How to get to France: airports, flights and border crossings

For a first trip, book into Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG). It carries the most nonstop flights from North America, the UK and Australia, and the RER B suburban train runs to Gare du Nord, Châtelet-Les Halles and Denfert-Rochereau in about 35 minutes for a flat fare. Paris Orly (ORY) is the alternative: fewer long-haul routes, more low-cost European flights, and a connection into the city by the Orlyval shuttle plus RER B, or by tram and metro.

If your trip starts outside Paris, fly straight to the region: Nice for the Riviera, Lyon for the Alps and Beaujolais, Marseille for Provence, Toulouse for the southwest, Bordeaux for the vineyards, Nantes for Brittany and the Atlantic coast, Strasbourg or Basel-Mulhouse for Alsace. From the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain, the train is usually faster than flying once you count airport time.

From the United States, nonstops to Paris leave from New York (JFK and Newark), Boston, Washington Dulles, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Miami, with seasonal routes from more cities. East Coast flights run about 7–8 hours; West Coast about 10–11 hours. Nice, Lyon and Marseille have seasonal nonstops from a few US hubs. Fares swing widely by season: July and August and the Christmas weeks are the most expensive, while November, late January and early February are the cheapest.

From the UK, London to Paris is one of the busiest air routes in Europe, at about 1h 20m, but the Eurostar train takes about 2h 20m from St Pancras to Gare du Nord and puts you in the centre of both cities. From Canada, Montreal and Toronto have nonstops to Paris of about 7–8 hours, with seasonal service from Vancouver and Calgary. From Australia and New Zealand there is no nonstop to France: expect one stop in the Gulf, Singapore, Hong Kong or London, and about 22–24 hours of total travel. From Ireland, Dublin has frequent short flights to Paris and several regional airports.

France borders eight countries, and most of those crossings are by train, car or ferry rather than by plane. The Eurostar runs from London St Pancras through the Channel Tunnel to Paris, Lille, Disneyland Paris and, in season, the south of France; it also connects Brussels and Amsterdam to Paris and London. TGV and regional trains link Paris with Geneva, Basel, Zurich, Frankfurt, Munich, Milan, Turin, Barcelona and Madrid, and many of these routes are faster than flying once you add airport transfers.

By car, the Channel Tunnel shuttle takes about 35 minutes from Folkestone to Calais, and ferries cross from Dover to Calais, Dunkirk and Dieppe, from Newhaven to Dieppe and from Portsmouth and Poole to Normandy and Brittany. Drivers from Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain simply cross the border on the motorway. By sea, ferries also connect Corsica with mainland France and Italy, and there are services from North Africa to Marseille and Sète.

France is in the Schengen area, so internal borders are normally open. Checks can be reintroduced at short notice, particularly on the UK, Italian and Spanish routes, so carry your passport on every crossing even when nobody asks for it.

At CDG, the RER B train is the default: it stops at Gare du Nord, Châtelet-Les Halles, Saint-Michel and Denfert-Rochereau, and a single ticket costs a flat airport fare. It runs from early morning until after midnight. The Roissybus coach goes to Opéra, and taxis charge a fixed fare to the Right Bank or Left Bank. Allow 45–60 minutes door to door.

At Orly, the Orlyval automatic shuttle links the terminals to the RER B at Antony, and tram line T7 plus metro line 7 is the cheaper route. At Beauvais, a coach is the only practical option and takes about 1h 15m to Porte Maillot. At the regional airports, a tram, bus or shuttle usually reaches the city centre in 20–30 minutes; Lyon's Rhônexpress tram is the fastest of these at about 30 minutes to Part-Dieu.

For summer travel, book long-haul flights two to four months ahead; for Christmas and New Year, three to five months. Shoulder-season fares in April, May, September and October are usually the best balance of price and weather. Eurostar tickets are cheapest when released, roughly six months before travel, and rise sharply in the final weeks; if you are flexible, the fare bands are worth watching.

Budget airlines fly into Beauvais, Orly and many regional airports, but check the total cost: baggage fees, the coach into town and awkward arrival times can erase the saving. If you are continuing by train, book the TGV at the same time as the flight where possible, and leave a generous connection if you are arriving on a separate ticket.

Passport and visa rules depend on your nationality and are covered on the visa page; check them before booking. Travel insurance is worth arranging before you fly, particularly for ski trips and any trip with expensive non-refundable train or flight bookings. If you plan to use your phone on arrival, an eSIM is usually cheaper than roaming. Prices, schedules and airport transfer times change; treat every figure here as a 2026 estimate and confirm with the operator.