With the £/Euro at 1:1, I want to save some dosh when me and Mrs. S go to Paris next month? Any tips from you lot?

Think the Metro stops at CDG – Wikipedia has a Metro map.

From what I remember, many Metro staff don't speak English, so if your French isn't up to much, might be worth a bit of research before hand.

If you're there for a few days, consider either a "Carte Orange" or if you're on the tourist route, then a "Paris Visite", both are short term (weekly-ish) tickets, the Paris Visite even includes discount vouchers for various attractions, can save a few bob with that if it's a tourist visit you're on.

Derek, just typed 'charles de gaulle metro' into google – loads of info:

http://www.parisdigest.com/transport/charlesdegaulle.htm

&

http://www0.epinions.com/content_3100352644

Although it does seem to depend on what time you're arriving.

Walking would be very cheap. Although not necessarily fast or pleasant! 🙂

I’m surprised that somebody with your morbid fear of flying is going via CDG.

Enjoy the trip.

Why not take the train?

Definitely not the cheapest but once you've negotiated the nightmare that's CDG, the fastest and most hair raising way, by a long shot, is the Honda Goldwing motorbike taxis!

Room for a carry on bag and they take credit card too. If there's traffic, can actually work out reasonable value for money as you won't pay to queue!

Take the RER B line to St Michel
Dont get on a slow one – wait for the express

Change to Metro line C and its 5 stops

Job done!

I find the that the Limo's are the best value, only £10 more than a crappy taxi and they've no problem if you feel the girlfriend up in the back 😀

Just don't tell the wife!

Vélib

Paris Charles de Gaulle. Worst. Airport. Ever.

Seriously. If I was going to Paris (and I wouldn't be) then I'd get the train for sure.

Take the RER as above – If you're arriving any time between 8 and 10 it'll take you an hour plus in a taxi or err "limo". It's an awful journey in (and out) form CDG.

Where do the Goldwings go from? That's worth knowing about.

The Goldwings arrive at the taxi pickup outside departures. I'd try to explain it more but the airport is mental! The only good bit is the 'Mr Soft' travellators…

Goldwings are awesome if you arrive at rush hour and need to get to anywhere round the peripherique!

The only good bit is the 'Mr Soft' travellators…

Love them esp when you get the ones with the big Dunlop logo still on them

</dork>

RER is the best bet.

re metro tickets unfortunaly unlike London Oyster you can not get a Cart purple unless you are a paris resident – shame that really as having one also speeds you booking out a velib..

so re metro, you can buy books of tickets (multiples of 10) quite cheapley..

Not sure why people fuss about the metro in paris, easy to use and quick plus simple colours to follow – though it helps if you make a note of the lines final destinations as this helps with direction info!

also make use of velibs as well apart from a few euro reg on your visa they are free to use for upto 30mins

also not that it helps here but you can get flights to Orly (south of paris, which is a littler and less nightmarish airport than CDG, though not as well served)

+1 for RER plus Metro. No other reasonable alternative. One little problem is (was) that the ticket machines at CDG don't (???) accept foreign cards.

+1 for velib

edit: scrub that, i was thinking gare du nord, rather than CDG!

I once missed my flight from CDG and once I missed the last train on Christmas eve having landed at CDG, because of the crappy transport links. When I missed the train I had about 2 hours to get from the airport to Montparnasse; I waited for a bus for about 45 mins that was meant to be there in 15, so in the end I had to cut my losses and get some kind of crappy suburban train, which proceeded to stop at a really dodgy looking ghetto station with the doors open for about half an hour in the middle of the night with not a single word of explanation offered. Extremely frustrating when you are trying to catch a train.

I had to spent Christmas Eve night sleeping on a TGV stood in Montparnasse.. lovely.