Le Havre to Paris Nord

[scubacruiserx2]

We would like to go from LeHarve to Paris Nord to catch the 12:25 train to Rotterdam . We would like to take a couple of quick photos of the Eiffel tower and the Arc de Triomphe . We arrive at 07:00 in LeHarve and have priority disembarkation  ( 4 bags ). Any ideas would be welcome . Thanks .

Edited December 27, 2019 by Host Bonjour
French spelling

[dogs4fun]

Options are:

bus: 3.5 hours to reach Paris

train - a little over 2 hours to reach Paris (the times may not work for you due to train departure times - you can check at https://www.sncf.com/en) and you would have no time to snap any photos of the tower or arc

taxi or shared ride: 2 to 2.5 hours to reach Paris (probably your best choice as you wish to take some quick photos and yet make your train to Rotterdam)

drive: 2 hours to reach Paris

 

 

 

Edited September 21, 2019 by dogs4fun

[scubacruiserx2]

2 minutes ago, dogs4fun said:

Options are:

bus: 3.5 hours to reach Paris

train - a little over 2 hours to reach Paris (the times may not work for you due to train departure times - you can check at https://www.sncf.com/en) and you would have no time to snap any photos of the tower or arc

taxi or shared ride: 2 to 2.5 hours to reach Paris (probably your best choice as you wish to take some quick photos and yet make your train to Rotterdam)

drive: 2 hours to reach Paris

 

 

 

 

Thank you . Should we pre book a Taxi ? The Last time we pre booked to Mount Saint Michel as a day trip and it was fantastic !

[dogs4fun]

1 minute ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

Thank you . Should we pre book a Taxi ? The Last time we pre booked to Mount Saint Michel as a day trip and it was fantastic !

We did pre-book but there were taxi's available when we disembarked in Le Havre. We prefer to know the actual cost ahead of time as we don't particularly care to be ripped-off as clueless tourists (no disrespect meant to any particular nationality).

[scubacruiserx2]

1 minute ago, dogs4fun said:

We did pre-book but there were taxi's available when we disembarked in Le Havre. We prefer to know the actual cost ahead of time as we don't particularly care to be ripped-off as clueless tourists (no disrespect meant to any particular nationality).

 

Agreed ! We had a couple of issues in South America that we don't care to repeat .

[Hlitner]

Pre book what?  Le Havre to Paris is over 125 miles so a taxi would cost you your first born.  A taxi would charge you the round trip fare...even if you only went one way.  Depending where you are going in Paris and the traffic it can take substantially longer then 2 hours by car.   There are some other options such as Flix Bus or a one way rental car.

 

Hank

[scubacruiserx2]

9 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Pre book what?  Le Havre to Paris is over 125 miles so a taxi would cost you your first born.  A taxi would charge you the round trip fare...even if you only went one way.  Depending where you are going in Paris and the traffic it can take substantially longer then 2 hours by car.   There are some other options such as Flix Bus or a one way rental car.

 

Hank

 

We pre booked a Radio Taxi driver and guide who took us to Mount Saint Michel , Deauville and Honfleur on our last visit . If we rent a car we could just drive to Rotterdam .

[Hlitner]

7 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

We pre booked a Radio Taxi driver and guide who took us to Mount Saint Michel , Deauville and Honfleur on our last visit . If we rent a car we could just drive to Rotterdam .

Absolutely!  However, renting a car in France and dropping in another country can come at a very high price in terms of one-way drop fees.   At one time (several decades ago) we used to do one-way inter-country rentals in Europe and could get some excellent deals.  But for reasons I have never understood, once Europe "united" with the EU and related Schengen agreement the one-way drop fees because ridiculous (often over $500) and many companies completely stopped allowing inter-country drops.

 

As to pre-booking a Radio taxi (or any taxi) that works fine.  But a one-way taxi to Paris (from Le Havre) will have you paying for about 250 miles (the round trip mileage).  We recently tried to explain to some friends that you can arrange just about any kind of transportation...but the price can become ridiculous.  Some folks have no real interest in money, so the idea of spending over $600 for a taxi is not an issue.  But that is not in my world :).  But I can usually rent a car in Le Havre and drop that same car in Paris for about $50 (the price really varies depending on the day, time of the year, etc).  I just looked (3 min ago) at a dummy booking for a car through Enterprise and it came up as $29 for a one-way rental (one would have to complete the transaction to be sure it is for real).

 

Hank

[scubacruiserx2]

We have never rented or driven in France and would not be comfortable driving in or parking in Paris . Thank you for looking for us Hank .

[The Beaver]

On 9/24/2019 at 3:29 PM, Hlitner said:

  But I can usually rent a car in Le Havre and drop that same car in Paris for about $50 (the price really varies depending on the day, time of the year, etc).  I just looked (3 min ago) at a dummy booking for a car through Enterprise and it came up as $29 for a one-way rental (one would have to complete the transaction to be sure it is for real).

 

Hank

Another option for future posters  :

Rent a car from Le Havre and drop it at CDG airport  ( thus not having to drive into Paris if one is not comfortable) where one can pick the TGV and/ or Thalys  that goes to AMS via BRU and Rotterdam.

Just have to check schedules at CDG and embarkation time in Rotterdam

 

[Cienfuegos]

Good thread!

 

For future travelers, it may be useful to remember that trains from Le Havre to Paris usually arrive at the Gare St Lazaire, on the north side of Paris.  From there, you can take a cab or tube to the Etoile / Arc de Triomphe. 

 

Most trains to Rotterdam and the UK leave Gare du Nord, a different train station, several blocks northeast of St Lazaire.  So, from the Etoile, you would  travel past St Lazaire to the other station. Depending on the time of day, I'd allow for some traffic congestion.