France - Cherbourg to Paris

Killarney2018

Hi All, I am boating to Cherbourg from Dublin in May and going to Paris. I have driven on European side of road so pretty comfortable in relation to this.

I have never been to France though and I read online that its a nightmare to park in Paris.

I would love suggestions in relation to this. I was thinking of driving to Beauvais Airport, park there for the few nights and bus it into Paris [doubt I will need my car in Paris anyway] and then bus it back out to Beauvais and off to Cherbourg and home.

Any suggestions, am I mad??? Should I just drive to [or outskirts of] Paris rather than Beauvais, the only issue with Beauvais is I have to time it to be there when a flight arrives for bus departure and bus times, plus I waste alot of time driving to beauvais, then busing it to Paris when I have a car... Would love to hear what others have done when they want to visit Paris for the first time, I have no accommodation booked in Paris either, so maybe I should look at parking with this... I just read that even driving in Paris is a nightmare...

Thanks in advance

Spanish Eyes

Why not take a train from Caen or other towns like Bayeux or Evreux into Paris.

Duffryman

The outskirts of Paris are actually not too bad...wouldn't venture into the city centre, though. Did that myself once, thinking 'how bad it can be?', and quickly decided never again...

You might be able to find a long-term place somewhere in the suburbs, near a Metro or train station? A quick Google gives this - https://www.parisfranceparking.com/

Will admit it was a VERY quick Google. It's the first result for 'long term parking Paris'. But at least it should give you an idea of what might be possible.

Killarney2018

Thanks Spanish Eyes for this, yeah I could look at this option also. @duffryman, cheers for that, good option too to park on outskirts, I have the car, be a shame to let it so far away I guess if I get Brave

Riskymove

yes I have driven in Paris and it is really the Centre that is most difficult but not actually the worst !!

if you get a hotel on outskirts just park there while in Paris. You certainly don't need a car for getting around

Duffryman

Riskymove wrote: »

if you get a hotel on outskirts just park there while in Paris.

Probably the most sensible solution - just try find an outlying hotel with parking facilities. Public transport should get you around anyway. A Parisian equivalent of something like The Red Cow would be what I have in mind.

Just google 'La Vache Rouge' and you should find something......

huskerdu

I have driven from Caen to Beauvais, Its country roads. Very good quality country roads by Irish standards, but winding and small in parts. Its a very long drive.

_Brian

Have driven through Paris a few times and while busy it’s very possible. Parking is a bother though and we ended getting a deal at one of the Hotels out in the Disney area.

Free shuttle bus from all the hotels to Disney where the train station is also, 25 minutes in on the train.

munchkin_utd

Eurotunnel has a bit on their blog detailing a heap of options for park and ride.
eurotunnel.com/uk/holiday-ideas/park-and-ride-paris/

I didnt check them out but I'll be bookmarking it myself for a potential future trip.

kindalen

I know a couple who have gotten train from Cherbourg direct, they had left car in secure hotel carpark in Cherbourg they had stayed in.

smurfjed

Why are you bringing the car at all?

At the end of October we arrived in Cherbourg and took the train to Paris. It's a beautiful city but accommodation can be expensive.

Duffryman

smurfjed wrote: »

Why are you bringing the car at all?

Have to say I wondered the same myself, but I’m presuming OP intends to do more in France than just visit Paris for those few days, and will use the car for travelling around then.

I’d agree it’d be pretty pointless to bring the car at all, if all you’re going to do is park it up for a few days while visiting the city.

Exiled1

Paris is like most Western cities, challenging for driving, nightmare for parking. However it has an excellent metro and RER (luas) and if you use either your hotel or a public car park/park and ride in the suburbs then you will have little to worry about. As mentioned above driving in the suburbs etc is generally fine. Driving in France is quite straightforward provided you take care.

Ponster

An advantage of coming from Cherbourg is that you enter Paris on the A13, directly onto the quay which cuts through the city. while it can be a horrible city to drive in this route is possibly the best. In saying that I'd stay at a hotel on the edge like the others suggested. Porte de Saint-Cloud is the closest to Paris without actually being Paris and has a metro line.

CelticRambler

Killarney2018 wrote: »

I read online that its a nightmare to park in Paris.

I would love suggestions in relation to this. I was thinking of driving to Beauvais Airport, park there for the few nights and bus it into Paris [doubt I will need my car in Paris anyway] and then bus it back out to Beauvais and off to Cherbourg and home.

The first thing is to answer the question "what do you want to do in Paris?" ... but whatever the answer, parking in Beauvais and travelling from there is just daft! :pac:

The problem you'll have with any "out of town" park-and-ride type arrangement is that the "ride" bit will deliver you to the outskirts of Paris, so you'll still have to get from there to wherever it is you want to be. If you're going to do that, you might as well park in Cherbourg, take the train and save yourself the hassle of driving to some other not-Paris starting point.

Parking isn't any more or less complicated in Paris than it is in Dublin (other than your Irish steering wheel being on the wrong side for any barriers), and if you're staying in a hotel, they'll almost certainly have an area reserved for their guests' use (there will be a charge). If you're doing that, then depending on where exactly the hotel/carpark is located, you may need a Crit'Air "pollution control" vignette (It's obligatory for all vehicles - in motion or stationary - in Paris, but "Paris" means something quite specific to the French). Order here at the official price.

Driving around Paris is a different matter altogether (but good fun once you get used to it :cool:) Use public transport, or walk.

Exiled1 wrote: »

it has an excellent metro and RER (luas)

To be a little bit pedantic, the RER is the equvialent of the DART; the Parisian Luas is le Tramway (labelled T1, T2, etc)