Jimpink

These forums are invaluable for travel information! Thank you to everyone that takes the time to contribute! I learned today that I should be at the train station (Gare du Nord) about 45 mins prior to our departure time! What a huge help!
I have a question about the travel time from Charles de Gaulle airport area to the Gare du Nord. train station.The reason being that 3 of us are traveling together but only 2 of us will be continuing on to London via the Euro star and without knowing the distance we choose a hotel close to the airport for our friend who is flying home. We were going to take the first train out of Paris at 7:00am and now that I know we should be there 45 mins early, I'm wondering how long it will take us to get there and what is the best way to get there? Taxi or RER? Thanks in advance for your help!

Michael

http://parisbytrain.com/charles-de-g...ostar-station/

michelhuebeli

Your hotel probably has a shuttle service to the airport.

From: http://www.easycdg.com/1/ground-tran...arlesdegaulle/

travel time 32 minutes, departures about very 15 minutes,
Charles de Gaulle airport has two train stations
• "Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1" for terminal 1 and terminal 3.
• "Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 2-TGV" for terminal 2 (A, B, C, D, E, F, G).

PalenQ

roads can be busy and at times at a standstill - the RER is the only dependable way (besides periodic strikes) to get to Gare du Nord from CDG and Eurostar check-in is in the same terminal. In this case only the RER - non-stop from CDG makes sense to me. Also the cheapest.

Again the worst case scenario often pops up just when you need it most not to happen - cars or taxis can take much much longer at times.

Andrew

I took RER from CDG into central Paris in May. Keep in mind that there can be delays with trains (just as cars can get stuck in traffic). Our RER train stopped for some reason for about 25 minutes right before we got to Gare du Nord - no explanation (at least not one I heard or not in English). We just sat there on the tracks and other trains were passing us, so I assume it was our train. Finally we just started moving again. Who knows how often this sort of thing happens? Maybe rarely. But, I probably wouldn't take RER and cut the arrival time too close.

janisj

Jimpink: I love LOVE the Eurostar . . . But in this case I'd maybe skip it. You will already be AT CDG, so why not fly to LHR?

There is no foolproof way to get into Paris on a tight schedule. I'd (twice) been in the ticket hall to buy RER tix when there was either a security scare or a strike and the trains were cancelled. One time my friend and I ran as fast as we could (luckily we travel carry-on only) to the taxi rank and got there ahead of the rest of the crowd who were mostly milling around deciding what to do w/o a train. The other time I was w/ someone who could not run and we ended up queueing for over 30 minutes for a cab.

Then one time I planned on using a taxi - and the traffic was VERY slow and it took us more than 90 minutes to the hotel across the Seine from the Louvre.

Now, most times the connections are easy - but if you miss your Eurostar you are SOL and would have to buy new tix (IF there were seats available on the next train)

neckervd

Leave aeroport Charles de Gaulle 1 by RER at 5.57 and arrive at Gare du Nord at 6.25

jamikins

I would not arrive at gare de nord at 6:25 for a 7:00 train, that would be cutting it way too close...lines first thing in the morning through passport control can be horrendous. I would fly if you are already at CDG. If you already have tickets plan to be there an hour before your train.

Christina

I wouldn't either, but if you knew exactly what you were doing (ie, knew exactly where to go in Gare du Nord from where you get off the RER) you could possibly make that train. Possibly.

Of course the RER isn't foolproof, either, but if I were leaving from Gare du Nord, I wouldn't even consider any other method than the RER, just seems silly to pay so much for some other method which most likely couldn't have any benefits. They have track work and stuff at times, that could have been the reason for a delay, you never know. The RATP website usually lists problems or work going on.

Michael

<i>I wouldn't either, but if you knew exactly what you were doing (ie, knew exactly where to go in Gare du Nord from where you get off the RER) you could possibly make that train. Possibly.</i>

From the official RER site:

The first train leaves CDG Terminal 2 station at <b>4:56</b>, arriving at Gare du Nord/Eurostar station at<b> 5:20</b>. Frequency of trains varies from 7 to 15 minutes between trains for the better part of the day.

The 5:20 a.m. train would get you on time for a 7:00 a.m. Eurostar departure?

Jimpink

Hum, Well we have not purchased our eurostar tickets yet. I will look at the cost to fly of flying to London (something tells me it could be costly). Also we could choose a hotel closer to Gare du Nord/Eurostar? Any recommendations for a hotel close by?

neckervd

Must you really arrive in London before 9am? Trains from Paris Nord to London run about every hr, from 7.13 until 21.13
There are furthermore connections with change at Lille instead of Paris, like CDG dp 9.16 - London ar 11.57

Jimpink

@ neckervd Two reasons we are looking at the early times; the prices are significantly less and my husband and son are flying into Heathrow and land at 7:30a. It would be nice to meet up with them as it's their first time traveling abroad. I did find out that it is actually cheaper to fly from Paris to London then to take the Eurostar? I thought it would be more fun to take the train and go through the "Chunnel"!

Gretchen

There are a number of hotels right across from the Gare. Terminus du Nord I think is one. They are quite serviceable if that is where you want to stay.

Jimpink

An update: Leaving in a week from today. We decided to Fly to London from Paris. The cost was less and we arrive at the same time as my husband and son from the states. I appreciate all of your advice and I would never have thought of flying if it weren't for @janisj. Thanks again everyone!