We leave our home in the Netherlands Sunday to drive south to Paris. We will park in a suburb and use the public transport for all our needs while in the area.
But which suburb to choose? If we park at CDG is it a hassle to get to the RER station from the long term cheap parking lot? Or is there a long term lot right at the RER station in Orry-la-Ville-Coye?
Can we buy a Paris Visit Pass at CDG?
I am having a really tough time finding this info on the Web. Can you all help?
Jana....Long term parking is available at CDG for 16 Euro per day....connect to the RER stations at Terminal 2 and Terminal 3/Roissypole by the new CDGval rapid transit "train." See http://www.aeroportsdeparis.fr/Adp/en-GB/Passagers. Paris Visite passes can be purchased at the RER stations. But unless you're planning to take public transit a LOT, it may not be worth the price. Check its prices at http://www.ratp.info/informer/anglais/paris_visite.php. An RER ticket into downtown Paris is 8.10 Euro, and a carnet of 10 transit tickets in Paris is 11.10 Euro (good for one Metro or bus ride, but not a transfer between the two.) There are about 1000 parking spaces at the train station in Orry la Ville, at about 5 Euro/day. But I'm not sure I'd want to leave my car there overnight. Have you considered taking the train from Utrecht instead? (lovely city...one of the most underrated in the Netherlands....is the big licorice stand still there on market days?)
Norm,
You are a prince! Thank you for the information. You deserve a kilo of "drop"!
I assumed a Paris Visite pass will be economical for us because we are intent on a trip to Versailles and Disney during our stay. Our hotel is near the Sorbonne where poor hubby will be working while we play. So that is a roundtrip from the suburbs three times. I will check prices more closely.
Our first plan was indeed to train down from Utrecht. However traveling on Sunday boosts the price for the four of us over 100 euros. And we want to wander off to Aqualibi in Belguim on the way home. So we get to drive :(.
I haven't been to the Saturday market in Utrecht since we moved out of the big city 12 years ago. In fact I avoid centrum Utrecht as much as possible unless I am guiding visitors or on University business. It is a misery to drive down there and often what I need to do it too complicated for public transport. But I am positive the "drop"stall is still there !
cheers!
Oh and is Orry-la-ville unsafe? I just thought it would be less of a driving hassle to leave the car there rather than fight the CDG traffic.
Jana....actually, Orry la Ville is a pleasant town, located on the edge of a large national forest which is a popular destination for day-trippers....all sorts of trails for walking, hiking, and cycling. But the station is small, and the lot is more for daily commuters...I'm not sure there'd be security for overnight parking. It might be my own bias (I wouldn't leave my car in the commuter station parking lot near my house overnight), but I'd feel my car would be safer at CDG. And, another complication.....Orry la Ville is two stations outside the limit allowed for the use of the Carte Orange. So you'd have to pay for a ticket down two stops and, if they don't have Carte Orange passes on sale at Orry, you'd have to get off there and purchase your pass. It does get complicated, doesn't it? :)
