1,345
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
''From the RER A station walk South for about 1 km along a bigger road which will lead you to a roundabout. You can also try to catch hitchhiking from there but the needed petrol station will be just a bus bit more than 2 km from there. You can walk on the grass field next to Bussy St George nrthe motorway.4 or nrThe petrol station is called ''La Ferrière''.44 from Another option to reach this petrol station is to walk through the metro station industrial zone of ''GutenbergBussy''area, to the South of the railway, then reach the bridge over the motorway and follow further by walking on the grass until the actual petrol station (note that as of February 2011, there was a nice-sized fence to hop after crossing the bridge. nothing too difficult, but a big backpack makes it harder!).Most of the walk will be on the road which means you will save some time while at the same time such a walk won't be so annoying if you happen to hitchhike in winter (then you apparently don't wanna go through the fields).
From this station walk South for about 1 km along Here's a bigger road which will lead you to a roundabout[http://maps.google.fr/maps?q=48. You can try hitchhiking from there but the needed petrol station will be just a bit more than 828509,2 km from there. You can walk on the grass field next to the motorway744594&ll=48. The petrol station is called ''La Ferrière''836023,2. Another option to reach this petrol station is to walk through the industrial zone of ''Bussy'' area, to the South of the railway, then reach the bridge over the motorway and follow further by walking on the grass until the actual petrol station (note that as of February 2011, there was a nice-sized fence to hop after crossing the bridge723494&spn=0. nothing too difficult034406, but a big pack makes it harder!)0. Most of the walk will be on the road which means you will save some time while at the same time such a walk won't be so annoying if you happen to hitchhike in winter (then you apparently don'071583&num=1&t wanna go through the fields)=m&z=14 map].
Here's a [http://maps.google.fr/maps?q=48.828509,2.744594&ll=48.836023,2.723494&spn=0.034406,0.071583&num=1&tMotorway onramp ===m&z=14 map] for you.
==== On-ramp to the motorway ====
no edit summary
Note that there is an "outer ring road" to the Paris suburb area, motorway A86 (or ''super-périphérique'') and another wider ring called "la Francillienne" which isn't completed but still used to connect . If your ride is not going to Paris itself, you might want to clarify which ring they are going to take as it may affect the place where you'd want to be dropped.
== Hitching In in ==
During rush hours, it is possible (but illegal) to be quickly dropped on the ring road. This is useful if your ride is not willing to get out of it to drop you (which is often the case). Within the ring area, you are definitely linked to the whole regular fare subway system.
Senlis has no train station, but you still buy the ticket from a train station. From Paris Nord, go to Chantilly and switch to a bus to Senlis at the "gare routière" right outside of Chantilly's train station with your ticket. Once there, you need to walk a little and you'll find a "péage" (motorway payment station - people have to stop to take a ticket). The bus driver gave me the directions. This should take around one hour.
