I'd like to mail back everything I've purchased, as well as our Paris guidebooks and things we've picked up along the way, before we leave France to go to Spain. It makes it much nicer for us since we only have one 22" carry on for 21 days, it's full before we even get there. It would be ideal to unload some of the goods before starting the next leg of the trip.

My question is, how is the French post office? Is it as disfunctional and spotty as the Italian post office? How much would it cost, approximately, to mail a 15lb package to the US? Would it actually get there? I ask this only because in Italy, with their post office, it's a 50/50 chance if it's sent by regular mail. How easy is it to mail a package in Paris if I don't speak French? I'm speak Italian very well, which did nothing for me the last time I was in Paris because although most Italians speak French, the reverse doesn't seem to be true, at least not that far north.
I can buy tape at the Monoprix but do they sell boxes too? Or maybe I can get a box from the store's produce or shipments.

I got a quote from UPS for approximately $200, but I know that's really high just because it's UPS. Nice thing about UPS is that they come to the apartment to pick it up.

I guess I just don't have enough experience with France to know how their offices or "systems" work. Anyone who's spent any length of time in Italy knows that their "sytems" change in consistency depending on the day of the week or the mood of the government worker(my parents are from there so I'm saying this more in a humoruous way than a critical way)!

Any ideas?

In France you can buy ready-to-mail/postage-paid boxes in the post office in various sizes. That makes mailing your things back about as easy as it gets, at least once you've bought the boxes. Those boxes go by air, but I believe you can also pack your own to go by sea and save Euros.

I can only tell you that it was 80-some cents for post cards There was a one-week receipt gap between 2 cards sent on the same exact day and time.
On the other hand, we know someone who bought a partner's desk in Provence and had it shipped to DC without problems. Took over a month but it was filling a container on ship.
We encountered dauntingly long lines at the P.O.s in Marseille and Aix but had better luck in Paris.
Guess this doesn't really answer your question. I'd say France po gets the job done albeit quirkily! Would you please let everyone know how much it does cost to use the French post? Sending stuff home makes so much sense.

Wow, that's great to know. Any approximation of cost? How much are the boxes?

Does anyone know where the nearest post office to the Ile St Louis is? I know there's the main post office near the Louvre, any smaller ones that are closer? I hate to lug a heavy box around any further than necessary.

You're so right, it does make sense to ship things home. Especially the Paris guidebooks and maps, we have 3 total, they get heavy to lug around and seems silly to have them in Spain.
We sent a VERY large box home from Italy via UPS, it was extremely heavy, filled with books, 4 pairs of mens shoes in their boxes, and dirty clothes, and it was $224 and took 5 days to arrive. So I'm guessing through the French PO it shouldn't be more than that. I looked on their website at the boxes, but I didn't see a postage estimator.

Coicidentally, I just today received a box of stuff I mailed to myself from Paris on 9/30. So that only took a week, which is pretty good (I'm on the US East Coast).

The nice thing about those prepaid boxes (called Colissimo boxes, as I recall -- if you go in a French post office you'll probably see their display) is that you pay a price per box, and the weight doesn't matter. So it really depends what size you need to pack up your stuff. They have a pretty small one, but the one I used is about 10 inches wide by 16 inches tall by 8 inches deep. That one cost 40 euro. There is one a bit smaller that cost around 35 euro. That is the entire price for whatever you can fit in there.

Basically, I went into a post office and picked out the box size I thought I needed (I went for the bigger one as the 5 euro difference in those two wasn't much) and then you have to pay when you get it. They give you two pieces of paperwork to fill out -- one is a customs declaration and the other sort of the address label stuff (address to and from, plus some other stuff about what it in it and the approx. value and what to do if it can't be delivered -- multiple choice).

The post offices in France are really busy most of the time, it seems to me, although I guess things work well enough once you get to the counter. I actually didn't have to wait at the counter for the box, a postal workers was in the front area where the boxes were and answered my questions and got my payment.

