Carte Orange vs. Le Carnet vs. Paris Visite for an awkward 4 days
 

A challenge for armchair travel agents:

Unfortunate scheduling, but it couldn't be helped: Arriving Paris CDG on a Wednesday, taking the RER Line B into the city, staying 72 hrs (just 3 days, but counts as 4 on the calendar), departing Sat morning via train for a 4-day trip. But there's more.

Returning to Paris Gare du Nord the following Wed noon, again staying 72 hrs (4 days on the calendar), departing this time from CDG via the RER.

Each 3-day-counts-as-4 stay just misses the cut for a 3-day Paris Visite, and I don't know if a carnet ticket is good on the RER to CDG or not. (Or whether 2 tickets can count as one long trip. I've "read up" on this, but they never address RER to CDG and le carnet in the same breath.)

So . . . which type is the most economical/efficient to buy on each entry into Paris? There is no 4-day Paris Visite card.

Merci in advance.

Having bought the carnet and just individual tickets as I needed to get on the RER, I'd think that's the easiest. You really do walk a lot so a carnet may last you through both visits to the city. And there are vending machines to get the RER tickets when you arrive at the stop.
But no, the metro carnet doesn't work on the RER, at least not in my experience. I bought them separately.

If I recall correctly the RER from CDG to Paris is 8 euro, much more than a metro ticket is worth. I would just buy a carnet for the metro.

Look -- your time is valuable. Buy and use carnets. Don't mini-manage your all-too-brief visit -- enjoy!

I like a challenge!

You cannot combine single Metro tickets to get from CDG to Paris. Buy a single ride ticket (now E8.10) on the RER which will also be good on the Metro until you exit the system. Buy carnets, as needed, for the rest of Wednesday through your departure on Saturday and again for the following Wednesday through Friday.

However, if you anticipate taking a lot of rides in central Paris on a given day (or days), you could buy a one-day Mobilis pass for zones 1-2 for E5.50 for each of those days and use your carnet tickets on days you'll be taking fewer rides.

If you don't have to catch an early flight, use any carnet tickets you have left the last morning. Buy a ticket to CDG for E8.10 and vow to return to Paris at your first opportunity.

Well, if he's gonna return to Paris at earliest opportunity, he should take leftover metro tickets home and save them (away from anything that would demagnetize)..!

Right on, Travelnut!

Great advice, guys. Since no one 4-day period includes two trips to CDG, it does sound like my best deal is to buy a single RER ticket and a carnet of 10 each time if need be. So forget Carte Orange and forget Paris Visite.

Thanks...including to my new bud Travelnut, who's probably getting tired of helping me. Good advice on not mini-managing, too, except that the devil's in the details, and nit-picking now will help me relax and enjoy once I get there.

Now for choosing which Michelin-starred restaurant for my one blow-out splurge lunch. :-) (Dinner at Bofinger doesn't count as a splurge, and isn't Michelin-starred anyhow. But any Alan Furst fan worth his salt has to make the pilgrimage to Bofinger.)

You're welcome... unfortunately, "fine dining" is not one of my "areas"... :)

Hi Logan,

For some restaurant suggestions, check my trip report.

They are not starred, they are nice and the food was good.

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34676645

((I))

Since you're going to need transport on four calendar days during each trip, there's still a chance that a <i>Carte Orange</i> could make sense for you.

A two-zone CO costs &euro;16, and <i>carnet</i> tickets are &euro;1,09 apiece. So if you can anticipate that you will get on a bus or go into the M&eacute;tro/RER more than 14 times during each four-day sojourn, the CO is the way to go.

If you use transport a couple of times on the day you arrive, a couple of times to depart, and five times each full day you're in town, it's a slam-dunk. The day you go to Sacre Coeur, you might easily use five tickets simply getting there and back, going up and down the <i>funiculaire</i>, and taking a spin on the <i>Montmartrobus</i>.

Having the CO in hand is the simplest of any scheme, because it means you don't have to replenish tickets <i>p.r.n.</i>. With correct change, you can buy your second CO ticket from a machine (the first one has to be from a ticket window because you have to present a 1&quot; square ID photo).

Just to piggyback someone else's thread.... Does someone know how long a carnet is good for? I've some tickets left over from April. I'm planning to use them this weekend. Think that's ok? I guess I'll find out soon enough.

Thanks.

Metro tickets are good indefintely as long as they are de-magnitized. Last year I found about 8 tickets left fom a carnet, that had fallen between the cracks, and had to be at least four years old. They worked just fine. It doesn't matter how much you originally paid for them and the current price - still good.

Last year I brought home a few left over from my carnet and will be using them next month.

Enjoy your stay.

Whoooops, two major typos in one sentence - tickets good as long as they are _not_ demagnetized.

Thanks Nina.