kawh

We will have a car in Normandy/Brittany and want to drop it off someplace at the end of the trip, then train directly into CDG without transfer. Anyone recommend a charming town along the line (I think it is only on TGV?) where the train goes on a direct path to the airport?? thanks!! (early planning)

kerouac

The TGV will only stop in big cities going to CDG.

Sarastro

I don´t think that you will find what you want, particularly coming from Normandy. Plan on dropping the car off at CDG, staying somewhere close the night before your departure.

kawh

thanks.. ah, well....then a charming town within easy travel of cdg?? thinking only 45 minutes away??

Robert2533

I wouldn't think about dropping off a car at CDG. Done it, never again!

Coming from Normandy, you can drop the car off outside of Paris, Rouen is perfect, and take the train into the city, spending your last night in Paris, which is a good 40 minutes from CDG by taxi. What could be more charming then Paris?

We use Victor Cabs, if you are interested.

flanneruk

My own experience of dropping cars off at CDG is just fine.

I certainly wouldn't bugger about getting a train into Paris, then getting to the RER, for the doubtfully "superior" experience of driving into Rouen. Navigate round the place (marginally less ghastly than driving in) to the N31, head east, then turn right after Clermont

Senlis, Compiegne and Chantilly are all OK. CDG has a splendid Natural Regional Park (roughly equivalent to an AONB) on its doorstep, and though all the towns in it are a bit blighted by France's sloppy control of creeping suburbanisation, you can ignore some of the naffer new building.

Sarastro

I don´t think I have found an easier place to return a car than at CDG. Everything is close to the checkin desks and all of the signs are in English.

In addition to the suggestions of flanneruk, I might recommend this hotel just to the north of CDG which has a great restaurant:

http://www.lerelaisbrunehaut.fr/

kawh

thanks all!!!

so now i have 2 good alternatives.
you've talked me off the ledge over returning the car to a huge airport.
also.... 2 hours of internet surfing later... i see a very reasonably priced "ouigo" train that we could take from rennes... which would be a different path, but fit in pretty well with our plans. looks like it would be only about 10E

thanks again for all the input... and will check out that airport hotel as a possibility... perhaps driving in late-ish after evening traffic rush, then staying the night at the airport.

so make that 3 good possibilities

kja

I thoroughly enjoyed Rouen.

Sarastro

The Ouigo trains all go to Marne la Vallée. It is possible to take the TGV from there to CDG, it only takes about 10 minutes but tickets are from 15€ to 30€ each.

From Marne la Vallée you could take the RER A to the RER B to reach CDG but that usually takes 90 minutes to almost 2 hours. Cost is 17.05€ each.

If I were traveling from Normandy and wanted to reach CDG, a Ouigo train to the far side of Paris would not be high on my list of viable options.

f1racegirl

I wouldn't want to be in a distant town the the day of my departure from CDG for an international flight. Too risky for me.

FrenchMystiqueTours

If you don't take a direct train from Rennes to CDG (possible by regular TGV, not OUIGO) but want to be within a 45 minute drive from CDG then IMO the most charming towns with easy access to CDG would be Senlis, Compiègne (already mentioned) and Auvers-sur-Oise. Chantilly of course has a wonderful château but the other three towns are more charming/interesting than the town of Chantilly. If you stay near CDG then you want to be north and or east of Paris to avoid going around Paris to get to CDG and these towns fit that criteria.

CarolA

I have dropped two cars off at CDG and didn't have any issues so.... Your milage may vary but I wouldn't automatically rule it out. For me I perfer airports or "out of the way" train stations (Avignon comes to mind!) then having to drive a car into an historic town to give it back.

But then I also just park on the outskirts of town and walk in so....

kerouac

You can get Ouigo trains to CDG from Nantes and Rennes.

miket123

it sounds like you want to drop off the car and leave the same day. My advice is to drop the car off the nite before in a smaller city of your choice. Then depart from there in the morning to CDG (possibly with a connection).

I did this in Rouen. BTW I would *not* recommend Rouen for dropping off a car the same morning you want to catch a train out. On paper it seems ultra-convenient with a dropoff location at the train station. This is where I dropped off the car. It was not easy! Rouen has a lot of one-way streets so just getting to the station is not as simple as it seems and if you miss the entrance you want it is about a mile before you have circled back to try again. Unlike many stations where the rental cars are in a separate building and are well marked, in Rouen you will find neither. There is a tiny sign for rental car return visible only after you have gone into the correct garage entrance. If you think you can drop off your car and hop onto a train in Rouen, better give yourself plenty of time to park and return the car.

miket123

edit: by "I did this in Rouen." I mean drop the car off the nite before leaving for CDG. Caught the train to Paris in the morning, took the RER from St. Lazare to Magenta stop, then the RER from the adjoining Gare du Nord to CDG.

PalenQ

You can get Ouigo trains to CDG from Nantes and Rennes.

do you mean Ouigo tickets on the couple of daily TGV trains from Nantes and Rennes?

kerouac

I just looked at what the Ouigo website said. I did not feel compelled to check schedules.

cilburke

We dropped a car off at CDG in September. We were worried about it, but it was relatively easy. All rental return signs are in English. The harder part was then finding our gate. CDG is not an easy airport. In order to be close to CDG, we spent our final night in Chantilly, a tiny town with a castle if you're interested in that, a 25 minute easy drive to CDG.

kawh

frenchmystiquetours & sarastro...
the sncf ouigo web site is showing trains "direct" from rennes to cdg. 3 hours. 10E ????? am i wrong?? (it does not show a breakdown of stops and path.

the ouigo site does mention that new lines have been added. could this be the confusion??

also, we have been to senlis, but will consider Compiègne as a stop now, too.

leaning towards a night at cdg (seems cheap) or ouigo from rennes (if possible)
this is a rare Business Class trip for us... so won't mind getting to airport early and relaxing in the lounge....