Getting to CDG airport at early morning
 

Hi all,

I will be visiting Paris for two days next week. The departure flight from CDG is at 0630 at terminal 1. I was wondering if anyone can give me advice on the most convenient and hassle free way to get to the airport from the 13th district?

I have been thinking about calling a taxi, but unsure of prices?

Many thanks.

Call and arrange a taxi the neight before. It will cost you about 5 euro to arrange in advance, but well worth it IMO. You should be at the airport at least 2 hours ahead of time, and at that time of morning it shouldn't cost you more than 35-40 euro, if that, for the taxi.

Hi M,

Ditto St C, although I think it will be more like 50E.

Also try
www.beeshuttle.com
www.paris-blue-airport-shuttle.fr
www.parishuttle.com

Well, last time I flew out of CDG I had a 7:00 am flight and was on my way in the taxi at 4:30 am - total, including the fee for calling in advance, was 36 euro.

It may have been a weekend day, though - there was virtually no traffic at all.

Have you thought about riding the RER out the previous evening and staying at the airport? Or are your hotel arrangments cast in stone?

Mucho € for an early-morning taxi doesn't make much sense to me.

In this particular case I would also opt for the pre-arranged taxi unless you could be certain that any shuttel would get you to the airport with the required time margin.

Definitely call for a taxi the night before. At that time of morning (4:30 am-5:00 am) it shouldn't take more than 30 minutes to get to CDG. (I did exactly that last spring).

For what it's worth, I was unable to find out from the airline ahead of time what time the check-in counter opened. Lufthansa check-in was open when I arrived at 5:00.

If you are talking Transatlantic flight, you should be there at 4h30, ie leaving Paris 13 at 4, getting up at 3h30. Tough... But I think you are taking a European flight, so one hour ahead should be enough. Still, it means getting up at 4h30. Staying in an airport hotel would only save you the taxi, since they have shuttles to the terminal. But timewise zip saving. As for booking the taxi the day before... you are not in the provinces. Just have your hotel call the nearest taxi stand, in those wee hours you'll be leaving Paris. Only if you are flying out on a Sunday morning (ie wanting to take a taxi basically on a Saturday night, when there are very thin on the ground) should you go through the booking business.

The other alternative is to spend the night at the Sheraton CDG. It's right in the International Terminal. It will undoubtedly be pricier than your hotel in the 13th, but add to the cost of the room... the price of a taxi, the value of an extra hour's sleep, reduced stress. You could perhaps even check your bags early and go back to the hotel for breakfast. (If you're on a Club Floor, breakfast is included).

I took a cab a little more than a month ago for a pretty early flight...

45 euros from our hotel near Rodin museum to CDG.

((H))

I stayed at the Sheraton in the terminal. We still needed to be driven to the other terminal. I don't remember exactly how it all went, but the hotel drove us over at no charge. The hotel is great. Soundproof, comfortable beds, great shower. This hotel rates very high in my book.

It would be the hotel for me too

Thanks for all your suggestions! Greatly appreciated.

My flight will be on monday morning, to LHR. I have comtemplated getting to the airport around midnight and just staying there til my flight.

I have contacted several shuttle buses but they said they don't start til 4am. I know I should have enough time, but from previous experiences, I really don't want to be pushed for time especailly when I read that CDG isn't exactly the most user friendly airport!

CDG is as user friendly as any other airport... when you just take a flight there or land there to your final destination. What they haven't gotten round to is the business of connections, which is still done on a DIY basis. So, in your case, flying to LHR (45 mn) should be relatively hassle free, especially if it's AF. With BA expect a few more security checks, but still one hour ahead is more than enough. So I would still advise: wake up at 4h30 at your Paris hotel, taxi at 5, arrival terminal 5h30 and Bob's your uncle.

Having said that, if you want to save €40/45 taxi, there is a night bus, N120, that rides all the way from Porte d'Italie (that includes at Tolbiac and place d'Italie) to CDG T1, T2 & T3. It stops once an hour at.01 at place d'Italie and arrives 70 mn later at CDG. All this for the price of... one single métro ticket! (€1.10 or something if bought by carnet), and it's even free if you have a 5 zone carte orange. So, in your case, you would have to take the 4h01 at place d'Italie, you'll be at 5h10 at CDG2, 5h15 at CDG1, 5h20 at CDG3. The buses are safe and clean, they basically carry people who work odd hours at CDG.

Noctilien buses require one <i>ticket 't'</i> for the first two zones you cross, plus one more for every zone beyond two.

So for Zone 1 (Paris) to Zone 5 (CDG), you would need four tickets. Here's a downloadable brochure showing the route and timetable: http://www.ratp.info/orienter/f_hora...;loc=noctilien

(Note <i>les zones tarifaire</i> below the map.)

OK, so it'll be &euro;1.09 x 4 = &euro; 3.36 if bought in a carnet, &euro;1.40 x 4 = &euro;5.60 if bought individually.

&quot;&euro;1.09 x 4 = &euro; 3.36&quot; - Is this an example of that there New Math thingy again?

I'd still take the train the night before.

Hi,

If I was to catch the last train the night before, what time would that be?

Oh and another question, how reliable is the night bus?

Thanks for all your help so far!

The night bus riding in a traffic free city, it's pretty reliable (give or take 5 mn). As for the &quot;train&quot; (actually RER) on the previous night, it's up to you, you can take it as early or late as you want, provided you've got a reservation at one of those lovely atmospheric airport hotels. The last RER must leave gare du Nord at about 00h30, but I wouldn't recommend taking an RER that calls at the stations of the northern suburbs after 21h00 / 22h00. Once the evening rush hour is over, it's better to choose a direct RER, one that doesn't stop between GdN and CDG. Complete schedule on www.ratp.fr

In case you don't know how to find the RER timetable at www.ratp.fr, here's the procedure:

On the main page, click &quot;Horaires&quot; in the left-hand column

In box 1, select &quot;B&quot;

In box 2, select &quot;Tous les horaires de la ligne&quot;

Click &quot;Valider&quot;

In the first box, select &quot;A&eacute;roport Charles de Gaulle...&quot;

In the second box, select &quot;Lundi...&quot; for Monday-Friday or &quot;Samedi...&quot; for weekends and holidays

Punch &quot;Rechercher&quot;

You should see a timetable. Note that the last departure to CDG departs Gare du Nord at 00h15, but the last one that doesn't stop in the suburbs leaves at 23h30.