AWE8

I'm heading over to Paris for a couple of weeks in April and heard that you can buy a metro pass that allows you unlimited travel on the train and/or bus for longer periods of time. Supposedly that is cheaper than buying tickets individually for each trip but you have to prepare a photo for it? I'm not entirely sure if they mean a passport photo that I can take here and bring over to France with me or if I need to take one there specifically.

Does anyone know what that public transport pass is called and how much it would cost? Do I have to order online beforehand or can I just buy it in the airport when I arrive there?

I'm arriving on Thursday morning and will be leaving on a Thursday morning if that makes any difference. It's my first trip alone so I'm a bit nervous so any help is much appreciated.

Thank you!

qwovadis

eurocheapo.com/paris great tips check getting around.
Just buy a la carte for that period usually unless
commuting long distanes on the metro.
Relax no worries Paris is great tonnes of fun.
parisvoice.com

kerouac

Weekly passes start on Monday, so you can get a Navigo Découverte unlimited pass after the first weekend.

Sarastro

The pass is called a Navigo Découverte and is valid from any given Monday to the following Sunday. You must first purchase the blank card (5€) and supply a passport size photo of yourself, 25mm x 30mm or about one inch in size.

The card can be charged with any fare schedule you may need. The fare for one week´s unlimited access within central Paris is 19.15€. Access to greater distances from the center of Paris will cost more. Purchases made after Thursday will charge your card for the following week.

More information is available here:

www.ratp.fr

easytraveler

If you are not planning to go out to the Paris suburbs you can get a packet of tickets called a "carnet (car-nay)". Currently it sells for $12.50 for a packet of ten tickets. Single tickets are 1.70 euros.

For each trip, you just have to rip out one ticket. It's easy to use and quite extensive in its coverage. I find that a couple carnets are usually sufficient for a week's visit.

Here's some information on the different types of tickets/cards that you can get:

http://europeforvisitors.com/paris/a...ro-tickets.htm

AWE8

Thanks for the replies everyone!

hmm... it's looking like it will be cheaper to buy a Navigo (or Navigo Decouverte?) than a carnet if it costs $12.50 for 10 tickets vs. $19.15 for unlimited travel if I'm taking the metro at least twice a day.

Do the carnets include transfers on the metro itself if i need to switch trains to get to where I'm going?

Also can I buy all this upon arrival in Paris when I catch the RER from the airport to my hotel? I assume the RER is included in the Navigo pass so that would save on the cost to get into the city. Thank you!

avalon

The carnet tickets are good for 1 bus transfer in a 90 minute period. You only use 1 fro metro journeys if you don't leave the station. I find the Navigo Decoverte much more reasonable even for 4 days as I use the buses a lot! and can go thru a carnet of tickets in 1 day! YOu can often find photo booths in some metro stations or just take a snapshot and trim it to size. you can save the card for your next trip!Sorry can't answer the RER question as I use a shuttle service from the airport

Sarastro

All métro fares include any needed métro transfer to reach your destination.

You may want to use the carnet option for your arrival on Thursday, funding your ND for the following week starting on Monday. (Carnets now cost 12.70€.)

The 19.15€ fare I suggested is for use in central Paris only. An ND fare which would include travel to/from CDG (or Disney or Versailles) is 33.90€. For your CDG arrival, you might buy a RER ticket into Paris (which includes and required métro transfers) for 9.10€ (this price increases this month and I do not have the new fare).

Finally, if you are coming from the USA and want to use a credit card to purchase tickets, the ticket kiosks at CDG (in T1 or T2) are some of the only machines in Paris where your magnetic strip credit is accepted. Otherwise you´ll need cash to purchase tickets.

Christina

no, the RER is not included in the Navigo unless you pay for one for five zones, which is much more expensive. And if that is the only time you'd be in zone 5 (likely for most tourists), it wouldn't make sense to buy one like that. I don't know where you're getting these price quotes in dollars being mentioned, but the price is in euro. The Navigo is 19,15 euro for one week but only if you buy it for zones 1-2 (the least zones and what you'll need for central Paris). The cost is 33,90 euro if you buy a weekly Navigo that covers zone 5 where CDG is.

I think you may not understand the Navigo doesn't give you unlimited travel anywhere you want to go. YOu can't use it to go to Versailles, for example (or CDG or Orly, etc), if you buy the cheapest one. It is still the best deal if you are there close to a week (Mon-Sun period) for that particular week, anyway. I don't buy one if I'm only there 2-3 days or for a period like that as part of a longer vacation.

2010

Gosh, just when I thought I had figured out London's Oyster Card, now I have to figure out Paris' Navigo Decouverte - LOL!

The discussion + the links provided here have been most useful!

Thanks!

easytraveler

Sorry, I meant that it costs 12.50 euros for a carnet of 10 tickets and 1.70 euros for a single ticket.

Generally speaking, as long as you stay in the metro system, you can switch trains on one fare ticket.

Say you have to go on Line A for two stops, then switch over to Line B for five stops, then switch over to Line C for one stop. You can do this by not exiting the metro stations and so use only one ticket.

AWE8

Thanks everyone Yes I understood it is in euro but my keyboard doesn't seem to have the euro sign so I just used the dollar sign.

Thank you for clarifying about the limits to using the Navigo pass. I didn't realize there are different zones and different payments depending on the zones. Since I DO want to visit Versailles then I guess I'll have to do that in my last week so that I can use the more expensive pass to take the RER back to the airport as well instead of paying for a separate ticket for that.

Actually now that I'm talking about Versailles, would it be better for me to buy the more expensive Navigo pass for that or for me to buy the regular 'central Paris' Navigo pass and then an additional ticket for the train trip out to Versailles? I heard that if you buy the ticket separately, they include the price of admission/tours as well.