Airport to Paris hotel

If you have made hotel reservations they may offer a shuttle. Going by bus first time can be interesting, but you'll have some good stories to tell. Which of two airports will you be arriving at. I believe Rick covers this in one of his books. Taxi is most expensive but safest.

We are flying into Paris De Gaulle. Our hotel is the Hotel Duquesne Eiffel. Thanks for the info. We also thought Rick might have mentioned this but we've been unable to find best way in any of our trip literature and we also thought he would have mentioned Hotel Shuttle??? Do you know approximate cost of taxi?

My experience is most hotels do not offer shuttle services,, although they may suggest a private company.
The cheapest and fastest is often taking the RER( train),, its easy,, I have done it myself several times. There is also just taking a taxi, there is a taxi stand clearly marked at the airport ,, don't take freelance taxis,, drivers that approach you,, just get in the taxi stand line . The taxis are metered,, and there is a one euro charge for suitcase. It will cost between 50-60 euros depending on traffic and is the easiest option. On most hotel websites they tell you which metro to take once off the RER

Just like the states, cost varies by distance. Should you take a taxi, give them EXACT address, because sometimes there are Hotels by the same name, as well on one occasion, 2 streets with the same name. OR...point to a map if they do not understand English.

According to your hotel's website, they have an airport shuttle. You have to book with the hotel's receptionist. Might be cheaper than a taxi. http://hotel-duquesne-eiffel-paris.com/en/location/where-we-are

by the way "safer" is not an issue. Paris is safe,, as safe if not safer then most cities in North America. As for shuttle services,, many people find them frustrating, they want payment up front,, then they show up late, or not at all,, then good luck getting money back. If its pay on arrival its a better arrangement as you can then just jump in a taxi and not feel you have to wait for your prepaid shuttle. There are many many threads on this at tripadvisor.com. If you are nervous,, just take a taxi. They are metered and "safe".
Another option is to take the Roissy bus to Opera then jump on the metro,, or there again, jump in a taxi to hotel( from there taxi will be around 15 euros).

The hotel Web site suggests taking an Air France bus from CDG to Opera and metro line 8 from there to Ecole Militaire. That's not possible. None of the Air France buses go to Opera. It's the Roissybus that goes directly from CDG to Opera. The Roissybus will work just fine, but you will have to buy two tickets, one for the Roissybus and one for the metro. The hotel site also suggests taking the RER B to Chatelet-Les Halles, metro line 1 from Chatelet to Concorde, and metro line 8 to Ecole Militaire. That too will work, but a better route is the RER B to Gare du Nord, metro line 4 to Strasbourg - Saint-Denis, and metro line 8 to Ecole Militaire. That way you avoid the huge maze at Chatelet-Les Halles/Chatelet. Sticking to the RER and metro all the way costs €9.10. The Roissybus costs €10.00 and a single metro ticket from Opera to Ecole Militaire costs €1.70.

Allison - What time of day do you arrive and how much luggage will you have? There are a few different ways to get to your Hotel. Taxi, Rossey Bus(sp) and Metro. For the Metro - Take the RER B direction Massy-Palaiseau from CDG to Gare du Nord. From Gare du Nord take Metro line 4 direction Porte d'Orleans (General Leclerc)
to Strasbourg-Saint-Denis. From Strasbourg-Saint-Denis take Metro line 8 direction Balard up to Ecole Militaire. From the Ecole it is a short walk to your Hotel. You can also take the Rossey Bus(sp) bus to the Opera Metro station. From the Opera Metro Station take Metro Line 8 direction Balard to Ecole Militaire. To help familiarize myself with my destination I look at it on google maps.

If you are a first time visitor to Paris I would take a taxi which lets you off in front of the hotel. It take time to be comfortable with the metro system. If you have been to Paris before and travel light you can take the RER-metro combination. Once time I tried this with 2 suitcases and 2 carryon shoulder bags and had a hard time getting through the metro turnstile. I have used the Paris shuttle system before and sometimes they cannot find you or do not show up. The AF bus and the other buses are nice if you hotel is near one of the stops. Last june we stayed at the Le Meridian Etiole which had a AF bus stop across the street and only 30 minutes to the CDG airport.

