We will be in Paris in Oct and are planning on renting a car and driving down to Provence.Our first night will be in Beune.
We did this last year and left Paris very early on a Sun morning and had no problem getting.
This time we will be leaving on a Wed.
My question is how early do you need to leave Paris to avoid the traffic. We are early risers and will be picking up the car at the Gard de Lyon

what's the earliest you can pick the car up?

On the rare occasions when I have a rental car on a weekday in Paris, I find traffic quite manageable everywhere before 8 a.m.

As for getting from Gare de Lyon out of Paris, that won't be a problem, because morning rush hour traffic goes into Paris. From Gare de Lyon, you'll just be going down the Quai de Bercy to the périphérique and then heading south from Porte d'Italie, which is just a few exits from there. There will be a jam if there was some sort of accident. Otherwise, it's all clear sailing...

PalenQ, I must admit that I used to work at Avis at Gare de Lyon. We opened at 6:30 am and closed at midnight. We worked in shifts -- 6:30 to 15:00 or 15:00 to midnight. Europcar and Hertz had the same schedule. We had 3 days off for every 4 days worked (2 morning shifts and 2 evening shifts), so we would illegally invert our schedules to get off at midnight one night and start at 6:30 the next morning. That way we ended up with 4 days off and one day as a total zombie. I was quickly advised to steal a car at night: "choose a business rental that returned late in the day and bring it back at dawn; nobody will notice the extra kilometers." Naturally there were always amusing anecdotes about the wheel clamp that somebody got and how they had to misplace the contract for 2 or 3 days until they could get the car out of hock. I never had a problem, but those were perhaps the most intense 7 months of my life.

Sorry for going off subject, apoolshark.

We can pick up the car at 6:30 am

like Kerouac says should be no problem i think at that time - just a few km's on main road east to Peripherique and beyond - contra-flow of incoming traffic.

Hi ap,

>..planning on renting a car and driving down to Provence.Our first night will be in Beune.<

Is there a compelling reason for picking up a car at 07:00 and driving for 3 hr on the A6 to Beaune, when you could take the 10:34 from Gare de Lyon and be in Beaune at 13:00 for only 26E pp?

perhaps it's getting all their luggage to Gare de Lyon and scurrying for luggage space on TGV?

but that's (Ira's idea) would do unless i wanted to drive via Vezelay, Auxerre and other splendid places that rival anything you'll see in Burgundy proper.

Avallon would be a nice stop for brunch.