Getting from Paris St Lazare to Paris Nord, best & fastest way...with luggage?
 

I will be going from Caen to Bruges while on my trip and since there isn't any trains that go directly from Caen to Bruges, I need to go through Paris. I've just finished checking out all the schedules on the Eurorail website and the train from Caen arrives at Paris St Lazare station but the train from Paris going to Bruges leaves out of Paris Nord. Given the schedules, I will have a little bit less than 2 hours to get from one station to the next, which I think should be enough time. My question is will it be easier and fastest to just get a train or is there a subway route I can take? Keep in mind I will have a suitcase and most likely a carry on as well.

Thank you in advance to all you Paris experts.

You can use the www.ratp.com site and the "route finder" to chart the trip on the Metro.....BUT, as much as I love the Paris Metro it can be a nightmare with luggage due to the stations which have stairways and NOT escalators.

Your "best" (and by that I mean easiest..after all you deserve SOME luxury) route may very well be to spring for a taxi and live like a "civilized" traveler LOL!

Intrepid1,

Thank you, I reread my note and maybe you figured it out as well, I meant " My question is will it be easier and fastest to just get a TAXI or is there a subway route I can take??" Not a train ! :)

I think you're right, I think the civilized way is good. Any idea apx how much it should cost me and how long it will take?

The most direct way from St Lazare to Gare du Nord by public transport is to take RER line E (Haussman St Lazare to Magenta - which is part of the Gare du Nord station). Journey time is about 10 minutes, but then you would need to factor in the wait time between trains (around 10 mins) and the time it'll take to get from the main station concourse to the RER. You could easily do it in well under an hour, however.

BUT as Intrepid1 says, with luggage it can be difficult. The RER line E is a new line, so the platforms and escalators are modern, and both stations are wheelchair accessible which means they will be easier to access with luggage than some other stations (i.e. likely to have lifts).

If you get a taxi it should take around 15-20 minutes (less if the traffic is good) and I'm guessing it shouldn't cost much more than 10 euros (although they will add a surcharge for each piece of luggage that goes in the boot of the taxi).

Hanl: thanks for that great info..we'll be in Paris in July and this was good to know about the new RER line.

Click Here!

Getting from Paris St Lazare to Paris Nord, best & fastest way...with luggage?



Author: lyb
Date: 02/11/2005, 02:37 am

Busses of RATP route number 32 leave from in front of the St Lazarre station to the roof of the Gare du Nord, and from there you find lifts down to platform level. At Gare du Nord you are at the bus terminal, so you cannot fail to leave the bus there. At Gare St Lazarre you should take a luggage trolley, wheel bags out to the front of the station, and look for a bus stand. If you see none, you should ask a passer by for help. At the bus stand you should check the signs to look for 32. If you find none you should ask a person waiting there to guide you to a 32. Once you have reached the stop for a 32 you should ask a fellow traveller who has the muscles to help you put your bags onto the bus. I am afraid I forget whether you have to buy the bus ticket in advance. You can ask a fellow passenger and can ask the fellow passenger where you buy one. If the sales point is far I think I would just board the bus, and say to the driver that you are sorry you have no ticket. He or she is likely to wave you away. If not I just stand in the bus and ask whether anybody can very kindly sell me a ticket.

Sorry this sounds so complex. In fact it is easy, so long as you ask for help at every turn. Nowadays you can ask in English if you speak slowly and start by saying you are sorry but you have no French.

I expect you know of the connection that bypasses Paris, so avoids the station transfer. It gives two times a day.

Not Sundays: Caen 0628 not Sundays, Rouen Rive Droit 0828 to 1214, Amiens 1347 to 1359, not Sundays, Lille Flandres 1531 to 1608, Kortrijk 1638 to 1648, Bruges 1727

Mon to Fri: Caen 1220 or 1229, Rouen Rive Droit 1417 or 1423 to 1628 Amiens 1752 to 1802, Lille Flandres 1942 to 2008 or 2013, Kortrijk 2038 to 2048, Bruges 2127

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Hi lyb,

A much better site for train schedules is http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

((I))

My suggestion is to take a cab (taxi).
Saving a few euros is not worth it to me to fight my way onto the bus and ride uncomfortably. Paris buses are often standing room only and wielding two or more suitcases is awkward and often a physical strain unless you are a weight lifter by training.

I have ridden buses and subways in Paris with luggage, but that was in my youth when I had more brawn than brains and more brains than money. Today the situation is the reverse!!

I would not try it in London either, even though I can ask my way through the maze.

Just to point out that you can buy a ticket bus from the bus driver.

Thank you everybody. I think I'll go for the taxi, or thank you BEN HAINES about the trains connections, I'm definitely going to look into it, that would be even better. I wouldn't feel like I'm going backward, I'll be spending the previous 6 days in Paris, and also I get to see different areas of the country..what a great idea!