Suggest you look into a shuttle service. We used Bluevan, which I believe is an extension of an American shuttle company that services most airports in the US. Weren't enthralled by the driver, who was late and quite rude, but if you got another driver, I believe your experience would be better. It's also cheaper than a taxi.

Well, yes,
Bluevan is cheaper,, but not by enough for most of us to want to put up with a late and rude driver( as according to what Greg got). Its 32-34 euros for two people to take Bluevan.. it will be dropping off others( it is a shared ride) and may be late.. so ,, for 10-15 euros more per ( not each) ride to Paris,, a taxi is worth it. With three people a taxi is about the same as a shuttle, depending on where exactly you are going in Paris and time of day and traffic you encounter. You will likely spend 50 euros on a meal, so ,, if you put it in perspective,, a peaceful stressless ride straight to your hotel by taxi may be worth it,, espeically after a 10-12 hour flight.

train + metro is the best way. ask hotel which metro station is close and how to walk from the metro. if the hotel is far from the metro line, you might as well just change hotel - you'll take a lot of metro rides if you stay for more than 2 or 3 days.

I would take the RER B to Luxembourg and take a cab to the hotel. Cheap and easy for a first time visitor.

@ pat - Allison has every right to be concerned about safety. Yes Paris is "safe", but they most certainly have issues with pick-pockets, and those with lots of luggage after a long flight who have never been to Paris are easy targets. I second a vote for the RER into the city where you then pick up a taxi. My first trip to Paris at 16 I went with my mom and my aunt's familty. My mom and I took RER -> Metro -> hotel and we almost got separated and lost all of our important personal things (passport, money). My aunt and her family took the RER -> Taxi -> hotel and arrived without issue. On subsequent trips, I've taken RER -> Metro without issue, but for your first trip, take a taxi at least part of the way.

One more reason, I am highly excited and anticipating our first venture with Rick Steves. I am quite overwhelmed with all the awesome info! We are just less than ten days out from our trip. Thank you all for your advise. Really needed it and I promise to pass the "torch" for future new-bees! Getting ready to punch in my next question of how does a girl pack two weeks of stuff in what "now seems to be shrinking" one Rick Steves bag. thanks again

I just budget for a taxi from the official taxi stand at the airport to the hotel. I used to slug it out with public transportation - In Milan, I was not prepared for the fact that you must elbow and push your way onto the bus - I missed three buses because I was not pushy enough - finally a bus driver took pity on me and shoved others out of the way for me to get on board. In Prague, I did not have the exact change for the tickets and there were no booths - fortunately locals took pity on me and made change. In Athens, I just could not find the signs for the metro/train, even though I asked for directions at the information desk. Adding to that stress is that I'm jet lagged, not at my best, carrying luggage, trying to be aware and realizing that pickpockets are looking for targets just like me on or outside of popular public transportation stops . . . Now I just budget for the ease and comfort of a taxi - and I have the hotel and address written down in advance to hand to the driver.

Landed in Paris this past month, on Bastille Day; ended up in the 'wrong' terminal at CDG. Took the first Air France bus we could find that was going in our general direction (no heavy luggage, coming from Copenhagen, not the States, so no problem there). It deposited us at Gare du Nord, about an hour away from our destination, 7th arr. Walked up to our hotel, found it via GPS device on phone, got there just fine, but of course, rather exhausted. Stupid, really, but we are walkers and wanted to see Paris (as much of it as possible) on our own terms without dealing with the Metro first thing. It was beautiful weather, and it was totally do-able, but not what I would do again, knowing what I know now. Instead, I would have just gone over to Terminal 1 or 2, can't remember, and gotten on the RER to the correct station and walked from there.

If you are looking for "safer" you should take a taxi. If you want "safer" with a little more hassle, you could take an Air France bus or a Roissyvale bus into Paris and switch to a taxi once in town. While generally safe due to all the passengers taking it, the RER B does go through dangerous areas. My Paris born and raised husband described to me a suspicious person sitting opposite him on the RER B as he took the train out to CDG just this past Thursday. The man was ready to get off but changed his mind and phoned a friend to warn him when he saw police on the station platform. Perhaps he was only an illegal or perhaps there was more to his change of heart.