=== A4 East, towards [[Metz]], [[Strasbourg]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Germany]], etc === ==== Going directly to the ''barrière de péage'' ==== ''This one is the most expensive, longest but takes you the furthest to a great pickup spot. Might be a good choice when you don't speak french. Maybe not so good at night.'' :It's not longer properly working, they got a new shiny fence; and when you get to the spot, there's a gendarmerie (= cops) building right behind it, so it's impossible to jump it without risk yourself... at least, financially. Take RER A4 to the last stop (''Marne-La-Vallee - Chessy''). The train journey length is around 40 minutes (EUR 6 something). Take the bus number 59 (doesn't operate on Sundays, the ticket costs around EUR 2) which leaves from the bus stop next to the RER train station at ''Eurodisney'','' Marne-La-Vallee'' ([http://www.metro-pole.net/hor/fiche/6759.17.html timetable 2010 here]). It takes ten minutes to arrive at the “Truffaut” gardening centre which is beside the péage (stop Coutevroult - Truffaut). From there, walk back a bit and go through what seems to be a police station's parking area and is called "voie de service" on the map - you will get to the green area right outside the péage - and you won't need to jump any of the fences! From this ''barrière de péage'' it is easy to get rides to [[Metz]] or even straight to [[Germany]]. You might meet people (gendarmes or motorway staff) in that "voie de service" - even if they try to talk you out of it, remember ''it is allowed'' to hitchhike ''in the car park'' by the péage. Attention, the bus 59 runs every hour. It is usually timed to start 5 min after the arrival of the RER so hurry yourself up from the train. Follow the signs "gare routière" (bus station). If bus 59 doesn't start before 30 min, consider using bus 34 (see bellow). If you decide to hitch from this péage on Sunday you can take the bus no. 34 (EUR 1.60, [http://www.metro-pole.net/hor/fiche/5134.20.html timetable]) to bus stop "Bailly-Romainvilliers - Place de l'Europe" , then walk for about 2kilometers. You will soon see the motorway A4 and péage. Here's the [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=bailly+romainvilliers+place+de+l%27europe&daddr=48.853562,2.839065&geocode=&hl=en&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=1&sz=15&dirflg=w&sll=48.850992,2.833614&sspn=0.012962,0.027637&ie=UTF8&z=15 route]. The ''barrière de péage'' is located [http://maps.google.es/maps?f=d&saddr=48.854077,2.83959&daddr=&hl=es&geocode=&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=0&sz=17&sll=48.853788,2.839912&sspn=0.003586,0.009656&ie=UTF8&ll=48.850258,2.830095&spn=0.014346,0.038624&t=h&z=15 here]. ===== Personal experience=====IHMO (and experience), it's almost impossible to use this spot. I got there, and I tried to talk my way in, but the cops (didn't speak good English) said that "You're not going to get to the péage"... {I walked and hh'ed a lot, until I got a ride to a petrol station, but it was significantly more difficult that the stated in the description, and also, I paid a more money (I'm not completely sure, but I think that the train was like 8/9 euros now, and the bus keeps in 2... so, something like 10/11 euros for a shitty spot)} [[User:Franciscout|Franciscout]], September 2013
==== Via petrol station ====
''Quite long trip and a bit expensive. Takes you to a great petrol station. better if you speak french French and good day-and-night.''
The first petrol station is close to RER A station ''Bussy St.Georges''.You can also get to this RER A station by taking bus 4 or 44 from the metro station ''Gutenberg''.''
''This one is close to Paris, faster and cheaper to get to, but still in the megapolis. Starting from there, you're likely to end up either on the petrol station described above or at the péage described ab-above. Not good at night.''
Make sure to specify with a sign specifying that you go to [[Orléans]] (if you are heading Southwest - A10 or A11), and that the driver will leave you at least at the "péage de Saint Arnoult". If you are heading directly South, have a sign for Lyon and make sure to be left at ''Aire de Lisses'', roughly 35 km further, a little bit after Evry (drivers to Evry are not enough for you).
Whenever a diplomat travels between Paris and the Orly airport, he'll go through here. Which means that there will be police presence. The police doesndon't care about you, but it is very unlikely anyone will stop while they are around. That happens often enough. They stick around for one hour. For more personal opinions and experiences check the [[Talk:Paris|talk page]].
==== Porte d'Italie ====
Similarly ''Porte d'Italie'' which is not far from ''Porte d'Orleans'' is a good place to hitch from. Additionally if you walk down the exit there at the traffic lights there is an overhead bypass which can keep you dry in the rain.
=== A6 South to towards [[Lyon]], [[Marseille]], [[Barcelona]], [[Italy]] (A6) ===
==== Aire de Lisses ====
This option costs EUR 5.85 85€ (but possible to have ride without ticket also), a zone 1-5 1–5 ticket and takes roughly 1h1575 minutes. '''Aire de Lisses''' is the first service area on the A6, situated about 35 km South of Paris. It can save you time because you avoid all outbound traffic not really heading your direction, being after all the branch-offs.
