| | Paris has two major airports; the Charles de Gaulle International Airport (www.paris-cdg.com) and Orly Airport (official website of the airports: www.adp.fr). There are many ways to get into the city from here; buses, RER or TGV trains, and taxis are your best bets. For a Taxi Bleu from the airport, call 08 25 16 66 66. |
| Paris has the largest Métro system in the world, they say; there are hundreds of stations, each marked by a gigantic “M”, and it is by far the most convenient and cheapest way to get around Paris. You can buy a carnet of ten tickets for roughly ten euros, and find maps of the 16-line system all over the city as well as free of charge at the ticket booths. Be sure to check out Métro Line 14 as it is a sight worth seeing in itself; it opened in 1998 and was the first automated line in Paris. All of its stops have artsy lighting and design. |
The bus network in Paris has 59 lines and operate every day but Sunday, from 7 a.m. until about 8:30 p.m., but some run at night as well, particularly those that connect to Métro or train stations. The maps you can find in those stations also display the bus lines and schedules. The “Noctilien” (called before "Noctambus" are night buses that arrive every half hour and give you a lift if you’ve miss the last Métro (at around 1 a.m.). Night bus itineraries are on the buses and at the bus stops.
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| The RER is a railway network that serves primarily the connections between Parisian suburbs and Paris proper. They run using the same stations and even the same tickets as the Métro trains, but are much quicker because they are less frequent. You can also easily go from Paris to another city in France by train. Paris’ hub train stations are Gare du Nord, Gare de l’Est, Gare de Lyon, Gare d’Austerlitz, Gare de Montparnasse and Gare Saint-Lazare. |
All the phone numbers in Paris and its region are in the schema 01 XX XX XX XX and can be called from outside by dialing 00 33 1 XX XX XX XX. The mobile phones begin by 06.
You cant use coin in the phone booths, you need to buy a 'Carte téléphonique' in the tobacco shops. Or a prépaid card in a callshop and use the free number from a phone booth or your hotel
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| Here are a few of the Parisian newspapers and magazines highlighting events that might interest the traveler. Also, you’re likely to be able to find newspapers such as USA Today, the International Herald Tribune, and the Wall Street Journal on any news stand. |
| As with any buzzing metropolis, and certainly with one as frequented by travelers as Paris is, there are thousands of Internet cafés. |
The main post office in Paris is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (52, rue du Louvre, Tel: 01.40.28.20.00), but others are generally open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday. Since the lines are painfully long, and the service far from genial, try other, smaller post offices located throughout the city. You’ll know them by their bright yellow signs labeled “La Poste” with a blue bird-in-flight icon.
You can buy stamps at any tabac (where you can also buy magazines, newspapers, cigarettes, candy, and phone cards) or use the guichets automatiques located inside each post office that conveniently allow you to weigh and stamp your own packages.
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| Laundry service is often provided in your hotel or hostel, but if you have to brave the streets, they’re located at short intervals throughout the city (and your hotel or hostel will be likely to advertise their whereabouts). Though costly, you can often get your dry cleaning done at the same location. |
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