A woman looking at getting around Paris with the Eiffel Tower in the background

The complete guide to getting around Paris

If you’re looking to discover the secrets of how Parisians get about by metro, bus, train, tram – and road – then this is the guide for you.
By Ian Packham

Only those with a machoistic streak would ever consider driving in or around Paris unnecessarily. At their worst, roads can be likened to parking lots, which is ironic given how hard parking can be to find.

As a visitor, you’re much better off getting around Paris through the plethora of public transportation options. They’re generally inexpensive, efficient, trustworthy and safe. Sounds good, non?

Paris by metro

Paris Métro is probably the best way of getting around Paris for those who don’t speak French. Individual lines are named for the most part by numbers. The exceptions are lines 3bis and 7bis, which are separate from lines 3 and 7.

Lines can also be differentiated by their rainbow of colors on network maps. The direction of travel is advertised on trains by referencing the line’s terminus station.

One of the densest metro networks of any city, it’s rare to be very far from the nearest station, whether you’re on the rive gauche (left bank) or hilly Montmartre. It’s also the second busiest metro system in the world. Over four million trips are taken daily.

For comfort, it’s better to avoid the morning and evening rush hours. They are at their peak between 8:30 – 9:30AM and 5:30 – 6:30PM Monday to Friday. Lines run until around 1AM.

Fares are purchased from manned kiosks or ticket machines with English-language options. Tickets are required to pass through the gates to platforms. Though there are generally no gates on exit, you need to keep your ticket until the end of your journey as random ticket inspections are frequent.

The main downside to the Paris Métro is that those with accessibility issues will find it hard to make use of its network of trains. Stations are largely underground and reached via staircases.

Buses

 

Tickets for Paris buses can be purchased directly from drivers if you’ve got the correct change. Larger stops have electronic displays indicating which buses are next to arrive. They usually also have a map of the route.

Buses have shorter operating hours than the metro. Most lines operate from 7:30AM until 8:30PM Monday – Saturday. Some operate until around midnight. An increasing number now run on Sundays and public holidays.

Buses won’t automatically pull up at every stop – you’ll need to raise your arm to alert the driver or press the button for the bell when on board.

You board from the front and depart from the middle doors on standard buses, or from any door on articulated (‘bendy’) buses. You may need to press the door release button.

On entering, validate your ticket at the small yellow boxes. This will stamp the date and time onto it. Heavy fines are handed out for those who don’t – including tourists.

If this all sounds a little complicated for a vacation, there’s always Hop-on Hop-off sightseeing buses. They allow you to discover attractions such as Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre to your heart’s content.

Trains and trams

 

Trains belonging to the RER suburban railway network are of limited interest to visitors looking at getting around Paris since they tend to serve the outer reaches of the city. Departing from mainline train stations, their lines are distinguishable from metro lines through the use of letters of the alphabet rather than numbers.

Useful lines include line A, linking Disneyland Paris in the east with Poissey in the west via the Grande Arche of the La Défense district and the Gare de Lyon. Line C links the rive gauche with the Palace of Versailles. RER trains also connect to Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports.

To check out Paris’s impressive railway architecture within the calmer surrounds of an art gallery, head to the Musée d’Orsay, converted in the late 1980s.

Pretty much the same situation exists for the city’s tram (streetcar) network. Denoted by lines beginning ‘T’, it mainly serves areas outside of the city center not reached by the otherwise extensive metro system.

Tickets for public transportation in Paris

 

The metro, buses, RER trains and trams all use the same ticketing system. A basic ticket costs around €2 (a little over $2), making it a very economical way of getting around Paris.

Carnet booklets of 10 tickets reduce the cost further. Carte Navigo Découverte smart cards are another way to access the network, although they’re a bit of a hassle to set up and load.

Ticketing can be made simpler still with the Paris Visite Pass. Operating like a contactless credit card, it provides unlimited travel on public transport in Paris or Paris plus the Île de France region.

The second option is important for anyone looking to get to and from the airports or the Palace of Versailles. Paris Visite Passes can be purchased for one, two, three or five consecutive days of use.

