Paris Public Transportation : all you need to know

Origin-Destination Ticket : a single ticket to get from point A to point B

What means of transportation can I use?

How much does it cost?

2,50€ per trip

Where can I travel?

• Choose your departure station and the arrival station
• Suitable for journeys outside Paris (Disneyland, Versailles, Fontainebleau, Vaux-le-Vicomte etc)

Where to buy them?

• Ticket offices in train stations, metro stations or from ticket machines in SNCF and RATP stations.

Please note

• These fares do not apply to origin-destination tickets departing from or arriving at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle or Orly airport. 

OrlyBus and RoissyBus tickets : direct access to Orly and Roissy Charles-de-Gaulle airports

What means of transportation can I use?

Several bus (Roissybus, Orlybus) and RER (B, C, Orlyval) routes available

How much does it cost?

• Flat rate of €13
• The Orlyval ticket is also offered at a reduced fare with a 50% discount

Where to buy them?

From ticket machines at the RATP/Transilien and metro stations: 

• Roissy by train-RER B
• Orly by train-RER C
• Orlyval tickets

On board the coach and at the station : 

• OrlyBus and RoissyBus

2. NAVIGO TRAVEL CARD

This is a great option if you are planning to use Paris Public Transportation several times.

All you need to do is buy a NAVIGO TRAVEL CARD and top it up. There are two types to choose from :

• You are visiting Paris just for a few days  → NAVIGO EASY TRAVEL CARD 
• You are visiting Paris for a week, several weeks, a month or a few months → NAVIGO DÉCOUVERTE TRAVEL CARD

Let me break down, for each option, how it works, where to buy it, the price and the tickets you can load on it. 

NAVIGO EASY TRAVEL CARD : best option for short stays

Where do I buy the NAVIGO EASY TRAVEL CARD and how much is it?

• At the ticket offices, counters and certain ticket machines
• The card costs 2€ 

How does it work?

• It is not personalised so you can share it or pass it to someone else. During a trip, however, each passenger must have their own card

What kind of tickets can I add to NAVIGO EASY TRAVEL CARD?

• Métro-Train-RER Ticket
• Ticket Bus-Tram
• Navigo Day Ticket 
• Paris Région <> Airports Tickets
• Billets OrlyBus et RoissyBus
• Paris Visite Ticket : 1, 2, 3 or 4 days

How do I buy tickets on my NAVIGO EASY TRAVEL CARD?

• From ticket machines and ticket offices, at stations
• Directly with the Île-de-France Mobilités app on your smartphone (great to avoid long lines at stations)

NAVIGO DECOUVERTE TRAVEL CARD : best option if you are here for a week or more

Where do I buy the NAVIGO DECOUVERTE TRAVEL CARD and how much is it?

• In agencies, at counters an approved shops
• To find the closest sales point you can check this interactive map : selling points 
• The card costs 5€

How does it work?

• The card has two parts that are strictly personal and non-transferable. 
• The card holder must enter their first name and surname, attach their photo and stick down the adhesive flap on the paper card.

What kind of tickets can I add to NAVIGO DECOUVERTE TRAVEL CARD?

• Navigo Day
• Navigo Weekly
• Navigo Monthly
• Paris Visite Ticket : 1, 2, 3 or 4 days

How do I buy tickets on my NAVIGO DECOUVERTE TRAVEL CARD?

• From ticket machines and ticket offices, at stations
• Directly with the Île-de-France Mobilités app on your smartphone (great to avoid long lines at stations)

3. YOUR SMARTPHONE 

This is, in our opinion, the best option if you are planning to use public transportations several times and feel comfortable using your phone. 

All you need to do is download the Île-de-France Mobilités app and top up the tickets you need. 

• Install the app (available on Android or iOS phone)
• Use the app to buy your tickets on your phone
• As you travel, validate your ticket with your smartphone

STEP 2 : CHOOSING THE RIGHT TRANSPORT TICKET/PASS FOR YOUR NEEDS

There are many different kinds of tickets/passes you can buy and load on your Navigo travel card or your phone. For each option, here are their cost and use.

SINGLE TICKETS

Métro-Train-RER Ticket : valid for a single journey

Fares

• full price : 2,50€
• reduced fare : 1,25€

What means of transportation can I use?

How does it work?

• Valid throughout the Ile-de-France region (excluding airports)
• Also valid for travel on express trams T11, T12, T13
• Load ticket onto a Navigo Easy card or smartphone
• Single journey ticket, possibility to change metro/RER/train line when there’s a connection withing the station

Please note, it is not valid in the following cases

• To get to Orly Airport on Metro Line 14 → you need a Paris Region Airports Ticket
• To get to Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport on RER B → you need a Paris Region Airports Ticket
• To take the bus or tram anywhere in Ile-de-France → you need a Bus-Tram Ticket

Bus-Tram Ticket : valid for a single journey  

Fares

• full price : 2€
• reduced rate : 1€

What means of transportation can I use?

How does it work?