I do speak French fairly well, though, as well as reading it, so I'm not sure how difficult it would be if you didn't. Probably a little, but at least you know what to expect now. You might have some trouble reading and filling out the forms properly, not sure. The display of the boxes in the post office are kind of obvious, but maybe I'm not clear on if it would be if you couldn't read the display.

There are post offices all over and the have signs on the street pointing to the closest branch, so you may just need to look out for one. Maybe they have a listing on their website. I don't know what main post office you are talking about, but if you are on Ile St Louis, actually it might be very convenient just to go into the branch that is in the carrousel de Louvre area where those shops are underground. In fact, those folks might be more likely to speak English to help you. That's actually where I got the idea to do this, when I was going to the Louvre and passed their window and saw those prepaid boxes in there, I thought what a brilliant idea as I needed to send stuff home to lighten my load, also. The only problem is that branch isn't open when the Louvre is closed (Tues, I think), as it is actually in the area after you pass the security to get into the Louvre (but you wouldn't need to have bought a ticket to the Louvre, as it actually isn't in the museum, but the outer area where the ticket machines are). It's probably there for people to send home stuff they've bought in the Louvre gift shop.

oh, I forgot to say, I bought the box and got the paperwork the day before, so I could take it back to the apt. where I was staying and pack up my stuff into it. Then I just took the packed box, with the filled out paperwork, back to the post office the next day for them to send.

You have to pay when you get the box and the paperwork.

Here are a few bits of what you need to know. I was in a post office in Toulouse last month (small branch) and the boxes were displayed so you can point to the ones you want. You might be better splitting things up--send books "book rate--imprime" which is cheaper and takes longer but you shouldn't mind about guide books and things like that.

For anything else, fill out customs forms before you get up to the counter. You can send the boxes as cadeaux (gifts) to yourself or to your neighbors--you are expected to list the value and contents--in my experience US customs has only come after me once for some crystal from the UK.

I don't think US Customs bothers with gifts under $50 but you could check the US customs web site for the maximum gift amount--might have gone up. Technically you shouldn't ship gifts to yourself but there's always a cat or dog or auntie or neighbor, relative, etc.

As in the US, unless (or even if) you're really organized with completed labels, customs forms, tape, etc., you will have to step aside to do all the packing then get back in the queue.

If you feel postage is getting too expensive--they can tell you upfront fairly accurately by weighing your items before boxing, you might be better off just mailing the books and putting the other stuff in your 21" and getting a small cheap nylon duffel or back pack for dirty clothes and extra shoes. A duffel would potentially be a lot cheaper and less hassle than the PO although I know it will add to your day to day luggage.

Finally, I've found the French post offices fairly easy to deal with and understanding of my awkward French. They will be cheaper than UPS or FedEX by far but keep the price of a cheap zip carryall in mind when you price it out.

Don't know of one nearest the ile but try pages jaunes as a look-up or ask hotel--go in one if you're not staying in one--the desk clerk will tell you--say you want the bureau de poste le plus proche. I do know the one nearest to the flat I just rented in the 6th (PO on Blvd St. Germain very near intersection with Blvd St. Michel was closed for rennovation--work was going on but doubt they are open yet and that's a fair walk from the Ile with a box.

Good luck.

In Paris at least there is no problem, since they deal with these mailings every day.

You buy the box or boxes that you need and normally getting rid of it is ultra easy since most Paris post offices have the "greeter" who takes people from the main waiting line if they have their act together.

Although there is an official weight limit for the boxes that you purchase, as long as your items fit properly in the box, I have never seen anyone actually weigh the box.

In the summer of 2007, we mailed several packages home from France. Christina described it very well. We shipped 4 boxes home and 3 of them each took 7 days to arrive back here in the US (Oregon) and the last box took 10 days or so. Everything arrived just fine. The boxes are self adhesive, so you don't need tape. Definitely purchase the box and take it back to your apt/hotel and package it up there.

