Paris

Vélib

In July 2007 the municipality of Paris introduced the Vélib program vélo Liberté or Freedom Bikes by which it is possible to rent a bike for a very modest price. Numerous stations are to be found around the city at major landmarks and metro stations, basically every 300m. With a credit card with a "puce" smart-chip that means that American Visa and Mastercard cards do not work, however American Express cards should work even though they don't have a chip, you can subscribe for 1 day €1.70 or 7 days €8 with a security deposit of €150. & then get a bike; the first 30 min are free, following 30 min costs €1, following 30 min cost €2, etc. to avoid long rentals... so the game is to get to another station in 25 min and get another bicycle. This rental system has been designed to allow you to "pick & drop" a bike, not rent the same one all day long. Try it ! If your card works in the machines it's a great way to get around! The bicycles are wonderful cruiser bikes, with a front basket to put a purse or bag. If the saddle is turned around, it most probably means the bike is out of order it's a convention among Velib users, so do the same if you notice your Velib has problems.

By bike

In addition to operating a number of bike rental buses, the RATP has some permanent locations, including:

The best and cheapest way to get around Paris is on foot, and secondly, using the Metro which is around one euro seventy cents for a one way trip of any length.

On Skates

Paris is the mecca of city skating. This is due to the large, smooth surfaces offered by both the pavements and the roads. Skating on the pavement is legal all around Central Paris zone 1 and its suburbs zones 2+. See our Do section below for more information.

By taxi

Taxis are comparatively cheap especially at night when there are no traffic jams to be expected. There are not as many as one would expect, and sometimes finding a taxi can be challenging. In the daytime, it is not always a good idea to take a taxi, as walking or taking the metro See: Métro will often be faster. If you know you will need one to get to the airport, or to a meeting, it is wise to book ahead by phone see below.

Remember if a taxi is near a 'taxi station', they're not supposed to pick you up except at the station where there may be people waiting for a taxi. Taxi stations are usually near train stations, big hotels, hospitals, large crossings.

There are a number of services by which you can call for taxis or make a reservation in advance. The two largest are Taxis G7 and Taxis Bleus:

By Mã©Tro

Paris has an excellent underground train system, known as the Métro short for Chemin de fer métropolitain, Metropolitan Railway. Although you will probably take the RER subway train from the airport to Paris, don't be confused: RER is a French-language acronym that translates to "Regional Express Network," and is mostly used by commuters. Look for the Métro stations, marked with a large "M" sign.

There are 16 Métro lines lignes 1-14, 3bis, and 7bis on which trains travel all day at intervals of a few minutes between 5AM and 12:30AM Saturday night/Sunday morning: 1:30AM, stopping at all stations on the line. Times for trains can be seen on an electronic scrollboard above the platform. Line 14, which is fully automated, is called the Méteor. Scheduled times for first and last trains are posted in each station on the centre sign. Generally, except for early and late hours, travellers should not worry about specific Metro train times; just get to your station and take the next train. Trains usually come 2-3 minutes apart during rush hour and 5-10 minutes apart during other times, depending on the line.

Visitors with heavy luggage or handicap should find out in-advance about the facilities at each station to be used. Specific on-line information about elevators and escalators is hard to find. You may have ask at ticket counters at major stations, perhaps tourist information kiosks. Getting to boarding platforms from street level, or going between platforms to change lines can be difficult even at major intersecting stations at most times, and everywhere during rush hours. It usually involves walking up and down multiple flights of busy stairs. Elevators are seldom seen, many aren't working, and in major outlying stations any escalator will likely support only exiting to the street level. If you have any lingering concern about station facilities, check bus routes and timings to find convenient bus service instead; failing that, use a taxi.

Many Metro trains do not carry destination binders. All lines on the Paris metro run end-to-end with some trains terminating at certain stations. This practice is common only in peak hours and if you are on a metro train that terminates before the last station, the driver will make an announcement in French. Listen carefully for signs that the train is terminating before the end of the line.

The lines are named according to the names of their terminal stations the end of the line. If you ask the locals about directions, they will answer something like : take line number n toward "end station 1", change at "station", take the line nn toward "end station 2" etc. The lines are also colour-coded.

In addition, there are five commuter train lines: RER A, B, C, D, and E. RER trains run at intervals of about 6-7 min, and stop at every RER station within Paris. Although a regular subway ticket can be used within Paris Zone 1, it is necessary to pass the ticket through the turnstile when passing between the subway and the RER lines, as the two systems are separate networks. This ticket is necessary to enter and exit the RER networks, as the RER trains travel on to the Parisian suburbs, outside the zone where a regular subway ticket can be used. Travel outside the city centre without a valid RER ticket will get you fined, and the packs of inspectors who roam the system show no mercy to tourists pleading ignorance. In particular, Charles de Gaulle airport is not within the city; you must purchase an RER ticket to get there see Get in.

