Paris Orly is working with one runway down, and will be until mid December. Runway 4 at Paris Orly has been closed for renovation since Monday 10 August 2026, and the closure runs to Thursday 17 December 2026, with about 3,000 flights canceled or moved to Paris Charles de Gaulle.
The closure is confirmed by Groupe ADP, the airport operator, and it is still running now, well into the autumn schedule. If you hold an Orly ticket in the coming weeks, the airport you actually use is the first thing to check. This post covers the works, the move to Charles de Gaulle, and the ride in from either airport.
What is happening
Groupe ADP is renovating Runway 4 at Orly, and one primary surface out of service cuts how many arrivals and departures the airport can accept. Reporting on the works describes pavement renovation with circulation redesign and marking work, which is why the affected flights are counted in thousands rather than dozens.
Airlines have been reshaping schedules since August. easyJet, a major Orly operator, told reporters it was asked, like other airlines, to cancel flights during the works, with its cancellations hitting flights between 10 August and 24 October and customers offered alternative flights. Other carriers have contacted customers as their own schedules were rebuilt, and a flight moved to Charles de Gaulle is a different arrival in every practical way: different train, different taxi fare, different side of the city.
Paris Aeroport advice is to check both your flight status and your airport before travel, and that second check is the one people skip. A booking that says Paris can now land at either airport. Recheck the airline message trail, accept a rebooked itinerary when it is offered, and rebuild your ground transfer for the airport you will actually use, because an Orly arrival and a Charles de Gaulle arrival do not share a route into town.
Getting there after you land
If your flight has moved to Charles de Gaulle, the guide route applies in full: the RER B to the center, the flat fare taxi, or a transfer booked ahead. See our Charles de Gaulle to Paris transfer guide for every option, priced and compared. If you still land at Orly, the guide notes the RER B does not serve Orly; take the metro Line 14 extension straight into the center, or a taxi at the flat fare the guide prints for Orly, €36 to the Left Bank or €45 to the Right Bank.
RER B trainCheapest
The default from Charles de Gaulle: one fare to Gare du Nord, Châtelet Les Halles and Saint-Michel, and no traffic to sit in.
Taxi, flat rate
One flat price from Charles de Gaulle to any Paris address, €56 on the Right Bank and €65 on the Left Bank, day and night.
Pre-booked transfer
A driver waits in arrivals with your name on a sign, and a delayed flight does not change the price you agreed before you flew.
The full first hour: Paris guide
The ride in, the first ticket and the first meal, plus where to stay in Paris.
Where to stay, and getting back
For a Splurge, Hôtel Lutetia, at 45 Boulevard Raspail, is the Left Bank grand dame, reborn, with a jazz bar, a spa and rooms over the rooftops of the 6th. For Sweet spot, Hôtel Malte Astotel, at 63 Rue de Richelieu, is a cheerful, well run hotel a short walk from the Opera and the Louvre. For Budget, Grand Hotel Leveque, at 29 Rue Cler, is a small three star right on the Rue Cler market street, four minutes from the Champ de Mars.
With flights split between two airports, a central first night base earns its keep: both the RER B from Charles de Gaulle and Line 14 from Orly feed the center. For getting back, check the departure airport on the booking one more time before you order the ride out, and leave earlier than usual while the runway work runs.
The first hour, sorted
Get connected before you fly: the guide names an Airalo eSIM for France, with Saily as a good alternative, and free Wi-Fi is standard in cafes and most hotels. Live flight and airport information matters more than usual on this trip.
Cards work almost everywhere in Paris, including the metro gates. Keep €20 to €30 in cash for markets and small boulangeries, use bank ATMs, and always decline the convert to your home currency offer, because paying in euros is cheaper.
For a first meal, the guide sends you to a still warm croissant and a cafe creme at a cafe terrace, standing at the counter if you want the local price. Book Louvre and Eiffel Tower tickets before you fly, as the guide directs: it is the difference between walking in and queuing for two hours.
The runway reopens after 17 December, but until then the working rule is to verify the airport, not just the flight. Browse the events calendar for what else is on while you are in town, and use plan your trip to line up the days around it.
The Eiffel Tower, the cafes and Versailles, for the days after you land.
Get the Paris first hour checklist by email
The ride in, the first ticket and the first meal, in the Paris guide PDF you can read on the plane.
The checklist, free, from After You Land.
What else is on
The events calendar tracks every guided city, strikes and stoppages included.
Events calendarLine up the rest
Plan your trip pulls the guide, the stays and the bookings for this trip into one place.
Plan your trip