I've been reading suggestions and mixed reviews of the RER B and Easy Bus to get from CDG to the 1st arr. I've also heard about the merits of a taxi for a larger group - but have avoided doing that route in past trips because I was afraid we'd be captive tourists and end up with a large bill for that trip. Maybe that's unfounded? I've only used the bus transfers before, at a rate of about 17 euro. I'd rather spend less than that for the five of us. :-)
What do you recommend now?
Thanks,
Laurie
For five people, your best bet is a taxi. You'd spend way less than 17x5!
Unless of course the taxi drivers are being a royal pain in the rear and conducting a "snail" (escargot) operation in protest of Uber (or whatever their current complaint may be), where they drive slowly and jam all the approaches to the city from the airports like they were yesterday and are today. . .
The average taxi will not hold five people and luggage. So you will need to find a van.
Frank. there are van taxis at offical taxi line at airport. that can take up to six people.
85 for bus..
or likely no more then 70-75 for taxi. Meter will likely show about 55-60 euros.. but there are extra 3 euros per person for 3rd, 4th and 5th passenger,,and a one euro per suitcase fee, these are charges added to meter fee.
Taxi takes you door to door.. bus may make other stop.. with kids , after a long flight, we just want to get to hotel/apartment.
Be sure to only use official taxi that you get assigned at airport taxi line.. ignore any taxi driver that approaches you in terminal promising you some flat rate.
The train would be 50 Euro. The AF bus would be more than a taxi for 5. A taxi will cost about 55 Euro or so plus 3 Euro for passenger 4 and 5 and one Euro per bag in trunk. These additional costs are added at the end. There are plenty of van cabs at the airports which will take up to 7 people. Have one member of your group go to the head of the taxi queue (while the rest get in line) and alert the dispatcher that you are a group of 5 and then join the group in the queue. The dispatcher will match you with an appropriate taxi; you may have to step aside and wait until they get one, but it is not likely to be long. I would guess that the trip would be between 65 and 70 Euro.
Definitely book a cab the night before making clear the size of the party for return to the airport. Use G7 ENglish line to reserve.
Yes, you won't have any problem getting the correct-sized taxi - i.e. mini-van. If the vehicle that arrives when you're at the first of the line isn't a mini-van, they'll just hold you until one arrives (usually just a couple of minutes, not a big deal).
Do NOT accept offers from people in the terminal for rides. Go out to the taxi line.
It hasn't been my experience that Paris taxi drivers DO NOT "hold tourists captive." Most likely, they will hardly speak to you as most do not speak much, if any, English, but they probably know more than they let on. Be sure to write down the address of your hotel on a piece of paper to give the driver. I have found the drivers expert at find the easiest way through Paris traffic and you can expect to pay 50-60 euros for the fare, but be aware, that there will be a 3 euro charge for each passenger over 3, plus a 1 euro charge for each bag placed in the trunk after the first. So, you will be likely to have about 10 euros added to whatever the meter charge is. However, it is not necessary to tip the driver, though I usually round up a few euros, especially if the driver did a good job of navigating through the traffic.
I think it might be optimistic to assume only 10 euros added to meter fare.. 3 extra passengers at 3 euros each.. 9 euros, 1 euro per suitcase.. do not think family of five will have only one suitcase.. so another 4-5 euros..
It's only 6 euros extra for a family of five for the extra passenger supplement (3+2). That leaves 4 euros for baggage fees, which will be 4 euros for 5 bags placed in the trunk. And there the OP will be with a family of five and extra fees of 10 euros with 5 bags in the trunk.
Great info! We are also a family of 5 with young children. The RER seems efficient, but it leaves us about 1km walk from the station to our flat with bags and kids. I worried about some talk about bad traffic and race car type taxi drivers, but this definitely seems the best approach. Thanks.
elli: you could always take the RER to Gare du Nord and then a cab to your hotel. I have never heard mention of "race car" type taxi drivers in Paris.
Taking the RER to Gare to Nord and a cab to the hotel is the worst of both worlds financially -- it costs 50 Euro for that family of 5 to get to Nord and then they will pay 6 Euro plus luggage on top of the meter for the trip to their hotel -- say perhaps 20 Euro total if they are very lucky and perhaps more. -- So the cost is greater than a cab from the airport and one has had to drag luggage on to the train and perhaps on stairs and has had to be vulnerable to pickpockets and thieves while exhausted and carrying all their stuff.
For one person RER/Cab makes sense but for 5 it is more expensive (or certainly not less) than a cab from the airport and much less convenient at a time when a little convenience is nice to have.
We are doing this in a couple weeks with 4, and even though the RER goes right to Les Halles near our hotel we are opting for cab option. The RER doesn't seem to make as much sense when you have so many people. Cab may be a bit more, but worth it to save the hassle. I have written our hotel address on a card to give to the driver in case we have any trouble communicating. :)
Have a good trip!
Kim
I agree with the taxi vote. We recently returned from Paris with my family four. I had spent a lot of time investigating the use of the RER or bus to get to our hotel. In the end, the taxi was the best option. We got a van which held everything nicely. It made our arrival a lot easier. Thought about using RER on departure but the taxi spoiled us so we did that again. Felt that the slight added expense was worth it.
Reporting back from our trip...which was awesome!
We decided to try EasyBus, and booked a ride for the 5 of us from CDG to the city center. Our hotel was only about two blocks from the drop off place. Each fare was 4 Euros, so 20 Euros was a good deal for us. However, it took about 1.5 hours through a lot of stop and go traffic in an unairconditioned shuttle-type van to get from A to B, and all 5 of us felt queasy during the ride. So, perhaps that was just the driver we had, but next time, I might opt for the taxi/van.
The tickets were nonrefundable, but one good thing was that they were valid for 60 minutes before and after the time we booked. So, we were able to jump on an earlier bus than planned. That was nice to get moving towards Paris center - but in hindsight, the traffic might have been better at 10 rather than 9.
So, that was our experience - cheap and safe and easy - but a long, hot and queasy ride.
Laurie
