Gare du Nord to Gare de l'Est - need info
 

I'll be going to Reims direct from plane arrival at CDG, and train leaves from Gare de l'Est. If I take the RER to Gare du Nord from CDG, is it easily walkable to l'Est? I'll have a small rolling bag, plus small carry-on. I usually manage this OK getting to hotels from train stations, etc. I'm sure a taxi from CDG would be easier, but I'd rather spend my money on something else, like food!

You can transfer to the Paris Metro at Gare du Nord without purchasing a Metro ticket [RER ticket from CDG is valid for Metro connections in Paris center]. The Metro line 4 direction Porte d'Orleans and the Metro line 5 direction Place d'Italie both stop at Gare de l'Est. Visit this link http://parisbytrain.com/gare-de-lest...train-station/ for a closer at the train station.

It is walkable to l'Est. I did this with a small wheeled carry-on and a daypack last year.

There are two routes:

The shortest route requires going down about 2 floors worth of stairs just before l'Est.

A slightly longer route gets you to l'Est without stairs. There was a discussion last year here on this subject.

Thanks for the replies. That link is great!
Greg, I'd rather avoid all those stairs.
A 10 minute walk might be easier than transferring to Metro, too. I'll search the previous discussions about this on here.

I did the non-stairs route this past April and it works well..all flat and sidewalks..just make sure you don't make any wrong turns..keep turning to your left.

Greg or Dukey, I've been looking at the Google Map with directions. One route is Rue de Dunquerke to Rue d'Alsace and the other is Rue Magenta to Rue d'Alsace. Do you remember which one is the FLAT one? The Google directions says that the Rue Magenta one is a few minutes shorter. I wonder if that is the "stairs" route.

Hold on and I'll answer in a little more depth in a moment

Ok, here's what you do:

come out the front entrance of the station and walk STRAIGHT AHEAD.

You'll shortly come to the intersection of Blvd de Magenta and the Rue la Fayette.

Turn LEFT onto Magenta; pass Rue de Petits on the right and almost immediately pass Rue de Saint-Quentin on the left.

Afew steps beyond you'll reach the intersection of Magenta, Rue de Faubourg Saint-Denis, AND du rue 1945 8 Mai. Take rue 8 Mai (to your LEFT) and less than a bloc later you'll be in front of the Gare de l'Est which will also be on your left.

To see how challenging the stairs are, watch the movie "Amelie."

The scene is when Audrey Tautou (Amelie) chases Mathieu Kassovitz (Nino) and Mathieu hops on a motorcycle at the top of the stairs next to the Gare de l'Est.

Dukey, thanks for your details. I'm always getting lost on foot (and also driving!) as I have a very poor sense of direction. I'll also be jetlagged and tired when I'm doing this. So I'll definitely have your directions with me.

Greg, I saw Amelie when it first came out - but want to rent it to see again - unless I luck out and find it on cable TV.

Hi. I hope to be making this same trip in September. Are you by any chance going on a Rick Steves tour? Anyway, my research shows that there are at least two direct connections daily from CDG to Reims by TGV. You would not have to go into Paris to get to Reims. The train station is Champagne-Ardenne. Here is a link: http://bonjourlafrance.net/france-tr...bar-le-duc.htm. There are directions elsewhere on getting from the Champagne-Ardenne train station into the center of Reims.

Hope this is helpful and not too late.

pixiedeb, thanks so much for your post. I had no idea that there was a train direct to Reims from CDG. Never even thought to check that out. I just got on the SNCF site, and Yes! That would be so much easier for me - and less expensive. They show a TGV leaving CDG at 12:54 to Champagne-Ardenne, then a local train 15 minutes later to Reim Gare. I would have to wait about 3 1/2 hours at the airport, but that would be simpler than schleping (I love that word!) my bag and myself into Paris and walking from Gare du Nord to Gare de l'Est. I'm not going until October. Thanks again!

No, I'm not taking a Rick Steves tour - I'll be alone. However, I'll have his Paris guidebook (with info on Reims). Even though I've been to Paris several times in the past, he still has a lot of useful, practical information. And the book is light to carry.

I hope you'll post a trip report when you get back from your Sept. trip.