For anyone that has spent time in the Paris CDG airport for an xtended period of time...

We will be in the airport Friday morning at 6:00am and our flight to JNB doesn't leave until 11:20pm.

Does this amount of time allow for us to leave the airport and tour the city for a period of time?

What would be the best way to get to the city from the airport?

Obviously we want to be back in plenty of time to make the flight to JNB.

How much time would it take to get out of the airport and to the city?

or...

Would anyone just stay in the airport?

Thanks in advance!!!

yes, you have plenty of time. 6-7 years ago on the way to Bots i had a 13 hr layover at CDG. there is a Metro station in the airport and 1 of the stops is at the Arche de Triomphe(sp??). i hopped on the Metro and less than 1 hour later i was walking down the Champ Elysee(sp??). spent about 8 hours walking around Paris, then back on the Metro to CDG and off again., it is very easy( (or at least it was then and i doubt it has changed). 17 hours is more than enough time to see the sights and have lunch...

. . . and doing so is a much better choice than getting a hotel room and sleeping. By staying active and awake you'll be acclimated to the time change by the time you arrive in Africa, which will be the same or within an hour of Paris. Staying awake during the day in Paris also lets you sleep more readily on the grueling 10-11 hour plane ride to southern Africa.

The agenda you describe is very similar to what we did when going to Windhoek through Frankfurt, and we found that to be much superior either to killing an entire day sitting at the airport, or to shelling out substantial money for a hotel room for a half-day.

It is more than enough time and I would suggest that you sign up for the bus tour. It takes you to all of the sights, you have headphones that tell you about each sight in the language that you choose and you can get off the bus at any of the stops and back on when the next one or one you decide to get back on comes along. A great way to see Paris and to explore those places that you want. If I recall, there is a bus pick up close to the airport for the tour. When we were there the bus also has an open top area for those that want an unresticted view and a suntan.

It is not a Metro station at CDG, but a light rail train called the RER. It's the B line (usually shown in blue on network maps) and it can get you into the center of Paris, either at the Chatelet/Les Halles station or the St. Michel/Notre Dame station. Here's the network map:

http://www.ratp.fr/informer/pd...ux&nompdf=rer&fm=gif

If you want to go directly to the Arc de Triomphe you will have to change trains at Chatelet/Les Halles to the A line, or take the metro. Here's the Metro network map:

http://www.ratp.fr/informer/pd...reseaux&nompdf=metro

Assume around 60 Euros for a taxi one way into Paris from CDG. Depending on how many you are in your party, the taxi may not be much more than the RER ticket, which will probably cost 15 to 20 Euros. However, if you arrive on a weekday and go into Paris by taxi from 7AM to 9AM in the morning, you will hit horrendous rush hour traffic. Same thing on the way to the airport from 5PM to 8PM. The train is a much faster option in that case.

quote:

Originally posted by Use Enough Gun:
When we were there the bus also has an open top area for those that want an unresticted view and a suntan.

How did you arrange to arrive on a sunny day? I don't get any and I live here!

Wink: Damn, it was nice and hot and even a little muggy. It was in August-maybe that's a better month for the sun in Paris! And here I thought that Paris and sunny weather were always like that!

quote:

Originally posted by Use Enough Gun:
Wink: Damn, it was nice and hot and even a little muggy. It was in August-maybe that's a better month for the sun in Paris! And here I thought that Paris and sunny weather were always like that!

Like all respectable Parisians, I'm not here in August.

that's why August is the best month to visit Paris- most of the locals are gone on vacation

Bob

17 hours is plenty of time to accept their surrender and still have time for a spot of lunch.

quote:

Originally posted by Hasher:
Bob

17 hours is plenty of time to accept their surrender and still have time for a spot of lunch.

Accept no surrenders (unless they're from the fairer sex), you do not want to be in charge of running this place.

Hire a car for the day -- do it in advance and agree on a fee; have the driver meet you at the airport. Go see the sights, have your driver wait for you while you wander around. Show up back at the airport a few hours before you depart.

I assume your firearms are checked through and you don't plan on carrying them with you throughout Paris (that might be a bad plan).

1-learn to say I think he's going to jump in French
2- go to the Eiffel Tower
3- stand there pointing up
4- wait for a crowd to gather
5- say the fraise
6- step back and watch the fun

quote:

Originally posted by jdollar:
that's why August is the best month to visit Paris- most of the locals are gone on vacation

I don't think August is that great. Too many fat women in stretch pants with husbands wearing NY Yankees jackets.

Much prefer November. Less tourists. Street vendors selling roasted chestnuts.

Things worked out perfect!
We arrived really early in the am, went to lounge and had breakfast and relaxed.
After about 3 or four hours we took the train into the city.
From there we walked nd took other trains to near the major attractions.

By the time we were finished, and returned to the airport we still had about 3 hours to relax in the lounge.
The hardest part was not sleeping that day, but because of that we slept great on the flight to Johannesburg.

We saw what we wanted, and in a day.
Like to return someday to the countryside though.