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The galleried atrium of Galeries Lafayette in Paris.
Layover guideParis · CDG

What to buy in Paris

Fashion, beauty and antiques; non-EU crew can reclaim VAT on €100+ same-store, same-day purchases via PABLO kiosks at the airport.

Florian Plag / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
All of Paris

The categories Paris actually trades on are fashion, luxury and beauty: the big department stores (Galeries Lafayette Haussmann, Printemps Haussmann, BHV Marais, Bon Marche, Samaritaine) all run dedicated tax-refund counters, per the tourism office.

For antiques and vintage: the Puces de Saint-Ouen (Clignancourt) is the flagship — some fifteen markets and roughly 2,500 merchants, open Saturday to Monday; the smaller Puces de Vanves runs Saturday and Sunday. Both suit a weekend layover.

VAT refund (detaxe), per French customs: non-EU residents aged 16+, visiting under 6 months, spending over €100 including tax in the same store on the same day qualify; the retailer issues a barcoded slip against your passport.

Validate the slip at a PABLO kiosk near customs at CDG/Orly before checking your bags, and before the end of the third month after the month of purchase — the kiosk's "OK Validated voucher" message is the customs stamp.

  1. Direction generale des douanes (French customs) — tax exemption for tourists / PABLO · checked 2026-08-18
  2. Paris je t'aime — detaxe, tax refund and duty free · checked 2026-08-18
  3. Paris je t'aime — markets and flea markets (supports the flea-market bullet; was mis-filed under eating) · checked 2026-08-18

The rest of Paris

The whole guide
Getting out of the airportTaxis between the Paris airports and the city run on a legally fixed flat fare rather than the meter, and the RER B rail link needs a separate airport ticket that the ordinary metro ticket does not cover.Ride-hailingPrivate hire is legal in France but only on a booking made before you get in the car, and the regulated airport flat fare does not apply to it.Local laws that catch crew outFrance is unremarkable for most crew habits, but the identity-document requirement, the face-covering ban and drug enforcement on transiting passengers are the ones that produce arrests.Staying connectedFree unlimited wifi at CDG and Orly (*WIFI-AIRPORT); SIMs at airport FNAC/Relay shops; Orange sells tourist eSIMs online.WeatherMild year-round: ~5°C January, ~21°C July-August, rain possible any month; occasional summer heat spikes, winter frost.Eating near the crew hotelsMarais and Canal Saint-Martin for casual, Saint-Germain and Montparnasse for classic brasseries, 13th for Asian; watch Sun-Mon closures and short service windows.TippingService is already in the bill in Parisian restaurants; tipping is optional, only for genuinely good service.