How to Call France From the United States

The Riviera, the Louvre, Bordeaux wines, and roughly a million kinds of cheese - the reasons to visit France are endless. And if you're planning a visit, you might need to make a call first. Just follow these easy instructions.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• French Phrase Books
• Telephone Calling Cards
• Telephones
• Travel Guides
• Clocks
• Maps

1. Determine what time it is in France. France is 1 hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time, which means it is 6 hours later in France than it is on the East Coast of the United States, and 9 hours later than it is on the West Coast.

2. Dial 011, the international access code.

3. Dial 33, the French country code.

4. Remove the 0 from the beginning of the 10-digit phone number. (All French telephone numbers begin with 01, 02, 03, 04 or 05.)

5. Dial the remaining nine digits.

Tips & Warnings

• Calling between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. or on weekends will often cost up to 50 percent less than calling during business hours. Call your long-distance carrier to find out which hours are cheapest to call internationally with your long-distance plan.
• In 1996 France revamped its phone system, changing all the old eight-digit numbers to 10-digit numbers by adding a prefix: 01 for Paris, 02 for the northwest, 03 for the northeast, 04 for the southeast and 05 for the southwest.
• If you're having problems getting through, dial 00 for the international operator and ask him or her to place the call.
• If you're calling from a pay phone, you'll need to have a calling card or charge the call to a credit card - you won't be able to feed the phone with coins fast enough to keep yourself connected. Follow the instructions printed on the phone for placing the call.

[alfaorg]

on 5/29/2009 Some VOIP companies offer FREE calls to France included in the monthly charge: http://www.alfaorg.com/voip.htm

[chip777]

on 11/19/2007 Tel3communications is offering a special for double free minutes for the holidays. Call 800-441-0269 for more information. Happy Holidays Everyone!!!