One night Paris? Then to Chartres. Need advice.

We are city smart but never felt any threats in Paris. Just always be aware of your surroundings as in any city. It is too bad you don’t have more time.

Could you just take a taxi to Gare Montparnasse and train to Chartres on arrival day?

Connie, I love Paris, but I think in your situation I would recommend just heading to Chartres for your first night. When you arrive at Paris’ CDG, take a taxi to the Paris Montparnasse train station (there’s multiple train stations in Paris). Purchase your train ticket to Chartres, and it’s 1 hour and 15 minutes. The train arrives in Chartres, and there are places that are walking distance to stay. This is where I stayed, and it’s $125/night in October on www.Booking.com and has a 9.8 rating for solo travelers.

In Chartres, I booked a beautiful B&B, Le Jardin Cathedrale, that was just two blocks from the cathedral. The beautifully decorated French home was lovely, and my gray decorated room was just as perfect as the photos. Yet, my favorite was her garden – lots of overflowing white flowers and greenery and an inviting patio table. I enjoyed reflecting in the peaceful garden afterwards about what I saw and learned that day in the cathedral.

You will be able to enjoy strolling around Chartres and getting over jet lag in a quaint town. Then on another trip, you can concentrate on Paris.

If you were restless the next morning to see another town before meeting up with the group at 5pm, this one is a little over an hour on one train (no transfers) from Chartres:

“When I am planning trips, I do a lot of searching around vicinities of towns. Once I saw that Le Mans had both a well-preserved medieval section of town and Roman walls with intricate designs, I was willing to [take a train & ] explore and photograph Le Mans. And, wow, Le Mans did not disappoint! I wandered every lane through the Plantagenet historical section and down to the Roman wall. The ancient wall around Le Mans is one of the most complete remaining Gallo-Roman city walls. “

Connie, I understand your anxiety. You will love this tour. I did it in September, but I had a week on each side of the tour on my own.

I was very nervous about being in Paris solo. I always wore a money belt and kept my small purse and back pack zipped and locked. To ease my anxiety I stayed above ground (no subways) and took buses or taxis.

I stayed at Hotel Clement in Saint Germaine. Don’t wait until the last minute to book your hotel. They arranged for a taxi to take me to Gare Montparnasse. Since you are flying into CDG, take a taxi to the hotel. (I arrived by Eurostar from London.) There are restaurants nearby. The hotel serves breakfast but I ate elsewhere.

Before leaving home, download the SNCF app and buy your train ticket to Chartres. One less hassle at the train station. It’s too early to buy that ticket now. It’s slightly over an hour trip, no reserved seating. Our tour hotel was 2 blocks from the Chartres depo, so an easy walk with luggage.

Enjoy your trip. PM me if you want. There are several trip reports, mine, Jane’s (2022) and Allan’s (2019). That may help you.

Connie, you’ve picked a great tour! Agree with others who suggested going directly from CDG to Chartres. Book at extra night at the tour hotel so you don’t have to move your stuff. Our tour hotel was just a short walk from the train station, couldn’t have been easier. Spend the next day exploring Chartres.

Thanks everyone - this was very helpful and eased my frustration some. I'll book my flight into Paris and maybe reserve a hotel (that has free cancellation) while I decide whether to stay the one night or just go on to Chartres. I am very excited for the tour and to see smaller towns of France!

What hotel does Rick use in Chartres?

Paris is very safe; I have never felt any threat and we often stay in neighborhoods away from the center and are traveling on he metro at midnight.

Pickpockets will be everywhere there are tourists in Europe and certainly will view a group of tourists as prime meat wherever you go on your tour. Be pickpocket proof and then don't worry about it. These are pros, mostly from Eastern Europe and the lowering of borders has made it easy for them to ply their expert trade all over Europe. They can't take it if you don't make it available.

In your situation I would just head for Chartres that first night and enjoy walking around this pretty little town. There may well be pickpockets at the Cathedral; they go where the naive tourists are likely to be.

Alexander - I am on the trip this September. We are staying at the Campanile City Centre.

Wow. That's a disappointing choice from the RS group. It used to be a very charming hotel then it was bought by a chain that made it a cookie cutter hotel .