Transfers in Paris
 

We have been quoted by our travel agent 100 euros each way for our transfer from the airport to our hotel in St Germain Des Pres. We are a family of 4 (2 children 7yrs & 5yrs) Can someone advise a company that can do it much cheaper.
Thanks.

Check with Parishuttle. Their site lists the fare at 18 euro each for you and spouse, 10 euro for each child.

From what I've read, you should be able to get a taxi for four that will be considerably cheaper, with no prebooking. But a shuttle might be cheaper still.

We just returned from Paris, and our taxi fare for four people with luggage going to and from the CDG airport to the St Germain area was approximately 50€ each way.

We had to wait at the airport for only about one or two minutes for a mini-van/ stationwagon taxi.

Going back to the airport, we walked a couple of blocks to the taxi stand at the corner of Rue du Four and Blvd St. Germain and caught a taxi there, once again only waiting a minute or two.

With small children, it might make sense to take a shuttle back to the airport so you don't have any worries about finding a taxi, but I don't see any advantage of taking a shuttle when you first arrive vs. taking a taxi from the airport to your hotel.

Mackenzie, I am afraid your travel agent looks at you and sees dollar signs. My family of 4 just returned yesterday from a week in Paris, taking a taxi from CDG in early morning rush hour traffic with lots of luggage for only 44€ to the Opéra area. We just walked out of the airport to the taxi rank, asked the first taxi in line if he could handle our load and off we went.

Oh, and from Marcy's post above, why would it make sense to hire a shuttle back when even low-ball hotels will call you a taxi to pick you up at the exact hour of your choice. Just taxi it and plan on 50€ each way. Nice and easy - nothing to get worked up about. Enjoy.

crepes, the only thing about calling a taxi from your hotel is that they start the meter from the time you call them, so it would be a little more. ( but certainly not 100€ !)

Very small meter charge since the hotel usually calls to the nearest stand. Take the taxi. The travel agent is just looking for the commission and ought to be ashamed.

The OP said "much cheaper," so here goes:

The very cheapest way, which is the commuter train called RER, is €7.85 per adult and €5.55 per child. If you are going to travel around town, take a look at the Carte Orange and Paris Visite cards, which can get you from the CDG to the city on the RER, plus unlimited travel all over the place on the Métro and buses. Several threads have explained these options.

<b>http://www.citefutee.com/orienter/aeroport_rerb.php</b>

The OP also mentioned 4 persons including 2 small children. I wouldn't recommend scrimping too much and frustrating, stressing and killing yourselves when navigating up-and-down stairs and un-cooperative turnstile gates with luggages when your take the RER and, quite possibly, the metro.

Take the parishuttle.com and have them pick you up to-and-from the airport in a nice large van. It's only Euro 18 per adult one-way.

I used Bee Shuttle about a year ago. We were three adults and two kids, with a lot of luggage, strollers, etc. so we found that a private transfer was convenient.

Bee Shuttle prices are slightly lower than Paris Shuttle's, and much lower for private transfers. However, the drivers are not English speaking, or at least, they speak only a few words in English. Other than that, both transfers, in and out, were uneventful and quite convenient.

I'll never figure out why so many people seem to have major math problems. If the shuttle costs 18 per adult and 10 for each child, that comes out to 56, doesn't it??? Most estimates for taxis are less than that. Why would anyone still suggest a shuttle that you have to call, wait for, and then hope it shows up -- several reports here have indicated that the shuttles didn't show up -- instead of just walking out and getting a taxi? How can anyone think it's easier to take a shuttle than a taxi -- and why suggest it when it probably even costs MORE than the taxi?

The others have pretty much covered all the bases (first choice - taxi, 2nd choice - shuttle, 3rd choice RER/metro -- would probably be 1st choice if you weren't schlepping little ones/extra luggage)

But my question would be where else has your TA overcharged you?? To quote &euro;100 for a (barely) &euro;50 journey would make me curious about where else I was being gouged. . . . .

janis, I wouldn't call it gouging. The days of travel agents making their money on the commissions from booking individual hotels or transportation are over. They now regularly charge clients for providing the services they provide. If someone goes to a travel agent expecting them to research and then book various individual aspects of a travel plan, then of course, most intelligent people realize that they will be paying more for those services. This is another example. If you don't have the time or energy to post here, or explore the internet and book your own transportation and find out your own answers, then of course, you probably don't mind paying the agent to take the time to do so for you.

(And lest you think I'm simply knocking travel agents, I'm not. Of course, many are still able to save you money if you are simply booking package cruises or tours. There are still large enough commissions for them to earn a living from those. But a typical little hotel in Europe will not pay them a commission, so of course, they must chage you for providing the booking service.

