Paris Shuttle
 

I was trying to book my shuttle into Paris (I have heard that www.Parishuttle.com is a good bet) and they are asking me to pay now online. I have no problem with that, but in the "bank verification," page, they are asking for the last 4 digits of my social sec number. That seems wrong to me, so I called my credit card and they said i shouldn't give that out. Just curious, has anyone else experienced this at any time while traveling? TIA for your help.

I have never had to give out my social security number for an online transaction. The credit card should be independent of the bank theoretically since you could be using a credit card issued by an airline or by any other entity besides your bank.

I used them a couple of years ago and prepaid without a social - it does seem odd, I would use their contact us feature and ask why the bank verification is asking - I would ask about an alternate payment method...

I used Paris Shuttle a few months ago and without problems. There was no asking of the last 4 digits of my social security number. I've never been asked to give out that information. Happy Travels!

I use taxis.

No need to call in advance, no prepayment, taxis never no-show, and a taxi will cost half of what Paris Shuttle charges. Taxi do accept credit cards and will never ask for personal information.

I forgot to add that I do quite a bit of online transactions for different things. The card that I use issued me a verification number that's not my social security number. I have used that in the past with various online transactions and especially overseas ones.

Do you have PayPal? Does Paris Shuttle take that? If, so maybe you should get connected to PayPal. Happy Travels!

As soon as I sent that email to fodors I shut down the window for Paris Shuttle, and thought to myself "Susan you are such an idiot!" I have no idea what was going on, but I called my credit card and they said never put any digits in of your SSN. I'll just take a taxi or grab a bus....no paying in advance. Of course I know that. Thank god I didn't hit submit. And thank you all, for not saying "Susan you are such an idiot!" :)

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...mendations.cfm
Happy Travels!

I have been using Interservice Prestige and will be using it again next month.They are quite reliable and not very expensive.
Here is their web site.

http://interserviceprestige.com/rates.php

I've been running multiple websites for years and take payments online... I can't imagine asking for 4 digits of a social security number!

You made the smart move... paying for a shuttle up front is never a good idea even if they don't ask for such intrusive info. Just grab a cab... it will cost less anyway.

So how would they book for a non-US citizen, or for people who live in countries where they don't have social security numbers?

I don't even understand what the purpose of that would be, the CC doesn't has for a SSN to authorize a transaction.

But "bank verification" is different from using a CC, so not sure why banks are getting into this issue.

Having just looked at their website, are you trying to pay by bank debit card, not by CC? If not, this may have something to do with that whole special verification process or something, I read about it on here in regards to RENFE or some other sales.

Hi S,

>...they are asking for the last 4 digits of my social sec number.<

Why does that disturb you? There are about 100,000 cards with the same 4 last digits.

((I))

PS,

You are willing to give them your CC information?

I use by bank/credit union debit cards regularly. I have two and have been issued a special verification number to type in, I think with both of them, when/if the verification window pops up. It sometimes also pops up when I'm ordering stuff online from right here in the U.S. I do a lot of my shopping online. However, in the Paris Shuttle situation, or any other shuttle situation, and I use them regularly, I have never been asked to provide the last digits of my SS#. When I use my AmExp cards, then of course I only have to type in the security number, or whatever it's called.

About three weeks ago, I tried ordering something online from the U.K., but the debit card wouldn't go through. From what I remember, I typed in the verification number. I got an e-mail this week stating that either someone else or I, tried to make an online purchase with my card. Then I was to click on the attachment to see why the charge didn't go through. The attachment wouldn't open, so when I can get to a PC next week, I'll try to open it. Sometimes attachments will open on PCs when they won't open on my Mac. Happy Travels!

As for cabs costing less, I personally haven't had that experience traveling as one person. In cabs, to get to Paris central, I have paid, on average 50-55 euros, one way, depending on traffic. In shuttles, I have paid, on average, 25-30 euros one-way, and of course traffic wouldn't affect the price. I assume that the OP is one person. Happy Travels!

<i>As for cabs costing less, I personally haven't had that experience traveling as one person.</i>

Paris Shuttle, the subject of this thread, charges 80€ to 100€ for a shuttle from CDG to Paris. Please feel fee to verify these costs by clicking upon the link in the OP´s question. The last taxi I took from CDG to Paris, about a month ago, was 44€ which is about half of the Paris Shuttle price for private transportation.

