Getting in France

Passport and Visa

France is a member of the European Union and the Schengen Agreement. European visa policy will be covered in the article about the EU. In brief, a visa to any other signatory state of the Schengen Agreement is valid in France too. No visa is required for citizens of other EU member states, and those of some selected nations with whom the European Union or France have special treaties. Inquire at your travel agent or call the local consulate or embassy of France.

Also, there are hardly any border controls between France and other Schengen Agreement nations, making travel less complicated. However, sometimes cars and buses are stopped at borders or at the first toll-booth after entering the country.

Malaysian or Indonesian citizens visiting France for holiday will not need a Visa.

By plane

The main international airport, Roissy - Charles de Gaulle (CDG) near Paris, is likely to be your port of entry if you fly into France. CDG is the home of Air France (AF), the national company, for practically all international flights. AF and the companies forming the Skyteam Alliance (Dutch KLM, AeroMexico, Alitalia, US Continental, NorthWest and Delta Airlines, Korean Air use Terminal 2 while most other foreign airlines use Terminal 1. A third terminal is used for charter flights.

Tranfers to another flight in France : AF operates a few national flights from CDG, but mostly out of Orly, the second Paris airport. For transfers within CDG you can use the free bus shuttle linking all terminals, train station, parking lots and hotels on the platform. For transfers to Orly there is a (free for AF passengers) bus link operated by AF. The two airports are also linked by a local train (RER) which is slightly less expensive, runs faster but is much more cumbersome to use with heavy luggage. AF has agreements with the SNCF, the national rail company, which operates TGV’s (see below) out of CDG airports (some trains carry flight numbers). The TGV station is located in Terminal 2 and is on the route of the free shuttle. For tranfer to Paris see Paris.

Other airports have international destinations : Paris - Orly, Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Nice, Toulouse have flights to a few cities in western Europe and North-Africa ; those airports are hubs to smaller airports in France and may be useful to avoid the transfer between the two Paris airports. Two airports, Bale-Mulhouse and Geneva, are shared by France and Switzerland and can allow entry into either country.

Some low-cost airlines, including easyJet, Ryanair and Volare, fly to Beauvais airport situated about 80 km northwest of Paris. Buses to Paris are provided by the airlines. Check schedules and fares on their websites.

By train

The French rail company, SNCF, provides direct service from most European countries using regular trains. French train tickets can be purchased directly in the US from RailEurope a subsidiary of the SNCF. The Eurostar service uses high-speed to connect Lille and Paris with London, the later via the Calais-Dover channel tunnel. The Thalys service uses high-speed TGV trains to connect Paris to Brussels and onward to cities in the Netherlands and Germany.

By road

Driving in and out of France from neighbouring European countries is straightforward, as border controls have been eliminated with most (the exceptions being Switzerland and Andorra). The main toll highways follow, offering the fastest access to France - other roads can, of course, be used but with greater expenditure of time:
Belgium: highways A1, or A2 from Brussels to Paris
Luxembourg: highway A31 to Metz and then A4 to Paris or Strasbourg
Germany: highway A4 from Strasbourg to Paris
Switzerland: highway A40 to Lyon and then A6 to Paris
Italy” via Torino and the Mont-Blanc tunnel using A40 to Macon (Or Frejus Tunnel and A43 to Lyon) and then A6 to Paris or along the Mediterranean coast on A8
Monaco: A8 between Nice and Italy.
eastern Spain: via Barcelona by A9 continuing on A75 (many curves, mountainous - not recommended in winter) to Paris.
western Spain: via San Sebastian is through A63 to Bordeaux, then A10 to Paris (a very long and monotonous drive).
Andorra: via Toulouse by A66.
United Kingdom: via Calais either using the train shuttle through the Channel tunnel or by ferry across the Channel. From there highway A16 or A26/A1 goes to Paris

By bus

Eurolines connects over 500 destinations, covering the whole of the continent, including Morocco. Eurolines allows travelling from Sicily to Helsinki and from Casablanca to Moscow.