The Métro and RER move staggering numbers of people into, out of, and around Paris 6.75 million people per day on average, and most of the time in reasonable comfort. Certain lines, however, are operating at or near capacity, sometimes being so full that you'll have to let one or two trains pass before being able to board. If you can help it, avoid Métro lines 1, 4, and 13 and RER line A during rush hours as these are the most congested lines in the system.

In addition to RER, there are many suburban train lines Transilien departing from the main train stations. One line of interest is the one from Gare Montparnasse to Versailles-Chantiers, a quick way to go to Versailles castle covered by a ticket for at least Zones 1-4. The alternative is to use RER C to Versailles Rive Gauche this station is the closest to the castle. Do not use RER C8 to Versailles Chantiers; this will do a very long loop in the southern suburbs before reaching Versailles.

For travel outside of the Paris zone, the train arrival times are shown on a monitor hanging from the ceiling inside the RER station above the platform. Information about the stops to be made by the next incoming train is presented on a separate board also hanging from the ceiling. It is important to check this board before boarding the train, as not all trains make stops at all stations on a given line. Four letter codes KRIN, DIPA, TORE, etc. are used for the RER and Transilien trains. On RER A, B and C the first letter indicates the destination of the train, the second the branch or service type, and the last two are to make the name easier to memorize; on RER D and E, the first letter is destination, the second letter is service type, the third letter is branch, and the fourth letter is direction; on Transilien lines, it's usually one name for every service type. You can look up what these codes mean on information panels in the station, but the easiest and fastest way is often to check the information screens along the platforms.

RATP (http://www.ratp.fr/en/rat...) is responsible for public transport including metro, buses, and some of the high speed inter-urban trains RER. The rest of the RER is operated by SNCF. However, both companies take the same tickets, so the difference is of little interest for most people except in case of strikes RATP may strike without SNCF doing so or the other way round. Current fares can be found at their website. Basically, as you move farther from Paris into higher zones, tickets get more expensive.

For the subway, a single ticket ticket t+ costs €1.70; however, it is generally not advisable to buy tickets by the unit. Instead, purchase a "carnet" of ten tickets, which can be bought for €12.70 at any station, which will bring the price per ticket down to €1.27. Tickets named tarif réduit may be purchased for children under the age of 10 but only in a carnet of 10 for €6.35. Both tickets are valid for unlimited metro and RER or bus and tram transfers during two hours for RER and metro, and 1 hour 30 between the first and the last punch for bus and tram. RER + Métro and Bus + Tram are two separate systems, but they use the same tickets. This means you have to use a new ticket if you transfer from bus to metro or from metro to bus. Tickets do not expire.

A one-day ticket, a weekly pass, and a monthly pass are also available. The price varies according to the zones for which the ticket can be used. The cheapest 1-day ticket called Mobilis (http://www.transilien.com...), is valid for zones 1-2, with a price of €6.40. Once bought, it is necessary to write in the spaces provided on the ticket the date the ticket is being used in European notation of day/month/year valable le, the last name nom, and the first name prénom. Unfortunately, this ticket is not valid for use for travel to/from Charles de Gaulle airport. Unless you plan to make many trips in one day, the carnet of ten tickets for €1.27 per trip will still be a much better cost than a one-day ticket. However, consider the price for all members of your group/family, including children, which days you are travelling on, and in which zones you will be travelling.

For travellers under the age of 26, there is a special ticket Jeunes 26 that you can purchase for use on the weekends or holidays. The price varies depending on the number of zones you wish to cover Zones 1-3 is €3.55 and Zones 1-5 is €7.10; there are other zone combinations available too and the ticket is good for one day of unlimited usage of the metro, RER, bus, and trams.

If you are staying a bit longer, the weekly and monthly passes are called Navigo Découverte 1 week pass, €19.15 for zones 1-2 and the monthly Navigo Mensuel one-month pass, €62.90 for zones 1-2. Note that an Découverte DAY-koo-VERT starts on Mondays and a Mensuel on the first of the month. The Navigo pass is non-transferrable and requires the user to provide information on the pass after the sale. The pass is sold for €5. You must write your last name nom and your first name prénom and stick your photo on the nominative card. After, you have to refill your pass with a recharge hébdomadaire one-week refill, or a recharge mensuelle one-month refill. You have to choose at least two of the contiguous "zones": Paris is the first zone, La Défense is in the third zone, and Versailles in the fourth. Everything related to a "Navigo" pass is in purple like the target for the pass in the turnstiles.

Although not as good a deal for adults in most cases as the Mobilis or Navigo, there are also one-to-five-day tourist passes, called Paris Visite (http://www.ratp.fr/en/rat...), available, which are a bargain for kids of ages 4-11, starting at €4.85 per day for travel within zones 1-3.