This is wonderfully helpful information. And something to consider:

We always brought along an extra light duffel for extra stuff we were bringing home. But now I want to mail things home because on our last trip home from Europe in May, through Dulles, the airline situation was such a mess that we had to rent a car to drive home to Western Pennsylvania. The real bugger was getting our luggage. Oi!

We never check luggage on the way, but always check on the way home. Now, UA told us that had we not had luggage checked through, we may have been able to be rerouted home. I don't believe that, but I want my luggage with me the next time I am in an airline/airport mess.

Oh, as one bit of added advice (which is probably obvious, but I didn't do it) which the above post reminds me. The prepaid box is corrugated and self-adhesive, so you don't need tape. I packed up some clothes and shoes, mainly, nothing too heavy. However, when the box arrived, it was sort of smashed and one end kind of falling off. It was actually delivered by DHL delivery service, which surprised me, must be some arrangement with the French postal system. They had attached some of those plastic strands around the box to hold it together, actually.

However, I had some things inside in a plastic bag, but others were not and were on the edges of the box. Things were okay, but it would have been smarter to make sure any clothes are packed inside a lightweight bag of some kind, even just several plastic bags like you get at a store, to make sure things don't get dirty or something if by chance they are on the end edge and the box smashes open a bit.

Given mine was kind of smashed, not sure I'd want to send anything breakable in it, but clothing worked out fine (and books would, also, of course). Also, make sure you have your name and address on a piece of paper on the inside, also (which I did remember to do) as the outside label they attached is just paper and isn't really protected that well.

If you only had a few books, you could probably use the smallest box, which was less than 35 euro, for sure.

Thanks so much for the extra info, I'm an informaton freak, I love to know every last detail before I go abroad, this helps me so much. I am going to wrap some of my sweaters in tiny bubble wrap so then when I unpack I can use the bubble wrap for the box I send home. I'll make sure to get some extra bags from the Monoprix, even if I have to buy them, not sure if they do that in France, some places in Italy you pay a few extra cents for the bags, no biggee. I'm so excited I think my head might burst with all of this fun information! Thanks again!

You get plastic bags free with your purchase at all kinds of stores, I've never been charged for a bag at Monoprix or anywhere. You know, just those real thin bags like you get at grocery stores in the US. You can easily take a few of them with them squashed up in the bottom of your luggage or something, I always take a few extra in my luggage, you never know when you want to isolate clothing separately (like dirty from clean things), etc.

Some places in France charge you 0.03€ for a bag (Ed, Carrefour, Auchan...). But most places in the city still give them free of charge and often they are within reach of your greedy fingers.

Frankly, I just buy a package of paper towels when I know I need to wrap some stuff carefully. I have mailed breakables in those post office boxes to North America more than once with no problem.

It is also good to know that you will see all of the available boxes on display and put together at the post office before you buy them.

You're in luck re post offices... there is one on rue des Deux Ponts on Ile St Louis... towards the Pont Marie end of the street.

I wanted to mail a poster home from there last summer but they didn't have any mailing tubes. It seems to me I did see various boxes for mailing though. We ended up finding a well stocked stationery store
on Boul St Germain.

I think la Poste is reliable... over the years I've bought all kinds of things online from France and they've always arrived here in Canada promptly... dare I say it but more quickly than things arrive here from the US...

Rob

Rob, that's awesome that there's a post office on the Ile, that will make is so much easier than schlepping my packages all around town. Thanks for the tip!

PS*I'm anxious to see how our apartment is, I was tossing back and forth between the one you recommended and the one we took. We'll find out in 2 weeks!

Yes the Ile Saint Louis post office is in the dead center of the island and impossible to miss -- right at the crossroads of the backbone 'rue Saint Louis en l'Ile' and the bridge cross street in the middle of the island.

There is a much larger post office on Ile de la Cite, on Boulevard du Palais, Châtelet side.

bookmarking

It's too bad it doesn't look like FedEx has a dropoff in Paris, but the French postal service is FAR more efficient than Italy's (most frustrating day of the trip at the Positano Post Office!)