How to Get from the Paris Airport to City Centre

Now that you’ve decided to visit Paris, it’s time to figure out the best way to get from the Paris airport to the city centre. The Charles de Gaulle Airport (the CDG Airport) is only 30 km from the Paris city centre, while the secondary Orly Airport (the ORY Airport) is only 16 km away. In this post, we review the 5 best methods of transportation from the Charles de Gaulle Airport to the city as well as your Orly airport transfer options..

This post about airport transportation is written for all visitors to Paris, but if you are visiting Paris with a baby or toddler, we also provide the information and recommendations you need to make the best & safest choice for your family. It’s no longer just about cost and convenience, now you need to think about Paris car seat laws as well.

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5 Ways to Get From the Paris Airport to City Centre

So how do you get from the Paris Orly or Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport to Paris city centre? We have listed your 5 best Paris airport transportation options in order of convenience:

1. Private Transfer From Your Paris Airport to Your Hotel

Private transfers are the best way to get from the Paris airport your hotel. They are so convenient – instead of getting into a taxi line, your personal driver will greet you at the arrival gate with your family name on a sign. Who doesn’t love that? Enjoy personal service in your private car to your hotel in the city centre.

Private transfers from Orly or Charles de Gaulle airport to the city need to be booked in advance and will generally cost you a flat fee. The convenience and personal service of a private transfer isn’t as expensive as you’d think. In fact, most are comparable to the cost of a Paris airport taxi to city centre.

Families needing to travel from the Paris airport to their hotel with a baby will appreciate the ability to pre-book an infant car seat, which is the safest way for your baby to travel.

Welcome Pickups is a Paris airport transfer service which provides private transportation from both the Orly and CDG airport directly to the door of your hotel. Welcome Pickups is baby-friendly and provides infant car seats if requested at time of your reservation.

We have booked private transfers with Welcome Pickups several times after trans-Atlantic flights with our kids. After such a long travel day with kids, we simply love the affordable luxury and convenience of a private airport transfer to city centre.

2. Paris Airport Taxi or Uber

If you aren’t traveling with a baby or toddler, then taking a Paris airport taxi to city centre is simple and fast, though it will likely be your highest cost airport transfer option. The cost of a taxi from the Paris airport to city centre could be as high as €35-70.

For new parents traveling from the Paris airport to their hotel with a baby, a Paris airport taxi is not a good option. Licensed Paris taxis cannot be pre-booked and the odds of randomly getting a Paris taxi with a baby seat is virtually nil.

If the convenience of a Paris airport taxi appeals to you, but you don’t want to bring your car own seat, we recommend a private Paris airport transfer to your hotel.

Although Uber operates in Paris, there is currently no ability to pre-book a Paris airport Uber with a car seat. Learn more about using Uber with a baby.  

3. Take the Airport Bus from your Paris Airport to the City

A Paris airport bus is a convenient alternative to travel from the ORY or CDG airport to the city center without a baby car seat. As a bonus, taking an airport bus to central Paris is one of the cheapest Paris airport transfer options available.

These specially designed airport buses have a section for luggage as well as a seating area. Note, that if your Paris hotel is not close to one of the bus stops, you may need to walk the remaining distance.

Your best option for a Paris airport bus is through RAPT, the Paris public transportation service. RAPT offers airport bus service from both the Orly Airport and the Charles de Gaulle airport to central Paris.

The Charles de Gaulle airport bus to city centre is called the Roissybus. The Roissybus offers service from the Charles de Gaulle airport to the Palais Garnier opera house. It takes the airport bus approximately 75 minutes to get from CDG into central Paris. 

For travelers flying into the Orly airport, the airport bus service is called the Orlybus. This Paris airport bus offers service from the Orly airport to Place Denfert-Rochereau. This route takes approximately 25-35 minutes to get from ORY to central Paris. 

Children under 4 ride for free on either Paris airport bus provided they do not occupy their own seat. 

4. Paris Airport Train

The cheapest Paris airport transfer option is the RER train network, also operated by RAPT. Many of the Paris airport trains operated by RER will have luggage storage at one end. Taking the Paris airport train is cheap, but if you are carrying lots of luggage and/or a child, you may wish to consider other, more convenient Paris airport transportation options.

Your Paris airport train options are:

From the Charles de Gaulle train station, the RER “B” trains leave every 10-20 minutes and will take approximately 25-30 minutes to reach central Paris.  

From the Orly airport, RATP operates the Orlyval airport train, but this option requires you to change trains to get to central Paris. Taking the airport train with luggage and a baby is hard enough without changing trains, so we do not recommend this route if you are visiting Paris with a baby. If you are visiting Paris on a budget from the Orly airport, take the Orlybus instead – it’s cheaper and more convenient.

Children under 4 ride for free within the RAPT network provided they do not occupy their own seat.

5. Rent a Car at your Paris Airport

It’s so easy to get from the Orly Airport or the Charles de Gaulle Airport to city centre without a rental car, that we offer renting a car at a Paris airport as a last resort option.

For parents visiting Paris with a baby or toddler, we recommend not traveling with your infant car seat. As described above, there is a wide choice of baby-friendly transportation from the Paris airports to your hotel. Once at the hotel, you’ll find Paris is a very walkable, baby-friendly city with good public transportation. Your car seat will take up a lot of space and collect dust in your hotel room.

Paris Hotels Near Transportation Hubs

If you choose one of the Paris airport transportation options above, staying at a Paris hotel near your transportation hub will reduce your need to walk with luggage or take a taxi. We use Booking.com as we like their lists of family-friendly hotels.

See the top family-friendly Paris hotels near the transportation hubs on Booking.com:

• Charles de Gaulle airport hotels
• Eiffel Tower hotels (Le Bus Direct)
• Gare Montparnasse train station hotels (Le Bus Direct)
• Champs-Élysées hotels (Le Bus Direct)
• Palais Garnier opera house hotels (Roissybus)
• Place Denfert-Rochereau (Orlybus)

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