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Arriving
in Paris By AirFrom the United States, there are regular flights through American Airlines, Delta Airlines and other major carriers. Air Canada runs flights from Canada, and Quantas provides connecting flights from Australia and New Zealand. The main British airlines with regular flights to Paris are British Airways and British Midland, and the main French airline is Air France.
The peak summer season in Paris is from July to September. Airline fares are at their highest during this time. Different airlines, however, may have slightly different high summer season periods, so check with the airlines or an agent as to which months are covered by these fares.
With fierce competition between the airlines for business, some very attractive discount deals are available. APEX (advance purchase excursion) fares can be a good buy. However, the flight has to be booked some time in advance, in some cases as much as a month, in others 7 to 14 days. These fares have restrictions and cannot be changed or cancelled without penalty. There are also minimum and maximum stay requirements.
If you look around for the best deals, you can find very good ones from reputable discount agents. If you reserve a cheap deal with a discount agent, check whether you will get a refund if the agent or operator goes out of business, and don't part with the full fare until you actually see the ticket.
Here are flight times to Paris from different world cities - New York: 8 hours; London: 1 hour; Dublin: 90 minutes; Montreal: 7.5 hours; Los Angeles: 12 hours
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Inside
Charles de Gaulle Airport
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Also known as Roissy Airport (or just Roissy in French), this is Paris's main airport, lying 19 miles (30 km) north of the city. It has three terminals. Terminal 1 is the oldest. Terminal 2 was built for Air France, but now hosts other airlines as well. The third terminal (T3, formerly T9) hosts charter and low cost airlines, such as easyJet.
Terminal 2 is actually not really a terminal, but rather a name applied to six connected but distinct "halls", each given a letter from A to F. In other airports, such as JFK or LAX, these "halls" would simply be called terminals, so that Charles de Gaulle International Airport can be more properly described as having eight terminals altogether. When landing at or taking off from Charles de Gaulle International Airport, one should always know precisely which of the eight terminals/halls the plane arrives at or departs from, as these can be located quite far apart from each other. The eight terminals/halls are indicated distinctly on plane tickets: 1, 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F, 3.
The six halls at Terminal 2, the newest part of the airport, have their own RER and TGV station underneath. Passengers may reach trains going to Paris or to other French and foreign cities by going through passages and moving walkways.
In
2006, the French government expressed the wish to designate certain
terminals of French airports as "high-security" terminals
that would handle flights to sensitive locations, such as the US
and Israel. Terminal 2E is planned to be the high security terminal
at CDG with the installation of more rigorous security controls
planned during the course of 2007. At the start of the Winter timetable
in 2006, Air France moved most of its flights to the US to 2E.
The RER station for Terminal 1 is quite distant from Terminal 1, and this terminal must, in fact, be reached using the free CDGVAL automatic light rail system (VAL); previously, shuttle buses were used. Started on April 4, 2007, CDGVAL links all the three terminals, though as there is only a single station for Terminal 2, passengers have to walk long distances from the CDGVAL station to the more distant halls such as 2B.
Travelers arriving at CDG can choose between a taxi, bus or train to reach central Paris. The bus services are provided by Air France and the RATP. Air France buses travel to the western side of the city, and the RATP buses to the north and east. The Air France service stops only twice: at Porte Maillot and Charles de Gaulle-Etoile. There you will find city center bus stops and metro and RER stations. The journey takes about 40 minutes. There is also an Air France bus service to Montparnasse TGV train station, leaving every hour.
The RATP bus No. 350 takes travelers to the Gare du Nord and Gare du l'Est, while No. 351 takes them to Place de la Nation. These jouneys take about 60 minutes and leave every 15 to 20 minutes. The bus termini are served by the metro and RER system. A Euro Disney bus service operates every 25 minutes.
The nearby Roissy Rail RER train service is linked by shutle bus service from the terminals. Trains leave every 15 minutes and take about 35 minutes to reach Paris center, at the Gare du Nord, where ther is a link to the metro and to other RER lines.
Taxis can be a good option for late-night arrivals and small groups, but lines can be long.
This is Paris's second airport, located 9 miles (15 km) south of Paris. It has two terminals, Orly Sud and Orly Ouest.
Orly Airport has flights to cities in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Africa, and the Caribbean. Prior to the construction of Charles de Gaulle International Airport, Orly was the main airport of Paris. Even with the shift of most international traffic to Charles de Gaulle International Airport, Orly remains the busiest French airport for domestic traffic and the second busiest French airport overall in terms of passenger boardings.
Transportation services take travelers to the southern part of Paris, and a special bus links the airport with the Euro Disney Resort, leaving every 45 minutes.
