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GETTING AROUND |
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Finding your way around Paris is remarkably easy, as the city proper,
stripped of its suburbs, is compact and relatively small, with an
integrated public transport system - the RATP (Régie Autonome des
Transports Parisiens). The system is cheap, fast and meticulously
signposted, comprising buses, underground métro and suburban express
trains, known as RER (Réseau Express Régional) trains. The whole network
is divided into five zones , though the entire métro system fits into
zones 1 and 2. Information is available online at .
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At its widest point, Paris is only about 12km across, which, at a brisk
pace, is not much more than a pleasant two hours' walk.
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Fares and passes
Tickets can be bought in carnets of ten from any station or tabac
showing a green métro ticket sign; the cost is ¬8.38, as opposed to
¬1.23 for a single ticket. Only one ¬1.23 billet is ever needed per
journey on the métro system. It's also valid for any journey within
zones 1 and 2 on the RER or by bus, but you cannot switch between buses
or between bus and métro/RER on the same ticket. Night buses require
separate tickets costing ¬2.29 each, unless you have a weekly or monthly
travel pass. For RER journeys beyond zones 1 and 2, you must buy an RER
ticket; visitors often get caught out, for instance, when they take the
RER instead of the métro to La Défense. Children under four travel free
and from four to ten at half price.
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Be sure to keep your ticket until the end of your journey: you'll be
charged a stiff fine on the spot if you can't produce one.
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If you've arrived early in the week and are staying three days or more,
it may be more economical to obtain a photocard, the Carte Orange (you'll
need a passport photo - available from the booths in the main stations),
with a weekly travelcard, known as a coupon hebdomadaire ; you'll
probably want one for zones 1 and 2 to cover the city and inner suburbs.
Costing ¬12.50, the zone 1 and 2 version is valid for an unlimited
number of journeys from Monday morning to Sunday evening, and is on sale
at all métro stations and tabacs. You can only buy a travelcard for the
current week until Wednesday; from Thursday you buy a coupon to begin
the following Monday. You need to write your Carte Orange number on the
travelcard. There's also a monthly pass ( mensuel ), costing ¬42.53, for
zones 1 and 2. A word of warning: the Carte Orange is technically for
Île de France residents only, though most clerks will sell you one as a
visitor.
Other options include the Paris Visites , 1-, 2-, 3- and 5-day visitors'
passes at ¬7.62, ¬12.20, ¬18.29 and ¬25.91 for Paris and inner suburbs,
or ¬15.24, ¬26.68, ¬37.34 and ¬45.73 to include the airports, Versailles
and Disneyland Paris (make sure you buy this one when you arrive at
Roissy Charles de Gaulle or Orly to get maximum value). A children's
version is available at half price for 1, 2 or 3 days. The main
advantage of Paris Visites passes is that, unlike the coupon
hebdomadaire , whose validity runs unalterably from Monday to Sunday,
they can begin on any day. They also allow you discounts at certain
monuments, museums, shops and restaurants.
Both the Carte Orange and the Paris Visites entitle you to unlimited
travel (in the zones you have chosen) on bus, métro, RER, SNCF and the
Montmartre funicular. On the métro you put the coupon through the
turnstile slot, but make sure you return it to its plastic folder. On
the bus you show the whole carte to the driver as you board - you don't
put it into the punching machine.
A mobilis day pass is also available, taking in all forms of RATP
transport (from ¬4.57 for the city, ¬10.67 to include the outer suburbs
and airports).
The métro and RER
The métro (Mº) runs from 5.30am to 12.30am, the RER from 5am to midnight.
Stations are far more frequent than on most underground systems, though
many entrances are a long way from the platforms and most interchanges
involve long walks and lots of stairs. A choice of three free maps is
available at most stations: the Grand Plan de Paris for the whole RATP
system, which also usefully overlays the métro system onto a map of
Paris's streets; the more at-a-glance Petit Plan de Paris ; or the
pocket-sized Paris Plan de Poche . In addition, every station has a big
map posted.
The métro lines are colour-coded and numbered 1 to 14; the RER lines are
designated by the letters A, B, C or D. Within the system, you find your
way around by following signs bearing the name of the station at the end
of the line in the direction in which you are travelling: Direction
Porte Dauphine , Direction Gallieni and so on. The numerous interchanges,
or correspondances (look for the orange signs), make it possible to
travel anywhere in the city in a more or less straight line.
For RER journeys beyond the city, make sure that the station you want is
illuminated on the platform display board
Buses
Free bus route maps are available at métro stations, bus terminals and
the tourist office; the best is the Grand Plan de Paris . Every bus stop
displays the numbers of the buses that stop there, a map showing all the
stops on the route, and the times of the first and last buses. Only the
#20 bus is designed to be easily accessible for wheelchairs and prams.
Generally speaking, buses run from around 6.30am to 8.30pm, with some
services continuing to 12.30am. Many lines do not operate on Sundays and
holidays, or run a reduced service.
From mid-April to mid-September, a special Balabus service passes all
the major tourist sights between La Défense Grande Arche and Gare de
Lyon, on Sundays and holidays between noon and 9pm; the entire route
takes about fifty minutes. Bus stops are marked "Balabus"; standard bus
fares apply.
Night buses (Noctambus) ply eighteen routes every hour from 1am to
5.30am, linking place du Châtelet, near the Hôtel de Ville, with the
suburbs. Again, there is a reduced service on Sunday.
Taxis
Taxi charges are fairly reasonable - between ¬6.10 and ¬10.67 for a
central daytime journey, though considerably more if you call one out.
There are three different fare rates: indicator lights on the roof of
the taxi tell you which fare is being applied. "A" indicates the daytime
rate (7am-7pm; around ¬0.53/km) for Paris and the boulevard périphérique;
"B" is the rate for Paris at night (7pm-7am), on Sundays and on public
holidays, and for the suburbs during the day (around ¬0.83/km); "C" is
the night rate for the suburbs (¬1.07/km). When you get into the taxi,
check that the meter shows the appropriate fare rate. In addition,
there's a pick-up charge of around ¬1.98 and a time charge (around
¬18.29/hr) for when the car is stationary, an additional ¬0.76 charge if
you're picked up from a mainline train station, and a ¬0.95 charge per
piece of luggage.
Taxis will often refuse to take more than three people (they don't like
you to sit in the front seat); if they do take you, they'll charge extra
for the fourth person (about ¬1.37). Tipping is not mandatory, but ten
percent will be expected. Finding one of Paris's 470 taxi ranks ( arrêt
taxi ) is usually better than trying to hail one down in the street. The
large white light means the taxi is free; the orange light below means
it's engaged.
Boats
A passenger boat, known as the Batobus , operates from May to September,
stopping at six points along the Seine in this order: port de la
Bourdonnais (Eiffel Tower- Trocadéro), quai de Solférino (Musée
d'Orsay), quai Malaquais (Saint Germain-des-Prés), quai de Montebello
(Notre-Dame), quai de l'Hôtel de Ville (Hôtel-de-Ville-Pompidou Centre)
and quai du Louvre (Musée du Louvre). Boats run every thirty minutes or
so from 10am to 7pm: total journey time is twenty minutes, and tickets
cost ¬3.05 for the first stop, ¬1.52 for subsequent stops, or ¬9.15 for
a day pass.
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