Sacre Coure steps
 

My father wants to visit Sacre Coure (sorry if I misspelled)but I am concerned about the uphill walk and stelps. Is there any way to avoid the steep walk?

Hi

Yes there is a funicular railway from the bottom of Montmarte to the Sacre Coer (very short ride). We paid separately but others in the forum said you can use your metro ticket to use it free. Take the little tourist train back down to the Pigalle - there is an interesting commentary provided by the driver.

Au revoir

How about taking a taxi from your previous stop on your visit to Paris? We've only taken a few taxis in our trips to Paris, but one now and then can't possibly break the budget.

I say this because I seem to remember that the funicular was up a steep street or two. I could be wrong, but you might want to check.

I've taken a taxi from the Clingnacourt market to Sacre Cour, and another from Sacre Cour to Place Madeleine. I don't recall that either was too expensive.

I've taken a taxi to Sacre Coeur twice and both times considered it a good investment. I think it was less than ten euro from Musee D'Orsay and you go through some pretty areas. So much better on the knees!

If you have an RATP pass, it will get you to the Pigalle station (either by Métro or bus). Then you can get on the Montmartrobus, drive around the quarter, and stop off at the basilica. If taking the scenic route doesn't intrigue you, jump off at the Place du Tertre and walk across.

Robespierre,

Is the Montmartrobus the open air trammy thing I've seen up there, or is that somehting different??

Sometimes you can make a transfer using a single journey ticket if you are transfering from Metro to the Funicular. It will be a free transfer, but sometimes it doesn't work.

Tuscan, the Montmartrobus is a normal RATP bus, except that it's much smaller, it's what Americans would call a van, since it has to make its way through the tiny winding streets of Montmartre. It starts at Pigalle (or Anvers ? ) metro station all the way up to place du Tertre.

Hi all,

From my trip report:

Took the Metro to Pl Pigalle, crossed Rue Clichy and got on the Montmartrebus (no 18) on the left side of the pl. The bus winds its way up to Sacre Coeur and down to Pl Jules Joffrin and then back to Pigalle. Worth the 1E charge.

(You can go all the way to Joffrin, wait for the bus to recharge and get off at Sacre Coeur on the return trip.)

Visited the Basilica, saw the view. Had lunch at Le Tardieu, a tiny place on Rue Tardieu that is notable for its toilette. Out back, Turkish style. Mom admitted that this was certainly an experience.

Stopped by Eglise St Jean de Montmartre before walking down the stairway at the Abesses Metro stop. Unfortunately, the art work is badly disfigured by graffiti.


((I))

Couldn't one also take the metro to Lamarck-Caulaincourt, then walk at a decline to Sacre Coeur? Then depart by way of Abbesses or Anvers (continuing downhill)...

Travelnut: It's a hilly (and longish, .5 km) walk from Lamarck-Caulaincourt to Place du Tertre, then to the steps. For the energetic, this is a fabulous place to begin a visit to Montmartre. The views of those staircases all about are fabulous (with great photo ops).

Better bet is metro to Abssesses, taking the elevator to the exit, then it's a few short, flat, blocks to the bottom of the finicular. You can pay with a metro ticket or use a pass. There's a cafe with a lovely sidewalk terrace for enjoying views of Sacre Coeur just west of the foot of the finicular.

The Montmartrobus has stops near both Abssesses and Lamarck-Caulaincourt. Here's the route http://www.ratp.info/orienter/f_plan...;loc=bus_paris

If you do L'Opentour (which I highly recommend for getting around to all the major sights and attractions, and for just enjoying the fabulous scenery all about from the open air upper deck in the nice weather), there's a stop right at the foot of the finicular.

You can reach the top of the butte (where Sacré-Cœur is located) by climbing several hundred steps, by riding the RATP funicular (still a few steps at the top), by taking an RATP bus, by taking a taxi, by taking a little tourist train, or by walking the long route that winds up to the butte (no steps, but a gradual and moderately steep grade).

My usual choice is the funicular. In cool weather I sometimes take the steps, and I often go down via the rue Lepic and wind down the butte.

Our Carte Orange was good on both the bus and the funiclare. If the weather is hot, the bus can be stuffy. We were stuck on a small street waiting for a furniture van to unload for ???10 minutes. Very hot. It was larger than a van.