Paris transportation

[konradd]

My wife and I will be in Paris for 3 days next month.Finding it confusing the different options for public transportation. We would be using a metro pass say between the 2 of us 4 to 6 tickets each day so a total of 12 to 18 tickets total
Any suggestions what metro pass we get .Thanks in advance

 

[ninkat]

You will each need to have your own Navigo Easy Pass (cost 2 euros). (Cardboard tickets are no longer sold.) As of Jan. 1, the possibility of buying a carnet of ten tickets at a discount no longer exists, so buying more tickets than you need doesn't seem like a good idea. I have my Navigo Easy Pass loaded onto my iPhone's Wallet, but I had the actual card first, so I am not sure it is possible to bypass that original 2 euro charge. The Bonjour RATP app for your phones (if you will have your phones) also may be a way to buy the Metro tickets.

In any case, the "day" passes/week passes, etc. would not be advantageous for you, and there is no longer a "pass" of individual tickets, so you will just be buying as many individual tickets as you need. It is a different (more expensive) ticket from the airport, but guessing there will be someone there to explain this upon your arrival.

 

[Gillaspiewoods]

Yeah, i think the train in from CDG is on RER; but it takes you right down town and hooks up with the Metro (which is a separate system to the RER) There’s a site called The Man in Seat 61 that is very good for European travel in general and it has a specific landing page for train travel in France (including intra-Paris) that you might wish to consult. Good luck and please report back!

 

[konradd]

Thanks very much for responding
Hard to believe a simple thing is confusing

 

[Steve R.]

Ninkat's method is easy enough but I'd recommend just going to the machine the first time you want to take the Metro and buying 10 tickets total for the 2 of you (no discount, but no 2euro cost/Navigo either). Unless you plan to return to Paris, the Pass is an unnecessary 4euro spend. When/if you get down to the last 2 tickets, you'll probably know how many more you'll need to complete the 3 days & you can just buy them/trip. If the 2 of you are always taking the metro together, it may be as inexpensive to take a door to door Uber for some trips.

 

[Gillaspiewoods]

Just wait until you have a train malfunction or a wildcat strike! That makes normal Parisian rail travel look like that cake they were all told to eat!

 

[Andrew]

Ninkat's method is easy enough but I'd recommend just going to the machine the first time you want to take the Metro and buying 10 tickets total for the 2 of you (no discount, but no 2euro cost/Navigo either).

Does this mean paper tickets? Note from here (official site):
"Individual t+ tickets and cardboard Origin-Destination tickets will no longer be sold starting from January 1, 2025, except in a few stations that do not yet have machines or counters offering Navigo Easy passes."

I'm not sure if I'm understanding it all correctly, but it appears that you can have tickets stored on a smartphone, buying them through the app, without needing to buy the Navigo Easy pass.

 

[Steve R.]

Apparently, I've missed the bus. When we left Paris in June, they were saying that the station vending machines would still sell individual non-discounted t+ tickets well into 2025. However, I just went to the official site (thanks for the link Andrew) & it seems that these tickets can be used thru 2025 but will now only be sold at a couple of stations (I didn't see any listing of which). And, yes, it does appear that the cost of buying the Easy Pass can be circumvented by loading the app and storing the tickets directly on smartphones.
In any event, although its only for 3 days, ninkat's advice is probably the best & the cost of the Easy Pass is worth it to avoid migraines over yet another muddled French "system". Just be glad you're not trying to figure out how to buy Roland Garros French Open Tickets, as the e-mail I just received explaining their new lottery system is painful to even read.

 

[KathyH]

I’m going to Paris in a few months. Here’s a good You Tube video that explains the updated transport system and tickets pretty well.

View: https://youtu.be/At5FE5G5v3k?si=nUSiwmbW99rDnwE0


Each person will need their own smartphone or Navigo pass card. I plan to load a few metro tickets and a few bus tickets on my iPhone and use as needed.

 

[PatrickLondon]

Excellent explanation (as one who started using the Métro in the 1960s, but not for the last couple of years).

 

[daydreamer]

KathyH, thank you for posting the video. I too found the explanation to be excellent. I will watch the video again closer to the date of my departure to Paris and review the options for tickets.