Keep your ticket or pass with you at all times as you may be checked. You will be cited and forced to pay on the spot if you do not have a ticket. The most likely spots for being checked are just behind the turnstiles at big Métro stations or during Métro line changes correspondances. RATP agents may be present in the Métro stations even on Sunday nights.

Métro stations have both ticket windows and automatic vending machines. The majority of machines do not take notes, only coins or European credit cards with a pin-encoded chip on the front. Therefore, to use either euro bills or a non-European credit card with a magnetic stripe, it is necessary to make the purchase from the ticket window. Be advised that some ticket vending machines do not give change, so use exact change or go to the ticket window. If you look at the vending machines closely, you may find one in the group that takes euro bills and will give change; these machines can be found at major or touristy stations such as Tuileries, Gare de Lyon or La Défense-Grande Arche.

Some larger stations have secondary entrances, where there is no ticket booth. These are labelled voyageurs avec billets passengers with tickets.

Each station displays a detailed map of the surrounding area with a street list and the location of buildings monuments, schools, places of worship, etc, as well as exits for that particular metro. Maps are located on the platform if the station has several exits or near the exit if there is only one exit.

Except for Métro 1 and 14 and some modern trains on Métro 2, the doors may not open automatically. In such a case, there are handles or buttons located both inside and outside the train that you have to push or unlatch in order to open the door.

Strikes are a regular occurrence on the Paris public transit system. Generally during a strike, there will be reduced or no service on certain lines but parts of the network will continue to operate; however, in some cases the entire network may shut down completely. Visit the RATP and SNCF websites for information on which routes are affected by a strike. Generally, Metro line 14 will be running during a strike because it is operated without human drivers - if you are caught by a strike, it is best to use it whenever possible.

On foot

Walking in Paris is one of the great pleasures of visiting the City of Light. It is possible to cross the entire city in only a few hours, but only if you can somehow keep yourself from stopping at numerous cafés and shops. In fact within a few years walking combined with biking and the Metro will be the only way to get around the very centre of Paris: The Mayor's office has announced plans to declare the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th arrondissements almost totally car-free by 2012.

The smartest travellers take advantage of the walk-ability of this city, and stay above ground as much as possible. A metro ride of less than 2 stops is probably best avoided since walking will take about the same amount of time and you'll be able to see more of the city. That said, pay attention to the Métro stations that you may pass by on your journey; the Métro network is very dense within the city and the lines are virtually always located directly underneath major boulevards, so if you become lost it is easy to regain your bearings by walking along a major boulevard untl you find a Métro station.

You may have heard of the hazard of walking into dog droppings in Paris. The problem is now virtually nonexistent due to fines as high as €180 and an extensive street cleaning operations.

It's always fun to experience the city by foot, and there are numerous walking tours around Paris, whether self guided with the help of a guidebook or online guide or with a touring guide booked through your travel agency or hotel. The city is best explored by foot, and some of the most marvelous memories you will have of Paris is walking through secret found places.

With Children

Metro and bus

The metro and buses are free for children under the age of 4. Older kids 4-9 can buy a carnet a collection of 10 tickets at half-price for discounted travel. Other passes, including the Paris-Vistes pass for unlimited travel over 1 to 5 days are also available at half-price for children below 9 years of age.

Taxis. Parisien taxis tend to be standard cars sedans or minivans so almost all strollers will need to be folded and placed in trunk. Be aware that taxi drivers are proud of their cars and keep them very clean and are not big fans of messy kids.

By bus

Since the Métro is primarily structured around a hub-and-spoke model, there are some journeys for which it can be quite inefficient, and in these cases, it is worth seeing if a direct bus route exists, despite the complexity of the bus network. A bus ride is also interesting if you want to see more of the city. The Parisian bus system is quite tourist-friendly. It uses the same single-ride tickets and Navigo as the Métro, and electronic displays inside each bus tell riders its current position and what stops remain, eliminating a lot of confusion.

These same payment devices are also valid in the Noctilien, the night bus. Night buses run regularly through the central hub at Chatelet to outlying areas of greater Paris. There is also a circle line connecting the main train stations. It pays to know one's Noctilien route ahead of time in case one misses the last Métro home. Women travellers should probably avoid taking the Noctilien on their own to destinations outside Paris.

Another option for travelers who want to see the sights of Paris without a stop on every street corner is the Paris L'Opentour Bus, an open-topped double decker bus that supplies headsets with the most up to date information on the attractions in Paris. Your ticket is good for four routes ranging in time from 1-2 h. Get off when you want, stay as long as you need, get back on the bus and head for another site. You can purchase tickets at the bus stop. A one-day pass is €25 for adults and €15 for children. A two-day pass is €32 for adults or €15 for children.