Paris First Time Traveler Questions
 

Hello everyone!

Me and my finace are headed for Paris, Venice and Rome for our HM. I would greatly appreciate any advice on a few things I am not a 100% sure about.

1. Me and my fiance (traveling with a not so heavy backpack each) arrive into Roissy CDG at 10.30pm on thursday. Our hotel is near the Opera in 9eme. We intend to take RER B and get off at Gare du Nord. The take Line 4 to St Denis and finally Line 9 to Chausee D'Antin. I have really 2 questions:

1a. Is it dangerous traveling by metro around midnight?

1b. Where's the platform for RER B at Gare du Nord and how do I reach the platform for Metro Line 4? Is it too long a walk? Is this inside the station?

2. From what I have read so far, the Latin Quarter is the best for eating (good food, excellent variety, not too expensive). Is this true?

3. What's the best area for nightlife?

Thanks much in advance

Here are the answers to your 2 questions:

1a. No.

1b. Walk to the RER E platform, adjacent to B. Straight to Gare St-Lazare.

2. There are good and bad restaurants everywhere. It is impossible to generalize.

3. Montmartre, Marais, Latin Quarter.

As I mentioned on your other thread - w/ a 10:30 p.m. arrival at CDG, I wouldn't count on either the RER or metro. Nothing unsafe about either one - but you won't be on a train (unless you are VERY lucky) until close to midnight. Even IF you have a gate and don't have to wait for a bus from the plane to the terminal, and even IF you get your luggage quickly and get through immigration w/o delays - it is a looooong walk from arrivals to the RER. CDG is not an easy airport to navigate.

By the time you get into Paris the metro will have stopped running.

I would just take a cab in from CDG to your hotel . . . .

ditto on cab

(also ditto on comment on other thread. travel less, enjoy more. 3 cities in different countries in 10 days is too much, ESPECIALLY for a honeymoon!)

The best area for Paris nightlife is rue Oberkampf in the 11th.

Hi

Paris AND Venice AND Rome sounds like a great honeymoon...you are going to see three of the most beautiful cities in Europe :d

My wife and I went to Paris in April and I have posted a trip report with pictures and links on my homepage http://gardkarlsen.com/Paris_France.htm . We also went to Rome last year and I have posted a similar trip report on http://gardkarlsen.com/rome_italy.htm . And finally, we went to Venice a couple of years back and I have also posted a Venice trip report on this page http://gardkarlsen.com/italy_venice.htm . I hope that you will find some useful info in my trip reports. Have a great trip ((H))

Regards
Gard
Stavanger, Norway

>>>>>
The best area for Paris nightlife is rue Oberkampf in the 11th
>>>>>

i second that suggestion...something for everyone there and just a great atmosphere.

It really depends on what terminal you land in as to how far away the RER station is. The RER station is directly connected to 2C,D,E and F so an easy walk from those terminals. I have always managed to do immigration and collect my luggage in about 30 minutes. At 10:30 pm I bet the airport wont be overly busy and things should move quickly. If your train leaves by 11:15 you will have no connection worries. If it leaves later you may want to rethink your plan and try for only one connection with a bit more of a walk. Another alternative is the RoissyBus which takes you directly to Opera for 8.40 euros pp. However the last one is at 11pm so your plane would have to arrive early for that.

Thanks all! The Roissybus was always going to be my first preference but the last one is at 11pm. So RER it is going to be. I arrive into terminal 2B. I suppose the RER station isn't too far from here. Again, it depends on when I'm out of immigration/customs. Going by the consensus, I'd be better off taking a cab rather than trying to save a few bucks. I've made a note of rue Oberkampf in the 11th. It's so much fun doing research about these places. I'm so looking forward to this...

Gard, your trip report is really really good. Useful information, exactly the kind of first-hand info I'm looking for!

Hi europeanhm

I'm glad you found it useful :-) On the Paris and Rome trip report I have also made PDF files of the reports if you want to print them and read it. You can find the links at the bottom of the trip reports.

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

The new version of "Paris Voice" is online now... print it for free.

http://www.parisvoice.com/resources/pdf/parisVoice.pdf

There's a wonderful restaurant near the Opera--check it out www.legrandcafe.com.

Congratulations! Have a great trip.