trains that is both cheap and efficient (except during strikes, which are frequent). Free transport maps are available at Paris métro stations, bus terminals and the tourist office. 'Paris Visites' offer one-, two-, three- and five-day visitor passes for Paris and its immediate suburbs (zones 1-3), which can include transport to the airports, Versailles and Disneyland Paris (zones 1-5).

Taxis

Taxis in Paris can be hailed in the street or caught at taxi ranks found at airports, stations and close to main road junctions. Tipping is not compulsory but drivers expect around 10%. Taxi numbers are displayed at the ranks and listed in the yellow pages. These include Alpha Taxis (tel: (01) 4585 8585), Taxis Bleus (tel: 0891 701 010) and Taxis G7 (tel: (01) 4739 4739).

Driving in the City

Driving in central Paris is not advised. Most hotels do not have garages, parking is difficult (illegally parked cars are towed away) and traffic jams (embouteillages) are frequent. Parking prices vary throughout the city but are in the region of €2-5 an hour, for a maximum of two hours.

Car Hire

The minimum age for car hire in Paris varies from 21 to 25 years. Drivers must have held a national driving license for at least one year. It is usually requested that the cost is paid for with the driver's credit card. Major car hire companies include Avis (tel: (01) 4418 1054; www.avis.fr), Budget (tel: (01) 4587 08 23; www.budget.com), Europcar (tel: (01) 3044 9384; www.europcar.fr), Hertz (tel: (01) 3938 3000; www.hertz.fr), National Citer (tel: (01) 4438 6045; www.citer.fr), and Sixt (tel: (01) 4438 5552; www.sixt.fr).

Bicycle Hire

Vélib' (tel: (01) 3079 7930; www.velib.paris.fr) is Paris's city-wide bike hire service. The first half hour is free, with low charges thereafter. The 800 stands mean you are never more than 300m (1,000ft) away from picking up one of the 20,000 bikes.