my friend and i are leaving for paris on tuesday! (yay) I have decided that we will get the carte orange (i think we only need it for zones 1 and 2 am i right?) we will arrive at cdg at 6 am at terminal a. will it be easy to find a shuttle to the rer station? once at the rer can we (should we) get the carte orange there or wait till after we go to the hotel and drop off our bags? we need to go to st michelle. i think its the rer b line. i think there is 2 b lines one is faster. how will i know which is the fast one?
if anyone has any info on things that we just cant miss ie... resturaunts, bars, clubs, shopping, sights etc... feel free to let me know.
also any tips on things to pack, stuff we may not have thought of.
thanks a bunch
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There is clear signage pointing to the RER/TGV shuttle stops in terminal 2. When you get to the station, you can buy your RER ticket to Paris from a machine if the lines are long. They have a choice of english on the first menu.
Line B (your only choice) takes you into the city but some trains are express trains and take only 30 minutes. The %26quot;stop trains%26quot; take an hour. I believe all trains stop at Gare du Nord, Chatellet and Stt Michel but confirm it on the marque board on the platform before boarding.
We believe in packing very light. When we travel in Europe, my wife and I live out of a single 1.5 cubic foot suitcase for weeks at a time. Outside of regular summer clothes, a sweater for cool evenings is about all you need this time of year. You%26#39;re going to do a lot of walking so a well-broken-in pair of walking shoes is my one most important recommendation.
Clothes shopping is a completely different experience here and not as expensive as people seem to think. You may want to bring less and return with more.
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All trains that leave from CDG go to Paris. before you get on just take a look at the list of places where it stops and if the board is all lit up then it%26#39;s not the express one.
The express train takes about 35 minutes or so.
Remember the Carte Orange (the one with the photo) zone 1%26amp;2 is all you need for travelling around Paris but it won%26#39;t get you from nor back to the airport. You%26#39;ll need a seperate ticket for this journey (8euro each way)
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You might want to check into the Carte Orange Zone 1 - 5. That will get you to/from CDG/Paris, to/from/Versailles if you choose to visit it, and unlimited use of all buses, metro, and rer throughout Paris zones 1 through 5. We bought this orange pass during our 5 day visit last week and it was terrific. The zone 1,2 pass will not get you to/from anywhere outside the city. (will not get you from CDG) We were staying in the Eiffel Tower area and took the rer from CDG to St. Michelle and then the rer to Invalides and then the metro to Ecole Militaire. It was easy and fast. Enjoy your trip. (see my post to Hotel Muguet for some suggestions about the area)
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A Carte Orange zone 1-5 is about 30 Euro. Buying separate tickets for CDG-Paris 7.8E, Versailles r/t 6E and CO 1-2 15E is about the same price total. Easier to just get the CO at CDG and take the RER-B.
Note: machines only accept Euro COINS or a European credit card w/smart chip. You%26#39;ll have to go to a ticket window - they%26#39;ll show you how to assemble the identification card w/your photo; ask for %26#39;%26#39;un grand plan%26quot; map of the metro/bus system.
In the metro/RER you insert the little ticket in the turnstile. On the bus, you only show the driver the id card (do NOT cancel the ticket in the machine on the bus).
The answer above as to how to know if the RER is the %26#39;express%26#39; is GREAT - so simple, I never thought of it!
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There IS a change machine in the RER ticket area at CDG but it is remarkably well hidden, and I do not recall exactly where it is. I *think* it is in the most obscure corner of the office (information?) directly across the hall from the ticket office.
Anybody else know?
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thank you all for all the help. Im still a little confused but im sure ill be able to wing it once i get there. (now that i have this info.) just to make sure this is what ill do. please correct me if im wrong.
once i get my bags at the airport, find signs pointing to the rer, once there i will get a ticket to paris. from a ticket window (not the carte orange Yet. ill wait till our first metro trip to get that cuz were not traveling outside of paris. and we leave on tuesday the 7th so the cart orange wouldnt be good to get back anyways.) to find the fast train ill look for the sign that is not all lit up. (the one with the least amount of stops )
now im sorry but just one more question. this is probably the stupidest question to ask but ill ask anyways. once im on the train how will i know when im at the st michelle stop. will i see a sign?
thanks again for all your help. i dont know what i would do if i didnt find this forum!
cant wait to get there! and i will make sure to post my trip report when i get back.
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There%26#39;s a map of all the stations inside each carriage.
It%26#39;s the 3rd stop within Paris after Gare de Nord and Chatelet.
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of course there is a sign on the platform saying St Michel, but you can just count the number of stations (you have a map of the line in each carriage)
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thank you all now i just need to figure out what to pack!!!
so much to do so little time...
I CANT WAIT TO GET TO PARIS!!!!
just 3 more days!!
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