Robespierre

Glad to (correct you).

<i>Cartes Oranges</i> can be bought any time from Friday to Wednesday for the week beginning on the intervening Monday. So lecia11 can get one the first time she goes into a M&eacute;tro station on Sunday.

The photo can be cut from a digital snapshot your brother-in-law printed at Walgreen's.

Whenever beginning an interaction with a French person, the first thing one always says is <i>Bonjour/bonsoir, monsieur/madame.</i> Always.

I have found that RATP employees are no more or less surly than anyone else in France. But nearly every French person will respond negatively to anyone who breaches this basic act of etiquette.

lecia11

Yes, I get into Paris on a Sunday, so I can't purchase the Carte Orange that day. I was actually planning on exploring the neighborhood around my hotel that day since I get in early evening (find a restaurant for dinner, etc.). That's not set in stone. So it sounds like I should purchase the mobilis for one day and the Carte Orange the next. Also, can I just use my driver's license for a photo I.D.? And I think I can purchase both of these in the Eurostar terminal, right?

My train trip is already purchased by the way. Now I'm just trying to get the transportation while I'm in Paris thing straightened out.

Robespierre

lecia11, you hand the agent a 1&quot; square picture of yourself when you ask for your <i>Carte Orange</i>, and the agent will paste it on your new card. The other part of the deal is a ticket that you insert into the automatic turnstiles to get into the platforms. It all comes in a stylish gray carrying case of 100% virgin vinyl. Here's a picture:

http://engr.calvin.edu/Faculty/svlee...rteOrange1.jpg

Write the number of your photo ID card on the ticket (so the RATP cops will know that you aren't using someone else's ticket).

chuut_riit

Personally, I found the Tube much easier to figure out and use than the buses in London (although my goal is to figure out and use those as well). The Tube does get expensive; I used something called a &quot;travel pass,&quot; which eliminated the need to stand in line at the ticket machines each trip. Instead, you simply pass it over a yellow pad in the turnstile and go through. Because it's a fixed price for the week, I found I used the Tube more to go between short stops than I would have if I had bought individual tickets. While I undoubtedly missed a lot of sights (and a lot of much needed exercise) doing this, I found it enabled me to get in more sights and gave me more flexibility in planning my days, as I could easily see sights on opposite sides of the city on the same day.

lecia11

I thought about using the tube, but since I'm there for such a short amount of time, I want to see as much as I can, even if it's from a bus.

Robespierre

<b>chuut_riit</b> -

Here is Everything You Always Wanted to Know About London Transport But Were Afraid to Ask:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34739639

wco81

I always use the metro in Paris because all venues and sites are listed in relation to a metro station. So you look at a map, see where that station is and find the right line.

Only time I tried a bus was in summer where I thought I'd try it to get away from the hot trains. Well it wasn't that better and seemed to take longer, with the traffic above.

twk

&quot;Whenever beginning an interaction with a French person, the first thing one always says is Bonjour/bonsoir, monsieur/madame. Always.&quot; No kidding? I've never heard that before.

Sarcasm asside, my impression from interacting with Metro and SNCF is that they are like civil servants most places--not quite as dedicated to customer service as their private sector counterparts. It doesn't have anything to do with being French, it's just the nature of the job.

lecia11

But if I get the Mobilis and the Carte Orange, I can ride either the bus or Metro, so perhaps I'll alternate, depending on where I'm going.

WillTravel

You can use the Carte Orange for both metro and bus. No need for both.

Robespierre

You can use the <i>Mobilis</i> for M&eacute;tro or bus on Sunday, and the <i>Carte Orange</i> for M&eacute;tro or bus on Monday through Wednesday. So you need both.

But you probably knew that, since you're a time traveler.

chuut_riit

Robespierre:

Thanks very much for the link! Next time I'm in London, I'll give the buses a try.

deavs

Hello to all of you London and Paris experts. Visiting London for 7 days, then straightaway to Paris for 7 days. Transportation covered between London and Paris already. So, what are your recommendations for 1. Airport from Heathrow to our hotel (near Victoria Station), 2. around London (planning on the very tradtional tourist sights and some off the path sights as well), in Paris, 1. Airport to hotel (1e), andd 2. around Paris (again traditional tourist sights with the off the path for shopping (Covent Garden/Soho). Suggestions s'il vous plait?

AisleSeat

Deaves, You will probably get more replies if you start your own thread on your questions. The tube runs directly from Heathrow to Victoria Station area.

For first-timers in both cities the Hop-On Hop-off tours are good first day activities to give you a once over and if you see something you like you can get off and explore.

For offbeat shopping you might want to explore the street fairs there are several in each city. Portobello road comes to mind for London but there are others.

Robespierre

The hop-on/off bus tours take you from sight to sight. They cost &pound;16 for 24 hours or &pound;20 for 48 hours. You can also buy a 7-day (168 hours) Transport for London bus pass for &pound;13.50 and find your own way between attractions with this map:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/pdfdocs/tourist.pdf

fishee

Do a search for robespierre's links to bus maps. They not only serve as good general maps but knowing the bus lines surrounding your hotel is great information. Also print out the bus maps of your &quot;destination&quot; areas -- helps you figure out when a bus that stops right near your hotel goes directly to where you're headed. It's much more scenic and pleasant to take buses as often as possible, walk upstairs to ride on the second story towards the front seats (where all the other tourists are.) I bought a two day pass that covered the LHR-hotel fare, plus unlimited rides on the tube and buses.