Paris By Public Transportation

The RATP (Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens) coordinates a network of subways, buses, and commuter trains in and around Paris. For info, contact La Maison de la RATP, right across the street from Gare de Lyon (190 r. de Bercy) or the Bureau de Tourisme RATP, pl. de la Madeleine, 8 ème (☎01 40 06 71 45; Madeleine; open daily 8:30am-6pm).

Individual tickets for the RATP cost €2 each, or €12 for a carnet of 10. Say, “Un ticket, s’il vous plaît” (UHN ti-KAY..), or “Un carnet..” (UHN car-NAY..), to the ticket vendor. Each metro ride takes one ticket. The bus takes at least one, sometimes more, depending on connections you make and the time of day. For directions on using the tickets, see Metro.

Passes

If you’re staying in Paris for several days or weeks, a carte orange can be economical. Bring an photo (machines take them in major stations) to the ticket counter and ask for a weekly carte orange hebdomadaire (€17) or the equally swank monthly carte orange mensuelle (€56). These cards have specific start and end dates (weekly pass runs M-Su; monthly starts at the beginning of the month). Prices quoted here are for passes in Zones 1 and 2 (the metro and RER in Paris and suburbs), and work on all metro, bus, and RER modes of transport. If you plan to travel to the suburbs, you’ll need RER passes for more zones (they go up to 5). If you’re only in town for a day or two, a cheap option is the carte mobilis (€6 for a 1-day pass in Zones 1 and 2; available in metro stations; ☎08 91 36 20 20), which provides unlimited metro, bus, and RER transportation within Paris.

Paris Visite tickets are valid for unlimited travel on bus, metro, and RER, as well as discounts on sightseeing trips, museum admission, and shopping at stores like Galeries Lafayette. These passes can be purchased at the airport or at metro and RER stations. The passes are available for one day (€8.50), two days (€14), three days (€19), or five days (€27.50). The discounts you receive do not necessarily outweigh the extra cost.

Metro

In general, the metro system is easy to navigate (pick up a colorful map at any station or use the one in the front of this book), and trains run swiftly and frequently. Metro stations, in themselves a distinctive part of the Paris landscape, are marked with an “M” or with the “Métropolitain” lettering designed by Art Nouveau legend Hector Guimard.

Getting Around

The earliest trains of the day start running around 5:30am, and the last ones leave the end-of-the-line stations (the portes de Paris ) for the center of the city at about 12:15am during the week, and at 2:15am on Friday and Saturday. For the exact departure times of the last trains, check the poster in the center of each station marked Principes de Tarification (fare guidelines), the white sign with the platform’s number and direction, or the monitors above the platform. Transport maps are posted on platforms and near turnstiles; all have a plan du quartier (map of the neighborhood). Connections to other lines are indicated by orange correspondance signs, exits indicated by blue sortie signs. Transfers are free if made within a station, but it is not always possible to reverse direction on the same line without exiting the station.

Using Tickets

To pass through the turnstiles, insert your ticket into the slot just to your right as you approach the turnstile. It disappears for a moment, then pops out about a foot farther along, and a little green or white circle lights up, reminding you to retrieve the ticket. If the turnstile makes a peevish whining sound and a little red circle lights up, your ticket is not valid; take it back and try another. When you have the right light, push through the gate and retrieve your ticket. Hold onto your ticket until you exit the metro, and pass the point marked Limite de Validité des Billets; a uniformed RATP contrôleur (inspector) may request to see it on any train. If caught without one, you must pay a hefty fine. Also, any correspondances (transfers) to the RER require you to put your validated (and uncrumpled) ticket into a turnstile in order to exit.

