<i>Cartes Oranges</i> are sold from Friday onwards for the following week. So yes, you can buy yours on Sunday to be used the next day.

And yes, you will have to fill in Sunday with either single tickets or <i>Mobilis</i> passes (the latter if you contemplate more than 4 rides that day).

Yes, you can buy it on Sundays, but it begins to be valid on Mondays. Be sure to have a picture for the ID card. And make sure you don't keep you ticket near any magnetic objects - my ticket got de-magnetized and I had to go back to the station to get another... (Actually, I went to the Denfert Rochereau Station to get another). Remember that few Metro stations have ticket booths to solve you problem if the ticket gets de-magnetized).

If we get the Carte Orange for zones 1 and 2, can we ride to La Defense or other outskirts?

No, only in Zones 1&amp;2. Here's the map:

http://www.ratp.info/orienter/f_plan...nes&amp;fm=pdf

It should be noted that a single <i>ticket 't'</i> is valid for the entire M&eacute;tro network, regardless of zone.

I recall some discussion around La Defense, something along the lines that the Metro was in zone 2 but the RER was in zone 3..? So if you took the metro you'd be 'legal' but not if you took the RER (using the C.O. for zones 1-2).

Thanks for the information. I love the CO too, and am happy I can buy one on a Wednesday. Wasn't sure about that.

Note that, at some M&eacute;tro stations, it is no longer possible to buy tickets at the window; you can buy them <i>only</i> from the machines. The people at the window are there only for &ldquo;information and after-sales service&rdquo; (I kid you not&mdash;what sort of after-sales service does a M&eacute;tro ticket require?). It's a bizarre development. I suppose the RATP is trying to reduce headcount by installing machines, but the union probably refuses to allow anyone to be made redundant, so now you see agents sleeping behind the windows while you must buy your tickets from a machine.

My impression is that the goal is to convert all stations this way in time.

A side effect of this is that you no longer need the ID card with photo for tickets that formerly required one; at least this is what a ticket agent told me (thereby fulfilling his official function), just before telling me that I had to buy the ticket from the machine on the opposite side of the room.

Eventually the Carte Orange will be eliminated, so that the RATP and other, more shadowy agencies can track the movements of commuters with precision (you have to fill out a personal questionnaire to get the Navigo card, which will replace the Carte Orange). This will also make it impossible for tourists to benefit from these cut-rate schemes, which will bring a long-standing dream of the RATP to fruition (the current Carte Orange is indeed intended for residents, but they cannot legally refuse to sell it to anyone who asks for it).

&lt;&lt;&lt;Eventually the Carte Orange will be eliminated, so that the RATP and other, more shadowy agencies can track the movements of commuters with precision

There is no tracking system on the Navigo pass - the chip is there to eliminate the unreiable magnetic stripe.
and whatmay those 'more shadowy agengies' be?

&lt;&lt;&lt;you have to fill out a personal questionnaire to get the Navigo card, which will replace the Carte Orange&lt;&lt;&lt;
The most personal info is your name (already written on the old version), your address (or the work address for those not leaving around Paris but working there)and that's because the card is to be mailed

&lt;&lt;This will also make it impossible for tourists to benefit from these cut-rate schemes, &lt;&lt;
Yes, that's the goal, we - locals - pay heavy transport taxes plus - for the upper salaries - a part of our salary for public transport, basically we pay about the double than a tourist for a carte orage - not fair !

&gt;&gt;This will also make it impossible for tourists to benefit from these cut-rate schemes, which will bring a long-standing dream of the RATP to fruition (the current Carte Orange is indeed intended for residents, but they cannot legally refuse to sell it to anyone who asks for it).&gt;&gt;

Anthony,
If this is so, then why is it listed on www.parisinfo.com,in English, with instructions for using it?
&quot;Carte Orange
A weekly or monthly pass valid for zones 1 &amp; 2, 1 to 3, 1 to 4, 1 to 5, 1 to 6, 1 to 7 or 1 to 8. This card is non-transferable and you should affix a passport-sized photo to it and place it and the travel coupon into the cover provided. Don’t forget to copy the card number on to the travel coupon.&quot;
Sandy

I was under the impression that American credit cards no longer work in the automatic ticket machines..I really don't know because I've always bought my CO or carnets at the window.

American cards don't work at the RER/CDG station. They do work at other stations. I think if you have enough euro COINS you can work the automatic dispenser (but not bills).

Just wanted to double-check, they are phasing out the Carte Orange at the end of this year? Or will it be sooner? I would like to get one on my trip in September.

apologize for not having specifics but my understanding that after this March CarteOrange and its successors will only be available to local Ile de France area residents. This because it's a highly discounted pass to encourage use of public transit and is not meant for tourists, who however have bought and used it for years.
At times Fodorites have reported that some clerks refused to sell it to them, saying it was only for locals but at other windows they bought it.
So, though i'm not certain i think after March this will be a mute issue perhaps.

I've not read anything to that effect concerning March . Do you have an inside source PalenQ or a link? Would be interested if you do.

IMHO nothing is happening to the Carte Orange until the switch to 100 percent Navigo. Any date as to when this may happen is sheer speculation. Any idea as to how this will impact tourists is speculation as well.

There are some interesting Q&amp;A on this page.

http://www.ratp.info/informer/passe_...navigo_orange#

We bought our Carte Orange at the airport RER ticket window last week, at the same time we bought tickets to go into Paris. We purchased a zone 1-5 on a Saturday to use the following Monday. The agent had no problem selling it to us. This way we traveled on trains throughout the week to zone 5 , and still used it to return to the airport the last Sunday it was good. It was a great value!

Images, I usually see people saying to buy only zones 1 and 2. Why did you choose to buy 1-5, and do you mind telling how much more it cost? Thanks!

The rates are on www.ratp.fr under &quot;titre et tariffs&quot; or something like that...

People buy zones 1-5 to go to Disney and CDG or other locations beyond Paris (Versailles is in zone 4 so it would be covered, too.

The zone 1-5 was 31&euro;. I bought that because we went to St.Germain-en-Laye and a stop at Chatou on our return, and on another afternoon we took the regional train to Ecouen. Both of these destinations were in zone 4 or 5. The carte orange was also good for our return to CDG so it was a great value. We used it on the metro, buses, trams, RER and the regional trains.

&gt;&gt; I kid you not—what sort of after-sales service does a M&eacute;tro ticket require? &lt;&lt;

Navigo cards may require after-sale service. Magnetic tickets can be de-magnetized, etc...

The five last entry/exit recordings are stored inside the Navigo RFID chip, and certainly not on a central server (There is, however, a server which records - with much better accuracy since Navigo has been introduced - the number of entry/exits on the system).