# Layover in Paris-can I sightsee?



## mclyne (Aug 17, 2011)

Hello,

 If I book the flight, our family will have a 6 hour layover in Paris on our way home from Spain.

 I was wondering if there will be enough time to do a little sight seeing during this time. We will be landing in Charles de Gaul Airport. Not sure how far the airport is from the Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysee,and Notre Dame. Will there be enough time to return to the airport and go thru customs ?

 Any suggestions are welcome.


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## loafingcactus (Aug 17, 2011)

I think they should make a major motion picture comedy... I see frazzled people running.

Could you, technically, maybe.

But you'd be so frazzled and you would get at most two hours out of it... Does not seem worth it at all.


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## Beaglemom3 (Aug 17, 2011)

Too risky. You must allow for all sorts of delays.

For example:
Our airport bus from the Opera House area broke down on the highway leading to Chas. de Gaulle airport. Some folks on the bus missed their flights. We had left very early, so this did not affect us.

Any way you could rearrange for a day + layover ?

It's the most beautiful city I've ever seen.


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## mjm1 (Aug 17, 2011)

6 hours would be tight.  In April we had an 8 hour layover and we did it.  It was just the two of us.  Our bags were checked through, so all we had was a backpack each.  We took the train to the Notre Dame stop (45 minutes), didn't exit and got on the train to the Eiffel Tower exit (15 more minutes).  We got out walked under the tower and into the park to look at it.  Got back on the train to Notre-Dame, bought a baguette sandwich at a little sidewalk cafe right next to it and ate lunch in the park behind the church.  Of course, we took some pictures of all of this.  We then got back on the train to the airport (again about 45 minutes).  Fortunately, we didn't have any delays. I would guess we were actually in Paris about 2.5 hours. We then went to the Air France lounge and relaxed for the rest of our time before our next flight.

So, if you know your way around the airport and train station in the airport, it can be done.  We had a nice time and were glad to see the two major sites that we wanted to see.  It was better than sitting around the airport for 8 hours.

Good luck.


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## levatino (Aug 18, 2011)

No.  CDG has an awful reputation for delays and congestion, France is hampered by strikes, and any joy f the sights would be overshadowed with stress.  Why do it?

I would say yes, if the airport was Amsterdam.


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## Margariet (Aug 18, 2011)

levatino said:


> No.  CDG has an awful reputation for delays and congestion, France is hampered by strikes, and any joy f the sights would be overshadowed with stress.  Why do it?
> 
> I would say yes, if the airport was Amsterdam.



Me too   Once we had the same time amount in London but I didn't dare to leave the airport. I enjoyed the shops and a coffee and a light meal. I once had a terrible experience in Paris when we had to catch an international train and really had to run to get it after we got stuck in a metro!


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## alanmj (Aug 18, 2011)

Caribgirl said:


> I was wondering if there will be enough time to do a little sight seeing during this time. We will be landing in Charles de Gaul Airport. Not sure how far the airport is from the Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysee,and Notre Dame. Will there be enough time to return to the airport and go thru customs ?
> 
> Any suggestions are welcome.



There is NO WAY you can get into the city, see things worthwhile, get back to CDG, and get through security (which is the major issue, not customs) in 6 hours without having at least one heart attack of one of your family members! I travel through CDG often on my way to France from either Canada or Ireland, and it is by far the worst airport in Europe for illogical and frustrating congestion. It even makes Heathrow look sedate and efficient in comparison. I avoid CDG as much as I can when I can.

Unfortunately, there isn't much at the airport to attract you either.

Take a good book, or better a good library, and relax.


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## mav (Aug 18, 2011)

Charles De Galle is the WORST airport I have been in anywhere, and I fly all over the USA, Europe, the Caribbean, and within cities in Egypt and Turkey. I have NEVER had the awful experiences at any airport as I have had at CDG. I am always prepared to encounter  any mishap and just deal with it. I would never look for a problem like trying to sight see in Paris during a 6 hour layover. jmho


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## mclyne (Aug 18, 2011)

Thank you all so much for your input. You have helped me make the decision.

 I will be looking for return flights with the least amount of layover time.

 This is exactly why I love tug!!!


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## Carolinian (Aug 18, 2011)

I have gone into Paris with layovers in that range, and taken the RER trains right from the airport into the city.  Granted, Zurich or Vienna or Amsterdam are better cities for getting into the city, but Paris is doable.  CDG might be a worse airport than any of those three, but it is much better to deal with than London Heathrow.


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## mclyne (Aug 18, 2011)

never thought of an extra travel day--Thank you!!!


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## pwrshift (Aug 20, 2011)

Most airlines let you get a few extra days without cost...I wouldn't chance it in 6 hours, but even a couple of nights in Paris would be devine...but still not enough. 

Here's a little video I did of one of our trips there a few years ago.

http://www.vimeo.com/7338737

Brian


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## alanmj (Aug 20, 2011)

Carolinian said:


> CDG ...  is much better to deal with than London Heathrow.



Not in my experience. Gallic indifference makes CDG far more frustrating than LHR. At least for LHR if I had 6 hours to spare I would manage a trip into London for a couple of hours or more. No chance for CDG.


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## dioxide45 (Aug 20, 2011)

I once did Paris in 5 hours. I was on an India bound itinerary and when I landed in Paris, some union for Air France was on strike. Well, I couldn't get a flight out for two more days. Shucks.