Taxis and ride hailing apps

 

They may be expensive when compared to other ways of getting around Paris, but taxis do have their uses. For one thing, you’ll be able to find a taxi at any time of the day or the night, making them particularly handy for early morning flights.

Cabs can be hailed from the curbside or found at any of 500 official taxi stands. Vacant taxis display a green light on their roofs, but cannot pick up a fare within 50 meters of a taxi rank.

We don’t recommend calling a radio taxi. Not only do you have the language problem to deal with, but fares start from the second the driver redirects to pick you up.

An additional problem in using taxis in Paris is the heavy traffic. Fares are calculated per kilometer traveled plus an initial charge equivalent to traveling around two kilometers. But sitting in a traffic jam is no one’s idea of a fun vacation activity.

Expect to pay in cash – not all vehicles take card payments. Tipping 10% is de rigueur if you want to avoid grumbles.

Uber is another option. Lyft doesn’t operate in France at present. But for the minimal savings you’ll make versus a traditional taxi – because of Uber’s Paris licensing conditions – the only real reason to turn to Uber would be if you can’t find a traditional taxi.

Other ways of getting around Paris

 

Walking is a great, budget-friendly way of getting around central Paris. The streets are safe during the day, although petty thefts can happen anywhere.

Taking to two wheels is another option thanks to the Vélib’ bike rental scheme. Hiring a cycle for an hour will cost just a few euros and allows you to see the City of Light from an entirely new perspective.

The only boat services operating in central Paris are dedicated sighting-seeing cruises.

How to save on attraction admission in Paris

Now you’ve got getting around Paris sorted, your thoughts will probably turn to the attractions you want to visit. Explore with Go City and you don’t need to worry quite so much about the budget for your trip. Our All-Inclusive and Explorer passes include admission to many of the top attractions in Paris at a great saving compared to advertised prices!

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The Louvre Museum in Paris
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Best Art Galleries in Paris

