Shuttle Inter vs. a cab to CDG
 

We'll be going from Place Vendome to CDG at about 1:00 PM on a weekday in April and weighing the advantages of booking Shuttle Inter vs just taking a cab. Relatively large, heavy bags with small, poorly rolling wheels preclude train or bus.

Shuttle Inter has the advantage of a fixed price of €55, but they have mixed reviews, and we would have to be ready at a set time; not sure if they allow a 10-15 minute leeway in case checkout takes a bit longer than usual.

Posts on cab prices have been mostly in the €50-60 range, with some thinking it could go as high as €70 with traffic, but heavy traffic at that time of day seems unlikely, and it would mean just getting the doorman to hail a cab whenever we're actually ready to go.

Any comments, opinions, experiences, etc., would be appreciated.

Thanks.

I suggest you ask the hotel to call you a taxi since you won't save much with a shuttle. If the shuttle is shared with other people you might also have to make other stops before getting to the airport. Ask the hotel to book a minivan or station wagon if you have a lot of luggage.

Seems pretty expensive for a shared van service; I've had several good experiences with Paris Airport Service, It's only about E33 for 2 persons. They will give you a pickup time and expect you to be ready, but that's easy-- just start checking out of your hotel well in advance of the time, and wait in the lobby. Hotel checkout these days is usually pretty quick anyway. Courteous good drivers, better than the other van services I have used.

http://www.parisairportservice.com/a...hp?lng=en&pg=4

P.S. Traffic in Paris is always heavy, unless you are traveling in the middle of the night!

Be careful with calling a taxi. They start charging from the moment they receive the call or from wherever they are coming to pick you up; I have paid anywhere from 5-20 Euros extra for the pleasure (20 euros was the first time and I had no idea so took my time to finish packing); no big deal but be prepared; tends to upset many non-European travelers.

Yes, that's a good point to be aware of, although 20 euros is quite excessive (must have really taken time packing...). Don't call for a taxi unless you are ready to go to avoid racking up time on the meter. In central Paris it will add 5-10 Euros. There are also extra charges for extra luggage. Conversely a lot of Europeans might not realize you are expected to tip 15-20% for a taxi in the US.

One way to cut down on the taxi "approach" charge is to call a nearby taxi stand: http://www.taxis-paris.fr/telephone-bornes-taxis.htm

This works especially well if you need a taxi NOW and there happens to be one at the stand.

The disadvantages there are that

• there may not currently be any taxis at the stand
• the driver who answers may not speak English
• you can't request a certain type of vehicle (for instance, a mini van if you have a lot of luggage or several people)

Also, be aware that many Parisian taxi drivers won't wait more than a few minutes for you if you're not ready when they arrive.

We're staying at the Park Hyatt Vendome. Never been to Paris, but in other cities I would normally expect the hotel doorman to be able to get us a cab relatively immediately at 1 PM, or at least within 5 minutes or so. Is this likely to be not true in Paris. I have read that most hotels do not have large approaches where taxis wait all day.

I have no experience with the Park Hyatt Vendome, but I imagine it shouldn't be a problem. As cardesigner2000 said, if you have a lot of luggage, ask them to get you a minivan or station wagon (in that case you may want to allow a little extra time as they may not be as readily available).

You are staying at the Park Hyatt and are worried about cab costs?

Color me confused!

It's an award stay, and in any case, I don't see any reason to waste money, so if having a bit of information will save 20 euro, it's worth asking a question or two.

It looks like the savings of inter-shuttle vs a cab are not worth the risk of a no-show, so we'll go with the cab and consult with the concierge re whether we need to reserve one, which I doubt will be necessary at that time of day.

One more reason to love FT! I've saved a bundle over the years by asking a few questions here and there on these boards! ^

I use the shuttle, my flights from HKG arrive very early morning, so I always need to fill in time waitng for hotel rooms