PARIS NORD

I'm going to be a bit heretical and say that buses in Paris are much under-rated. Yes, they can be very slow, but if you aren't in a hurry it's much easier to get cases onto a bus (most in Paris are now low-entrance) than to hump them up and down steps on the Metro. Apparently there is a direct route 42 from Gare du Nord to the intersection of Avenue Rapp and Avenue de la Bourdonnaise. But it depends on how much luggage you have and how much of a hurry you're in.

Michael, where can you get Metro carnets in London? As far as I'm aware the only place is at St Pancras in the Eurostar lobby, and they only sell the over-priced tourist-rip-off Paris Visite tickets.

Depending on the time and rush hour, I'd take the Metro. It's cheaper and an experience. Of course this depends on amount of luggage and the age of the teens and the aunt and grandmother. Just read the warnings on the Graffiti Wall about scams on the Metro. Although I never had any problems, they do happen.

Personally, I'd take a taxi but the hassle is, with 5 of you, you would have to take 2 taxis. Paris only allows 4 passengers per taxi and many times the drivers are not too thrilled to have a passenger sit in the front! (They'll let you but they're not happy about it!)

You should find minivan taxis that will seat all five of you in the ranks at Gare du Nord.

Do you expect your room to be ready in (early am)?

Doesn't matter if hotel room is ready, most of us go to hotel, dump luggage, use a washroom to freshen up and then go out for breakfast. Better then storing luggage at station and having to go back for it,, and most hotels will give you the room early if available.

Metro is a relative breeze unless you have multiple bags. Still doable though. If you are coming from London, do yourself a huge favor and buy a carnet or two of metro tickets in the London. Trust me, you'll be glad you did.

We have very little luggage (I am the leader of this group my mother(69), niece(16), nephew(18), nephew(21))however my mother can be slow and I want to make sure I bring everyone home after this big adventure! A taxi may be the choice from the Paris Nord. We will be staying in the Rue Cler area and will be going to all the sights I am hoping we can manage the metro--

Sharon, Unless you're travelling during "rush hour", the Metro would be the easiest choice. One question though - does your Grandmother have any "mobility issues"? Could you clarify - are you arriving at Gare du Nord via EuroStar from London, or via RER "B" from the airport? The Metro route I'd probably use from Gare du Nord is a short trip on Line 4 (direction Porte d'Orleans) to Strasbourg Saint-Denis (third stop, I believe). Then transfer to Line 8 (Direction Balard) for the ride to Ecole Militaire (which will be the 9th stop, I believe - you can track your progress on the charts in each car). When you exit from the station, you'll be in the heart of Rue Cler! Depending on which Hotel you're staying in, you should be able to walk from the Metro. Happy travels!

Having recently been in Paris where we were in and out of stations quite frequently, I would go for the taxi option. Without luggage, the Metro would be fine. However, 5 people with minimal luggage, one of them more senior in years, the Metro could be a bit daunting.
Good luck with the taxis!!! Paris taxis were a major source of angst and frustration on our last visit.

If you do take the metro - make sure everyone knows the plan and what to do if you are separated. The metro isn't bad as long as you haven't maxed out the size/weight restrictions with your luggage. And if you have maxed out your luggage allowance, you will definitely not fit in one taxi (Even one of the minivan ones) and will have nearly double the expense. So, as long as everyone can carry their own bags up and down stairs, I would see no reason not to take the metro. The trickiest part often is just finding the correct metro line when you're at the train station.

Philip - I bought a carnet of metro tickets at St Pancreas in London. I believe I paid a small premium for them but it was worth it to hop of the Eurostar and hop on the metro without missing a beat.

We were in paris last May and took the RER to Gare Nord from Orly. The line for a taxi was very LONG-it took almost an hour to get a taxi. Perhaps it was because it was a Saturday or mid afternoon.

If you want to take the Metro, get a map of it before you go to Paris and plan your route in advance; make sure everyone knows it. I'm sure there are apps for the Metro and other things like that, but I'm of the old school where I like to study a map of the city and compare that to a map of the Metro to find the closest stop to my destination and see how to get there when I leave the Metro station. You can google "Paris Metro maps" and find some good ones to print.

Susan, we found the hour wait for taxis at Paris stations
'par for the course'. I love France and the French, but they have a lot to learn about basic transport organisation. This fact was highlighted more having spent two weeks in Germany prior to going to France. We were so impressed by their efficiency in matters of transport.

"Michael, where can you get Metro carnets in London? As far as I'm aware the only place is at St Pancras in the Eurostar lobby, and they only sell the over-priced tourist-rip-off Paris Visite tickets." Correct, St. Pancras, however you can buy them by themselves. I paid in Euros and could swear it was at face value without markup. Unless you are pretty savvy to how the metro works, showing up at Gare du Nord without a metro ticket can be confusing and maddening. Just spend a few minutes watching people queue up at the normally long ticket window or even better, try to operate on of the automated machines. God, I love Paris. EDIT: To clarify, I have bought carnets not in the lobby, but at the information desk in the Eurostar waiting area. It is against the wall on the right as you are facing towards the back wall.

We traveled to Paris in August - arrived at 9:30 in the morning (and were exhausted) - so we took a taxi to the Rue Cler area. We only had a 10 minute wait for the taxi - we must have been very lucky. I was surprised, but our hotel room was ready when we got there.