Get the RER D towards Melun via Corbeil. Be careful to get on the right train as there are 2 routes for RER D towards Melun. As of 2010-02, the ID of the train you need was "ZIPE" or "ZOPO" (All trains on RER lines have a 4 letter ID depending on stations served). If it's too confusing (it's very confusing), get whatever train that goes to "Corbeil Essonne" and, from there, whatever train that goes to Melun. Get off at the station '''Villabé''', the second after Corbeil-Essonnes. The station is not marked on Google Maps but don't worry, it's there: [http://goo.gl/8omQ2W''the way from Villabé RER station to Aire de Lisses'']
==== Massy Palaiseau ====
This option costs EUR 4.9090€, a ticket for zones 1-4 zones ticket. This option is useful to get out of the rings ring roads and get directly on the A10 after all the branch-offs.
Take the RER B to ''Massy-Palaiseau''. From there, follow the motoway signs for the A10. There are two options: take a bus from the massive transport lot beside ''Massy-Palaiseau'' station or walk down a motorway ramp nearby.
==== Péage de Saint-Arnoult ====
You can take the RER C train to Dourdan. There are no controls on the exit, so if you are on the cheap, you need to pay only the basic metro ticket (some eur 1.33, I think33€) to get into the underground network in Paris. Once in Dourdan, cross the rail railroad track and turn left and then go straight on the D836 until you reach the péage after 4-5 kilometers. You should be able to hitch a car as there are many passing by and the French take easily on small routes if they see you walking. Get off just after the road crosses the autoroute, go left and in a short while, you will reach the péage. Look at the map beforehand! You have much higher chances here then anywhere else, there are lots of cars going through.
==== Chartres: a spot to go directly on the A11, after it has split from the A10 ====
Take the train from ''Paris-Montparnasse'' to ''Chartres'' (EUR 12) and start hitching from there. You might want to go to the service station ''Chartres-Gasville'' on the A11 east of ''Chartres'' (bus plus one hour walk!). From the train station, take one of many [http://www.filibus.fr/pages/55 buses] that stop at the ''Morard'' station. Here starts bus 12, take it and get off at ''N.Conté'' - some minutes before you arrive there, memorize the route: the bus crosses the motorway, and comes to a big roundabout where it turns right and continues to a second small roundabout to turn right again to arrive at ''N.Conté''. Now comes 1 hour of walk: go back to the big roundabout and turn right (east) to follow the N10 until you come to a small city. There you encounter the next roundabout, where you turn left. Follow the street, it bends to the right and ends on the ''Rue du Bois Paris'' where you turn left (north). After 500 meters comes the motorway, continue until you have crossed it. The service station is 400 meters east, so try to pass through the trees on your right and follow the street to the service station.
== Paris public Public transport ==
Public transport in Paris consists of a metro (lines from number 1 to 14), RER (fast trains serving the suburbs with relatively few inner city stops, lines from letter A to E), buses (lines from number 20 to ...?) and trams (lines from T1 to T4). If you want to make a few voyages, the cheapest option is to buy a carnet of 10 single tickets (EUR 12.70 instead of 1.70 each - January 2012). You can travel to the end of RER lines for about EUR 15. If you stay in Paris for several days and will use transport often you can also buy a pass "Mobilis" for one or several days (EUR 6.40 for one day inside Paris, zones 1 & 2) - it is valid on metro, RER and ground transportation. If you stay for a week or more - consider getting a "Passe Navigo découverte", which is a chargeable card with picture (EUR 5 to make). You can then buy a weekly ticket for EUR 17.20. Note that this replaces the former "Carte Orange". All prices as of Winter 2010.
=== Vélib’ bicycle rental system ===
The grey bicycles a lot of people are riding on can be rent rented easily. Just look for a rental station within the Peripherique, you can register there with a credit card that is good for EUR 150 credit. A daily rental pass costs EUR 1.70, a week is EUR 8 (January 2012). With these passes you can rent a bicycle for 30 minutes for free as often as you want. Make sure to return it within those 30 Minutes or you will have to pay additional fees. Check the English [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A9lib%27 Wikipedia Vélib' article] for more information. Great and cheap way to get around.
