I am off on my commute next week. I have seven hours at Charles de Gaulle International. Ought I go into town or not? You figure I arrive at 06.00, and so will not be through formalities until say 07.00.
On a Saturday of Bastille Day weekend.
First off, does the airport have lockers to ditch my carry-on? This would be a deal-breaker. I will not carry my briefcase all over Paris.
Next, when I return (for a 13.30 flight) would it be a nightmare a la Heathrow to check back in through security?
Then finally, what can one do early on a Saturday morning in Paris? Where will I get the most pork for my euro?
My limited experience with CdG (only been there a couple of times) says it takes about 45 min to get into town with a cab (dunno about buses and such).
And CdG itself is a complete maze! I´ve yet to find the stores and only by chance found the gate I was supposed to be at.
As for what to do in Paris if you decide to go… just walk around downtown. Roughly said, in the triangle “Louvre -Eiffel Tower-Arc de Triumph”. There are just so many fascinating old “palaces” and scenery to take in around there so you needn´t spend many Euros at all.
It’s not worth the hassle (IMO). I don’t know of any lockers, but even if there were, you’ve basically got no time at all. You’ll have to queue for a ticket for the train to Paris (the machines only take euros or French credit cards). Then you would have to wait for a train and then spend 30 minutes getting into Paris.
That will leave you about two hours in Paris.
Or you could jump into a taxi (at least 50 euros ($75) one way, cash only).
Checking back in can be pretty painful, not on a Heathrow level of asshattery, but it’s not far off.
I have spent about 5 hours in CDG and it’s rubbish, even for an airport. Very few shops or places to eat, so I simply bought a sandwich and read a book. Having said that, I would guess that trying to get out and in again is simply not worth the hassle in the time that you have, although I didn’t really investigate this option. If I’d had a bit more time and money, I may have. On balance, I would say go for it, purely on my internal experience of CDG.
+1. It’s a pretty naff airport, and since it lacks a nice high-speed rail link, venturing into Paris means placing yourself at the mercy of traffic jams and commuter train problems on the way back, so either you need to allow lots of spare time or else give yourself an ulcer worrying about missing your flight.
Unless you are getting on a domestic/european flight - that will shave a lot of time off your preflight hassles.
I´ve only taken European flights from CdG and it still takes a shit-long time to get where you want to. I can only imagine the hassle people going further have to endure
Damn…on one hand…glad the guy finally got some help. Sounded like he was a bit off his rocker there at the end. On the other hand…that was like the best off-the-wall-but-real thread contribution (by me) ever! Now I’m just another guy that posted something that was out of date. sigh
If it’s Bastille Day weekend, everywhere will be packed. I was there for Bastille Day many many years ago. The only reason we managed to get anywhere was I was with a French colonel in his official car. I doubt it’s changed much. Find an internet terminal and enjoy some quality SDMB time.
IIRC Angua lives in Paris now, as does clairobscur, so they can give you chapter and verse.
CDG is a hell hole… no place to sit, no signs, no food, crazy French layout, long distances between gates, Yuck! The only worse airport I can recall is Entebbe, Uganda. Have you been to Sana’a, Kuwait etc? These are better than CDG.
I’d concur that CDG is one of the worst airports in the developed world. No decent place to sit, no interesting shops, no decent restaurants, a layout that forces people on line to check in or going to the gates to queue up in the path of people trying to get from place to place . . .
As others have said, seven hours is a bit too short to get into town and have time to do much of anything. At best you would have a couple of hours, assuming you leave yourself plenty of margin to get back before your departing flight in time.
When I was working in Gabon, I regularly had a 17-hour layover in CDG. (The total travel time from Panama to Gabon was 36 hours. Panama-Washington DC, then an overnight flight to Paris arriving early in the morning; then all day in CDG; then another overnight to Libreville. Hell of a commute.)
On my first trip I did go into Paris to sight-see because I had plenty of time. I took the train in. I was, however, pretty shattered from lack of sleep, so I just hopped on one of the double-decker tourist buses. You can ride around all day for one fare, getting off and on wherever you like. Most of the time I sat in the upper deck and dozed while Paris went past, but I did get off to see the Eiffel Tower and a couple of other places.
On later trips I didn’t bother. I just holed up in an airport hotel during the day and slept. On my last trip I took three days off to see more of Paris.
I didn’t recall Entebbe as being that bad, but I spent most of my layover there holed up in the cafeteria drinking beer. Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos, Nigeria - now *that’s * a pit.
I spent 3 weeks in Paris a couple of years ago. Nothing is open at CDG until 0700 and it is closed up by 2300. You can take the B train to St Michel-Notre Dame. You can check out the impressive church, or just walk along the Seine. You can get subway tickets at the train station at CDG. They have tourist assistance booths where you can get tickets as well as information.
If you have a BankAmerica Credit or Debit card, you can use it inthe Parabas ATMs with no surcharge (other than the exchange rate).
I don’t remeber how long the train ride took, but you should be able to at least get to Paris and back.
I spent 10 or 12 hours in Entebbe… flight back to Dubai was delayed because of a power outage in Dubai (the power flickered quite often in Entebbe too). It was ok for the first half or so, but those last 4 or 5 hours were torture.