Being Paris in late October, it was foggy and rainy. So I spent until 2pm on my full day in Paris in the hotel room. I finally decided to venture out, took a train from the airport to downtown. Boarded a double decker bus, saw Notre Dame, ate lunch at the Hard Rock Café. Then saw Arche de Triomphe, and then to top it off, the Eiffel Tower lit at night. Then back on the train to the hotel/airport and an early flight out the next day.


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## alanmj (Aug 21, 2011)

dioxide45 said:


> I once did Paris in 5 hours. I was on an India bound itinerary and when I landed in Paris, some union for Air France was on strike. Well, I couldn't get a flight out for two more days. Shucks.
> 
> Being Paris in late October, it was foggy and rainy. So I spent until 2pm on my full day in Paris in the hotel room. I finally decided to venture out, took a train from the airport to downtown. Boarded a double decker bus, saw Notre Dame, ate lunch at the Hard Rock Café. Then saw Arche de Triomphe, and then to top it off, the Eiffel Tower lit at night. Then back on the train to the hotel/airport and an early flight out the next day.



The problem is that the 6 hours layover being discussed is between landing and next take-off. From landing to getting to the RER station can be an hour, depending on the terminal. Then the time you have to be back is at least 2 hours before take-off. I missed a flight when I was over two hours before take-off coming into CDG, and I was coming in on an Air France flight from a French airport. I ended up outside security (no choice) and the lines to get back through security were HUGE. So the actual time available is less than 3 hours...


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## hibbeln (Aug 21, 2011)

Caribgirl, be careful also with having a connection time that is "too short" also!  We are at the point now that we won't connect through CDG unless there is really no other way to go because we have had TOO MANY mishaps with connections in CDG.  It seems it would be easy to make a connection, but it isn't.
I won't consider anything less than a 2 hour connection time at CDG, and even that strikes fear in my heart and we usually find we are RUNNING to make that connection.  I know, it sounds crazy, but seriously, this is a MESSED UP airport!  
One problem is that the time you LAND is not when you get to the gate.....it is not at all uncommon to taxi around the airport for 20 minutes.....then you get taken to a bus (often), and people wait to load onto a bus to get taken to a gate.  Everyone is sweating because they're anticipating missing their connections.  Stress level is high.  Then there are security checkpoints after security checkpoints to go through....not one as in any other airport but MANY!  Once we counted 5 times we had to clear security while making a connection from a flight from Malaga, Spain at CDG.  And that was with little kids and Grandma in tow.  And the airport is HUGE!  Have your running shoes on. 
And* if you're getting on to a transAtlantic flight, the gate CLOSES 60 minutes before the departure time (*which they don't tell you) so that the flight manifest can be sent ahead before the plane takes off.    This is a big detail (that travellers don't know until they're left standing in CDG, looking at their plane sitting at the gate without them on it).   So 2 hours is cutting it close, it might work out OK or you might miss your flight, depending on the whims of CDG and your luck.  2 1/2-3 hours is a nice amount of time to shoot for.


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## mclyne (Aug 21, 2011)

Thank you all for respnding. We have decided NOT to leave the airport during the layover. Everyone seems to be of the same opinion and you have all been through it before. Thank you, again.


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## tlwmkw (Aug 21, 2011)

I agree with all the above- it's a very busy airport and very hectic.  Also you're not that close to central Paris ( a bit like Heathrow) so while it may look easy to get into town it is not.  Stay in the airport with lots of reading materials.  This is one that if you have lounge access it is really worth it because the airport is usually packed with people.

tlwmkw


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## 3kids4me (Aug 21, 2011)

Wow, reading this thread has worried me, because next year we are flying out of CDG, connecting in LHR, and then flying home to JFK.  Now I'm worried that (a) we won't get through security in time to catch our plane and (b) our luggage won't make it onto the connecting flight.  We obviously plan to get there two hours prior to our flight, which technically is a domestic one...but how bad is this place?


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## Passepartout (Aug 21, 2011)

3kids4me said:


> We obviously plan to get there two hours prior to our flight, which technically is a domestic one...but how bad is this place?



You will be fine. CDG is a PITA, but without you leaving and then trying to get back and through security, it isn't THAT bad.

I kind of like the way they have put all the shops and cafe's- and restrooms-  below floor level on the concourses. There are big lounges out near the far ends of the concourses, and if you can snag one (they're fcfs) you can really stretch out and rest.

CDG is big and spread out and sometimes you have to ride a bus from one terminal to another and go through screening multiple times (my record at CDG is 6). The big tip-off to me that it's a long day is when the aircraft just parks waaay out and you have to ride in huge buses to even get to a terminal.

I call it 'Appreciation Day' for our little, one gate, one airline, airport where I can park free 50 meters from the building for as long as I need to (weeks) and the only worry is that the back of the pickup will be full of zucchini when you return.

Enjoy your travels!

Jim Ricks


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## pwrshift (Aug 23, 2011)

This series of maps of CDG might be of help:

http://www.easycdg.com/pages/maps_easy_cdg.compag.html

Brian


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## x3 skier (Aug 23, 2011)

You might invest in a day pass for one of the Airline Lounges. Usually free drinks, snacks, wifi, etc. Some allow two people on one pass while others are one per person. Check the airline web sites for pricing.

Cheers


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