France strikes

I wouldn't cancel, but I would be prepared to be flexible with respect to transportation. We flew into CDG on a day of both SNCF and RER/Metro strikes, and had to immediately catch a train to Bordeaux. We got from CDG to Gare Montparnasse by Air France bus to avoid the strike disruption, and it was pretty quick. Our train had been cancelled (which I knew in advance), but there were several others that day, and we wound up getting on an earlier train. In your case, the first issue is whether you're going to take the train to Strasbourg on a strike day; if you read French, this is a helpful site for that kind of info: http://www.cestlagreve.fr/. The 2d issue is if so, will your train be cancelled; that info isn't usually available until the day before the strike day. The 3rd issue is if your train is cancelled, how many others will be running on that route. In my case, there were plenty of others that day; I believe mine was the only one cancelled on that route.

I’m looking for similar advice. I’ll be in Europe with my 14 yr old son and was really looking forward to showing him the Paris I fell in love with years ago. Taking a peek at some of the iconic tourist attractions, but mainly soaking up the street life and eating gelato and crepes (teenage boy, motivated by food). We are staying in the Latin Qtr.

Our Paris days are planned for July 9-11, so will be in Paris while the final game is being played outside Paris. Maybe all the drunken fans will be preoccupied away?

We’re coming and going from Brussels on the Thalys train, so I haven’t heard about strikes on that line. Of course their was news yesterday about terrorist intelligence on Belgium and France.

Then there is the trash and the violent protests. Any chance it will be cleaned up and everyone exhausted by July?

I don’t want to let fear or news reports dictate my plans, but at this point I’m thinking maybe we just go to the Netherlands for those days instead.

Thank you in advance for any advice or insight on any or all of these questions.

The FanZone at the Eiffel Tower will still be crowded with people who couldn't go to the final game, and there is a large screen in front of Hotel de Ville, as well, which is packed with fans. I would avoid both these areas and any areas where bars will be serving sports fans. Might be a good idea to do a GoogleMaps search for them, so you can go elsewhere. There is a lot of Paris left over for those who aren't interested in sports.

The protest marches are announced in advance, since the route must be closed off to traffic. If you avoid the areas near the end of the march, you will avoid any trouble. Ask at your hotel, if you have any questions about a "manifestation".

The train strikes are supposed to end by the middle to end of next week.

The trash strike is over, but there's more than the usual amount of trash around, due to the larger than normal number of visitors.
The Seine is still running higher than normal, so the bateaux mouches are only doing partial trips - not being able to fit under the bridges near Notre Dame, but they do go to the Eiffel Tower. The trips still last about an hour.

You should always expect delays and will probably be spending much more time standing in line than you did on your last visit. Paris is much more crowded than it used to be.

Protect your valuables, be flexible, bring an umbrella, enjoy yourselves.

Thank you, chexbres, for this sane input. What you describe, I can totally deal with. Watching the news though is totally overwhelming.

sailmom - do what we do and stop watching the news!
You have to realize that the media just keep repeating the same stuff over and over - bound to make us all hysterical, but very good for their ratings (income). Most of the information is second-hand, from people who aren't anywhere near Paris.
Seriously, unplug for awhile - you'll feel better. When you get here, you'll see what I mean.

chexbres, Unplugged. Better already! Looking forward to trip, and thanks for the input.