This summer I will be staying in the Essone region of France in a village called Merevill near Fontainbleau. I think the nearest railway station is in Etampes 15 Km away. We would like to visit Paris but have heard that it would be extremely impractical to take the car. If we take the train into Paris is there a Railway staion which is central to all the major sights? Our main aim of course is to see the Eiffel Tower. Can anyone advise the nearest railway station and also how to get information on train times and routes in English?<BR><BR>Thanks Buzzy

You won't have a choice of train stations. Etampes trains go to the Austerlitz train station.<BR><BR>From there you take the RER C line to Champs de Mars which is the Eiffel Tower stop.<BR><BR>Use www.sncf.com to find rail times. Click on the British flag for English.

The RER (Line C) from Etampes has many stops in central Paris.<BR><BR>The train from Fontainebleau arrives at Gare de Lyon. From there, take the metro to anywhere.<BR>

If coming from Etampes, take the RER. There are several stations, but the St Michel stop puts you at the Seine and Boul'Mich', look east and there's Notre Dame. Look west, across the river, there's the Louvre. You can also get off at the Eiffel Tower.<BR><BR>

Etampes is on the RER C6 line Direction St. Quentin-en-Yvelines (suburban train) which goes into Paris, becoming part of its subway line. You can get off at Champ de Mars, which is where the Eiffel Tower is.<BR><BR>When you return, be sure to get a train on C6 (direction St. Martin-d'Etampes) and check the board above the platform to make sure Etampes is lit (indicating that the approaching train does indeed stop there). The trip takes about an hour and a quarter and I would guess there are fairly frequent trains since it is a suburban line.<BR><BR>You can also get your return at St. Michel, so you could walk down the Seine, cross over to Notre Dame and return to St. Michel RER.