Charles De Gaulle Airport to Metro Defense Grand Arche

We will be arriving at 13:45 on February 13 at the CDG airport. We need to get to the Renaissance Paris hotel La Defense. I see that it%26#39;s by the train station/metro stop Defense Grande Arche. What is the best way to get to this stop? Is there a metro or train to this station from the airport? We%26#39;ll only have carry on luggage, so that won%26#39;t be a problem. Also, any insight to staying at the Renaissance Hotel La Defense? I see that it%26#39;s only a couple of stops on the Metro from Charles De Gaulle Etoile, so staying out there shouldn%26#39;t be a problem for us...Let me know if it would pose a problem.

Thank you in advance for all of your help!

jdmckay

|||

Oops, I see that it is six stops from Etoile...no problem! I hope!

jdmckay

|||

It is just one stop by RER from Charles de Gaulle Etoile.

From the airport, you would just take the RER B to Châtelet-Les Halles and transfer to the RER A that will take you to La Défense. A ticket should cost about 10€.

|||

Sounds easy! Thanks!

|||

Access to the hotel will involve a bit of walking since it is .1 mile from the train/metro station. You will have to walk across the plaza and then between office buildings to cross the road between you and the hotel. Suggest you go to the marriott site and check the overhead maps and directions.

Metro takes about 10 minute longer than if you were in the center but you always get a seat.

Hotel is very nice and popular with Marriott points people. We stayed there several years ago.

Free Wifi in Paris, France

One of the WiFi networks I can apparently try to connect to is called FreeWiFi. When I try to connect to this network, it sends me to:

http://wifi.free.fr

which requests a user name and password.

Anyone familiar with this network? Is it free? How can I get a user name and password?

I assume the username and password is only necessary so they can make sure you aren%26#39;t doing anything illegal with your access.

Is http://wifi.free.fr the same thing as:

www.paris.fr/portail/Economie/Portal.lut…

It looks like, if I could read this french site, that I could get a username and password for a free, Paris wide, wifi network.

Is this true?

If it is a wifi network, but isn%26#39;t free, how much does it cost?

Is it possible to get this information in English?

(There is an English link on the top of the page, but click on that link does not send me to an english translation of this page.)

Does anyone have any recommendations on generally Paris wide wifi networks (either free or paid)?

Does anyone have any recommendations on accurate websites containing listings of businesses in Paris offering free wifi access?

Virtually any comments on accessing the internet via wifi in Paris would be welcome.

Thank you.

|||

Free.fr is not free, it costs 29€/month, but there are many sites where you can find free wifi in Paris. Many cafés offer free wifi; you will just have to ask the waiter for the password. Parks in Paris have free wifi, although I have found these signals to be quite weak.

Try: http://www.cafes-wifi.com/

|||

There are lots of hotspots in Paris. If you really need Internet, why don%26#39;t you get or bring a 3G card.

SFR offers cards for limited usage:

1 hour 7 EUros

1 day 9 Euros

8 hours over 15 days 26 Euros

Their website is all in French: sfr.fr/internet-mobile/…

|||

The free wifi Paris offers is, I believe, mostly available in outdoors/public areas.. maybe some apartments or hotel rooms could happen to be near a free hotspot. We used it in one of the little %26#39;pocket parks%26#39; a couple blocks from our hotel, but it wasn%26#39;t available in the hotel.

|||

I read somewhere that McDonalds in Paris all have free wireless - I hope this is true as I don%26#39;t intend to pay 18E to use the wiFi at my hotel lol.

|||

Can you be more specific about where exactly you%26#39;ll be in Paris? That way maybe some of us can come up with suggested spots based on personal experience...

|||

Yes, McDonalds has free wifi for its customers. Use is simple: just open your browser, you will be directed automatically to a webpage where you need to accept the terms of use, and after doing that you can surf. I think the terms of use contain some restrictions regarding porn sites, etc. (not unlogical).

The free internet access offered by the city is available in about 260 public places: libraries, museums, parks, etc (during opening hours!). You can find their locations via the website mentioned above, under %26quot;Localisation des points Wi-Fi%26quot;. At those locations, you should see the Paris WiFi-logo near the base station. On your computer, you should select the Orange network. When you then startup your browser, I understand that you%26#39;re directed to a page where you need to select the %26quot;pass Paris Wi-Fi 2h%26quot;, for 2 hours of free internet use.

|||

Quite a few cafes will give you a passcode for 30min-hour or so, with purchase of a cup of coffee... Cafe du Metro/rue de Rennes was one.

The Columbus Cafe chain of coffee shops have Wifi (free).

columbuscafe.com/columbus-cafe-paris-et-ile-…

http://www.cafes-wifi.com/

|||

Most Paris hotels have free WiFi, some charge it - which of course is utterly stupid, I wouldn%26#39;t book a hotel so business unconscious that it wouldn%26#39;t offer it. Unfortunately that still includes some very nice venues.

Every McDonald%26#39;s has free WiFi, and there are around 400 free hotspots managed by the city, in every park and public buildings. Here%26#39;s a map, sorry I couldn%26#39;t find it in English :

www.paris.fr/portail/Economie/Portal.lut…

These don%26#39;t require any password, but work only between 7AM and 11PM, sometimes less - if a park closes at 8PM, the WiFi shuts domn too.

As you can see on the map, it%26#39;s not just the %26quot;major parks%26quot; that are equipped - basically any place with a few trees has its spot.

Wherever you are in Paris you will find supposedly open-access WiFi, usually by free.fr or Neuf Telecom, but they are in fact for their patrons only. These operators have a %26quot;network%26quot; where all users can borrow some of the bandwidth of their fellow subscribers anywhere.

