Is it safe to travel now to France ?

Spent 4 days in Paris last week, going back through tomorrow on our way to Dijon. Security is high but we do not live our lives in fear. Be aware of your surroundings and carry on.

Americans are at far greater risk from Americans with guns than from acts of random terror in Europe. Your odds of being killed in a traffic accident are higher than being caught in a terrorist attack. Why let fear govern your life? Certainly no one on the internet can tell you if some act of terror will occur on a future trip.

You should always check with the American Embassy and your airline company for advice on alerts before you travel. The answers they provide may help you decide if you want to travel or not.

In Paris, security is at its highest level - which means that airports, train and Metro stations are being patrolled by police and soldiers. In the high-end department stores and designer shops, you will be asked to open your purse, backpack or bags and open your coat. The same thing goes for museums and monuments, where everyone must pass through Security before entering. Schools and places of worship are also patrolled regularly, and you'll see soldiers and police patrolling just about anywhere tourists gather.

Those of us who live in Paris are just going about our daily lives, and don't think much about the alert status, even after the recent attacks. You might want to avoid getting too close to protest marches, though they are normally kept well under control.
Since terrorists specialize in random attacks, there is really nothing you can do to avoid them except stay at home.

I would feel a million times safer travelling in France - where there are armed guards/military police (sorry - what would you call them?) patrolling the major train stations and places like the Eiffel Tower - than I would travelling to Detroit or Chicago or LA...but you know your level of comfort - if it would be too worrying for you, then you wouldn't enjoy your holiday.

Honestly - you can be as vigilant as you want, but short of staying in your own hometown and never leaving your house, you will not be 100% safe anywhere...if something is going to happen, sadly there isn't much you can do to prevent it (other than...not travelling).

If this is about a trip by a 90 year old then the real risk is falling breaking a hip and having to be medivaced home at the cost of 100 K and it is very difficult for people that age to get travel insurance that covers that risk. I carry an annual policy that covers medical evacuation only and I don't think we can renew after age 80. So finding travel insurance is a big deal as the risk of an accident is high for this age group and it is pricey. My mother stumbled on the steps of the Orvieto Cathedral an hour after her arrival at age 80 20 years ago and only the fact that she was on my arm and I braced and prevented a fall saved that trip.

On the other hand, I am old myself and don't worry at all about terrorism. Some bad thing is going to happen to me sooner rather than later at my age and I will die; that is as good a way as many of the alternatives.

French ATC work action apparently is affect Orly more than CDG:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/31/french-air-traffic-strike-flights-paris-orly-marseille-cancelled

Paris Charles De Gaulle airport was not expected to be affected by the
36-hour walkout over job cuts and the lack of investment in new
technology.

The strikes coincide with a fresh day of protests over labour reforms
in yet another challenge for the embattled government of President
François Hollande.

Cars were burned in Paris and more than 30 people arrested as
protesters clashed with police, who responded with tear gas.

Organisers have threatened an even bigger day of demonstrations on
Thursday. Parliament is set to vote on the reforms in late April or
early May.

State Department is updating Paris warnings:
http://france.usembassy.gov/usc_travelinfo.html

April 29, 2016

U.S. Embassy Paris, France

Security Message for U.S. Citizens:

Demonstrations in France on May 1, 2016

The U.S. Embassy in France informs U.S. citizens that several national
unions across a variety of sectors intend to hold demonstrations
against proposed labor reforms on Sunday, May 1, 2016.

In Paris, protesters will gather at Place de la Bastille at 3:00pm
before marching to Place de la Nation.

Other demonstrations will likely take place throughout France.

It is as safe to travel to France today as it was a year ago today. But if this is for your 90 year old father, why isn't someone accompany him?

Just got back from France 4/26. As already mentioned , there is armed military in groups of 3-4 patrolling all the touristy areas and bags/purses are checked. I'm a woman of 74 and felt perfectly safe .

Thanks again everyone for your great input. Dad was finally able to get in with a respected tour group that's leaving the US for France. He will have a chaparone. Thanks again !

I am glad to hear your Dad will be with a group -- not for safety but for the logistics ease at his age. We are still independent travelers in our 70s but are doing a river cruise in Russia this fall to make it easier to see some smaller towns -- first time with any sort of cruise. I'm sure if we are still traveling at 90 we will want someone lugging our suitcase and making sure we get from point A to point B.

It won't apply to your dad because he will be going after the first of May, but as for the warning about the demonstrations on that date, that would be every year. That date is the international workers day, and there will be - always are - demonstrations all over Europe in big cities - and in the UK too.

I arrived in Paris yesterday and nothing seems to be much different. Crowds everywhere, traffic miserable, and I didn't notice much extra police at the train station. I can't tell you about the situation at the major tourist sites as I've been to Paris enough times to have seen everything I want to see and don't plan to go back to any. Now, I just choose an area and wander around.

Tomorrow, May 1, I plan to relax near my hotel which is on the other side of town from the Bastille. I'm in the 15th and I don't think there will be much of a ruckus in this part of town.

I have no extra worries about a terrorist attack here as I would anywhere else I plan to travel. I'm more concerned about when it is going to stop raining.

I was surprised to see the small Luxembourg City train station patrolled by numerous police officers and even a police dog.

Just as a matter of routine when I was registering my itinerary & contact details on the Australian Dept. of Foreign Affairs & Travel website, I thought I should check their travel advisories for France (I'll be there for most of June) and was somewhat surprised to read this:

There are frequent reports of crime, including robbery and muggings,
on the train system servicing Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle (CDG) and Orly
Airports. Travellers are advised to consider other means of transport
from the airports to Paris, such as bus or taxi, particularly late at
night and early in the morning.

I had had every intention of crossing Paris from Bercy to Gare du Nord (to catch the Eurostar) using the Metro/RER D but this gave me pause for thought and made me glad that I'm travelling on to the UK by train rather than plane.

The alert is somewhat misleading - it all hinges on the last sentence "very late at night".
You are at risk when using any form of mass transport - in Paris on anywhere else - when you take the last trains of the evening or the first ones in the morning. This means after midnight and around 05h45, when people have had too much to drink and are looking for visitors who have done the same.

You will be safe if you avoid confrontation, protect your valuables at all times, and know where you are headed and how to get there.

The advisory about the RER B is longstanding. Note that the advisory refers to getting to Paris from the airport and not the other way around. Why? Because tourists arriving after a long flight are likely to have jet lag and that fact along with the fact that they usually have their spending money for the trip (if they are carrying cash) and all of their credit and debit cards make them attractive to the criminal element. And there is also the lack of familiarity with the mass transit system and you have a great situation for pickpockets, etc.

I recently got back from France, and while we only stayed in rural France, we did fly in and out of CDG and took a train out of Montparnasse. I didn't notice any extensive security at either place, although I presume it was there, and was never asked for an ID or to open my bags. I had read about the possibility of screening anyone entering train stations, but that apparently is not occurring. It would certainly create havoc if it did, given the numbers of people who use the stations.

My hubby and I took my Mom to France last fall and we were in Paris during the attacks. Weird as it may seem, we never felt at risk. Once it happened, the government moved so quickly and had a true show of force. The next day we were doing as the Parisians were doing.....we went shopping for food on Rue Cler and ate at a sidewalk cafe. Except for more armed personnel than usual at all the regular sites, it was very quickly back to normal.

My mom was 70, and we kept asking her for our final days there "Are you ok with this?" Do you feel comfortable being here?" etc.....her answer, "It feels more safe"

I would have no qualms about going back right now.

The only security check on trains is on the Thalys, between Belgium and Paris. There's simply no way to keep the other trains running on time, if security checks were implemented.