Le jeu de boules » Transportation

From Beauvais Tille Airport to Disneyland Paris

Sarastro — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 16:48:36 +0000

Beauvais is quite a distance from Paris and even farther from Disneyland. I know of 4 transportation options (there is no direct rail service):
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1. Bus/Métro/RER combination:

a. Bus into Paris Porte Maillot: 15€/each
Beauvais Airport Bus
b. Purchase tickets and enter Métro at Porte Maillot and board line M1 direction: Château de Vincennes.
c. Disembark at Charles de Gaulle/Etoile, follow the orange signs marked “Correspondence” and board RER A4 direction: Marne la Vallée/Chessy.
d. Disembark at Chessy
Fare: 6.70€/each (reductions for children depending upon age)
En route time estimate: 3 hours.
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2. Private shuttle directly to Disney.

Shuttle Transfers a new service with English speaking drivers operated by Helen and Jean-Louis who are based near Disney. Shuttle Transfers offers very competitive rates.

Paris Blue Airport Shuttle From 65€ (shared ride, one person)

Shuttle Inter From 130€

Allonavette From 129€
En route time approx: 2 hours
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3. Taxi

Taxi Joann
Beauvais Taxi
Taxi Michel
Fare: 180€+ each way
En route time approx: 2 hours
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4. Bus

VEA bus has new service 3 times a day from Beauvais to DLP:

Bus departs Beauvais daily at: 10h00, 13h030, and 19h00

Adults – 30€, children under 12 – 24€, children under 3 are free

En route time can approach 3 hours (bus makes an intermediate stop at CDG)

The tickets bought online minimum 24 hours before the transfer are considered as priority on boarding.

VEA Bus

Paris Taxis for groups up to 5

Sarastro — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 18:40:09 +0000

TaxiG7 has over 500 taxis which can transport up to 5 people. These are called G space taxis, just ask for one when you call, there is a special number:
01 47 39 01 39
TaxiG7 also has an English speaking operator at:
01 41 27 66 99
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Taxi Bleu has a similar program:
08 91 70 10 10
English speaking operator
01 49 36 10 10
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Taxi Paris has vans that hold up to 6
06 07 60 49 14
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All charge an additional 2.95€ for each additional passenger after 3. Expect to pay 1€ per bag after the first.

le départ, destination le Grau du Roi

Sarastro — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:41:47 +0000

It’s the end of the first week in Jun, today we depart for Paris and connect through to le Grau du Roi in the south of France along the Mediterranean coast. Le Grau du Roi has been a six year pilgrimage for us, its beaches and activities are a perfect detraction for our daughter and the seafood and inexpensive restaurants are a perfect attraction for me.

We first depart IAH on Continental. This is our first trip on a Boeing 767 as Continental recently downgraded to this aircraft from the B777 it had been using since retiring their DC-10s. In a word, the flight was disappointing. An earlier departure time, just after 3 pm, means one is less likely to obtain the required sleep and the aircraft itself does not compare in comfort with the previous model. Cramped seats and older audio-visual systems lead the list of disappointments, food and service were OK but for a Business Class fare, we were underwhelmed.

We easily connected to AF for our flight to Montpellier where we were met by our landlord. M. Coviesec always finds time to pick us up at the airport and drive us the 20 minutes to our apartment . Wow, what a view! The 4th floor of an apartment building at the end of the canal’s entrance into the sea with a view not only of the port entry but of the beach as well.

It’s been a long trip but we cannot wait for dinner. Tonight it’s le Rose des Sables, a very popular restaurant for us as well as with the locals. Le Grau du Roi is a working fishing town which unlike many of its neighbors is open and thriving every month of the year. Le Rose des Sables remains open even when the summer tourist return home, a testament to its reputation, excellent service, and always fresh seafood.

As we settle in for our first night, I can hear the waves slap against the sand on the beach below me. Vacation is underway.

Alerte Résa

Sarastro — Thu, 07 May 2009 00:21:12 +0000

For those who are already familiar with the PREM fares sold by the SNCF (French Rail) and the fact that fares go on sale 3 months before any given departure date, SNCF has an interesting service which may interest you – Alerte Résa. Simply fill out the form and you will receive either a text message or an e-mail when the tickets you want go on sale.

It’s no longer necessary to countdown the days until the tickets you want go on sale, just fill out the form and wait for the message.

No word yet if the SNCF will start twittering your requests.

Car rentals

Sarastro — Tue, 05 May 2009 15:57:31 +0000

If you can avoid picking up a rental at either a train station or an airport, you can save the pickup surcharge fee of 30€ to 60€. Expect to pay a one time road tax of about 10€ as well as a small fee for declaring additional drivers.

Automobiles running diesel not only get better mileage (kilometrage) but diesel fuel is widely available and usually costs less than gasoline. If you plan on picking up in one city and dropping off in another, Hertz and Avis usually have one way fees. Other companies probably have no such fees as long as the the pickup and drop off locations are within France.

Here is a list of rental companies operating in France:

Economy Car Rentals

If you plan on renting for three or more days, a rental broker can save you a great deal of money. Arrangements with brokers must usually be made before you leave home, have a 3 day minimum rental period yet offer great flexibility as reservation modification are as easy as a quick toll free call.

Autoeurope

Kemwell

Easy Terra

Driving is straight forward and no different than anywhere else actually.

Driving in France?

Sarastro — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:37:04 +0000

Driving in France is really no different that driving anywhere else (OK, excluding the UK, Australia and other drive-on-the-left locations). Here are several points which might make your experiences on the highway a bit easier:

1. Purchase a map in book form (1:200,000 scale). GPS has become a popular rental option but European maps might be available for the portable GPS unit you are currently using.