Wifi at Disneyland hotel

Hello!

3rd trip to the Disneyland Hotel in as many years soming up in September. It is the Netbooks 1st trip to disney!! I was just wondering if anyone has used the wifi in the Disneyland Hotel. If so how do you connect? How much does it cost, was it good? Any infor would be appereciated.

No Vacancies - Help!

I posted an earlier message saying I needed a hotel for 2 nights in September. I am traveling with my 83 year old Mom and would like to be within walking distance of the Seine and perhaps a couple sights. People kindly responded suggesting the Minerve, Hotel de Quai Voltaire, Hotel le Notre Dame - and it turns out they are all full!

Please, any other suggestions? Budget is around 150 Euro per night. Thank you.

|||

I%26#39;ve not booked with either of these sites, but you can try www.parishotels.com and www.laterooms.com the latter one for last minute reservations.

|||

At this late stage it may be best to go to a hotel booking service like hotels.com, where you can put in your dates and budget and have them come up with a list of possibilities.

You can then look at the tripadvisor reviews to get more feedback.

Availability really needs to be your first priority now because I suspect many hotels will already be fully booked for September. The best of luck for your search!

|||

I%26#39;ve used laterooms.com for London and it worked great!

|||

Btw, what are your dates?

For example, the Hotel Cardinal Rive Gauche via the Paris Hotels site has availability but for middle of September (14th through 20th).

And you can always contact the hotel(s) directly if you find availabilities.

supermarket near to Blvd., Francois Grosso?

Hi folks,

Where is the nearest supermarket to buy toiletries in ?

Or can one buy toiletries in supermarket in Nice?

Also if one needed basic bed linen: duvet cover etc., where would I direct 20 yr., old son to go?

Thank you again.

|||

Probably the nearest is a Casino near the railway bridge on Bd gambetta - as it going towards sea

there are plenty of mini markets up gambetta away from sea -plus market fruit and fish market at liberation, and large Intermarche, Shoppi

or a large intermarche and casino at bottom of gambetta by the sea

yes, you can buy toiletries in supermarkets -there are also schlecker shops aroudn which sell all that sort of stuff too [there is one at rue trachel ]

reasonable priced bedding etc - maxi bazaar across from main train station, or the linen shop by railway bridge at top of Jeasn medecin [can%26#39;t recall the name offhand but it does reasaonable bedding cheaply]

or

carrefour at Nice TNL- take tram to Acropolis

|||

Thank you so much for your help, so appreciated.

|||

Intermarché close to Rue de France (one door gives on Gambetta the other one has access on St-Philippe)

On Gambetta there is a Casino 3 blocks from Rue de France (at the corner of Maréchal Joffre)

And there is a Spar on Rue De Grance, slightly off François Grosso

Detailed Turgot Map

I was looking for maps of Paris and stumbled across this very detailed scans of the Turgot maps ... worth a look to see your favorite areas:

…kyoto-u.ac.jp/exhibit-e/f28/f28cont.html

|||

Thank you, an interesting find.

which is best (location and rate)

planning to be in paris, october 2009. please advise which of these hotels is the best in terms of location and rates:Hotel du College de France, Hotel Marignan

Hotel des Grandes Ecoles, Hotel Europe Saint Severin

Hotel Dacia Luxembourg. Thank you.

|||

A street address and district number would be helpful. Happy Travels!

|||

October is a very busy month. Have you verified availability at all those hotels for your dates?

|||

dkjbrooks is absolutely correct about availability, it may be the limiting factor for October. If this is your first time in Paris, I might recommend hotels in either the 5th or 6th arrondissements where I believe at least a couple of the hotels on your list are located.

|||

Hotel des Grandes Ecoles is one place I know pretty well. We%26#39;ve seen 3 of their rooms and have several happy friends/relatives who have stayed there and love this hotel. It%26#39;s in excellent location in the 5th and it%26#39;s clean and well managed by friendly people. The only down side(s) might be that there is no TV in their rooms and they don%26#39;t take reservations more than 2 months in advance.

|||

go to the web sites and check prices

as others have noted, availability will be an issue for October -- you may be lucky to find rooms at any of them and that may narrow your choice

for a first trip I%26#39;d definitely go with something in the Latin Quarter as that is a great location for a first timer -- a lively district and near many of the sights you will want to see

|||

I understand that there is an outdorr patio area with tables. Is it ok to bring back drinks or snacks and sit out there. If you don%26#39;t buy the breakfast from the hotel would it be ok to sit and eat something else there?

Thanks.

|||

It%26#39;s hard to tell which is best in terms of location, it all depends of where you would like to be. Of the five hotels you mention, four are on the left bank, in the latin quarter with lower rates than the hotel the Marignan, which is located on the right side of the river, half block from Champs Elysees, probably the most touristic street in Paris.

If you%26#39;re staying for a few days and want to be on the fancy side, Marignan is your thing, with Avenue Montaigne next door and the big haute couture names like Dior, Max Mara, Nina Ricci, you name it. And the big crowds...Anyhow, anywhere you%26#39;re in Paris there%26#39;s a subway station not too far and the answer on where to stay depends on your budget.

|||

I know the hotels you mentionned and they are all reliable, professionnal and fine (bet you started your selection on this very site!)

I would have an unrationnal, arbitrary preference for the Europe Saint Severin. Friendly people.

Hôtels Paris Rive Gauche is a small chain of hotels, none of which made your list - but they often have interesting offers, and are located in the district you%26#39;re interested in.

|||

....and availavility.....

|||

we once stayed at the Hotel des Grande Ecoles for a week and had wine and cheese purchased from nearby shops in their garden every afternoon with friends before going out to dinner -- it is one of the pleasure of this hotel