We are arriving early morning CDG in June and spending one night in Paris before picking up our daughter and leaving on a 3 week tour of France. Would we be better off staying in a hotel at the airport and picking up the car the next day when we are ready to collect our daughter, or should we go ahead and rent the car the day we arrive and stay in the city? We do plan to spend a good part of the day we arrive sightseeing in Paris (until we collapse from the jet lag), but I'm wondering how difficult it will be to find parking. Is it going to be easier to just take the train into the city and back to the airport again to collect the car the next day? Any advise would be wonderful. Thank you!
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Where are you meeting your daughter? And when?
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10176 posts
Pick the car up in the city near where your daughter will be rather than the airport.
Posted by
San Francisco/Marin County
9420 posts
Answer depends on whether you're picking your daughter up at CDG next morning, or somewhere in Paris. More info would help answer your question.
Either way, do not bring a car into Paris just to park it. Waste of 1 day rental and money to park.
Posted by
Long Beach, California, USA
3391 posts
Not sure where you're collecting your daughter but here's my two cents...I agree that taking a rental car into Paris is a bad idea...I've driven in the city center of Paris many times. Unless you're used to it and know where you're going it can be incredibly stressful. Very congested, nothing is in straight lines, you can't just go around the block if you make a wrong turn, and the French are not patient drivers! Parking the car for 24 hours in a public garage will be very expensive and street parking is very limited and tricky - strict time limits if you are not a resident even if you are lucky enough to find a spot. Since you won't be using the car till the next day anyway, just wait. I hope you don't have to find your daughter by car in central Paris. If that is where she is and she is familiar with the transport system, have her take the train/metro to the airport to meet up with you where you are picking up the car. Or, you could have her take the RER out to a quiet suburb and pick her up there. Avoid taking the car into central Paris at all costs. It will not be a good start to your trip!
I think it might be easier to stay at an airport hotel since you are only going to be in Paris for part of a day. That way you will have somewhere to leave your luggage and you won't have to deal with dragging it into town!
Posted by
Toronto, Canada
415 posts
What Anita said - totally agree with her for one night and based on the fact you are picking up a car. You do not want to drive into Paris. Stay at a hotel at CDG (IBIS is usually reasonably priced) drop your luggage there when you arrive, go into Paris on RER. PIck up the car the next day.
Posted by
OP
Maple Valley, Wa, USA
108 posts
Thank you for the feedback. As of now I don't know where we are to meet my daughter. She is returning from a rotary trip and we are still waiting to get that information. But I think we will definitely not take the car into the center of Paris. Especially suffering from jet lag.