== Sleeping in Paris ==
[[File:888_signs.jpg|thumb|240px|right|A small collection of the "Paris" signs for the [[Project 888]] where over 150 hitchhikers gathered and camped in front of the Eiffel Tower.]]
[[Hospitality exchange#Hospitality exchange networks|Hospitality exchange]] networks can be a great choice when staying low-budget in Paris. However, one must plan usually such staying well ahead since Paris is a popular destination for many backpackers, and many hospitality exchange networks' members are usually overloaded with requests to have guests.
It is also possible to sleep in the ''Champs de Mars'' in front of the Eiffel Tower - police generally lets let you sleep until 9 or 10 in the morning. There are many trees that offer you a protection in case of a rain. You can also put up a tent (at night) in a discrete spot although keep in mind that police officers will wake you up around the sunrise. You can also sleep under the bridge at or near the boats along the Seine river on the other side of the Eiffel Tower. During the first European Hitchhikers Week ([[project 888|888]]) around 50 people slept in front of the Eiffel Tower. You must be joking about sleeping under the bridge... Anyways I found it peaceful and undisturbing to sleep down by the river on the other side of the Eiffel Tower, close to the boats. No body cared, no body woke me up. [[User:Nykstukas9|Nykstukas9]]
There are also good places to sleep in the tunnels of Montsouris, which are part of old railway network. It is a hidden place and maybe the most well-known unofficial entrance to the famous Paris Catacombs. You must climb over a wall near the intersection of Avenue Jean Moulin and Rue de Coulmiers ([http://is.gd/hC1Px Google maps]).
It is possible to sleep in the catacombs as well. To reach them go down the stairs and turn right. In the middle of the long tunnel there is a hole at the right. Be advised that you should not enter the Catacombs alone or without a person who has a lot of experience climbing around the Paris underground. It is an extremely complicated system of tunnels, perhaps the second largest in the world. In many rooms of the Catacombs you can find a luxury of places to sleep, but you can just as easily get lost in areas where nobody has been or will go for months. The few people who live in the catacombes might become aggressive when you meet them. Sometimes the ground is full of water, around 20cm high. Print a [http://www.google.com/search?q=plan+catacombes map of the catacombes.]
== Other useful info == === Free Showers showers === At [http://www.paris.fr/pratique/personnes-en-grande-precarite/vivre-au-quotidien/bains-douches-municipaux/rub_5365_stand_8972_port_11521 Bains-douches municipaux] you can find a map of places where you can have free showers in Paris. ''Bains-Douches'' are open from Monday to Sunday, they open from 07:00 until 18:00, best option is check timetable on Paris' website. Don't go to Bain-douche Castagnary because it is closed! Also you should get there 30 minutes before the closing time or you will not be allowed inside :). Showers are free but you need to bring your own soap and towel.
=== Internet ===
Go to Apple Store behind Opera Garnier or to Apple Store under Louvre Museum in the Carrousel de Louvre.
[http://bibliotheque.equipement.paris.fr/ Libraries] offer free internet. If you have your own laptop it's practically unlimited otherwise it's free just 15 minutes using library's computers.
On the Avenue des Champs-Élysées there are two fast-food restaurants called Quick, they have free WiFi and also electric sockets and the personnel is will not going to bother you because of their usefor using them. And there is one Apple store or maybe just a PC store with computers free to use and they also have Internet, but you can't use Facebook and the personal will not allow you to charge your phone there.
On the same Avenue des Champs-Élysées 71-73 There is a tea shop "Kusmi Tea" and a bench nearby free WiFi called Kousmichoff. If you come after they are closed, you can use the socket that is outside by the base of the window. That helped me a lot late at night once.
