Uber/Lyft in Paris

[CaWino]

Has anybody had recent experience in Paris with either of these two companies? If so, positive or negative? We plan a three week trip to France in October/November and plan one week in Paris. We plan to walk a lot, take the Metro, and Lyft or Uber occasionally. We prefer Lyft here in the states. Any input would be most appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Parigi]

I use Uber and Kapten in Paris. I don't know Lyte.
Uber is very reliable. It's rates are similar to taxi rates. Of course Uberis more user-friendly for visitors who are not comfortable with the French language, as the Uber app can be used the same way all over the world, in English language (if one so chooses).
My favorite car service in France is Kapten. It is reliable and fair, and is consistently cheaper than Uber. It also has a very user-friendly English-language app.

 

[Steve R.]

Thank you. I'd never heard of Kapten and we'll be in Paris all of May. Now, maybe, we won't have to rely on Uber (or taxis) when we're too lazy to walk or even to take the Metro.

 

[kupus]

I have used Uber in Paris and I have used taxis. Uber in Paris operates the same way it does where I live and my guess it that it operates the same way in Paris that it does where you use it. I find that Uber drivers are generally not as knowledgeable of the city as taxi drivers but every taxi that I have taken recently in Paris has GPS and the same is true for Ubers. It's just that if traffic is bad, I find that taxi drivers will veer off the GPS route while Uber drivers tend to stick to it. For your specific trip from the 5th to Gare Montparnasse, you could have the hotel call a taxi for you. I am a planner so I would reserve a taxi the night before and pay the 7€ dispatch charge. But you could request the taxi on the morning (4€ dispatch charge) that you need it or request an Uber. My worry with waiting until right before travel time is that you could have bad luck and there could be no taxis available (unlikely but it has happened to me) or hitting surge pricing with Uber (which has also happened to me though never in Paris).

 

[scaltro1]

How does one verify that the Uber that picks you up is safe and legit?

 

[CaWino]

You can verify that it's Uber by matching the car make and license number to the information from the app on your phone. The driver's picture should match, too. The driver should also know your name from their app.