Dear Sir:
I bought your 2015 Paris and 2015 France guidebooks. I notice that you no longer list suggested shuttle vans to use in order to go to CDG airport as you did in your past books . Is super shuttle still a good option to get to the airport? If not, other than taking an expensive taxi or traveling via the RER with suitcases, what do you recommend? I appreciate your input. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Dan Kolb
I was with a group of 8 in Paris in Feb. We booked airport shuttles using viators.com
for Orly to the city and from the city to CDG. It was about 20 per person, but we were very pleased
with the service. It looked like all the shuttle bus services were around the same price.
Dan,
It looks like you are expecting your post to be read by Rick Steves. It won't be. This is a travel Forum hosted by his company but populated by a bunch of fellow travelers who are not affiliated with the company in way.
Some staffers do look in and make occasional posts but almost never on a weekend, so you are stuck with us loonies.
The best way to contact the company itself is to use the Contact Us buttons (email, phone, or a map to drop in) at the bottom of the page.
In the meantime, some of us are regular visitors to Paris, and some of us even live there or nearby.
It has been my experience here over several years that shuttle services, particularly prepaid shuttle services, have never worked particularly well in Paris.
There have been numerous accounts of different shuttle companies turning up very late, or not at all, who when chased have said that they were there and are keeping the money. The poor traveler then has to make instant other arrangements which sometimes mean they miss important connections.
It has been a long time since I have seen happy people here with anything other than the RER or a taxi, but almost all people are happy with the Air France bus.
You don't have to fly with Air France to use it.
Easy have just started Easybus which is unreasonably cheap if bought far enough ahead but there has been silence here from anybody who has tried to use it. It may not actually have started yet.
If I were in your shoes (I'm not, I'm happy with RER) I'd give the Easybus a bit of time to wear off the rough edges.
You can call the RS staffers on Monday (oops holiday - Tuesday) morning.
Actually, the day off was yesterday (Friday). Looks like the RS office will be open on Monday, July 6.
Paris does not have a shuttle culture and the American transplant doesn't work well. If a driver doesn't show, they are not likely to make sure you get to the airport and if they don't show they will keep your money and blame it on you. And if it is 20 a person, it doesn't take many people before it is more expensive than a taxi and of course a shared shuttle may be meandering through Paris for an hour before actually heading for the airport.
Get a taxi. Order it through the G7 line the night before; it is not always possible to get taxis for airport runs at the last minute. Or take the RER if you can manage your luggage. The Roissybus and AF buses are also reasonable choices if their few stops are convenient for you.
The hotel I stayed at in Paris was able to get us a car to the airport. It was less expensive than a taxi, more dependable than shuttles, and with luggage easier than the Metro. Don't remember the exact cost, but we tipped generously and it was only 10 euro per passenger. You may want to check on that option.
My experience has been different with respect to Shuttles to CDG. I've used "shared shuttles" on a number of occasions and these have always worked well. The driver arrived on time and made a number of stops in various parts of the city to pick up passengers, and dropped each of us at our respective terminals. His route seemed to have been well planned, as he wasted NO time! In all cases, my shuttles were arranged by the hotel the day prior to travel. I didn't realize that use of shuttles was no longer recommended in the guidebook. I'll have to check that when I get a few spare minutes, as I'd be curious to know the reasons.
Our one shared shuttle experience four years ago worked as advertised, but we used it to travel from our Paris hotel to CDG. Our hotel booked the shuttle to the airport working out the timing with the shuttle company to accommodate our CDG departure time and accounting for time of day traffic congestion and other the other shuttle party. (We had an late afternoon CDG departure and left our luggage at the hotel until our shuttle pick up. We lounged in the hotel lounge while waiting for the shuttle.)
I believe that Rick Steves has recommended AGAINST shuttle from airport to town, esp prepaid shuttles, because of flight arrival uncertainty. We are at the mercy of airlines cancellation and acts of god when it comes to air travel arrival time. Presumably we are in control of being at the shuttle pick up point when leaving town.
It's pretty easy to understand why a shuttle booked through the hotel might be more reliable than one booked direct with the shuttle company. Someone taking a shuttle from Paris will probably a tourist who will quite possibly never come back, so there's not much downside to shafting them. The hotel, on the other hand, will always be there, can provide a regular source of income, and will stop booking any firm that proves too unreliable.
Paris Webservices was always our preferred shuttle van listing for Paris and it's still in the books, on p. 548 in Paris or p. 179 in France. Depending on your hotel location, one of the Les Cars Air France buses or Roissy Bus may also be a handy, pretty direct option.
I agree with the others that asking the hotel to arrange a shuttle for you is the best option. Just wanted to note that I am no longer recommending Bee Shuttle for CDG into Paris trips. I successfully used them in 2009 and 2013. However, in May 2014 and 2015 we were not pleased with them. Waited over an hour and had to call to get someone to pick us up. Maybe they're under new management? Don't know but I won't use them again.
