When riding in the taxi, keep your eyes closed. After a couple of blocks, most people do)

Why are you taking loads of luggage anyway? That in and of itself is going to make for a difficult, frustrating trip.

Carsick from sitting in traffic....interesting.

The RER is the LAST place you need to be IMO.

If getting car sick is a major issue, and I understand it as my daughter gets sick in a car while she can read in the subway or train, help your husband and 4 year old get into the taxi with all the luggage and you take the RER. They should have little trouble going from the curb to the hotel lobby at the other end of the ride.

But that ignores the consideration that the tyke can sleep in trains but not so in taxis/shuttles.

<i>Tous les trois en voiture!</i> - All (3) aboard!

I sometimes get carsick with taxis myself, but I had no problem with the RER. Also taxis don't have carseats for kids, so the RER would be a safer form of transport. Would it be possible to send your luggage ahead to the hotel(or store it somewhere) and then take the RER somewhat luggage free?

I don't know what this problem is that people have with luggage on the Regional Express.

Many travelers carrying large amounts of luggage routinely move from city to city on trains. There's no significant difference between taking a train from CDG to Luxembourg station and riding one from Gare de Lyon to Lausanne. Yes, there are gates and escalators. These require a few minutes to negotiate and you're at street level.

I wouldn't say it took my cousin, her husband, and toddler with their car seat, stroller, backpacks, and luggage a few minutes to board the RER from CDG. The elevator was busted. And again from the RER stop to the street didn't take just a few minutes.

I wouldn't say your anecdotal experience is relevant. Just an outlying data point, that's all.

For a jetlagged family carrying toddler, stroller and luggage, I would say YOUR estimate of just a few minutes (3 minutes?) to manage everything and everybody is the outlying data point.
The anecdotal experience of one Fodorite is every bit as relevant as the insistence of another.

Stand at the exit from any RER station for a few minutes and you will see dozens of travelers laden with all manner of encumbrance somehow accomplishing the impossible.

Robespierre:

Have you used the RER with a bunch of suitcases, carseat, stroller, and toddlers? I'll bet not. I already stated this but my own anecdotal experience is that the RER is a nightmare under such circumstances.

The one and only time I did that I could barely keep track of my kids and my luggage because it was so crowded, we nearly missed our St-Michel m&eacute;tro stop because there were so many people exiting and entering there, and the schlep once we got out of the RER car through the m&eacute;tro was well nigh a killer - and we had remarkably little luggage compared to this poster.

What's this board all about, anyway, other than anecdotal experience?

The OP is one of a couple who will each have one thing in each hand. If the two of them can pick up everything and move it without having to make more than one trip, the RER is feasible.

<i>&quot;The one and only time I did that I could barely keep track of my kids and my luggage because it was so crowded, we nearly missed our St-Michel m&eacute;tro stop because there were so many people exiting and entering there, and the schlep once we got out of the RER car through the m&eacute;tro was well nigh a killer - and we had remarkably little luggage compared to this poster.&quot;</i>

<b>And I only am escaped alone to tell thee.</b>

Do you have kids, Robespierre? If you do have kids, have you travelled by RER with small children, stroller, car seat, and baggages?? I think you should realize that these other posters have been through what you are suggesting the o.p. should do. It didn't work well for them. Who knows if those families who you saw 'accomplishing the impossible' were thinking they made the wrong decision by taking the RER? At that point they had no other choice but to go through with it.

The OP said &quot;...2 huge suitcases, a medium duffle bag carryon, 2 backpacks and a 4 yr old kid with stroller.&quot; A car seat was not mentioned.

Him: 2 huge suitcases (one in each hand) and a backpack.

Her: Medium duffle bag in one hand, stroller with kid in other hand, and a backpack.

I still don't see what the problem is.

Mme. Robespierre and I have traveled with small children and all four hands full without difficulty.

You may be correct, but Ishmael got on the wrong ship.

LOL! But all he had left to deal with was the coffin.

No, I'm the one who mentioned a 'car seat' because I was referring to other people who do have to take car seats. My cousin's child was only 16 mos. old so they needed to take a car seat. I'm glad it all worked out for you and Mme. Robespierre, but it doesn't work for everybody. Therefore, the taxi option is a good one in my opinion.

I thought we were trying to figure out a way for OP to do this. They <i>don't</i> have a car seat, so the inability of anyone else to carry one is irrelevant.

The lady <i>does</i> experience carsickness, therefore the taxi has been eliminated.

They have four hands and four things to manage. What could be simpler?

I think one other consideration is whether, after getting themselves, their child, and their luggage onto the RER, they will be able to secure adequately their belongings. There is an awful lot that will require their attention and, while I think reports of pickpocketing and theft in Paris are exaggerated, I do think it's a relevant concern, especially when they may not be able to devote their attention to keeping luggage and backpacks secure and whatever attention they do have will be tired and jetlagged. It won't be terribly crowded when they get on the train, but it will start to fill up as they get closer to the city.

My vote is for the taxi or shuttle. I find the whole RER experience to be rather stressful. During my last stay in Paris this past September, I had trouble getting a ticket for the train in Terminal 2. The lines were incredibly backed up and people were having trouble with the automated machines. I ended up taking the Air France bus instead, after wasting considerable time and energy. Nevertheless, on my return trip to CDG, I took the RER. After lugging my bags down the street and down the stairs (why do they have an up escalator but not a down?), I couldn't buy a ticket. I didn't have enough change and my credit cards wouldn't work. I ended up asking a very kind man to buy the ticket for me on his credit card, and I gave him cash. Granted, I may have have been doing something wrong, but the point is that I found it needlessly rather stressful. Cost isn't everything.

My two cents. . . .

Kate