We have reserved a car in Paris for part of our trip in May. My husband is a slow walker, uses a cane, and sometimes a lightweight, foldable wheelchair when he is in pain. We have 2 kids to drag around the wheelchair, so lifting isn't an issue. As we read the Travelers' Helpline, we get the feeling that a car rental is not such a good idea. Ideally, we were going to drive to Versailles, Normandy, and maybe out to the country side, and use other days to stroll/wheel to the Louvre, Eiffel, etc. What is it like to push a wheelchair on Paris streets? Where do we park this car? We are staying on Rue de la Roquette, and we have already received a denial from the Paris Parking garage website about using their garage closest to our apartment. The metro sounds like a hassle with the wc, and ditto the train (is the train called the RER and what does that stand for?). We have a US disabled access parking placard, but will that be honored by those who write out parking tickets? We have other options with tours and such for some sites, so we were wondering what you all thought about a car rental. If parking is indeed a problem, then we would probably cancel it. But where there's a will there's a way..... Any suggestions or comments are welcome. This site has been such a blessing to us - we've learned a lot and appreciate the frank and often amusing tips for traveling. Thank you, Pam and Mark
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5533 posts
Pamela, You may be better served within Paris by relying on buses and taxis. I'm posting a link about accessible travel resources in Paris from a blog that I regularly read.
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2008/02/accessible-trav/
Posted by
Santa Rosa, CA, USA
1446 posts
We didn't take a wheel chair to Paris, but I took the cane with the fold down seat in order to rest when needed. We took the bus to avoid the stairs in the metro/trains. We stayed at a hotel where the bus stop was very close.
Posted by
Sacramento, California U.S.A.
10230 posts
I am not generally opposed to a car, but I would NEVER recommend having one in Paris. If you want to go somewhere that you can't access by bus or train (Versailles & Normandy), you can take a cab. I doubt your handicap placard is any good in France. We you planning Normany as a day trip, or will you spend more time there? That is the one location where a car could be a good idea. Pick it up in Normandy through. I drove into Paris my first trip to Europe, with the intention of dropping our bags at the hotel and then turn the car in. That was almost 6 years ago and I still have nightmares about driving there, and getting stuck on Charles DeGaulle Circle. I don't know how many times we drove around the Arc de Triomphe until I could get out of there!
Posted by
Fontainebleau, France
893 posts
I would say you should cancel the car registration. Even if you dared drive around Paris, you'll end up having to drop your husband and kids off some place and then spend a lot of time searching for parking -which may end up being far away. Buses and taxis will get you closer to the main sights. Your US DIsabled placard will not be honored here. I'd suggest you take a look at this website: http://www.sagetraveling.com/Paris-accessible-travel and other resources on the Internet to see what types of challenges you will face with a wheelchair in Paris. It's not impossible, just will take some planning. And the RER (Réseau express régional) is sorta like a cross between a metro and a train. It runs underground in Paris, but travels outside the city center and into other areas of Île-de-France.
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
Taxis are not that expensive and sounds like something you would probably be interested in. I'm guessing you would spend less on taxis than you would on car rental/petrol/parking. Definitely do NOT get a car in Paris. Where there's a will there's a way...except for rental cars in Paris.
Posted by
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
8293 posts
Pamela: Inform yourselves about the buses in Paris and their routes. Many of them are the "kneeling" type and are easy to get on and off. There is space in the centre of the buses for wheelchairs, strollers, etc. A car in Paris would be a huge mistake, as I am sure you realise by now. Taxis and buses are the way to go.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
This website sees some passionate debates on the issue of rental cars vs. rail travel/public transportation. But there seems to be near-unanimous consensus that a rental car is a bad idea in Paris.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Driving in Paris is not a problem. If you're unfamiliar with the city, finding your way around with the non-grid street layout and the plethora of one-way streets is. Parking is the real mess. On-street spots are hard to come across and have relatively short time constraints. Garages are generally not convenient to places you'll want to visit - - the predictable ones are near the rail stations which are mostly located in the middle of hell-and-gone. If I drop somebody off and have to get back to meet them, it's often a half-hour project. Cobbles are an easy work-around. Most/many of the intersections in the core area have wheelchair cuts in the curbs. Most/all of the stuff you'll want to see has some kind of accessability provision. I don't think that all of the metro/rer stations have elevators, but that may be something I've never noticed since I don't look for them. I use the metro a lot, but don't recall what the platform-to-train gap is. My impression is that it could be sporty. I use the bus system very infrequently, but the buses that I can recall all have ramps and spaces for wheelchairs. I've never studied a map of the system, but have seen the leaflets in the metro stations. I've never had any trouble figuring things out from the diagrams at the stops. My impression is that you see fewer buses on Sunday. I drive in and out of Paris regularly and don't mind it. I try like the devil to avoid using a car to get from place to place within the city.