• Valid throughout the Ile-de-France region (excluding airports)
• Load ticket onto a Navigo Easy card or smartphone

Please note, it is not valid in the following cases

• To get to Orly Airport on Metro Line 14 → you need a Paris Region Airports Ticket
• To get to Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport on RER B → you need a Paris Region Airports Ticket
• If your journey is by express tram T11, T12, T13 → you need a Metro-Train-RER Ticket

DAY PASSES

Navigo Day Ticket : unlimited journeys

This is a good option if you are planning to take the transport 5 times or more in a day (2,50€ x 5 = 12,50€)

Fares

• No reduced fare applies to this pass
• 12€ per day

What means of transportation can I use?

How does it work?

• Unlimited travel for a whole day!
• Valid throughout the Ile-de-France region (excluding airports)
• Load ticket onto a Navigo Easy card or smartphone

Paris Visite Ticket 

You’ll really have to take public transport many times a day for this option to be advantageous! 

• You’d need to use it at least 12 times in a day → 2,5€ x 12 = 30€
• Or if you are coming from or going to the airport you’ll need to use it 7 times → 13€ + 2,5€ x 7 = 30,50€

Fares

• 1 day = 29,90€
• 2 days = 44,45€
• 3 days = 62,50€
• 4 days = 76,25€

Reduced fare : half price 

What means of transportation can I use?

How does it work?

• Unlimited travel for 1, 2, 3 or 5 consecutive days
• Valid throughout the Ile-de-France region (airports included)
• Load ticket onto a Navigo Easy card or smartphone

AIRPORT TICKETS AND MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION

Paris Région <> Airports Tickets

Fares

• Full price: €13
• Reduced rate: €6.50

What means of transportation can I use?

How does it work?

• To or from Orly Airport using Metro 14 or Orlyval
• To or from Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport using RER B
• Load ticket onto a Navigo Easy card or smartphone

Please note

• With the Paris Region <> Airports Ticket you can connect to other services (metro/RER/Train) for up to two hours after first entering the network, until you exit a station
• Return trips and breaks in your journey on the same line are not allowed with the same ticket.
• It is not possible to load an airport ticket and another Metro-Train-RER ticket onto the same card at the same time. If you are coming from the airport, load first an airport ticket and once it has been validated, you can load Metro-Train-RER tickets. 

Is metro 14 a good option to get to Orly airport? 

If your hotel is anywhere near one of line 14 stations we highly recommend it. 

• Metro line 14 is one of the most recent lines in Paris 
• It is accessible (elevators, escalators), automatic (no driver) and very efficient (metros every 2-3 min)
• It only takes between 20-35 min to get to/from the center of Paris depending on your departure station
• You arrive directly in Orly’s airport and can access all terminals within a few minutes 
• BE CAREFUL : THE LINE IS SOMETIMES CLOSED ALL DAY, check the closing calendar ahead of time

Is RER B a good option to get to Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport?

It depends. If we’re being honest, it is not our favourite option. The quality of the service is very random. You could be lucky one day and everything would run smoothly, the other day : trains are cancelled one after the other or you have to take it during rush hour and it is not pleasant (one of the busiest lines of the region). 

If you take it from the airport, being the first two stops of RER B line, it is safe to say that 

• You have good chances to find an empty train whenever you need to take one
• You’ll be able to take a Taxi in case the line is not running : technical problem, strike etc…  

What else do you need to know about the RER? 

• It is mostly accessible (elevators are not always working) 

• Depending on the time of the day, RERs come every 6-15 mins 
• It takes between 35-50 min to get to/from the center of Paris depending on your departure station

RoissyBus 

Good option to go from Paris centre to Roissy-CDG airport by Bus

• Departure every 15-20 min. approximately
• Travel time: 60. approximately
• Please note that OrlyBus line stopped working from March 3rd 2025

STEP 3 : RIDING PARIS PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION LIKE A PRO

When in Paris, ride like a Parisian! The métro, buses, and trams don’t just get you from A to B – they’re part of the local rhythm. Skip the traffic and feel the city’s underground heartbeat right alongside its people. It’s efficient, pretty clean and a truly authentic experience.

Honestly, the hardest part is buying the ticket suitable to your needs! But after reading this article, that shoud no longer be an issue. We take the metro everyday to go to work or meet friends/family it is an essential part of our daily lives in Paris.

For a smooth experience here’s a few tips

• Keep right when on the escalators/stairs
• Some metro doors open automatically others don’t, you have to press a button or lift a handle
• Metros don’t stay very long at the platform, let people out of the train and hop on quickly
• Avoid rush hours : 8-10 am & 5-8 pm – Paris public transportation has around 4 million travellers everyday!
• Beware of pickpockets, do not leave anything visible in the backpockets of your trousers, have your purses closed and close to you

How to navigate Paris Metro?

Every station has a large metro map at the entrance & at the platform to help you get around

• step 1 : locate your departure & arrival station
• step 2 : find the route, you might have a direct line or transfer(s)
• step 3 : look for the right direction and follow the signs. Piece of cake!

In case you get confused/lost, don’t be scared to ask for directions. Most Parisians speak English nowadays. Make sure you say « Bonjour » before asking and you’ll be fine.

Even our dog Pepe is a pro of Paris Public Transportation…