Tube & Metro Maps
 

Does anyone know where I can get maps of the London Tube and Paris Metro? Something that I can read and is self explanatory? So many of the ones in travel books have print that is so fine I can't read even with my glasses. Also I find it to be confusing to figure out. Any tips for the Tube/Metro challenged traveler?

Thanks

If you get a city map like Streetwise they often have the tube/metro stops printed on the street map, and a separate metro map on another area of the map. So, you can find the nearest stop based on the street map, then flip over to the metro map to see what line it's on and how to get there from another stop.

Also, if you go to the websites for the tube and the metro you can find maps there that you can probably print.

www.reed.edu/~reyn/transport.html has maps of all the world's major metro systems.

Madison:

Some details for London: the French will undoubtedly copy this sooner or later (if they haven't already), then claim they did it first. That's what happens with most things.

1. Go to the Tube map page at http://tube.tfl.gov.uk/content/tubemap/default.asp.
Choose the version of the map that best meets your needs, and download it. If the print, even on the large-print version, isn't big enough, don't print it. Use the 'zoom' function in Acrobat Reader, and read it on your screen.

2. Then print the version that suits you best and take it with you. On arrival, you'll be embarrassed by the frequency with which you get free, easily portable, tube maps.

3. It's possible neither my comments, nor the advice on a different thread to use the Journey Planner, quite help you. If that's the case, be a bit more specific about what problems you're having. Chances are, someone here's had the same problem, and has got round it.

Here are the standard online ones from the Transport for London site:

http://tube.tfl.gov.uk/content/tubemap/default.asp

I know it's not as wasy to follow as a paper map but there's lots of information on these different maps that may be helpful.

Some of them look good if you can print them out A4 size too which may be a good way to get used to the layout before you come to London.

Flanneruk beat me to it! Great minds think alike (or fools never differ...I'll leave it to you to decide!)

Thank you all for your help.

K

Here are a couple of good Metro sites. The second gives lists of stops and correspondences on a given line. Citefutee is also the source for bus line routes.

http://www.citefutee.com/orienter/plans.php#
http://www.webscapades.com/france/paris/metro.htm



However, to make sense of this you need a city map that shows the metro stations. Streetwise was mentioned. like the Paris Mapguide [available from amazon] which also shows bus lines. There is a London Mapguide also.

The above-mentioned 'MapGuides' are great booklets, and cover the majority of city-center that most tourists are likely to visit. I have used the Paris one for about 6 years, and have yet to be on a street that I couldn't locate on the map. They can be found in most chain bookstores, ie. Borders, B&N, etc. or are easily ordered online. I think the author/editor is Michael Middleditch, and they run about $8.00.

I recently bought a laminated/folding map of Paris that I really like, and think it has a lot of good features - it was about $6. and is called "City Flash". It has insets of CDG terminals, the shopping stretch along Champs, a good metro map, a limited street index and covers further-out areas than the above Mapguide does.
I think I bought it online at www.travelguidewarehouse.com or something like that.

You can download the Paris Metro Map here: http://www.ratp.fr/ParisVisite/Eng/Pla_q/f_pla.htm

Choose the PDF Metro version. (Other maps including RER and zone maps available at the same site.) To save the PDF, do one of the following:

- After you click on Metro, the map will come up. There should be a button that says "Save a Copy". Click this.
- Instead of clicking on Metro, right click and select "Save Target as".

Be sure when you print your PDF files that you choose Paper scaling - fit to paper.

BTW, I have all the regular maps and also concur with picking up the printed copy of the tube/metro maps available when you get there. But the ones you can print out before you go are great to get an idea in advance. I usually mark them up before I go with the locations where my hotel and places I know I want to visit are.