For information in English: 08 36 68 41 14

Paris is well equipped in the area of public transport, which is administered by the state owned company RATP. The easiest way to get around Paris is by the metro (subway) which runs daily from 5:30am-12:30am. Transportation maps are available at subway stations. Tickets can be purchased singly or in books of 10. They are available at the stations and from tobacconists and must be validated before boarding. It is also necessary to have the ticket available at the end of the journey. The best buy is a Paris Viste ticket which is valid for 1-5 days and can be used interchangeably on the subway, bus and rail service to some destinations.

Subway
Métro de Paris
www.ratp.fr (official French site)
www.metro-paris.net (unofficial English site)

The Paris Métro is the underground rapid transit system in Paris. It has been expanded with the  addition of an express network known as the RER to reach further suburbs.  Trains run from approximately 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. every day of the year on every station of the network.

The standard pass is the single trip ticket “t” which is valid for 2 hours in the whole metro network and in zone 1 of the RER network. It can be bought either as a single unit at a cost of €1.40, or as a pack of ten, a carnet, costing €10.90.  Other passes are also available that allow unlimited use of the public transit system within a given period of time.

Turnstiles mark the entrance to the network. With regular passes, users should insert their ticket in the designated slot and take it back afterwards. The ticket should be kept during the whole trip, and may be checked by an inspector at any time. For the Navigo pass, on the other hand, bringing it close to the turnstile’s sensor is enough. There is no need to insert any ticket.

Taxi
If you’re out and about in Paris on the main boulevards, etc., you don’t put your fingers to your mouth and whistle, or jump out in the road and wave a taxi down [you may get run over].  There is a system in place that you have to follow just like everyone else!  It’s called getting in line at the taxi stand.  There are taxi stands all around Paris…this does not apply however to the suburbs and other regions of France.  But in Paris, people really get aggravated at you, if you jump the line to grab a taxi!

Railway
Train (SNCF) information
08 36 35 35 35
www.ter-sncf.com

Paris is equipped with 6 major railway stations each of which is in charge of a particular area of France.  Train travel while in France is highly recommended; it’s scenic, relaxing and comfortable.  Keep in mind, that for train travel in France, you will need a reservation besides a ticket. This information is not known generally, so you cannot always buy a ticket and hop on the train because train service is the way Europeans travel, and they stay busy.  Travel lightly; because you will be carrying your own bags, porters are not readily available to help you.

A train station is called a Gare, select your train information from the following:  SNCF gare locator, SNCF Paris, the TGV (fast trains), the RER [regional trains] and the Eurostar and all Train schedules, ticketing info, and all rail passes for Europe are here.