I just returned from a five day trip to Paris (late May 2014) and was stunned to discover that the Taxi ride from CDG into central Paris was far more than any guidebook or even the helpful steward on the airplane indicated. Everything I read or heard, said to expect about 40-50 Euro for a one way ride. In reality is was over 70 Euro -- each way. And, interestingly, it took us far less time on our return trip (40 min vs. 1 hour), but the price was virtually the same. Perhaps this should be made more clear in Rick Steves' -- also the cabbies only accepted cash -- something they did not tell us upfront. So bring lots of Euro if you expect to take a cab in Paris. Rick is wrong -- they are NOT an affordable form of transportation. I live in Norway -- one of the most expensive countries in the world-- and a cab ride of the same distance would have only cost $30-40 US dollars...
I'm going back to Paris in a few weeks and would love to know if anyone has any tips on how to get cheaper cab rides. (By the way, we did use the Metro and RER, but from our hotel and at the hours we traveled, cabs were are only/best option)