WFU in Dijon

Fall 2008

Dijon: getting there from Paris
{updated (see text in red) 17 July 2008}

This page gives you information about getting from Paris to Dijon and what to do once you arrive in Dijon.  ***I strongly suggest that you print it and take it with you.***  Much of this information is in the online Dijon Student Handbook, but this page contains additional information – in particular, about buying a train ticket online before your departure.

STEP 1: Getting from the airport to the Paris train station
Your first goal after the airport will be the Gare de Lyon.  This is the Parisian train station from which all trains to Dijon depart.  To get from the Aéroport Charles de Gaulle (also known as Roissy) to the Gare de Lyon, you have several options.

1) TAXI: Follow the signs to the taxi stand and take a taxi.  This is the most convenient but expensive (less expensive if you’re traveling with someone); it may cost 40 euros or more.

2) SHUTTLE BUS: There are also several buses that run from the airport to various points within the city: these include RoissyBus and the Air France bus.  You will want to be sure that you can conveniently get from their arrival point to the Gare de Lyon. The most convenient would be to take the Air France shuttle from Roissy-Charles de Gaulle to the Gare de Lyon. Note that this will likely require changing terminals at the airport. Information here:

http://bonjourlafrance.net/air-france/paris-airport-shuttle-service.htm#4

Another example: you can take RoissyBus (which has more stops at the airport) to the Opéra, then take the RER A line (direction Marne-la-Vallée, Disneyland, etc.) with a métro ticket to the Gare de Lyon stop:

http://bonjourlafrance.net/air-france/paris-airport-shuttle-service.htm#RoissyBus

General information on all Roissy-Charles de Gaulle shuttles:

http://bonjourlafrance.net/air-france/paris-airport-shuttle-service.htm

3) RER: Follow the signs to the RER station and at the RER ticket window ask for “un billet aller simple pour la section urbaine”: a one-way ticket to take you into the city.  Take the RER B line to the Châtelet-Les Halles station, where you will change to the Métro line 1 (direction Château de Vincennes) and take it to the Gare de Lyon stop. The disadvantage of this option is that your luggage will be awkward to carry around in the stations, especially for the complicated correspondence at Châtelet-Les Halles.

Aéroport Roissy-Charles de Gaulle – Maps of the terminals and other useful information:

http://www.airwise.com/airports/europe/CDG/

http://bonjourlafrance.net/air-france/paris_charles_de_gaulle_airport/cdg-airport.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_de_Gaulle_International_Airport

STEP 2: Your train ticket

Once you get to the Gare de Lyon, you will either already have a ticket or you will buy one there.  Not all trains from Paris to Dijon are the TGV (train à grande vitesse), but it is very fast and convenient way to travel.  You do need a reservation for the TGV, so when you buy your ticket you will be reserving a particular seat.  Unless you want to commit yourself already to a particular train returning to Paris in December (in which case you’ll purchase a round trip ticket, aller-retour), you will buy a one-way ticket (aller simple) from Paris to Dijon and buy the Dijon-Paris ticket later in the fall.  Always look for the possibility of a discount for your age (under 26) or student status. 

1) You can buy a ticket online from the French railway website (voyages-sncf.com: click on the Train tab).  You can save a lot of money if you purchase it 30 days or more in advance. If you do purchase your ticket in advance, be sure to leave yourself lots of time to get from the airport to the train station; I would say three hours to be on the safe side.

Tips on searching for tickets:

a) You can enter the category that corresponds to your age, but leave the boxes “Code offre spéciale,” “carte et abonnement,” and “Carte de fidelité” as they are. These options refer to special deal cards that must be purchased separately.

b) Leave the option Sélectionnez le pays de réception ou de retrait des billets on France: you will either print out your ticket online or pick it up at the train station in France.

You have two options for getting the physical ticket:

a) With certain kinds of tickets, you can print your ticket yourself and that will be what you show the conductor when you travel.  This is the best option, because you won’t have to stand in line at the train station to pick up your ticket.  A ticket like this does not need to be validated at the station.

According to the SNCF website, the following types of tickets are printable: Prem’s, Smilys, Print & Go or ®iDTGV. (See the website below for information.) Make sure to choose Imprimez votre billet vous-même when you make the online purchase.

b) If you can’t purchase a printable ticket, you can pick up the ticket at the train station. You’ll need to stand in line at the ticket window (guichet), which may require extra time. Be sure to read the indications over the ticket windows and go to one where you can pick up your ticket.

2) If you wait to buy your ticket at the Gare de Lyon, go to a ticket window (look above the ticket windows for the kinds of tickets that are sold at each) and ask for an aller simple to Dijon.  You will then need to validate (composter) your ticket at one of the orange post-like installations on the quays before you get on the train.  (Just watch other people do it.)  Look at the large board for the track (voie) your train departs from, then find the car and the seat marked on your ticket.

3) There is also a US website for train ticket purchase (raileurope.com): you can make the same reservation and purchase of a TGV ticket through them (as in #1 above). They do, however, charge a steep shipping fee, so I recommend using the French SNCF site.

STEP 3: Getting from the Dijon train station to the hotel
Once you get out at the Dijon station (“Dijon Ville”) after a trip of a little more than an hour, the best way to get to the hotel is to catch a taxi just in front of the train station.  Go to the Hôtel du Palais, 23, rue du Palais.  (The phone number of the hotel is 03 80 67 16 26; from the US: 011 33 3 80 67 16 26.)  At the front desk of the hotel, identify yourself as part of the Wake Forest group and then relax!

My contact information:
The program director’s apartment is at 6 place Grangier, near the central post office.  The phone and fax number there is 03 80 66 70 76 (from the US: 011 33 3 80 66 70 76).  You should give this number to your parents, but remind them of the six-hour time difference between the eastern US and France (so, for example, at 8 PM in North Carolina it’s 2 AM in Dijon!).  I will be in Dijon from about August 18.