If you are paying 25€ to 30€ one way from CDG into Paris, you are taking a shared ride vehicle. By what logic does one equate a shared ride van full of strangers with the personalized service provided by a taxi? Taxis offer direct transport to your chosen address, no waiting to pickup others, no waiting to drop them off. Most taxis are operated by owners/operators who drive late model cars such as Mercedes or Audis and who are very much are concerned about customer service. Taxis have access to HOV lanes along A1 into the city and can bypass traffic that shuttles cannot.

Of the group transportation options available, shared ride vehicles are up to 3 times more expensive than either the Roissybus (10€) or the RER/métro (9.10€) and always more expensive than any of the Air France Bus options.

In my view, shared ride shuttles offer a very poor value for the service they provide when compared to the competitive choices and, as a group, have a dismal record of reliability and on time performance. There is a reason why Paris Shuttle, and others, requires prepayment: they know you have financial incentive to wait for them when they show up late, an all too common occurrence. Should they not show up at all, they still have your money and it will be your word against theirs that you actually were there at the pre-determined pickup point and at the prearranged time. We all have had experiences with late arriving aircraft.

There are many long standing and consistently reliable choices of transport from CDG (or ORY) into Paris: taxi, bus, train and the shuttle business model adds little to the transportation mix other than risk to the customer.

As always, everyone, I so appreciate your thoughts. Follow up: today I got a fraud alert call from my cc, saying Shuttle tried to put the order thru, even though I had not finalized the transaction with that last screen asking for the last 4 of SSN. CC company said it did not go thru. Interestingly - the fraud alert folks said that in fact -- that last screen is a new verification screen MC/Visa has started using for overseas transactions! Weird! When we go - we'll cab to the hotel in Paris. Thank you all again -

http://www.parishuttle.com/paris_air...r=Paris%20City

Sarastro: The above is what I was referring to. As in Paris Shuttle's "shared" 31 euro price on their website. Most people who are traveling either solo or two people are most likely taking a shared shuttle, not a private one. I see them all the time in the shuttles. Private shuttles are often times booked by families. Although I have always booked a shared shuttle, I have on occasion ended up the only person in a shared shuttle.

I'm aware of the Roissy Bus and also the RER as I took both for many years. However, in my case, neither dropped me off directly where I was going, therefore I can not equate the price of the RER or Roissy Bus with the price of a shared shuttle as the shared shuttle dropped me to exactly where I was going and no dragging luggage up and down stairs in metro stations or transferring to a taxi. That alone is worth the extra price as far as I'm concerned.

In addition, every time I have personally taken either the RER or Roissy Bus, I have always had to take either a taxi (extra expense) or the metro, in connection with the bus or RER, in order to get to "my" final destination. And more than a few times I've had to wait for the bus and then when it did arrive, I've had to wait for another one as there wasn't space for all waiting passengers. Those are some reasons why I personally changed to shuttles years ago.

As for the 44 euro fare that you got, great. I wish I were so lucky with fares. My Parisian friend and I paid 52 euros to get from CDG to his apartment, in the 10th, in 2009. I usually don't stay in the 10th, but in the north or south end of the 6th, where I personally have paid, on average, 50-55 euro for a taxi. I keep a detailed travel journal on overseas expenditures making it easy to look up prices on various things.

In the case of my Parisian friend and I taking a cab to his place, we took one since we were "splitting" the cost. However, had I been alone and needed to get to his apartment, which I have been on occasion, I would have taken a "shared" shuttle for the then price of somewhere between 25-27 euros. I have no problem with waiting for the shuttle and also sharing a ride with other passengers. And I'm in no hurry to get anywhere.

The bottom line is, as mentioned in the linked shuttle thread that I provided above, basically it's to each his own, as to what kind of transportation one choses to take and what best suits one's own personal situation. Happy Travels!

SusanG: Thanks for reporting back. I took Paris Shuttle on recommendation of someone over on Trip Advisor. From your original post, I thought that you were "one" person ("my" shuttle vs. our shuttle) and most likely trying to book a shared shuttle.

It's good to be informed of the new booking system as I didn't experience it a few months ago. So, I'll know when I book next year. I usually use VISA debit to do my bookings, but as I mentioned above, I have a verification number that is not numbers in my social security number. It will probably take some time to get the kinks worked out of the new system. Have a great trip. Happy Travels!