EasyBus from CDG - reliable?
 

In the past when going into Paris from CDG I have used the Roissy Bus, Air France Bus, and RER. Today I found an advertisement for easyBus with scheduled departures from CDG to Palais Royal for about $5 one-way with an online reservation. Have any of you used this service? Can you recommend it or not? Why?

I will be departing CDG mid-afternoon on a Saturday in June.

I will use the metro from Palais Royal to the Marais where my apartment is located.

Thanks for the thumbs up or down on this service.

It´s been running a full two days now, you might want to give people a change to try it if you want a complete analysis. The prices started at 2€ and the bus is open to anyone with priority given to Easyjet ticket holders.

Note that the buses have 16 seats and run once every 30 minutes.

For that price, I"d sure try it. Besides, it doesn't matter that much about reliability when you are arriving. Upon departure and you need to make a flight, yes, but upon arrival, it's not so crucial. Depending what you mean about reliable, I presume that it departs frequently enough.

Oops... I should have read the dates more closely. Obviously, any experience with EasyBus will be limited at this point.

When I wrote, "reliable", I was thinking as a new service was the bus on time, were there difficulties with reservations being honored etc. As Kerouac noted the bases are small but frequent. Again, it is way to soon to find out answers to my "reliable" questions.

Like you Christina, I am going to take a chance. I bought my ticket, and decided if it turns out there are not enough seats or other problems occur before I depart CDG I can always catch the RER or Roissy Bus. I am prepared to be flexible.

For those who responded, thanks for your input.

Well, actually, when I wrote "once every 30 minutes" it was to point out the fact that the buses are <b>infrequent</b> rather than frequent compared to the other transportation options. But if you consider it frequent, absolutely go for it because it is a huge savings over all of the other buses and RER (and taxis).

Kerouac, It will be interesting to experience the easyBus for a variety of reasons. Cheap - The rates are variable time of day, day of the week etc. On time - according to the website and the reservation system during operating hours they leave on the half-hour and the hour ... so that's frequent but scheduled. I'll be wearing my "adventure" hat ...

Julie49, we too are considering taking the easyBus (in 3 weeks). Are you purchasing your ticket ahead of time, or will you be paying the bus driver? I gathered from their website that it will cost more to pay the driver, if purchased online, it will cost 4.99euros per person. Thanks.

So far the advantages of EasyBus:

1. It´s cheap

The disadvantages:

1. You might have to wait 30 minutes before the next departure.
2. EasyJet passengers are given seat priority. Good if you are an Easyjet passenger.
3. Very few people will arrive in Paris anywhere near their hotels.
4. The Vans are subject to traffic congestion, trains are not.

Miledag,

I bought my ticket online because it was less expensive and IF I end up using a different form of transportation I am NOT out too much money. I paid 2.99 pounds online - depending upon conversion rate probably about $4.50.

This morning, I received an email that my confirmed reservation departure time from CDG had been changed from 1400 to 1430. This is probably better for me, less concern about immigration/customs at CDG. IF this happens again, I'll take the loss and a different form of transportation. I don't mind waiting the extra 30 minutes, time for a cafe, get euros etc.

I looked at where the bus arrived in Paris. It is close to the Louve Metro station and a cab stand. Both good options for once in the city.

Sarastro, I'm curious as to how easyJet passengers will get priority, as I have a confirmed reservation. As noted earlier the buses are small.

Oh well, I'm taking my adventure hat and if the 1430 reservation doesn't work out I've a back-up plan.

I agree, that cost is so minimal, if something happens, doesn't matter that much. I'd be interested in hearing how it works out, that is such a great option. The Air France bus only departs about every half hour, also, that seems normal to me, I"m not sure why that is perceived by some as so terrible, I call that frequent.

And traffic doesn't really matter to me if it's a flat fee. But I'm never in some big rush to get to my hotel when I arrive that 15-30 minutes extra time really matters. In fact, if it's morning, it really doesn't matter as you can't get your room usually, anyway. Also, I'm always kind of out of it after a transatlantic flight, anyway, so operating at a slower pace.

I also wonder about how that would work if you have a reservation. I believe all that means is that for people without reservations, Easyjet passengers would have priority. I think the website says that. It doesn't mean if you have a reservation, it is meaningless if some Easyjet passenger comes along, from what I read.

