Paris is a huge city with so much to see and do, but despite its size, it’s so easy to get around. The public transport system is excellent so it’s possible to hop from one attraction to the next without any trouble, meaning that you can pack lots of great activities into a short weekend break. Here’s a short guide to getting around quickly and easily, from your arrival right up to your departure.

Arriving by air

Paris has two major airports – Orly and Charles de Gaulle. All the big airlines fly into these two airports. There’s another airport called Beauvais, which is quite a bit further out of Paris. It’s served mainly by budget airlines such as Ryanair. If you don’t mind a rather long journey into Paris, it can be a good cheap way to fly to the city.

Charles de Gaulle airport is in a suburb to the north east of Paris called Roissy. It’s about 23 kilometres from the city centre and it’s well connected by public transport. The Roissyrail train line is part of the Réseau Express Regional (RER) system – a suburban train network. There are trains every 15 minutes from terminal two and terminal three, which take you to Gare du Nord. If you arrive at terminal one, a shuttle bus will take you to the Roissyrail station. If you prefer to take the bus, there’s a Roissybus every 15 minutes from terminal one and terminal two. It terminates at the Opéra metro station in the centre of Paris.

Orly is a little closer to Paris – it’s 13 kilometres south of the city centre. There’s a bus/train connection called Orlyrail. You’ll be taken by shuttle bus to the RER train station and from there it’s a short journey to Gare d’Austerlitz. There are connections every 30 minutes. If you prefer just to take a bus right into the city centre, there are lots of other frequent shuttle services – Orlybus, Orlyval, Air France buses and Jetbus.

The city of Beauvais is approximately 85 kilometres north of Paris. Its shuttle service is scheduled according to flight arrivals at the airport, with a coach leaving 20 minutes after every arrival. It takes just over an hour to get into the city centre. If you prefer to take the train, you could take a taxi to the train station in Beauvais – it’s only 15 minutes’ drive from the airport. The train journey takes just under an hour, arriving at Gare du Nord. The other option is to take a taxi all the way into the city centre, but this can take up to an hour and a half depending on traffic and is very expensive – it could set you back up to 150 euros.

Arriving by train

The national and international train networks in continental Europe are excellent and often the most efficient way to get around, and the Eurostar from London is often the best way to get to Paris from Great Britain. There are six mainline train stations in Paris and all of them are linked to the métro system so it’s easy to get around once you arrive in the city. Here’s a guide to train arrivals in Paris:

Gare de l’Est – east France, Austria, Germany and eastern Europe
Gare du Nord – north France and Germany, Eurostar, Belgium, Netherlands and Scandinavia
Gare St Lazare – north France
Gare de Lyon – south France, Switzerland, Italy and Greece
Gare Montparnasse – south west France
Gare d’Austerlitz – south France and Spain
City transport

Paris has an integrated public transport network of buses, RER trains and the metro. It’s called the RATP (Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens). You can easily hop from bus to train to métro using the same ticket and it’s cheap and efficient. You can buy an RATP transport map that shows all the bus, metro and train lines and their connections. You can buy one day passes or several day passes, which can save a lot of hassle as well as a lot of money. Sometimes the tickets even offer discounts to museums and galleries

Buses

Buses are a great way of seeing a lot of the city as you travel. There are bus stops everywhere, each of which has detailed information on what buses stop there, what route they take and their timetables. It’s a very easy method of transport and is good to use in conjunction with the métro.

Métro

Paris is famed for its brilliant underground system with its iconic Art Nouveau station entrances. The Métropolitain (metro) makes city centre travel so simple. It runs about 21 hours per day and is replaced by an excellent system of nightbuses in the middle of the night, so you’ll never get stuck. Don’t be put off by the complex network of tunnels and lines – it’s incredibly easy to find your way around as all the lines are colour coded and there are maps and signposts everywhere.

RER

The Réseau Express Régional is the suburban train system used mainly by commuters into and out of Paris. If you want to travel a little further out of town, it’s the best way to go. The trains are fast and frequent.

Article source and author information

Audrey Akeman has resided in Paris for over 20 years. She works as a freelance writer. Website: http://www.pariscityinformation.info

Article Source: www.iSnare.com

Your choice will depend on where you are travelling, the convenience and time available, and your budget.

It is worth giving a little thought to these forms of transport before you visit e.g. what Paris metro tickets are available, so that you don’t waste time and money when you are actually in Paris and having to deal with new surroundings.

Taken in turn the forms of public transport in Paris are:

Paris Metro

The Paris Metro is the network of underground stations and trains that cover much of Paris – it is said that you are never more than 500 metres from the nearest metro station when in the centre of the city.

The entrances to the metro are clearly marked with large signs proclaiming ‘Metro’ or ‘M’.

Tickets can be bought at all stations, either from kiosks or from machines. If you are spending a few days in Paris it is very likely that you will want to buy a ‘carnet’ of 10 tickets from the ticket desk. Bought like this the tickets are about 30% cheaper, and avoid the need to queue up each time you travel, and are valid for anyone in your group (ie ten journeys for yourself or five journeys if there are two of you etc)

The Paris Metro is quick, cheap and straightforward to use – there are maps all over the place that enable you to be sure you are travelling on the right line, and you can also ask for a map at the ticket offices. Each line has a number and is also named after the first and last stations on the line. See Paris Metro for more details and to learn of the architectural highlights (many stations have impressive Art Nouveau entrances).

RER

The RER (full name Reseau Express Regional) is the railway network that serves the Paris suburbs and outlying areas and is usually faster than the metro if you are travelling quite a long way across the city. There are many interchange stations where you can easily transfer between the Metro and the RER according to your journey.

Use of the RER is very similar to that of the metro, except the trains are above ground! You might like to avoid using the RER (and the metro) at the same time as commuters if your hotel is outside the centre of the city.

Buses in Paris

Buses are a great way to see the city and a recommended way of travelling around. As with other public transport in Paris rush-hour is best avoided when possible.

Individual tickets can be bought on the bus, or Metro tickets can be used if you have bought a carnet of those.

The buses can be slightly more daunting for visitors to the city at first, because the place where you want to disembark will be less obvious (unlike the Metro where station names are very clear). You might find yourself spending more time looking at the map and trying to work out where you are than enjoying the view from the window!

Maps in the bus stops show which buses travel past that stop, and where they go to. Be sure to check the number on the bus is the same as the one you are waiting for!

Note: each time you get on a Paris metro train (or other public transport in Paris such as the RER or busues) you MUST have a valid stamped ticket. As you board the train you will pass through a barrier where your ticket is stamped, and on buses there is a machine as you get on where your ticket must be inserted and stamped. failure to have a validated ticket will result in a hefty fine if an inspector comes along (as they often do).

Taxis

Taxis in Paris are more or less the same as everywhere else in the world! You can find taxis at taxi-ranks or stop one in the street if the ‘taxi’ sign on the top is lit up.

If your French prononciation is not good you might like to have pen and paper with you, or a guide book that includes your destination, to avoid any possible confusion.