Using Paris Public Transportation - Tickets and a One-Week Pass

The terrific Paris public transportation system, which includes the Metro (subways), trains, and buses, has a number of ticket and pass options. I have used two and am familiar with a third. Purchases can be made with cash or credit cards. I used my U.S. credit card.

The first is an individual ticket, which costs €1.90. These can easily be purchased from a machine. I did not use this option. A single ticket can be used on a trip that involves a combination of Metro, train, and bus.

The second is a “carnet” of 10 individual Metro tickets for €14.90. That is cheaper than purchasing individual tickets at €1.90 per ticket. So it saves €4.10 on 10 tickets. I purchased the carnet from a ticket machine. I used the English menu option and I paid with my credit card. The tickets in a carnet can be shared with other travelers.

When using an individual ticket, you have to put it into a slot at an entry gate. It is validated and you retrieve it from another slot. You keep it with you. At some stations, you have to use it at the exit gate. At other stations, you simply push the gate open.

If a transportation system employee asks you to show a validated ticket, and you do not have one, you may be fined.

The third is a Navigó Decouverte pass. This is a one-week pass that only covers a specific 7-day period. It only starts at midnight on a Sunday night and continues through midnight the next Sunday night. This is an easy-to-use RFID card that you easily wave over a Metro entry gate. It opens the gate. It also opens exit gates. 

These cards are rechargeable.  The one-week charge is €22.80 and covers all five zones of the Paris transportation system, including the Metro, trains, and buses. It includes travel to Versailles, Charles de Gaulle Airport, and Disneyland Paris. The card itself costs a one-time fee of €5.

Since we arrived on a Friday, we used carnet tickets on Saturday and Sunday, and used our Navigó Decouverte pass starting on Monday morning

The card is made by the Metro employee at the ticket window. The Metro employee who helped me and my traveling companions spoke English and was very pleasant and helpful. To get the card requires a passport-like photo size 3 cm tall and 2.5 cm tall. The Metro station has a photo machine one can use to take the necessary photo. I created my photo with my smart phone at home and printed it on photo paper on my home printer. If the photo is a bit too large, the Metro employee will cut it to the right size.

My traveling companions used the photo machine at the Metro station to take their photos. It is much easier to do this at home rather than to waste time figuring out the machine.

I paid for the Navigó Decouverte pass with my credit card. We used our passes for a week, and never had a problem.

There are two different methods of entering a subway car. It depends on the car. Some have a green button on the door. You press that button. Others have a lever on the door. You simply lift the lever.

The employees at the ticket counter typically have nice, free maps of the Metro system. Simply ask for one.

The Google maps app on smart phones is great for using the Paris public transportation system. It provides all the info you need – which line to use, how many stops to go, where to transfer, etc., etc. It even indicates when a given station may be closed due to construction or some other problem.

There are great web sites that provide more detail than I have in this posting.