|
Getting There & Away
Paris has two airports, Aéroport
d'Orly, 16km (10mi) south of central Paris, and Aéroport
Charles de Gaulle, 27km (17mi) to the north. Flights
run daily to all parts of the country, but the high-speed
TGV (train à grande vitesse) train services are
usually more convenient. Charles de Gaulle is a major
international hub, so you shouldn't have any trouble
finding a flight, regardless of where you're flying.
There are six major train stations in
Paris, each of which handles traffic to different parts
of France and the rest of Europe. The most spectacular
route is the Channel Tunnel (or Chunnel) between London
(via Folkestone) and Paris (via Calais), a trip that
takes only three hours. TGV services also link Paris
with Amsterdam and Brussels.
Euroline buses run from Paris to cities
all over Europe. Hoverspeed runs bus-boat-bus combos
from London, but with the convenience of the Channel
Tunnel routes you'd have to be pretty hard pressed to
consider it. There are also ferries and hovercraft between
Ireland and France.
Getting Around
There are dozens of ways to get to and
from Paris' airports, from rapidfire shuttle trains
to the standard assortment of pokey public buses, private
shuttles and taxis. There's even a bus that runs solely
between the two airports. Say what you will about driving
around Paris, but the city's public transportation is
world class.
The most charming of Paris' public transport
options, the underground Métropolitain (and its
sister system, the RER), is a simply massive network.
No matter where you are, chances are there's a metro
station within a few blocks. Likewise, the public bus
system covers everywhere, but its hours are laughable
and don't even try to hop aboard on Sunday or a holiday.
The Noctambus network takes over in the heavily trafficked
areas once both the underground and the day buses go
to sleep.
In case you hadn't guessed it, driving
around Paris is a job best reserved for the terminally
aggressive - if you don't have lots of time to kill,
you're better off taking public transport. Likewise
with bicycles: Parisians don't much like to share the
road, and bikes aren't allowed on the metro. There are
river shuttles along the Seine, but these cater more
to gawking tourists than to commuters.
|