Arras in Sept

HI,

Absolutely no need to stress over staying and visiting Arras. If you intend on tracking down history, you're in the right city. I've spend days and weeks there exploring the city and area. Arras is on the main train lines, eg, TGV to Strasbourg direct, and TGV to Paris arriving at Gare du Nord. The Arras-Paris Nord ride on the TGV takes 40 mins. From the train station it's only a few minutes walk to the centre ville. The city hall has the Tourist Office on the ground floor, underground is a WW1 tour when it served as Gen HQ for the British Army. Lots of information available at this Tourist Office, both in French and English.

The major hotels are left of the train station where you could also get a rental car and also opposite of the station. There is a post office (ie getting stamps for postcards, etc) anf a tourist office in front of the street with the Artois banner, which serves as an entrance to the centre ville from another direction. Chances are you won't run into any Americans in the main part of town or anywhere else, I've only seen Canadians and British tour buses at the WW 1 sites, ie military cemeteries.

The TGV goes Roissy (Paris airport CDG) from Arras. Save some time to get that reserved. The Arras train station office can be tediously slow. Get your train reservation for CDG Sunday morning or Sat night depending when your tour ends. This way you can still spend most of the day in Arras. No need to get to airport hotel earlier than 19:00 or 20:00 hrs. My last night in Paris I stay at the airport, get there about 20:00 hrs. I stay at the Campanille hotel, a basic 2 star with a shuttle to CDG starting at 0530, and a very nice restaurant. Campanille is a French chain, hardly ever see Americans there either, always had satisfactory stays there.

Hi,

In case you're wondering about the weather. I've not been in Arras in Sept, only in June, July and the first half of August. Normally, Arras is a few degrees cooler than Paris. If it's warm or hot in Paris in Sept, expect it to be a bit cooler when you arrive in Arras, normally. The Campanille hotel does not have AC, not one of my travel requirements since I don't need it. At CDG I doubt you would need it either for just one night.

You can easily visit the Vimy memorial on your own. The free tours are led by well-informed Canadian university students, including an illuminating descent into the tunnels. http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/overseas/first-world-war/france/vimy
Easiest access from Arras is by taxi; the driver will come back at a designated time or in response to a phone call. Don't underestimate how long you will want to stay at this sombre, moving place.
And as other posters have indicated, Arras has its own appeal, with lots of history in both "world" wars and the distinctive appearance of a northern French city. The site given above has links to other tourist activity.

Thanks all--this is great information. It sounds like a tour of the WWI sites is a doable day trip from Paris.

Followup questions. For a day trip to WWI sites, would you choose 1) bullet train to and from Paris with a guided tour met at Arras, 2) a minivan tour that leaves from Paris, or 3) something else? My thought is that it would be fun to ride the train and then there would be less travel time and more time for several WWI sites (Vimy ridge, Lochnagar crater, Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial), but on the other hand a minivan tour might give us more insight into the places we pass along the way. I think the total price is similar either way. I am not interested in driving in France, and it seems like using taxis at Arras would limit us on the number of sites we could visit unless we want to spend a lot. Thanks everyone for your insight and help.

Hi,

The fast train TGV Paris Nord to Arras takes 40 mins, if you take the regional train TER, then the ride is close to 2 hrs. Normally if you drive from Arras to Paris, count on 2 hrs for the ride, plus there is toll booth en route. On the WW1 sites near Arras there is also the German WW1 military cemetery.

If your tour meets at the Arras train station, I would take the TGV from Paris, make sure you give yourself ample time as not to miss the tour.

Would it be better to take a minivan tour from Paris, or take the train from Paris and get a tour in Arras? Or does it not matter?

Hi,

I've never taken a tour of Arras and the environs, only explored and tracked down sites without a tour. My suggestion is to inquire at the Tourist Office located at the Hotel de Ville (city hall) in Arras in terms of logistics to see if tours departing from Arras are possible, what is offered, etc. The usual driving time Paris-Arras is ca 2 hrs, which one can do if one takes a regional train from Paris Nord, Paris-Arras on the TGV takes 40 mins, it's also a pricey ticket too. I would assume the minivan would not be driving that fast.