Travelers arriving at Orly can take a taxi, bus or train to central Paris. The bus services are run by Air France and RATP (Orlybus). Air France buses take about 30 minutes to reach the center of Paris, stopping at Les Invalides and Montparnasse. The Orlybus leaves every 15 minutes and takes about 50 minutes to reach the center of Paris at Denfert-Rochereau. The recent Jet Bus service takes travelers from the airport to Villejuif-Louis Aragon metro station every 12 minutes.
Shuttle buses link the airport with the RER Orlyrail services at nearby Rungis. Trains leave every 15 minutes, taking 45 minutes to reach the Gare d'Austerlitz. A train service, Orlyval, links up with the Roissy Rail RER line B at Antony station nearby, with trains conveniently leaving every 7 to 10 minutes.
Taxis are readily available. They take 25 to 45 minutes to reach Paris center depending on how heavy the traffic is.
Travelers making the journey to Paris from the journey to Paris from Britain cross the Channel by ferry, hovercraft or the Channel Tunnel. Sealink Stena has frequent crossings from Dover to Calais, taking 90 minutes. P&O European Ferries has a 75-minute crossing from Dover to Calais and a 6-hour crossing from Portsmouth to Le Havre. It also operates a 6-hour service from Portsmouth to Cherbourg. Sally Viking Line operates a 2 1/2-hour service from Ramsgate to Dunkirk and Brittany Ferries runs a 9-hour service from Portsmouth to St.-Malo.
Fast hovercraft services between Dover and Calais or Boulogne are operated by Hoverspeed. The high-speed catamaran is run by Seacat and carries both cars and passengers between Folkestone and Boulogne, and between Dover and Calais in summer. Ferry tickets can also be purchased with coach and railroad connections.
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Eurostar
at Paris Gare du Nord
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The Channel Tunnel rail service is run by Eurostar. Trains depart from Waterloo station in London and Ashford in Kent. The journey time from London to Paris (Gare du Nord) is 3 hours. The automobile-carrying rail service is called Le Shuttle and runs between Folkestone and Calais. The journey time is 35-45 minutes and services are very frequent. Driving times from Calais, Dunkirk and Boulogne to Paris are about hours on the Autoroute A1, or 4 to 5 hours on the N1 route nationale. Travelling from Dieppe and Le Havreit takes an average 2 1/2-3 hours on the A13. Driving from Cherbourg (N13, then A13) and St Malo (N175, then A13) to Paris can take 5 to 6 hours.
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Eurolines
Coach
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One of the main coach-stations is the Gare Routière at Porte de la Villette in northeastern Paris. It is served by the metro and many city bus lines. For some buses to Spain, Portugal and Holland, the terminus is Porte de Charenton in the southeastern part of Paris.
The main coach operator is Eurolines, based at the Gare Internationale in eastern Paris. Its coaches travel to Belgium, Holland, Ireland, Germany, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, Italy and Portugal.
The London coach terminus is Victoria Coach Station. There are two buses each weekday, leaving at noon and 9pm, and three buses on Saturdays. The journey from London to Paris takes about 10 hours. For information call the Victoria Coach Station.
As the railroad hub of France and the continent, Paris boasts six major international railroad stations operated by the French state railways, known as SNCF. The Gare de Lyon in eastern Paris is the city's main station, serving destinations in southern France, the Alps, Italy, Switzerland and Greece. The Gare d'Austerlitz on Paris' Left Bank serves southwest France, Spain and Portugal. The Gare de l'Est serves eastern France, Switzerland, Austria and Germany.
Trains arriving in Paris from the UK via Dieppe and ports in Normandy arrive at the Gare St-Lazare, or at the Gare du Nord from Boulogne and Calais. Most trains from Scandinavia, Holland and Belgium also arrive at the Gare du Nord. The terminus for trains from Brittanyports is the Gare Montparnasse on Paris' Left Bank. Journey times to Paris can be significantly cut by using the high-speed TGV service. This serves the southeast and southwest of France and also Brittany. Seats must be reserved, and reservations can be made at all railroad stations.
There are tourist offices at five of the main stations in Paris where travelers can seek advice. They can also reserve accomodations - useful if arriving at night.
All Paris railroad stations are served by city buses, the Paris metro and RER trains. The stations have directional signs showing where to make connections to the city transportation system.
Paris is an oval-shaped city. It is surrounded by an outer ring road called the Boulevard Périphérique. All highways leading to Paris link in to the Périphérique, which seperates the city from its suburbs. Each former city gate, called a porte, now corresponds to an exit from (or entrance to) the Périphérique. Arriving drivers should check their destination address and consult a map of central Paris to find the closest corresponding porte. For example, a driver who wants to get to the arc de Triomphe should exit via Porte Maillot.
