Is there any other option other than taxis? I know that they are expensive and the drivers tend to take tourists %26quot;for a ride%26quot;. I thought that maybe the buses still run, or there might be some other form of transportation that we do not know about? We will typically be back around our hotel area where we can walk after the metro closes (which I believe is 12:30am). However, one night we are going to the 11pm show of the Moulin Rouge and that is completely on the other side of Paris (we are staying in the 14th). Thanks
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%26lt;%26lt; know that they are expensive and the drivers tend to take tourists %26quot;for a ride%26quot;. %26gt;%26gt;
You know that for sure? All legitimate taxis in Paris are metered, and except for the possibility that they may take a long route than necessary, there%26#39;s really no way to cheat you. I personally have never had it happen, and I don%26#39;t personally know anyone to whom it has happened. Honestly, the chance that you will get screwed out of your tourist dollars at the Moulin Rouge (don%26#39;t accept the coat check no matter how insistent they are, don%26#39;t buy an extra bottle of champagne, don%26#39;t buy the dinner tickets), is much higher than anything a taxi driver might do.
That aside, the other option for early a.m. transportation is the system of night buses called %26quot;Noctilien%26quot;. The premise seems complicated at first, but it%26#39;s really rather easy. Buses from locations throughout the city travel from the city into the suburbs. EVERY bus stops at at least one of the train stations. All these stations are linked by two circular bus lines, one going clockwise and the other counterclockwise. These two lines make other stops as well. (For example, both of the circular lines stop at place de Clichy, not far from the Moulin Rouge.) So, you could get on at place de Clichy, go to Gare St-Lazare, and transfer to another bus that will take you to the Marais if that happens to be where you%26#39;re staying. Or you might travel further along the circular route to Gare Montparnasse if your staying in the 6th. A map of the Noctilien lines is available at www.ratp.fr
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Thank you very much for the information. It is most helpful, and no, I do not know for sure that they will cheat me. However, it is mentioned in almost every tourist book that I have read and also in many television specials, so I appoligize for making and assumption or generalization.
I was really mostly looking for a cheaper alternative to taxis, so again, thanks for the information.
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I think your best and easiest option is to take the taxi. At that time of night, dressed up, etc., I doubt you%26#39;re going to want to deal with the buses.
The fare from Montmartre to the 14th won%26#39;t be terrible, either.
Les
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Oh, but Les.... The Noctilien is an adventure!! There%26#39;s always a most unusual assortment of people on board, and you%26#39;re nearly guaranteed to see some sort of body piercing that you didn%26#39;t know existed. And the buses go really fast on the relatively empty streets, nearly tipping up on two wheels around some corners. We take it at least once nearly every trip and it%26#39;s always fodder for conversation the next day!
There are always plenty of taxis at the MR after the show is over, so there%26#39;s no problem getting one (although the wait can be long). Elsewhere in the city, though, it%26#39;s nearly impossible to find a taxi on a weekend night, and pretty difficult during the week.
Seriously, though, the Noctilien is a pretty good system, and I wouldn%26#39;t hesitate to use it.
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If you are going to the Moulin Rouge on Saturday night you might be in luck as the metro closes at 2 am now.
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I%26#39;m with Truffaut on the night bus. You should add it to your list of options. The interactive RATP website is very useful for checking your hotel location to where you want to go at night; www.ratp.info/orienter/cv/cartenoctilien.php
I also agree that the taxis in Paris (Taxi Parisian) aren%26#39;t predatory. We%26#39;ve only had one problem on a taxi ride (first visit to Paris in 1980-something) and it came down to the fact that we didn%26#39;t write down the arrondissement that the street was in on the little note we gave the driver. We wanted rue de la Fontaine in the 16th and apparently there was a rue de la Fontaine in the north of Paris. The mistake cost us just a few francs.
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I think %26quot; the taxis are ripping us off%26quot; idea partly comes from people not understanding the system.
In Paris, when you call a taxi to a location, the meter starts FROM YOUR CALL, so yes, when you get in the cab the fare can seemed jacked up, plus, you may end up paying two different fares to the same place because of this, one day cheaper one day more expensive.
Take taxis from %26quot;Taxi %26quot; stands .
Luggage is an extra fee ( about 1 euro I thought) and they don%26#39;t have to %26quot;help you%26quot; with it to charge that fee.
An extra person can also be an extra fee( now this one I am not positive about)
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I understand what you local people are saying and have read a lot of previous threads on this subject. Still, with what happened to me in Sept, it is hard to figure out what else it could have been. I really don%26#39;t care as there were two of us and the extra money wasn%26#39;t a hardship, I just can%26#39;t help but wonder why: Two of us took a taxi from CDG to rue Vavin at 8am on a Sunday. No traffic at all. One bag each: 70 euros. On the return trip in bumper to bumper traffic, almost the entire way, it only cost 43 euros. And two weeks ago, the same thing. More traffic and both trips less than 50 euros. It%26#39;s just hard to figure...
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Another vote for the night bus system. Other cities please emulate!
If you think taxis in Paris are expensive you%26#39;d better stay away from London — and most other major cities in my experience, in particular Nice as far as France is concerned.
You are obviously reading the wrong guidebooks.. Here is the Rough Guide comment: %26quot;Taxis are metered and charges are fairly reasonable.%26quot; That is about right IMO.
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I have had problems with taxis three times since moving here, and each time it was from the Gare du Nord. I just avoid that one stand now, and the rest of the time, the taxis are ab fab.
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