We are going to be in France in September (Toulouse, Avignon and Lyon) and are looking to spend our final 2 nights in the environs of Paris before flying back to the US. There are just 2 of us, husband and wife. We have been to Paris before so do not need to be in the city and do not want to rent a car. Instead looking for a town/city within "commuting" distance to CDG by train or bus line, preferably some place with a few nice restaurants, maybe a few sights to see, but without the hustle bustle that is Paris. Any suggestions? Thanks.
Posted by
Chicago
8550 posts
There is no nice place except Paris convenient by public transport to CDG. The nearest nice town is Senlis but you would have to line up a car service/cab as there is no good public transport to the airport. I'd pick a part of Paris you havent previously spent time in and do that. With an easy cab or train ride to the airport.
Posted by
SoCal
1130 posts
Versailles would work. RER to CDG from there would take about 1.75 hours. Plenty to do, see and eat in Versailles.
Posted by
81 posts
If you really want to be outside Paris, there's no good options to the north. But since CDG is on the RER B, one possibility might be to go to the south of the city, so you'd have a straight shot to the airport. (Versailles would require changing lines from RER C to RER B.) But really, your best bet is to stay within the city, but close to an RER B station for the easiest trip to the airport. Maybe explore an area you might not have visited before - like near Cité Universitaire or Denfert-Rochereau?
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10621 posts
It’s very hard to find restaurants near Cité Université, not a good place to stay. Denfert is fine.
I’d like to mention that the RER B does break down a lot. So relying on it to go from the southern suburbs out to the airport is increasing risk of delay. The RER B is carrying more than double the capacity for which it was designed, which leads to problems. It’s a great system but don’t rely on it alone. As long as you are within the Paris boundaries, you have access to fixed-rate taxis.
Posted by
1046 posts
The last two times that my husband and I have visited Paris, we have stayed in the 18th, Montmartre. The first time we did, it was because we had always given that area short shrift. We stayed and loved the walks without so many people as there are in the 4th, 5th and 6th (love that area, too). The bonus, however, is that both times it took only 35 minutes by taxi to reach CDG. We left weekdays @ 8:30 a.m. By staying in the 18th, we avoided all the traffic during rush hour that we would have had to go through if we had stayed in the center of Paris.
Posted by
Chicago
8550 posts
Montmartre is a good idea. We used to stay there for a month or more at a time and usually the taxi to the airport was in fact about half an hour and before fixed fees it was a lot less than 56 Euro too but now you do pay the fixed fee. Or choose an area of Paris you have not stayed in before. e.g. Butte aux Cailles is not convenient to the airport as it is on the south side of town but still an easy cab ride and a neighborhood with quite different architecture and character than central Paris.