Hi, Even though I have been researching my trip on this site I still have several things that I just don't quite have a definitive answer to. I arrive in Paris on a Wednesday for 1 week so I know that the Carte Orange is not a good option for me. Is there another pass that I can get that will last for a day or better yet a week that will start when I validate on any day of the week. I know that I can buy the carnets but was wondering about a daily or weekly pass instead. Also from CDG I know that I can take the Roissy bus to the Opera and can walk to my hotel near the Gare Lazare but would it be better to take the RER B to Gare Du Nord and then switch to the RER E to St. Lazare. My question with this is are there escalators at these stations or am I going to have to lug my luggage up the stairs? I would like to buy my tickets for the Louvre ahead of time but I don't know if I have enough time. I looked at the site but it doesn't tell you how long it takes to mail them to you in the USA. Can I purchase them and have them held for me to pick up at the Louvre? Can I also buy a ticket lets say Friday night when the lines are shorter for the next day or do they only sell tickets for the current day. Also on the site even though it is suppose to be in English when I looked at the different tickets I could not tell which ones were the general admission tickets and not ones that seem to include other exhibits. Which one would I need? Last question ---I am thinking of going to Brugge. I have tried to look at the SNCF timetables but can't seem to get them to work right or figure out routing or price. Do I have to go to Brussels first then to Brugge or is there a way to go directly to Brugge? I have seen this talked about on this site and there has been suggestions to go to Oostende but I can't get any specific information about the routing. Would I be able to book these in the USA now? Would I pick them up at the train station? Is it cheaper to book them in the Usa or in Paris? Also when I looked at the Sncf site there seem to be several different kinds of fares with different prices but no exlanation about the difference between each fare. Well thank you so much for all the help that I know I will get. Before each trip that I take I always go to this site and get so much valuable information that makes my trip so much more enjoyable Thanks Kathy

whew, that's a lot to digest in one stream-of-consciousness post!

1. you can use a Carte Orange for Wed-Sunday, if you think you'll get 16 euro's use out of it (Wed is last day it's sold for that week). The maybe a carnet for the last couple days or a Mobilis pass (5E) for each day if you're using transport more than the carnet is going to cover.

2. I don't know the best option for Opera/St Lazare etc. If you aren't familiar with the RER system, I'd use the Roissybus and walk, but have a very good map ready.
you can plan a route on www.mappy.com and use 'pedestrian'.

3. I am pretty sure you can buy the Louvre tickets elsewhere in advance, perhaps Virgin Megastore or FNAC. The Louvre website should show that. I just looked - it very plainly says:
<i>To avoid waiting in line, you can buy your ticket in advance online. Tickets are valid every day except Tuesdays (when the museum is closed) and certain public holidays. Advance tickets cannot be picked up at the museum</i>
You don't have to buy online - you can go to one of the ticket counters at FNAC and buy them.
<i>&euro;8.50
This ticket provides full-day access to the Louvre, except for temporary exhibitions in the Hall Napol&eacute;on. It is also valid for the Mus&eacute;e Eug&egrave;ne Delacroix. Starting from July 1st, 2007, admission to the permanent collections will be &euro;9.</i>
This is the normal entry ticket.

4. I doubt there are direct trains to Brugge from Paris - just plan it through Brussels (Central station) and make the transfer.

You can buy in advance at www.sncf.com, using English all the way. Leave the default country as &quot;France&quot;. There might be Smilys tickets for the Paris-Brussels leg, these are nonrefundable/nonexchangeable. If you don't find discounts at the website in advance (up to 90 days prior) it is doubtful there are any other discounts in person. Maybe a 'last minute' sale or something.

you are sometimes offered the option to print tickets yourself, or to pick up in Paris at a station or SNCF office. you must present your email confirm. and same Cr Card you used to buy online.

That should help you a bit.

nomadwoman: I'm going to plow through this to see if I have any useful info to add. But just a hint for future posts -- one looooooooong entry w/o breaks/paragraphs is <b>really</b> hard to read . . .

like this . . . .

Thanks travelnut for your advice. What and where is FNAC? As for janisj sorry about the long paragraph but I was raised on a typewriter and I don't have a clue how to break this up into paragraphs. When I try to move the cursor around to make a paragraph it doesn't work. It won't move to where I want it to.I'll have to break down and embarrass myself and ask my teenage children how to do it unless you have some sage advice. Thanks again

1. The RER has all the escalators you need.

2. FNAC is a chain of cultural stores (books, CDs, DVDs, software...). There is a ticket counter near the entrance. There is one just across from Gare Saint Lazare in the Passage du Havre.

you just type and when you come to a place you want to break, you hit return twice -- and

voila - there is a &para;

Nomadwoman, would this help:
http://en.parisinfo.com/rub6065.html
I am planning my first trip myself, getting in on the 19th, so I can't speak from experience, but this welcome center near the Opera sells museum passes. It might be a place to start.

And Travelnut, thanks for the link to mappy! That was really helpful!!

You can get from Paris to Bruges via Lille, France also. Check the rail site referenced above, and look for the discounted fares. If you know the day and time you plan to travel, you can purchase the Paris to Lille portion of the trip online and save some money. Then in Paris, stop at any train station and purchase the Lille-Bruges (and return if you are going back to Paris). I saved quite a bit doing it that way. A little more than half the fare if I remember correctly.

Thanks again everyone for the information. Usually I have a fairly long time before a trip to plan everything but this time I only have a couple of week so I'm flying by the seat of my pants.

Thanks for the info about starting a new paragraph I never knew how to do this so I'm happy. I knew I should have been able to figure out something so simple (I'm not usually so dense)but I just didn't, so thanks again!!