What kind of ticket is best to buy in the Paris metro?

Paris is not a very big city and you can walk all the way through it. But sometimes we get tired or want to see more. Then we need a ticket for public transportation. Which tickets to buy? How long are tickets valid? What about the zones? We’ll figure it out!

First, the entire territory is split into five transport zones with different fees. Paris is in the first and second zones, while Charles de Gaulle and Disneyland Paris is in the last one.

One ticket for all transport

The t+ ticket applies to all transport in zones 1 and 2 of Paris: subway, bus, streetcar, and RER. One ticket costs €2,10 and is for a single trip, but a trip can be with transfers (subway to RER or vice versa, bus to streetcar or vice versa). You can transfer within 2 hours. You can buy a ticket at metro ticket offices, from vending machines at stations, or from the bus driver. Remember that the ticket from the bus driver costs more — €2,50.

You must buy a special ticket for zones 3, 4, 5. For example, if you arrive at the Charles de Gaulle airport, you should buy a ticket for the RER for traveling by public transport. Once you enter the capital, you can transfer to the subway and move around the whole city.

An alternative means of travel is to take a cab or rent a car, which will bring you to the desired address in comfort and at a lightning speed. You can rent a car here.

» See more – Tourist passes for Paris

Travelcard

If you expect to use public transport more than 10 times, buy a Navigo Easy card at a ticket office as soon as you can. It is more convenient than a small paper ticket and also cheaper – the card costs €2 and a topup for 10 trips is €16.90.

You can also load the card with tickets for children (from 4 to 10 years, 10 tickets for €8.45), a day pass (Navigo Jour), and a weekend youth pass (Navigo Jeune). We wrote about these passes in this article:

» READ MORE – NAVIGO PASS IN PARIS

Metro tickets in Paris

Specially for travelers there is a travel pass Paris Visite. It can be bought for 1-5 days with action in 1-3 and 1-5 transport zones (price starts from €13.50). This pass comes with a map of the city and discounts on all sights. Only with a 1-5 zone pass is the way to Charles de Gaulle or Orly airports open. Otherwise, tickets to them must be purchased with a station indication, as special charging works in the suburbs.

The Mobilis Day Ticket is made for Parisians, but can also serve the tourist well. It also has no limit on the number of rides. For zones 1-2 it will cost €8.45, 1-3 €11.30, 1-4 €14 and for 1-5 €20.10. It is advantageous to buy this pass if you are going to Versailles or Disneyland. One round trip is more expensive.

Multi-day passes for Parisians are loaded onto the Navigo card. A tourist can buy one as well. They are cheaper than the card Paris Visit, but are valid strictly during the calendar week or month (from Monday to Sunday or from 1 to the last day). You will need to buy the card itself for €5 in addition to paying the fare, stick your photo and write your name on it.

The advantage of Navigo is that it applies to all zones and does not limit passengers to travel on urban and suburban transport. Fares change throughout the year. At the moment they start at €30 per week (5 zones). The cost of a pass for a month will be €84.10.

Especially for culturally active tourists there are discount cards Paris Pass and Paris PassLib’, which give not only the right to unlimited travel, but also discounts, or even free entrance without queuing to the main attractions.

Transport ticket prices

• A standard ticket costs €2.10 and the Navigo Easy card with 10 tickets is €18.90.
• A ticket from Paris to Charles de Gaulle is €11.45. Remember that it’s in zone 5.
• A ticket from Paris to Disneyland on RER is about €5 and a ticket to Versailles is about €4.05.
• Orly is in zone three, but to get to it on the OrlyVal you will have to buy extra rides that cost €11.

And it’s impractical to not use our audio guide. It’s an irreplaceable tour guide that doesn’t take up much space on your device. You can download it by using this link.

And finally. The cost of public transport tickets changes each year. So, we recommend checking the prices on the website RATP before your trip.

Enjoy your trip!