October 4th Strike?
 

Someone on tripadvisor.com says there will be strikes in France on October 4th.

I'm wondering what FT'ers have to say about dealing with this

I'm scheduled to fly CDG-DTW on the 4th.

Other than allowing extra time, what should I expect?

thanks in advance for tips, advice, news, etc.

What's the reason for the strikes? Did someone in government propose reducing unemployment benefits from 10 years to 9.5?

It just wouldn't be France if some group wasn't striking! If the strike is airline related, generally long haul flights are the ones least affected.

The only statement anyone can confidently make on this subject is that it is far too early to predict a strike in October. These things don't firm up til just before they happen.

The strike is confirmed for 4 October. It is to affet all the public sector. It is true one never knows who will actually participate but you can be sure that public transportation will be paralysed which will make your journey to the airport difficult. It is also true that long-haul flights are the least effected normally. However, this could of course close everything down.

Then I hope the strike is moved to later in October; so when I try to fly home and can't, I can call the boss and tell him that I am still in Paris :cool: and unable to make it to work . :D

One piece of advice (I've been through quite a few strikes) : check in for your flight as soon as you can. If they decide to strike and you've already checked in, they have to provide you with a hotel room and meal vouchers. If you have not, you're on your own. Being "stuck" in Paris (even in a semi-crappy airport hotel) is not that bad; in the right frame of mind, watching the demonstrations while sipping a glass of Bordeaux can even be kind of fun.

So does this mean the RATP will be affected? Metro and the RER suspended?
If that is the case that is definitely not good news... :(

Love it - excellent ! The advice is most correct - however under these circumstances AF has been known not to even open check-in for flights. I think however the new EU rules may have changed this. (Although in France, a strike may be viewed as an act of god.)

It most definately is not good news. Things may change of course but I doubt it - in fact I think this fall is going to be full of strikes here.

So the strike is confirmed Oct 4th which is tomorrow. What a pain!

There are lots of cancelled trains on the RER line B which goes to CDG airport, so air travellers may find a bit tricky to get to/from the airport.

Lots of Metro trains and buses are cancelled as well.

Updated information is available here:
http://www.ratp.info/orienter/trafic.php

It's in French only, couldn't find a similar page in English.

JOUY31 has done an excellent job of providing this information in English over at the Flying Blue forum:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=477633 (see post #5)