Good Morning - lyban - I will check out the shuttle you used. This is the one of the shuttles that Thierry - the owner of our apartment recommended. http://www.airport-line.com/ Has anybody used this shuttle? It is 17 Euros per person which isn't bad either. I finally convinced my husband that I wasn't going to haul luggage around Paris, jet lagged, while trying to find our apartment for the first time. So I will pre-book one of these shuttles before we leave. Is the airport in Paris very large? I know when I was in London, I couldn't believe how horrible Gatwick airport was. It is amazing how airports vary from one city and country. I think I hate Detroit the worst. Once we flew back from Japan. Got in an hour early and the customs people would not open up to let us off the plane. Then when they finally did - they were rude to us. After all of the kindness shown to us in Japan, I could understand where the term "ugly American" came from. Patti

Yellowrose,

Either shuttle looks good. The best thing we did on our 10 day trip was use the shuttle van both from and to the airport. In my opinion , it is money worth spent. You are not that sure of apt. address and this brings you right to the door with your luggage.

When you departed Paris - how many hours ahead of your flight did you get to the airport? In Minneapolis, 2 hours is adequate for an international flight, but I hear in Paris it takes longer. Did you find that to be true?

Wy wife and I stayed in Paris for 4 days in an apartment. We have stayed a few times with http://www.holiday-velvet.com/paris and we always book through them as they have always got us something central and clean etc.

I get there 3 hours ahead if I have detaxe papers to stamp and not less than two and a half without getting them stamped. Happy Travels!

Guenmai - At the risk of sounding really ignorant - what are detaxe papers?

The papers that you get stamped at the airport to get your 12% tax back, either in cash, on the spot, or later refunded on your credit card.
When you shop and spend a certain amount, at one store, then you fill out detax papers (passport needed) at the store where you made the purchase or purchases. Then you can either get the 12% refund back at a couple of locations, in Paris, and then you also have to have the paperwork stamped, at the airport. If you don't have the paperwork stamped, then your credit card will be charged the amount of the detax.

Or you can do it all at the airport and either get the tax refund there or if it's on a credit card, then they will credit the amount back to the credit card, which on this last trip took one day short of three months, before I received the credit back to my debit credit card. You check, on the paperwork how you want the refund...cash or credited to your credit card.
You can look at the, Paris Shopping Thread, as someone has posted the amount needed to purchase in order to get the detax. It changes, from time to time, so I can't remember what it now is. But, I get a nice amount of money back as I buy designer handbags. Happy Travels!

Thanks guenmai - I understand now. I have never bought too much in Europe - this time may be different.

yellowrose,
dd turned 16 in october 2008.
but, we could not do this trip until her spring break. you know, school, college applications and stuff....
we will be in paris from march 31 to april 8.
i posted today with my itinerary looking for advice.

giverny is about 4 miles from vernon. you can get there by bus which runs every 15 mins, taxi, rent a bike or walk.

we are so excited! 62 days till we leave.

abranz - I'm excited for you as well as for me. We will be in Paris about 2 weeks ahead of you. Your weather might be a little bit nicer than ours, but that really is the least of my concerns. I bet that dd is really excited since she has planned this trip since she was a little person. I'll check out your itinerary.

Hubby just gave me his list tonight and asked me to work on an itinerary. I'm overwhelmed. Do you think I should start a new thread for help? He says: Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, Tuileries, Luxembourg Gardens, Les Invalides, Dome Church, Versailles (perhaps), Seine cruise, Saint-Chapplle, Place de la Bastille, Place de la Concorde, La Sorbonne (he is a college prof), Vincennes, Moulin Rouge, National Opera Garnier, Sacre Couer, St. Sulpice, Statute Jeanne d'ARc and I want to add Pere Lachaise Cemetery. Can we do all of this in 8 days?

Yes, you can do it in 8 days with organization. What I'd do is to categorize them into areas...Right Bank/Left Bank and then directional....north/south/east/west. That way you can take on areas if you want. Like spend a day in a certain area if you don't want to crisscross back and forth from one far away area to another in the course of the same day. Happy Travels!

I just noticed that several of these places are on the list that I wrote out for you. Happy Travels!

Pere Lachaise Cemetary is in the 20th. I've been there several times as I have 3 friends buried there along with a former bosses sibling. So, I take flowers.

