Hello

Just seeking any and all the advice I can get, myself and wife are going to Paris February 15 - 18, 2004. Staying in the 15th (Comfort Inn Convention Rue de Serres). Based on my research so far have made a reservation for pick up at CDG with Blue Vans,and since I leave at 1.00pm from CDG on Feb 18,a return pick up.
Am I wasting valuable euros I can use for food?.
Should I purchase a carnet of ten, or a three day visitor pass?.
Please, I am open to suggestions so I can cover at least the major tourist attractions and take decent pictures to bring home.
Any suggestions for cheap eats, where to shop or at least look for a resonaably priced french cologne.
Suggestion for a night cruise, one night of clubbing and dancing(mid 30's), tours if any etc.
Pleeease any thing would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Graham

Hi Graham! My husband & I just returned on Monday from our 1st trip to Paris. We used a shuttle service for our transportation to & from CDG and were really pleased. We used the Bee Shuttle's "shared" van service both ways and were the only ones on board both directions. They charged us 29 euros for 2 people each way. The drivers were very friendly (spoke English) and both helped my husband load our luggage into the van. This option is cheaper than a taxi, but is more than taking the RER back to the airport. We were going to try taking the RER back to the airport, but decided it would be way too difficult to do since we had 2 suitcases & 3 duffle bags to schlep up and down all of those stairs. The extra money we spent on the shuttle was definitely worth it in my opinion.

As for your metro passes, you should be fine with a couple of carnets which you and your wife can share. In your case, the Paris Visite pass would work too. It's probably more expensive than going the carnet direction, but knowing you don't have to worry about buying more tickets might be worth the extra expense. We were able to buy a Carte Orange for our trip and having the ability to hop on and off the metro was great - especially late in the day after spending 10-12 hours wandering the city.

We ate in this great creperie just off of St. Michel Blvd. (it's on a small street to the left as you exit the St. Michel metro station). I believe the name was the Cluny Creperie. They have a 10 euro menu which offered a starter, an entree, a desert, and a boule of their apple cidre. All was yummy. But I think we really liked the fact that they had a non-smoking section that was truly non-smoking.

Well I think I've rambled enough. Enjoy your trip to this wonderful city! DU

Hi GG,

Once, when we were very young, my wife and I followed Frommer's advice for the cheapest way to get from CDG to our hotel. This required bus to train to metro to metro.

Since then we have used the shuttle.

We have always bought the carnet. We usually have tickets left over.

Have you looked at fodors 3 day-walking tours of Paris at www.fodors.com?

You might find Batobus interesting.
http://www.batobus.com/english/qui.htm

Here is a super budget tip. You can spend an entire day on the L'Open tour bus, see each and every site, hop on and off at will to take pictures. It is convenient as you buy your ticket when you step on the bus. Get on it anywhere you see it stopped which is lots of places. To me, this is the best value for a first trip. And most comprehensive. You don't need to speak a word of French to handle it as the headphones/guide is broadcast in English as well. I love it, and I recommend it to everyone. Even though I've done it many times before, whenever I have a traveling companion who is visiting for the first time, I insist we do the tour. I would say it is especially good if your stay is shorter than a week. After taking the tour and seeing the city, you can decide which sites you want to go back to on your own and explore more in depth.

I took Blue Van shuttle back in Sept 03 and had a horrible experience. (Maybe that's why they're the cheapest). We waited for 1.5hr before the van showed up, and each time I called they assured me it was "coming". Another couple who were waiting for the same shuttle actually waitied for 2 full hours. After it eventually came, the driver then make a detour to go back to his house to pick up his lunch while all of us were sitting in the van! I emailed the company after I got back to complain, and of course never heard from them. Complete waste of time. You might want to try some other company like Airport Connection. http://www.airport-connection.com/shuttle-us.asp
Definitely get the 10-carnet, but don't get the visitor pass. That is not a discount. Get the 3-day musee carte instead, which allows you to jump the line at most sights - esp Lourve, d'Orsay and Versailles. You can get the musee carte at any Metro station.
We also took the cheesey touristy evening Seine cruise on Bateaux-mouches. It is one of the biggest mass-tourist boats; but for only 7Euros for a 1hr cruise, it was worth it. Make sure you bundle up for the trip.

Dunno how to answer YK's comment about Blue Van/. We used it get out of Paris the first day of the transit strike in May. They made a herculean effort to get us to CDG on time - They did.

Also they were waiting for us at CDG when we arrived.

Completely agree with not getting the Paris Viste.We were lucky this time because our timeing was right and were able to get the Carte Orange. :-B

We used the Blue Van in October and it was wonderful. They gave us a time "window" and appeared within the given time. It was packed. There were 8 of us in the van, but the RER is packed too at rush hour. Our driver was wonderful and at rush hour took every back road in Paris to get us to the airport well ahead of time. It was an oddly interesting tour of Paris!

The carnet is better than the Paris Viste. We've never used the Metro enough to warrant the extra expense of the pass. It's just too much fun to walk everyplace in Paris. It's soooo pretty. =D>

Cheap eats: the Latin Quarter. There are some awful restaurants there, but there are some decent ones too if you're not a foodie.

French cologne: Try Fragonard. It's a museum type place but they sell perfume and some of it is wonderful. The soaps are great too.

Have a wonderful trip.