The birthplace of Impressionism, Paris is a veritable paradise for artists and art lovers. It’s a city that has inspired and produced a disproportionate number of household names over the centuries – think Matisse, Modigliani, Manet and Toulouse-Lautrec. It’s no surprise then that Paris is where you’ll find some of the world’s finest galleries and museums as well as, of course, arguably the most recognizable (and certainly the most visited) painting on the planet. Read on to be inspired by our selection of some of the best art galleries in Paris. The Big Hitters The Louvre Museum Of course, no visit to Paris would be complete without passing through the Louvre’s iconic glass pyramid and entering its multi-level labyrinth of galleries, corridors, stairways and escalators. With nearly 40,000 works of art on display at any given time, covering painting, sculpture, antiquities and much more, the Louvre is the world’s most-visited museum and contains many of its greatest and most famous artistic treasures. Come for the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo, stay for the ancient Great Sphinx of Tanis, French crown jewels and the decadent pastries and fancies served in the museum’s Café Richelieu Angelina, where the Mont Blanc – a grand confection of meringue, whipped cream and chocolate shavings – is something of a work of art in itself. Musée d’Orsay More compact, easier to navigate and significantly less crowded than the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay’s collection of 19th and 20th-century art packs a real punch. Here, in what used to be the Gare d’Orsay train station, you can view world-class pieces including Van Gogh’s mesmerizing Starry Night over the Rhône and Self Portrait, perhaps the greatest selfie of them all. French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism is particularly well represented here, with a great variety of Toulouse-Lautrec’s Moulin Rouge-inspired pieces and many Monet masterpieces, including one from his Water Lilies series. Don’t miss the original station clock, which hangs in the impressive main hall, and head to fifth-floor Café Campana by the Impressionist Gallery, where a giant clock-face window affords enchanting views across the Seine to the Louvre and Sacré-Cœur Basilica. Musée de Montmartre Montmartre’s cobbled streets, bohemian vibe and awe-inspiring views across Paris have attracted a great many artists over the years, among them – deep breath – Renoir, Manet, Toulouse-Lautrec, Van Gogh, Picasso, Miró and Modigliani, many of whom are represented here at the Musée de Montmartre. Housed in one of the district’s oldest buildings, the Musée de Montmartre was once a mansion containing artists’ studios used by the likes of Renoir, Charles Camoin and Suzanne Valadon. The peaceful surrounding gardens are named in memory of Renoir, who painted several of his greatest masterpieces when he lived here in the 1870s, including the Bal du moulin de la Galette and Jardin de la rue Cortot, depicting this very garden. Top Paris Museums for Kids Centre Pompidou Paris has stacks of fab museums that children will love with many, including big hitters like the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay, offering free entry for under 18s. The huge Centre Pompidou has an entire floor dedicated to kids aged from 2-16, offering informative tours, exhibitions, hands-on workshops and bags of interactive fun. Better still, workshops for kids aged nine and over don’t require parental supervision, leaving you free to explore the center’s National Museum of Modern Art, which boasts a collection including Picasso, Pollock, Warhol and many more, that’s rivaled only by MoMA in NYC in terms of its variety, scope and quality. Musée du Quai Branly Kids will adore the Musée du Quai Branly’s quirky exterior: a towering green wall of foliage that looks like a giant garden flipped on its side. Inside, there’s much for bright young minds to discover among the vast collection of indigineous art from around the world. Highlights that are sure to entertain include dramatic ceremonial masks from India and Africa, Aboriginal tree-bark paintings, a brightly mosaiced Volkswagen Beetle from Mexico and a massive medieval Moai head from Easter Island. Kids here can also shrug off uncool parents and fly solo in fun arty workshops for ages 6-12. Single Artist Museums Musée Rodin Arguably France’s greatest ever sculptor, Auguste Rodin is celebrated here in a fine collection that also includes a few paintings by fellow Gallic luminaries such as Renoir and Monet. Indisputable star of the show here though is the sedate seven-acre sculpture garden, where many of Rodin’s best-loved creations – including The Thinker, Monument to the Burghers of Calais and The Gates of Hell – can be found scattered among perfectly sculpted box hedges and ornamental pools. Musée Picasso-Paris This collection of over 5,000 works by the father of Cubism is among the world’s finest. His offbeat and unsettling world is represented here by around 700 paintings and surreal sculptures, plus thousands of drawings, notebooks, photos, engravings and other ephemera. Explore the four stories of this delightful 17th-century palace to discover pieces including his Self-Portrait and La Celestina, painted during Picasso’s Blue Period, as well as later works from his Cubist phase and works depicting scenes from the Spanish Civil War from his harrowing war paintings series. Musée National Gustave Moreau Dedicated to the life and works of 19th-century Symbolist painter Gustave Moreau, this fascinating museum was the Moreau family home until the artist’s death in 1898. Among its many highlights are a quite extraordinary spiral staircase and some fairly out-there compositions featuring unicorns and other mythical creatures, hallucinatory visions, bizarre plants and more. Printed guides containing extensive and often rambling commentaries from the man himself are available to take around the museum with you, and you can even visit his old studio and top-floor apartment. Save on the best art galleries in Paris Save on admission to Paris attractions with Go City. Check out @GoCity on Instagram and Facebook for the latest top tips and attraction info.
Stuart Bak
Stores show off their goods in Passage Jouffroy
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When should I visit Paris?

