I tried to use a pay phone in the Gare du Nord train station to call a point of contact for the apartment we were renting. The phone rejected the number, but kept the money. I tried another phone, same thing. I tried again using the toll free number for my long distance credit card, same thing. It rejected the number, kept the money. By this time, I was using 1 euro coins because that's all I had. The pay phones were France Telecom phones. I tried asking the information people about the process, got a smart-ass answer, but that's another story. Finally found a couple of nice women who made the call on their personal cell phone.

Anyway, what's up with French pay phones? Why do they keep your money even when they provide no serivce? BTW, the number I was trying to call was a cell phone. That evidently is an important factor.

I realize I could have purchased a phone card and used it, but I didn't really have need for more than one call.

Thanks for any information.

They dont take money at all so I suppose thats why it kept it. I dont know where you were putting the money but there is not a slot for coins. There were some that took francs long long ago but they never created one that takes euro coins.

Another thing, when you call within France, all numbers start with a 0, 01 for paris, 06 for a cell phone etc... when you call France from the US you drop that zero and replace it with 01133.

I will be in a similar situation in a few months. I've rented an apartment in Paris for a one week stay in March, and have been instructed by the rental company to call a cell phone number when I arrive at the airport, so they can meet me at the apartment.

I was planning to take a pocket full of euro coins left over from my last trip, and make the call from a pay phone. Based on Morgan's response, it looks like that plan won't work. So do I need to purchase a phone card just to make one call?

Any advice will be appreciated.

Thanks for the reply, MorganB, however, you're wrong. The French Telecom phones very much have a coin slot, display how much the need for calls, and sometimes work. I saw people successfully using them with coins. However, they didn't work for me. I suspect that it was because I was trying to call a cell phone, and a toll free number.

Good luck, newesttraveler. Maybe someone else will have some information you can use.

never seen one with euro coin slots anywhere in France. have only seen one with franc coin slots.

BTW I live in France and have never seen one.

You can call a cell from a payphone btw so i am not sure what that has to do with it but it does cost more to call a cell.

sorry am on my laptop and keep accidently clicking via the touchpad which I hate, someone turned it on, I usually keep it off.

wanted to add.... If you have seen it I am sure there is one I just never have seen one. I would think based on what you say that they do exist but are few and far between.

Seems like it would give you your money back if you didnt place a call! Its 30 eurocents per minute from a payphone to a cell phone.

You mean there's another public phone in France that only takes coins??

Here's my story:

A couple of weeks ago we were in the Dordogne. Returning from dinner in a distant restaurant, to the beautiful Relais de Lavergne near Lalinde, we were relaxing -- when suddenly I recalled:

"Jane is getting married in TWO HOURS! We have to call and wish her well!"

Into the car and down the twisty roads to the village call-box, to call Canada.

When we arrived in the village, I said " You've got the France Telecom phone card, right?"

No.

Back up the hillside to the Relais.

Phone card in hand, we drove back down to the silent village -- and found ourselves in the only call-box in France (we thought) that took coins, not phone-cards.

"We have to go on" I said.

Through the black, black stretches of the Perigord countryside, until we reached another village, where we found another telephone kiosk. My partner shone the high beams on the booth while I punched in the numbers.

"Is Jane there? It's Ted calling from France."

Fiance/ partner: "She's just going under the shower... She says: can you call back?"

"Well, no.......Have a wonderful wedding. Goodbye."

Duty done, we inched back up the hills to the Relais and bed.

OK, so let's cut to the chase here. As I will be needing to use a payphone at CDG in a couple of weeks and have never done so before, someone who does this often please give me a step by step, blow by blow lesson on using French pay phones. I do not plan on having any coins with me but guess I could buy something at the Relay and get the change.

I have a French cell phone but it will not be charged and I will have to get a new number when I arrive because mine has expired. Hence the need for the payphone to call for the Bee Shuttle.

As always, thanks for the info!

1. Get a phone card at the nearest tobacconist -- probably 7 euros for 50 units ( I called Canada briefly for 2 units -- scarcely more than a local call at home.)

2. Stick it in the slot beneath the receiver -- illustration shows you which way to stick it in.

3. It MAY tell you to wait 2-3 seconds (Patientez, s.v.p.)

4. Dial when it tells you "composez le numero". But basically just dial and the machine will tell you if you have made a mistake...

(Raccrochez -- "hang up"; Or better yet; "Anomalie". Ya gotta love the French!!))

Merci ted. I have a phone card that I bought this spring but never used. It is in my travel wallet so looks like I am all set.

Another vote for the calling card. Purchase one at the airport and you are set. They're convenient and cheap. I never bother with cell phones when overseas. Just something else to worry about or lose.

Téléçartes are the only way to go these days. I haven't seen a machine that takes coins for years. When calling within France or to a cell phone you must use the zero before the number.

Hi crepes,

>Hence the need for the payphone to call for the Bee Shuttle.

You will not need a pay phone.
When you get your baggage, use one of the free phones at the airport to call the shuttle.

The confirmation from Bee Shuttle says

"In order to make your transfer more efficient, PLEASE CALL OUR TOLL FREE NUMBER: 0800 55 79 32
from any phone (no coins or card are needed) AS SOON AS YOU ARRIVE IN BAGGAGE CLAIM AREA at the airport..."

Thanks ira! This will be my first time to use a shuttle so I don't know the ropes.

That's a funny story, ted.

I hate French phone cards. I just don't know how they work. I buy a 7 Euro (?) one and when I call a cell phone, the phone card is all used up within a few minutes. It's even more expensive than calling the US. (Calls to the US seem to be more expensive than what ted is saying regarding calls to Canada -- but maybe the time of day makes a difference.)

I keep thinking that there's a secret to French phone cards I'm not getting.

111op,

Last year I bought one of those cards (7 euro sounds about right).

I made two calls in France and 5 calls to the US. A 3 of the calls were fairly long. There was still pleanty of units on the card at the end of the trip.

Keith

Maybe I just have bad phone card karma.

But I do think that calls to cell phones are charged at exorbitant rates.

Last time I had to call the shuttle on an airport 'pay' phone, I learned the call would only go through if I pushed the "sans carte" button (no card, no coins). Some phones may not have this button, but both myself and a coworker had same experience.