I must say im glad to see that Paris is still as popular as ever with fodorites - i haven't been on Fodors for a very long time.
I would agree with Patricks comments regarding Travel agents - the margins that they make on &quot;add-ons&quot; such as shuttle services is normally between 5 and 18 %.
They are not making a fortune from airport transfers.
Generally travel agents &amp; tour operators make a substantial profit from selling travel insurance.

The price quoted to Mackenzie does sound somewhat extravagant but this may be for a private vehicle .?.
I can inform you that with the ridiculously high &amp; ever rising costs of fuel in france , the majority of shuttle services are either raising their net prices with travel agents or trying very hard to re-neg their working partnerships or contracts.

I wont enter the taxi over shuttle over RER over Air France bus over horse &amp; cart etc etc debate due to an obvious bias .

I will however wish all those coming to Paris a safe journey and an enjoyable stay .

Thanks for the replies. The funny part about our transfer it was a coach (bus) - I cannot beleive that we almost booked it - each way. We will be taking a taxi.

Good for you mackenzie! I am really glad you thought to post this question here before you committed. I don't have any problem with agents being paid for their services, but this was definitely gouging.

Thanks for the replies. My travel agent was getting her information from brochures. Not happy but she was probably doing her job and getting a great commission from the companies - We are definitely catching a taxi once we land.

My wife and I took the AirFrance bus from CDG to Montparnasse on Nov. 10. The cost for 2 was 24 euros. ter being turned down by a taxi driver because the trip was too short, we walked to our hotel which for most would be a 15 minute walk, double that for my wife.

There was gridlock on the ring road that evening and the trip took nearly 1 1/2 hours, half again the usual time but the fare didn't change. What would happen with a taxi fare since it is a function of both distance and time?

Taxis can be tricky (you'll be juggling young kids, luggage, and running on empty/no sleep!) and the Parishuttle is very dependable. I arrange this for all the groups I take and for many individuals for whom I consult. With little ones, it's also very worth the money to be greeted by a private driver. Bon voyage!

mackenzie, you made the comment that your TA got her information from a brochure.

Having worked for one year in a travel agency that tells me that your TA is not famaliar with Paris.

I agree TA's do not make the money the use to for all the reasons we all know about.

If one is short on time or just does not want to do research and decides to use a TA than IMHO it is very important to find one that has travelled (more than once) to the destination you are going to.

We can all read. To pay for a service one should expect &quot;expert&quot; advise.

I too am glad that you posted here and have gotten lots of good ideas. Have a beautiful trip.

Please explain, AParis, how a taxi can be more &quot;tricky&quot; than the shuttle. A taxi doesn't require making a phone call when you get to the airport, it doesn't require any more &quot;juggling&quot; of the luggage or kids (in fact less, since you don't have to worry about your luggage getting mixed up with someone else's), and it certainly is no more effort due to a lack of sleep -- in fact since you definitely won't be making any detours out of your way to deliver people to other hotels, it should be &quot;better&quot; on your sleep deprivation and anxiety about getting to your destination.

Your comment about being greeted by a private driver seems to make sense. But I didn't understand that was how the Paris Shuttle works. I thought you had to call when you arrive and then go out somewhere and look for your driver or shuttle. No? A private driver who meets you with a sign is one thing, but I didn't think we were even discussing that very expensive option. (Expensive in Paris, unlike in London).

I don't know how taxis can be tricky with having a couple of kids and some baggage. It's a car, why would it be trickier than a van? It's easier because you don't have to make reservations, don't have to make phone calls, don't have to look for them or wait for them, etc.

However, obviously if there was a really bad traffic jam, your taxi fare would be higher than you might like. I've never had that happen, but I have been in some traffic jams althought the fare still wasn't outrageous because the meter doesn't go up as much during waiting as moving.

NOw I used to scrimp more and take the AF bus or something to a drop and then get a taxi to the hotel, but it wasn't worth the trouble, time, and energy, for the small savings finally for me to be doing that, I decided, and just took a taxi all the way. I sure wouldn't want to walk 15 min from a bus stop to my hotel with my luggage after being up probably more than 24 hrs, espec as you can't predict weather.

I used to save around 10 euro by doing the AF bus + taxi--maybe spending 37 euro total (12+15) vs. 45-50 euro for a taxi fare from CDG to Montparnasse, and it wasn't worth it to me and I travel solo. It really wouldn't be worth it spread over two or more people because the extra fare for the bus would negate that savings. There is the problem of taxis not wanting to take you short distances, also.

No trick to the taxi. There is a &quot;trick&quot; with a shuttle--reservation, calling, may not arrive, may have left, etc. Walk out the door and get in the taxi queue.

I think AParis is referring to booking a private transfer, otherwise the comment about being 'greeted by a private driver' doesn't make sense.