2. Request a diesel; it will save a great deal of money in operating costs. Diesel fuel is sold everywhere gasoline is sold. You may check current fuel prices at any French city.

3. The luggage compartments on French cars are quite small, make sure the car you select meets you needs.

4. You may want to either carry car seats for you children or ask the rental agency. Child seats are required for children under 10 years of age.

5. For planning your trip, the following offer a great deal of information about time, distance, and cost between two points:

Mappy
Michelin

6. Never exceed the speed limit. There are radar detectors everywhere, some are marked and some are not. Here is a radar locater site:

Radar

Mappy also lists radar sites.

7. Familiarize yourself with the basic speed limits: 50 km/h (within city limits), 90 km/h (country road outside of city limits), 110 km/h (divided roads), 130 km/h (auto route). Speed limits are not always posted in numbers, you are expected to slow to 50 km/h when passing a city limit sign. You may resume 90 km/h when leaving the city limits.

8. A word of caution about priorité a droite. If a car approaches from the right and enters the road in front of you, he probably has the right of way.

This old rule is being phased out but there are still many locations (always known by the locals) where the rule is still practiced. If you happen to see a yellow diamond sign along the side of the road, you can rest easy as you’ll have the right of way as you proceed along the main thoroughfare. If you see a red slash across the face of the yellow diamond, beware as vehicles on the right now have right of way.

9. Magnet strip credit card, while accepted by cashiers when purchasing fuel, will probably not work in pay at the pump locations. Plan your gas purchases ahead of time. Don’t get caught on a holiday with an empty fuel tank.

10. One advantage of the Autoroute; there is always clean restroom facilities available near by.

11. Never drink and drive. Never. French police set up check points in the most unlikely locations and at the most unlikely times just to catch people who do. If you consume more than 2 glasses of wine, you’ll most likely exceed the legal limit. The legal limit in France, or rather, the beginning of the illegal “zone,” is .50 grams of alcohol per liter of blood. From this level to .79 grams, the penalty is a fine of 135€ to 750€, and for French drivers, a loss of 6 of 12 license points. From .80 grams and up, the fine, fixed by a court, can be as high as 4,500 €, with a suspension of license for up to three years. A person weighing 80 kilograms, or 176 pounds, will be at the .50 limit after drinking two glasses of wine, though the peak level of alcohol in the blood when consumed with food occurs from one to two hours afterward.

12. To find the best restaurants/hotels purchase a Michelin Red Guide, you’ll need nothing else to find the best accommodations.

13. In the glove box of your rental car, this is a paper call a Constat. In the event of an accident, both parties must complete this form. On the back of the Constat is the English translation. Carry a pen in your car at all times.

14. When a car is turning left in front of you, do not pass on the right unless you are already in an outside lane (not an option on 2 lane roads).

15 An International Drivers Permit (IDP) is not required in France.

Tips for the traveler, CDG to DLP

Sarastro — Mon, 04 May 2009 19:55:26 +0000

Many people plan a visit to Disneyland Paris, arriving at Charles de Gaule airport with many transportation questions. The following is a summary of transportation options for those connecting to their hotel at or near DLP:

CDG to Marne-la-Vallée/Chessy (Disneyland)

1. TGV
(non refundable fares vary depending upon departure time from 15€ to 30€)

Travel time 9-10 minutes, last departure about 9:55 p.m.

http://www.voyages-sncf.com/ (in French only)

http://tgv-europe.com

depart: AEROPORT CDG 2 TGV (95) arrive: MARNE LA VALLEE CHESSY (77)

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2. Bus (VEA)
http://www.vea.fr/uk/index.asp

Adults – 18€, children 3 to 11 – 15€, free for children under 3

Departures every 20 minutes from 8:55 a.m. until 8:05 p.m. except:

Until 8:25 p.m. on Monday & Thursday

Plus 10:25 p.m. on Friday

Plus 9:55 p.m. on Sunday

Travel time about 1 hour

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3. RER (train/métro)

http://www.ratp.com/

RER Line B towards Chatelet-Les Halles; change to Line A for Marne-La Vallee/Disneyland
This is probably the cheapest option (14€45) but it can take up to 2 hours.

Note: Mobilis tickets are not valid for travel from either CDG or ORY

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4. Shuttle – no deposit or prepayment, reservation required.

http://www.ezyshuttle.com/
Private shuttle from 1 to 6 – 70€

http://www.shuttle-inter.com/
Private shuttle from 1 to 3 people – 70€
Private shuttle 4 to 8 people – 75 to 110€

http://www.shuttle-transfers.net
a new service with English speaking drivers operated by Helen and Jean-Louis Wesdloswki who are based near Disney. Shuttle Transfers offers very competitive rates.

Travel time about 1 hour

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5. Shuttle – reservation and prepayment required

http://www.paris-blue-airport-shuttle.fr/
Private shuttle from 1 to 8 people – 60€ to 100€
Shared ride from 1 to 8 people – 45€ to 12.50€ per person

Travel time about 1 hour, however shared ride services can take a great deal longer depending upon where one is in the pickup/drop off sequence.

Reliability varies
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6. Taxi
Be careful about unlicensed taxi operators who solicit from inside the terminal. Located just a few steps from the customs exit, the taxi queue is the suggested place finds taxis.

http://www.taxisg7.com/
Convenient but can be expensive
Travel time about 1 hour

Cost estimate: 75€+

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Most hotels have transportation from DLP/Chessy. There is a free “pink shuttle bus” that connects a large number of hotels in the area. This free shuttle can be very crowded and difficult to board at times, particularly with luggage and children.

Updated 1 May 10