internet access in France
 

I am going to be in France and want to know where I can access the internet to pick up email. I won't have a computer with me but have a Yahoo email account i can access if i can find place with a computer Any ideas?

I can help you with Paris. here are a bunch of Cyber Cafes:<BR><BR>Note: With the increase in the number of home computers, some of these may have closed - give them a call before you schlep over. <BR><BR>Cafe Orbital. 13 Rue de Medicis, Paris 6. Metro Odeon, Tel: 01.43.25.76.77 - near the Luxembourg gardens. Costs 55 francs an hour. Open Monday through Saturdays from 10am to 10pm. Closed on Sundays. <BR><BR>Cyber Cube - aol loaded machines with English keyboards. Four locations:<BR>9, rue d'Odessa - 14th<BR>12, rue Daval - 11th<BR>5, rue Mignon - 6th <BR><BR>Easy Everything<BR>37 Blvd de Sebastopol<BR><BR>Clicktown<BR>15 rue de Rome<BR><BR>Hammam Cafe: 4 Rue des Rosiers, Paris 4. Metro St.Paul, tel: 01.42.78.04.45. Costs 50 francs an hour or 30 francs for half an hour. Open Sunday through Thursday from Noon to 2am. Friday from Noon to 4pm and Saturday from 4 pm to 2am.<BR><BR>New Works<BR>On rue Auber at the intersection of rues Auber, Mathurins, and Caumartin. Buy a card for 10FF, then put on as much time as <BR>you wish at one franc per minute. Computers are upstairs. No longer has AOL loaded machines so you can get and send e-mail but can't get to the boards.<BR><BR>Centre d'Applications de Recherches Informatiques (C.A.R.I)<BR>72-74 Passage de Choiseul<BR>75002 Paris. Tel: 01-44-58-90-85 Open M-F 10:00a.m. to 8:00p.m. 1:00-8:00 on Sat. 36FF for 1 hour. <BR><BR>Cafe Cyberia: In the Centre Georges Pompidou, Mezzanine East, Metro Rambuteau, Paris 4.Tel: 01.44.54.53.49 Costs 30 francs for a half an hour and 50 francs for a full hour. Open Monday, Wednesday to Friday from noon till 10pm, Saturday and Sunday from 10am till 10pm.<BR><BR>Espace Vivendo<BR>6-8 rue de Tilsitti<BR>75008<BR>Tel: 01-71-71-15-00<BR>between Ave Friedland and Hoche<BR>ultra modern, with at least 50<BR>computers, a cafŽ, and bookstore all in one <BR><BR>Forum des Images: In the Grande Galerie inside Les Halles, Metro Les Halles, Paris 1. Tel: 01.44.76.62.00. Costs 25 francs per half hour. <BR><BR>Web Bar. 32 Rue de Picardie, Paris 3. Metro Republique, tel: 01.42.72.66.55 Using a computer costs 30 francs for 30 minutes. Open daily from 11:30am to 2am.<BR><BR>Micro Universite <BR>13, rue Champollion<BR>75005 Paris<BR><BR>Planet Cyber<BR>173, rue de Vaugirard<BR>75015<BR><BR>Le Breguet<BR>72, rue Falguiere<BR>75015 Paris<BR>For more Paris information e-mail me: [email protected]

We found cybercafes in every French city<BR>we visited:besides Paris, Rennes, Montpellier, Nimes, Nice, Aix, St. Remy, Le Lavandou and others. We found them by doing a search on the web before leaving; asking at the tourist information offices at train stations; or asking at the hotel. Some we found just walking around or coming upon advertisements.

If you can't find one, pop into the local university computer lab and ask a student if you can check your e-mail. That's worked for me a few times. Also, you can check e-mail at public libraries, usually free, sometimes a courtesy fee. <BR>

The Tourist Information Office in Bayeux had computers available. I don't know if this is common. Be aware that the keyboards are different than the U.S. keyboards making answering your email a little slower.

There are a few public computers with internet access around in some places like post offices, metro/RER stations, etc, but I wouldn't count on that. Those are often not working or too difficult to get. Why don't you just look them up in the phonebook in whatever city you are in? Wherever you are staying, I presume they have a phone and the yellow pages (Pages Jaunes). Just look under "cybercafes" or maybe "internet - espaces de consultation"

If you put cybercafes into your own computers search function,you can get your own list.

You can also buy a Telecarte (from France Telecom) at rail and underground stations and other places which is "charged" with a certain amount of time. If you find a tourist centre or hotel which offers internet access, you can just use the card and time will be deducted (same principle as a pre-paid 'phone card'). Usually you can buy these anyplace where paid internet access is offered, and then hold onto it for future use. (I never saw these advertised anywhere; I found out about them by asking in a tourist office in Paris how one accessed their machines, whereupon one of the peple who worked their actually walked me over to the counter at the underground station across the street, helped me buy one, and voila! I used it for the rest of my time in France.)