Everything that I've read about Paris shuttle services on this board indicate that you have to find and possibly wait for the driver. Add to that the extra travel time involved in picking up/dropping off other passengers, and the shuttle option hardly seems worth the minimal savings over a taxi.

I noticed how deftly you responded to my question as to how much more you would pay for a taxi that took an extra half hour to go from CDG to Montparnasse. Christina obviously has more to spend than I if she is willing to spend 38 Euros more (50 euros for the taxi vs 12 for the bus) for a 15 minute walk to her hotel ($200 per hour).

BTW, when we've used the shuttle we never had to call. They were prompt at CDG and picking us up at the hotel.
We never minded and in fact enjoyed the excursions to drop off and pick up the other poor passengers who had to travel with us. They may have but we didn't.

Ok - I am happy with the Taxi but my husband likes the idea of being met by a private driver now he has read the replies - what cost is involved - is it outrageously expensive or can I book it direct thru someone in Paris.
Still to me the taxi seems the way to go but I am always open to advice - thank goodness.

Private driver, 4-6 passengers:
http://www.bee-shuttle.com/private-us.asp = 90&euro;

Taxi at taxi rank at CDG to St Germain des Pres:
estimate = 50-60&euro;
(I've paid 40-55&euro; for two,higher price on Sunday, both from Left Bank hotels).

Are there heaps of taxis after you clear customs - will they be easy to find

We arrived at CDG June 13 with 2 huge teenagers and 4 pieces of (smallish) luggage plus carry ons. Walked right outside to taxi stand and got a cab. No problem fitting in it and cab driver was most friendly. It cost 62&euro;, including everything. (Traffic was bad.)

Same cabbie asked us if we needed a ride back to the airport - and oh, how I wished we had booked him! We took a shuttle because we were going to Beauvais airport, but, in hindsight, I would have preferred our cabbie as he was a careful driver and nice too.

Forgot to mention - our lodgings were in the 5th arr.

We need to decide whether two of us will take a taxi or a shuttle, arriving CDG around 5pm on a weekday. I guess that means we'll be en route by 6pm, so hopefully the traffic won't be at its worst.

The Parishuttle site says you need to phone them free from a public phone to confirm your arrival, then you need to meet them at a designated point for your terminal. Cost looks like 19 euros per person for two people, but I can't figure out if that is for the whole van or for a shared van. If it's shared, why isn't it a flat rate rather than being based on the number of people?

Seems like it would be worth 10-15 euros more for a taxi. Anyone care to comment?

newtraveller01, there are plenty of taxis waiting outside the terminal, very easy to find.

Marilyn, it has always been worth the extra cost for me to get a cab from the airport to avoid having to call the shuttle, but I prefer to take a shuttle when returning to the airport because you can call from your hotel or apartment in advance to arrange it for the time you need it.

I can't answer the question about whether the van is private or shared, but if it is a shared van I could understand charging a lower rate per person for a larger group because it would necessitate fewer stops than the same number of single travelers.

I agree that your best bet is a taxi, especially after an overnight flight, with bags, with two young children.

There is nothing &quot;tricky&quot; about a taxi. Once you've cleared passport control and picked up your bags, just exit and head for the taxi queue. Don't worry if it seems long. Those drivers could not be more efficient at matching up vehicles to parties and their bags.

Recommend going to www.pagesjaunes.fr and entering the name of your hotel or address of your destination, whereupon you'll get a fabulous map to print out for handing to the taxi driver.

I prefer to pay alot and take a taxi. Sometimes there is an attendant at the head of the taxi rank. He will tell you which taxi is available for you. Usually you take the next taxi that's in line.

I don't trust shuttles to take me from the hotel to the airport. To me that's worse than taking a shuttle from the airport. I read stories about shuttles not showing up to drive the clients to the airport. They end up taking a taxi in the end.

Yes, the shuttle is shared with others who pay the same amount. It's a business. Take a taxi.
A private driver even arranged privately is just so not worth it. There are always taxis outside in the queue. Do NOT take a cab with anyone who might approach you at the terminal--only from the taxi rank.

The commuter train to town is survivable, and costs 8&euro;. :)

Just as one rides a train from Gatwick to Victoria or Heathrow to Paddington, one can take the RER to one of several stops through the middle of Paris.

Then a short taxi ride gets you to the front door of your hotel in minutes at minimal cost.

This is a family with 2 small children. Ride the train--PLEASE.

The family with the two small children was making enquiries in 2004. The recent questions on this thread are from other posters.

Thanks for clarifying that nikki. It was I who piggybacked on this thread (which someone else topped, but I felt free to hijack since the original question was almost a year old).

We're going to take a taxi.