Paris_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Lonely Planet [287]
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Airports
Paris is served by Aéroport d’Orly and Aéroport Roissy Charles de Gaulle, both well linked by public transport to central Paris. More of a trek is Aéroport de Beauvais, which handles charter and some budget carriers, including Ryanair and Central Wings.
ORLY
The older, smaller of Paris’ two major airports, Aéroport d’Orly (ORY; Map; 39 50, from abroad +33 1 70 36 39 50; www.aeroportsdeparis.fr), is 18km south of the city. Its two terminals, Orly Ouest (Orly West) and Orly Sud (Orly South), are linked by a free shuttle bus service that continues to/from the airport car parks and RER C station Pont de Rungis-Aéroport d’Orly (boxed text); the Orlyval automatic metro links both terminals with the RER B station Antony (boxed text).
Need to get from Orly to Roissy Charles de Gaulle (or vice versa)? See below.
ROISSY CHARLES DE GAULLE
Aéroport Roissy Charles de Gaulle (CDG; 39 50, from abroad +33 1 70 36 39 50; www.aeroportsdeparis.fr), 30km northeast of central Paris in the suburb of Roissy, has three aérogares (terminals) – aptly numbered 1, 2 and 3 – and two train stations served by commuter trains on RER line B3: Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1 (CDG1), which serves terminals 1 and 3, and the sleek Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 2 (CDG2) for terminal 2. A free shuttle bus links the terminals with the train stations.
To get to/from Charles de Gaulle and Orly, take the RER line B3 to the Antony stop then pick up the Orlyval automatic metro (adult/child four to ten years €9.30/4.65) or hop aboard the Air France shuttle bus 3 (adult/child 2-11yr €16/8; 6am or 7am–10.30pm) linking the two airports. Both journeys take an hour, as does a taxi (€50 to €60). Click here ).
BEAUVAIS
Charter companies and Ryanair, Central Wings and various other budget airlines land/take off at Aéroport Paris-Beauvais (BVA; 0 892 682 066; www.aeroportbeauvais.com), 75km north of central Paris.
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BICYCLE
Two-wheeling has never been so good in the city of romance thanks to Vélib’ (a crunching of vélo, meaning bike, and liberté, meaning freedom), a self-service bike scheme whereby you pick up a pearly-grey bike for peanuts from one roadside Vélib’ station, pedal wherever you’re going, and park it right outside at another.
A runaway success since its launch in 2007, Vélib’ ( 01 30 79 79 30; www.velib.paris.fr; day/week/year subscription €1/5/29, bike hire 1st/2nd/3rd & each additional half-hr free/€2/4) has revolutionised how Parisians get around. Its 1451 stations Vélib’ across the city – one every 300m – sport 20-odd bike stands a head (at the last count there were 20,600 bicycles in all flitting around Paris) and are accessible around the clock.
To get a bike, you need a Vélib’ account: One- and seven-day subscriptions can be done on the spot at any station with any major credit card providing it has a microchip and pin number (be warned North Americans!). As deposit you’ll need to pre-authorise a direct debit of €150, all except €35 of which is debited if your bike is not returned or is reported as stolen). If the station you want to return your bike to is full, swipe your card across the multilingual terminal to get 15 minutes for free to find another station. Bikes are geared to cyclists aged 14 and over, and are fitted with gears, antitheft lock with key, reflective strips and front/rear lights. Bring your own helmet though!
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BIKES ON PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Bicycles are not allowed on the metro except on line 1 on Sunday and public holidays. You can, however, take your bicycle to the suburbs on some RER lines on weekdays before 6.30am, between 9am and 4.30pm, after 7pm, and all day on the weekend and on public holidays. More lenient rules apply to SNCF commuter services. Contact SNCF Click here for details.
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For more information on cycling in Paris, and a list of rental outlets where you can rent wheels for longer periods of time, Click here. Guided bicycle tours are listed on Click here.
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