You can make a sensible case for summer being the answer to the question ‘when should I visit Paris’. After all, it has the best chance of good weather and the longest days. But you can also say that spring is a brilliant time to visit since the city is flooded with flower blossom. And fall, when the foliage turns a multitude of oranges. And winter too, because of the Christmas and New Year celebrations. Check out our seasonal breakdown to uncover when you should visit Paris, whether you’re looking for great weather, seeking out the calendar’s top events or are keen to discover the most budget-friendly time of year. Summer The summer season in Paris roughly corresponds with June through to the beginning of September. Typically described as the ideal time to visit Paris, the temperatures aren’t the only thing to soar. As the official start of the high season, so do hotel and flight costs, which are some of the highest of the year. On the plus side, July beckons in T-shirt weather, albeit with an umbrella in hand – there’s a chance of a light shower even now. This doesn’t stop hundreds of thousands of people pouring onto the Champs-Élysées for the Bastille Day celebrations on July 14, marked by a grand military parade, fly past and fireworks behind the Eiffel Tower. From then on, Parisians tend to leave the city for their summer vacations on the French coast. But you don’t have to leave the city to enjoy the coastal feel, with beaches appearing on the quais (banks) of the River Seine, concerts filling the air with music and open-air movie screenings taking over parks late into the night – usually in their original language. It means that by August a languid air takes over Paris, with no one wanting to do anything very fast – which is just fine for anyone looking to get in the holiday mood. It makes it a wonderful time to cruise along the Seine, people watch from a café terrace or picnic in any of the 150 main parks too. Fall The start of fall sees temperatures drop away a little, and rain showers become heavier than they have been. But beyond that, fall really is a great time to consider visiting the French capital. Why? Well, it’s still warm enough in September to continue exploring the city’s parks and gardens. They begin taking on fall colors as well as being the sites of two major September events – the city-wide Fête des Jardins (Garden Festival) and the historic Fête à Neuneu funfair in the Bois de Boulogne. The fall color is usually at its best with the arrival of October. With hotel prices falling away again and visitor numbers dropping alongside the mercury – temperatures peak at 16°C – October is another month great for avoiding the crowds. The change in seasons is even celebrated at the Fete d'Automne, whilst the Contemporary Art Fair arrives at the Grand Palais to add to the buffet of permanent art collections, from the Musée d’Orsay to the Orangerie Museum. The start of the low season, November sees some of the lowest visitor numbers of the year, but it’s still not a bad time to visit Paris. Come prepared for the wintery weather, and the city’s charm and authentic feel is sure to keep you as warm as the hot chocolates and the winter restaurant menus. To brighten the days there are several public holidays and festivals to look forward to – not least the start of the Christmas period. Winter By the beginning of December Christmas is in full-swing. Main avenues shine with festive lights, Christmas markets hum with the sound of Parisians enjoying each other’s company and the arrival of several ice rinks makes for one of the more unusual things to do. Believe it or not, few travelers get to see any of this exuberant feasting. It makes a Christmas in Paris all the more special. Kicking off with a very literal New Year bang, January is one of the cheapest months to go to Paris, with some excellent deals on hotel stays. Set firmly within the low season, the city’s major attractions are less crowded than other times of year. However, with 30 million annual visitors, there’s no month that can be described as totally crowd-free. Wrap up well – temperatures are stable at 2 – 7°C – and you can catch the Festival of Lights at the Jardin des Plantes and an armful of bargains in the winter sales. Although February has similar temperatures and low season prices to January, it actually has the least rainfall of any month, making it one of the best times to visit Paris on a budget. That said, Valentine’s Day sees low season prices go out of the window for anywhere with a view of the Eiffel Tower. Spring Waving goodbye to winter, March sees a massive increase in the number of visitors, although accommodation prices remain good compared to the summer months. Temperatures remain on the chilly side, with lows of 5°C and highs of around 12°C. Levels of rainfall are still very much on the low side too. Heralding the warmer months to come, it’s in March that the early spring bulbs begin to flower. Whilst still in the shoulder period between low and high seasons, spring sees Parisians planning outdoor events with much more certainty than had been possible so far in the year. Step anywhere near the Bois de Vincennes on the eastern outskirts of the city and you’ll be enticed by the bright lights of the Foire de Trône funfair, which traces its history back to AD 957. April usually also sees the Easter public holidays and the associated arrival of chocolate eggs in storefront windows. Meanwhile, May is another great month to visit Paris – and if the growing crowds in the Louvre are anything to go by, it’s not exactly a secret either. One of the busiest months of the year when it comes to tourism levels, part of the reason is the ever-improving weather together with hotel prices still substantially below the high season peaks. A further quirk of visiting Paris in May is the fact it’s technically the wettest month of the year, although there’s not a great deal of difference – just 22 mm or less than an inch – between May and February. No wonder then that May is chosen for the first rounds of the French Open, and not one, but two jazz festivals. How to save whatever the season Whenever you decide you should visit Paris you can save on attraction admission to many of the city’s top sights with Go City. Then check out @GoCity on Instagram and Facebook to share your vacation snaps with us!
Ian Packham

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