And Julie, if you miss the bus, you can use the same ticket for up to 60 minutes later, actually, according to their website. The only issue is in that case, you are considered not to have a seat reservation, so it's only on an "as available" basis.

My main complaint is that I absolutely would not want to arrive at Palais Royal. Even though it is in central Paris, it is not particularly well connected to the metro system, unlike something like Gare du Nord or Châtelet.

Kerouac, excellent thought re: connection points. In this case, however, after an all night flight from the west coast of the US. I'd rather deal with a metro station not quite as large as Châtelet. The few times I've used this station, I've managed to get myself seriously turned around, confused, frustrated, blah blah blah. So, I'm trying to save that adventure for when I am not jet lagged.

Anyway, as my broken record continues to spin and repeat, I'll wear my adventure hat and see what happens.

<i>Sarastro, I'm curious as to how easyJet passengers will get priority, as I have a confirmed reservation. As noted earlier the buses are small.</i>

Julie49 - I was not able to find the definitive detail in easyBus´s T&C but the information I had came from this source:

<i>mais la priorité dans les bus sera donnée aux passagers ayant réservé un billet d’avion avec easyJet.</i>
http://www.air-journal.fr/2015-04-14...s-5142691.html

I assume that easyBus will honor advance reservations for those who have them.

Since the buses are so small, I expect that they will be fully booked when the service is well established. And the EasyJet passengers will get booked first. I imagine the website will say things like "that bus is full, but we can propose another one in 90 minutes."

As planned both my niece and I used EasyBus from CDG to Paris on 6 June. We arrived at different times during the day. Both times, the bus was waiting, drivers polite and helpful. Both times, the bus was clean and we arrived at our drop-off point within an hour. The bus my niece was on (09:30) was full. I was the only passenger at 1430. I would consider using this service again. It was affordable, prompt, and while not a luxury seat comfortable enough for me.

There was an article in the Sunday paper yesterday saying that the bus at Palais Royal was 50 minutes late and people had to go running for the RER or the Roissybus instead but also that the situation would improve. It was also mentioned that at least half of the passengers have to pay 10 euros rather than 2 euros for their tickets, which means that the RER or the Roissybus are better options if they are more convenient to get to.

Having read the thread so far, I thought I'd add my experience of easyBus to the mix.
I have used the service since the start, and have found it both efficient and inexpensive.
I am a frequent flyer and can attest that the staff and drivers are always helpful and friendly.
I have experienced the bus being delayed by a few minutes on a couple of occasions, but this is Paris - traffic is always terrible -the easybus service however is not.
The prices increase the closer to the date your book, so I have managed to secure a fair few of my seats for 2€, and can assure you that easyjet passengers do not get priority over anyone else who is waiting for a ride.... Hope this helps.

I can only repeat my experience of last weekend: Our flight arrived early and we managed to get onto an early bus at no extra charge.

The driver was helpful and friendly and loaded and unloaded our luggage for us.

The bus left on time and took 50 minutes to get from the airport to the Paris bus stop. There were 10 people on the bus.

On the trip back to the airport. again the bus left on time.

We paid, I think, 4.49 euros each for our tickets. Online they start at 2 euros. I think the 10 euros price is if you do not reserve online and pay the driver on the day.

EasyBus, Paris

We were scheduled for a pick-up in Paris at 6:45 am bus showed up around 8:00am, by then more people had arrived than there was room on the bus.

We were the first to have arrived and were at the front of the line, the bus driver decided to stop at the end of the line, so the free for all started to get the luggage on board the bus. My wife got on board and reserved a seat for me while I tried to get our luggage loaded.

By the time my turn came to load our luggage there was only the seat my wife had reserved for me available on the bus and there was another passenger who wanted to get on board, so the driver decided that the other passenger would be given the seat because is time slot was closer even tough it was EasyBus who was responsible for being late.

A heated discussion ensued and 10 minutes later and after a number of passengers on board where pleading to let me on board with my wife, the driver finally relented and consented to use the middle seat next to him ( equipped with a regulatory seat belt ) for the extra passenger.

We were finally on board but arrived at our gate a few minutes after the luggage check-in had closed so were refused boarding and had to rebook at our expense for an afternoon flight.

I have contacted EasyBus but they have not responded to my complaint.

BUYER BEWARE, COMPLETELY UNPROFESSIONAL SERVICE