Best way to get from CDG Terminal 2E (Delta airlines) to St. Germain des Pres (6th arrondissement)

The RER station is between Terminal 2E and Terminal 2C. Here is the map: http://parisbytrain.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/cdg_map.pdf. I can't guess the distance because it depends where your starting point is in Terminal E, but think 5 to 10 minutes walking at an average pace. If you have never taken the RER B before you may want to look at http://parisbytrain.com/charles-de-gaulle-airport-cdg-to-paris-by-train/. I don't take the RER B any more because I am usually exhausted when we land and I don't find suburban commuter trains exciting but if you do, you will have fun with this one. Just be sure to secure your belongings and pay attention to your surroundings and your things. The RER B line from CDG to Paris is fine but it is a great place for pickpockets to ply their trade given that people riding into Paris with luggage are usually beginning a trip and suffering from jet lag.

I don't know that "exciting" is the word. Crowded, hot, dirty, and usually effective at getting you into town (unless strike or breakdown), yes. Not to mention the adventure of buying a ticket (10 euros) if you're newly arrived*. And, as JHK said, keep alert and awake and your belongings in your hands.

One thing you do have in your favor is arriving at 2E, which is pretty much the closest you can get out of the whole airport to the train/RER station.

*as opposed to being either a) a local who already has a ticket or pass or b) someone with a chip-and-pin credit card. Otherwise, add a long wait in line just for the privilege of buying the ticket to the rest of the excitement.

Just follow the signs.

It's not that hard to get to the RER. You come out of the baggage claim, customs area (which basically means you walk by some empty tables) turn left and walk. It's probably a 5 to 10 minute walk. But if you follow the signs it's not hard at all and it's not at all congested. When you get to the HUGE departure screens (think two stories high showing flights all over the world) take the escalator down a few flights and there you.

It helps to have change or a chip/pin card as the line to buy tickets at a gate if often long. There's a little store there where I have been known to buy a soft drink just to get change :) I am lucky because I do have a true chip/pin card so buying the ticket is easy!

I am a single female, 5"5" not dramatically overweight, 50 plus, so hardly "imposing" and I have never had any trouble on the RER in too many trips to count so don't worry. I do stop and put on moneybelt with my passport etc in a bathroom before I get on the train. I realize that as tired as I am this is when I am most vulnerable so better safe than sorry!

I actually preferred the RER to the one time I took a cab. The cab took just as long and the driver was kind of a creep :) I didn't want a date just a ride LOL!

These are all very very helpful answers. I really spent hours and hours googling on the RER B to Paris and Terminal 2 to the RER station, but your experiences really give me a much clearer picture of what awaits.

If jetlagged and simply wornout by airports, security lines, baggage, crowds, I will look for a taxi stand. And I will put my money belt on in a bathroom before leaving the airport.

I wonder if the express RER B is running and is worth an additional wait.

In Rome in April of last year I spent perhaps 25 minutes in a taxi going from the Pantheon to my hotel, which was 1.5 miles away, the taxi driver going up and down and around innumerable roundabouts. I felt like shouting and saying "What are you doing?" which is maybe what I should have done rather than let him take me for a ride.

You can buy an RER ticket at the orange tourist information desks scattered around the terminals. There's one in Terminal 2E on the arrivals level at Exit 11. Do that first, and you won't have to wait in long lines at the RER station to get a ticket. Or get a true chip-and-PIN card that works offline--Wells Fargo and Barclaycard have some versions with this function, or try Andrews Federal Credit Union if you want to avoid high bank fees. (By the way, you are right about the transfer at Chatelet/Les Halles--it can be a long trek with lots of stairs, which is no fun when you're jet-lagged and have luggage.) Bon voyage!

With the new flat rate for taxis from CDG to Paris, you will not have to worry about the driver taking a circuitous route in order to run up the meter charge. As to the express train, I have been told that express trains have an advantage if you are worried about pickpockets and luggage thieves because they don't work the express trains because the can't get off the train until Gare du Nord.

The rer train is safe , just be aware of things around you, you have the pacsafe bag which my wife and I had when we were in Paris back in sept. That bag has the wire mesh in the strap and bag so it can't be cut and we felt very safe with our personal belongings . If you are staying for a week or more look into the passé navigo, it's gets you on the trains , subways , busses , and will save you money and not having to worry about getting tickets every other day

An alternative (more comfort; less risk of pickpockets, etc.) from Rick's recent US Today Article on France 2016 (2/17/2016): "There are also some fresh budget options for getting into Paris. A new EasyBus shuttle service runs from Charles de Gaulle Airport to Paris, with dirt-cheap fares." We plan to use this in May. The fares (depending on time/date/advance reservations) appear to be in the E6 neighborhood, quite the bargain. See: http://www.easybus.com/en/paris-cdg-airport

RCA818

p.s. agree that if you are going to take the RER, continuing to Saint Michel/Notre Dame instead of changing at Chatelet is much more user-friendly, even including the extra walk, given that you're packing lightly.

As T said, you can buy your RER ticket at a Tourist Information stand.

I posted the RER B schedule on another post. The first express, call "direct" in French, leaves CDG at 8:54. After that about every third RER is a direct/ express from CDG to Gare du Nord, and then stops at every Paris stop.

Finally, getting off at St. Michel, if you take the Place St. Michel exit (where the St. Michel fountain is located), immediately right next to Place St. Andre des Arts. From there you can take rue St. Andre des Arts, which is the most direct way to get to the heart of the St. Germain neighborhood from St. Michel. Rue St. Andre des Arts is a narrow street filled with shops and restaurants, parallel to Bd. St. Germain.