Car rental "outside" Paris

Laurie...the simplet way is to go to maps.google.com and enter the addresses of the various car rental branches, and see where they come up. If you enter "Paris," it'll show a view of Paris that indicates where the Peripheric runs pretty clearly. From that view, you'll also see the names of the various "towns" that surround Paris (it's actually all one big urban area now), and that may give you an initial indication as to where the car rental offices are located. Double check with the direct address and the zoom view to make sure they're near a Metro or RER commuter train station. And, obviously, try for one that will be to the west or north, so you won't have to drive AROUND Paris before you hit the highway to Bayeux.

Another way would be to look at train routes along your route to Bayeux from Paris, pick a town suitably far from the metro area, and pick up and return your car there. We did that for our Normany/Brittany trip--we picked up in Lisieux, where there was a Hertz counter right in the train station. And it's not a big town so it was very easy to get in and out of.

You do have to figure out what car rental agencies are in which train stations, which takes a little online leg work.

I was actually trying to avoid train stations because I thought prices were higher if rental/drop-off took place in train stations. Picking up at some of the small towns was my first thought, but prices/selection seemed not as favorable. We are dropping off in Strasbourg

You might find a lower price in one of the "suburban" Paris towns...and you should be able to get to most via Metro or RER. However, the biggest benefit of doing so is not having to drive in Paris itself.

We rented at Orly. It was easy to get to from Paris, and it was easy to get going without driving into Paris (our destination was the Loire Valley) and we easily got around the city.

I suppose we must have had some 'extra' charge because this was an airport pick-up but I don't recall that it was major enough to offset the convenience. (Again, this was Hertz -- I realize I sound like a broken record for renting from Hertz in Europe, and no I don't work for them. I'm just so thankful when a car rental goes well that I like to express amazement/delight.)

The Auto Europe site lists an outlet at 225 - 231 rue de la Garenne in Nanterre which is only a few blocks from the Nanterre Prefecture RER station on line A one stop beyond La Defense. It's shown as a Paris listing rather than a Nanterre listing.

I'm going to go against what the previous folks said, not because their thoughts don't have a great deail of merit, but because there's a more simple way to do it.

Driving in Paris is not particularly difficult. Driving from point to point in the city is a pain in the neck due to the street arrangement and the paucity of parking -- it makes no sense at all. Driving into Paris can be really tough, again because of the street layout and the fact that you're trying to hit a particular target.

Driving out of Paris is simple. There are more than two dozen big streets/boulevards/avenues that hit the ring road. Assuming that you start on the Ile de la Cite (only because it's roughly the center point of the Perpherique) the ring road is only about three miles (fifteen minutes ?) away. That's the worst-case situation.

What I'd do is find the closest car place to where you're staying. After you drive out of the lot, you can't be more than a couple or three turns to one of these arteries. Folow your nose to the Peripherique and you're gone.

I vote with Ed, especially if you have a GPS and a navigator to tell you which lane. We rented at the big AirFrance terminal on Invalides, near Quai d'Orsay, had to walk a couple of blocks to get the car from a garage, and were off. It was no worse than driving in L.A., Atlanta or Houston. We were headed north also to Honfleur, Avranches and Mont St. Michel.

Another strategy for avoiding traffic congestion in major cities is to begin your car rental and travel out of the city on a Sunday.

A different "outside" approach is to take the train to Bayeux and rent your car in Bayeux the following day.

This costs you in train tickets, but saves you a day of rental plus tolls, gas, and parking.

Of course there are many reasons you might prefer to drive. But if you are not planning to make stops enroute you might consider the above plan.

On the major arteries diverging from the Peripherique, traffic can still be pretty congested for several more kilometers outside the city. You probably won't avoid awful traffic jams altogether unless you rent the car in Bayeux.

But as Ed states, driving through Paris isn't a whole lot worse than driving through many American cities (with their criss-crossing boulevards, Washington DC is probably the closest equivalent). It just doesn't make much sense to use a car as your chief means of transport within the city itself, for the reasons already elaborated.