Late At Night

Don’t count on buying a metro ticket late at night. Some ticket windows close as early as 10pm, and many close before the last train arrives. Also, not all stations have automatic booths. It’s a good idea to carry one more ticket than you need, although large stations have ticket machines that accept coins. Avoid the most dangerous stations (Barbès-Rochechouart, Pigalle, Anvers, Châtelet-Les-Halles, Gare du Nord, Gare de l’Est) after dark. Stay vigilant, as the stations are frequented by criminals looking to prey on tourists. When in doubt, take a bus or taxi.

Rer

The RER (Réseau Express Régional) is the RATP’s suburban train system, which passes through central Paris. The RER travels much faster than the metro. There are five RER lines, marked A-E, with different branches designated by a number: for example, the C5 line services Versailles-Rive Gauche. The newest line, the E, is called the Eole (Est-Ouest Liaison Express) , and links Gare Magenta to Gare St-Lazare. Within Paris, the RER works exactly the same as the metro, requiring the same ticket. The principal stops within the city, which link the RER to the metro system, are Gare du Nord, Nation, Charles de Gaulle-Etoile, Gare de Lyon, and Châtelet-Les-Halles on the Right Bank and St-Michel and Denfert-Rochereau on the Left Bank. The electric signboards next to each track list all the possible stops for trains running on that track. Be sure that the little square next to your destination is lit up. Trips to the suburbs require special tickets. You’ll need your ticket to exit RER stations. Insert your ticket just as you did to enter, and pass through. Like the metro, the RER runs 5:30am-12:30am, and until 2:30am on weekends.

Train

Each of Paris’s six train stations is a veritable community of its own, with resident street people and police, cafés, tabacs, banks, and shops. Locate the ticket counters (guichets) , the platforms (quais) , and the tracks (voies) , and you will be ready to roll. Each terminal has two divisions: the suburbs ( banlieue) and the destinations outside the metropolitan area (grandes lignes) . Some cities can be accessed by both regular trains and trains à grande vitesse (TGV; high speed trains). TGVs are more expensive, much faster, more comfortable, and require reservations that cost a small fee. For train information or to make reservations, contact SNCF (☎08 90 36 10 10, €0.23 per min.; www.voyages-sncf.fr). Yellow ticket machines (billetteries) at every train station sell tickets. You’ll need to have a MasterCard or Visa card and know your PIN. SNCF offers many discounted round-trip tickets which go under the name Tarifs Découvertes —you should rarely have to pay full price.

Soyez Prudent. Exercise caution in train stations at night; Gare du Nord and Gare d’Austerlitz, in particular, are home to after-hours drug traffic and prostitution. Also, buy tickets only at official counters; the SNCF doesn’t have any outfits in refrigerator boxes, no matter what you’re told.

Bus

Although slower and often costlier than the metro, a bus ride can be a cheap sightseeing tour and a helpful introductions to the city’s layout.

Tickets

Bus tickets are the same as those used in the metro, and they can be purchased either in metro stations or on the bus from the driver. Enter the bus through the front door and punch your ticket by pushing it into the machine by the driver’s seat. If you have a Navigo or other transport pass, simply flash it at the driver. Inspectors may ask to see your ticket, so hold onto it until you get off. Should you wish to leave the earthly paradise that is the RATP autobus, just press the red button so the arrêt demandé (stop requested) sign lights up.

Night Buses

Most buses run daily 7am-8:30pm, although those marked Autobus du nuit continue until 1:30am. Still others, named Noctilien, run all night. Night buses (€2) run from Châtelet to the portes of the city every hour on the half hour from 12:30-5:30am (1-6am from the portes into the city). Look for bus stops marked with a bug-eyed moon sign. Check out www.noctilien.fr or ask a major metro station or at Gare de l’Est for more information on Noctilien buses.

Tour Buses

The RATP’s Balabus (☎01 44 68 43 35) stops at virtually every major sight in Paris (Bastille, St-Michel, Louvre, Musée d’Orsay, Concorde, Champs-Elysées, Charles de Gaulle-Etoile; whole loop takes 1hr.). The circuit requires three standard bus tickets and starts at La Défense or the Gare de Lyon.