Minibus Hire Across France

Paris by Minibus, for Families and Small Groups

Paris is easier with a small group and a driver who knows where a vehicle may stop. A minibus meets your party off the train or plane, takes you to the hotel, then out to Versailles or Giverny with no metro map in sight.

Why smaller is simpler here

Paris keeps a tight rein on tourist coaches. They may halt only to let people and luggage on or off, engine off, and a coach can only park with a PASS Autocar. In Paris Centre, the 1st to 4th arrondissements, a coach may only make trips that begin or end inside the zone.

For a family of ten or a hen party of fourteen, a minibus of up to 17 seats including the driver is the natural fit. Beyond that, a midi-coach of 29 to 35 seats keeps everyone together.

Executive Sprinter minibus, exterior
Executive Sprinter minibus, exterior

The low-emission zone in plain words

The Grand Paris ZFE covers everything inside the A86. Coaches showing Crit'Air 3, 4 or 5, or no sticker at all, are barred there every day between 08:00 and 20:00; cars and light vans face the same hours on weekdays. Foreign vehicles need a sticker too.

Charles de Gaulle and Orly lie outside the zone, but the road into the centre enters it. Parliament may yet change these rules, so ask which sticker the vehicle carries and check it shortly before you go.

Flying in to Paris

Places your group will love in Paris

  • Seine river cruises — Boats leave from quays near the Tour Eiffel, the Pont de l'Alma and Notre-Dame
  • Opéra Garnier and the Grands Magasins — 9th arrondissement
  • Montmartre and the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur — 18th arrondissement, on the hill above Pigalle
  • Sainte-Chapelle and the Conciergerie — Île de la Cité
  • Les Invalides and the Musée de l'Armée — 7th arrondissement
  • Musée d'Orsay — Left Bank, 7th arrondissement
  • Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe — Coach parking at Cours la Reine, near the Grand Palais
  • Tour Eiffel and the Champ-de-Mars — Coach parking on Avenue Joseph-Bouvard, beside the Champ-de-Mars
  • Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris — Reopened in December 2024; group visits are booked in advance, groups of 10 to 24 people need a licensed guide and groups must rent audio headsets
  • Musée du Louvre — Advance reservation is required for all group visits; a group is at most 20 participants plus a leader. Coach park at the Carrousel du Louvre

Where groups tend to stay

  • Marne-la-Vallée (Disneyland Paris hotels)
  • Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport hotels
  • La Défense
  • Porte de Versailles (Paris Expo)
  • Porte Maillot (Palais des Congrès)
  • Montparnasse
  • Gare de Lyon / Bercy
  • Gare du Nord / Gare de l'Est
  • Montmartre / Pigalle
  • Tour Eiffel / Invalides
  • Saint-Germain-des-Prés / Quartier latin
  • Champs-Élysées / Étoile
  • Opéra / Grands Magasins
  • Louvre / Tuileries / Palais-Royal

Arriving by cruise ship

Days out that suit a minibus

Versailles is about 23 km away. Coaches may park only on the Place d'Armes or in the park where the Grand and Petit Trianon meet, so fix a meeting spot before everyone drifts into the gardens.

Giverny takes about an hour and a quarter. Monet's house and gardens open from spring to early November, and groups of 20 or more must book. Coaches park at the Parking de la Prairie, five minutes' walk from the group entrance. The A13 out there has no toll booths, so make sure the quote says who pays the toll online.

Meeting trains and flights

From the centre it is roughly 28 km to Charles de Gaulle, 19 km to Orly and 82 km to Beauvais. Each takes far longer at rush hour, so leave slack before a dinner booking. Eurostar comes into Gare du Nord; TGVs from the south arrive at Gare de Lyon.

Your questions, answered

Can the driver wait outside the Louvre while we visit?

Not at the kerb. Your driver sets you down, then moves off to park and returns at the agreed time. The Louvre needs every group booked ahead and caps a group at 20 plus a leader.

We are 22 people. Minibus or coach?

Two minibuses or one midi-coach. Two minibuses help if the party splits for the afternoon; a midi-coach keeps the jokes in one place.

Could we do Champagne in a day from Paris?

Yes, though it is a full one: Reims is about 144 km away. EU rules allow a driver 9 hours at the wheel with a 45-minute break after 4.5 hours, so plan two houses and a relaxed lunch.

Is Disneyland Paris an easy outing?

Marne-la-Vallée is about 42 km from the centre, roughly 45 minutes in light traffic, which makes it an easy family day.

More days out you can book with us

Other vehicles with a driver