I took the public bus directly from the 6th, but off the top of my head, don't remember the bus number. Maybe it's written down somewhere. Of course, you can always take the metro. It's just nicer to take the bus then you can see Paris as you're going there. Happy Travels!

guenmai - I printed off your list again last night and am going to review it this morning. We have a folder put together that everything important is going to go into now. Again, thank you so much for all of your help. I really appreciate it. On top of making our itinerary, I am trying to learn to use my new camera so am reading the Nikon D-40 guide for dummies in my spare time!

You're going to be exhausted by the time you arrive. Smiles. Take a deep breath and slow down. It'll all work out, trust me. Happy Travels!

Geunmai - Thanks for the slowing down advice. Stomach flu this week slowed all of us down including my poor mother who lives with us! Part of my reason in not working too hard on an itinerary is that part of me just wants to go to Paris and move with the flow. Whatever mood strikes us on a particular day, that is what we will do. But I know that it will be good to have things in categories so we know what things are in the same areas, if that makes any sense at all. On a trip to Germany we had things planned down almost to the minute and although we had a great trip - we were on the go a lot. I'm looking forward to staying in one place and taking it easy sometimes.

If you follow the plan that I've provided, it covers a lot. Plus, you don't have to stress out over the transportation since I've provided a bus plan for you to take.

Then you can just check off the places that you've been to on each day and whatever is not on my list, then just add those places on other days. You can go to the leftover places on the metro if you haven't figured out the bus system. But, don't stress yourself out and over
plan or try to plan each minute. Happy Travels!

I printed off your earlier post and added it to my folder today. I highlighted the places you mentioned. It looks great. I am feeling more and more relaxed every day with the preparations. I booked out shuttle from the airport today. I just wish I enjoyed flying more. I don't hate it as much as I used to, but I still don't enjoy it. I have never flown Air France before, but it certainly can't be any worse than Northwest. We flew that to Taiwan and my seat didn't have proper padding in it! Plus the Flight attendants weren't all that kind. Have you flown Air France?

Yes, I've flown Air France. I'm on them this coming April as I cashed in frequent flyer miles and was put on them. There are airlines that I like better, but I'll be fine.

Oh, as for going to Pere Lachaise Cemetary, it hit me that, the last time that I went out there, I took the metro out there and then took the bus back. A friend and I went to put flowers on the grave of my former bosses sibling. Then I went and visited the resting places of my 3 friends who are buried there.

As for taking the metro, just walk up to the Odeon metro station from your apartment. You'll see it on the map and I gave directions to it on my other list.

At the Odeon metro station, get on Line 4 (Direction Porte de Clignancourt) and ride until you get to the metro station called, Strasbourg Saint Denis, and get off there and transfer to Line 3 (Direction: Gallieni) and then ride until you get to the metro station, Pere Lachaise and get off there and you're at the cemetary.

If you want to take the bus back, then when you leave the cemetary just go to Place Gambetta, you'll see it on the map, and get on Bus #69. Bus #69 starts here so you won't have to worry about which direction to go in.

Take Bus 69 to the bus stop called, Musee du Louvre" and get off there. You'll now be at the Louvre.

Then walk to the front of the Louvre, where the glass pyramid is, and directly across the street will be the bus stop also called, "Musee du Louvre" for bus 95 (Montparnasse). Get on Bus #95 and get off at St. Germain des Pres....at Armani/Monoprix. You'll recognize where you are.

If you're not ready to go back to the apartment, you can stay on Bus #69 as it goes to the Musee D'Orsay, which will make things easy for you because you can just keep going and get off at the Musee D'Orsay bus stop and then you'll be right at the museum.

After the museum, it's easy to get back to your apartment. You can take the metro. To get back to your area from the Musee D'Orsay, get on the metro at Solferino (Line 12:Direction Mairie D'Issy). Then ride to metro station, Sevres Babylone (where Bon Marche department store and La Grand Epicerie gourmet market are). Then change here and get on Line 10 (Direction Gare D'Austerlitz) and just go one stop and get off at Mabillon . You'll know where you are now. Or you can walk from Sevres Babylone to your apartment. It'll take about 25 minutes. Happy Travels!