Learn the Paris Metro for easy transportation

Lots of strikes in France right now. Download the following app to see if your Metro line is running. The app is available for both Mac and Android and I wouldn’t leave home without it, strikes or not. You can find your route, see where there are problems and get times and prices. There are four versions available. I got mine from the Google Play Store and I have an Android phone. Click here to go to the RATP app web site

The Metro system has set up an information web site where you can find alternate routes to your destination. Here it is in French: Click here to go to the RATP Information web site in French
Here it is in English: Click here to go to the RATP Information web site in English

Note:If you don't have a Metro map current as of February or March 2025, you need to get a new map. Many of the maps in guidebooks are now incorrect because some of the Metro lines have been extended. After you read the following directions, you will know you need the name of the last station on the line to find the train. The last station has changed for these changed lines. Click here for a new Metro map: Paris Metro Map

Don't be shy about using the Metro (subway) in Paris. It is incredibly easy to navigate. They have set it up so you can go anyplace and not get lost. Get a free Metro map at any ticket window. They are usually sitting on a shelf at the ticket window and you don't even have to ask.

That said, I much prefer my map booklet Paris Pratique par Arrondissement that has each arrondissement (district) of Paris on a separate page with the Metro stops marked. There is a full Metro map so you can put it all together. You can buy it at a news stand, tabac or bookstore and lately even in the souvenir shops. It is also incredibly useful as you walk around Paris. It lists every street and alley in Paris and everything is indexed. There are also bus, tram and RER maps to go with the Metro map. All the parks are mapped. Not only do you get all this; it is in a very small booklet form that fits easily in purse or pocket. When you get home, it's a great souvenir.

After you get your map, follow these directions. (Always keep your ticket or pass with you until you leave the Metro. Sometimes officials come through checking tickets and if you don't have your validated ticket, you can be fined.)

You know the Metro station where you are. You know which Metro station you want. The other information you need is the name of the station at the end of the line in the direction you want to go. Example: You are Jussieu Metro station in the Latin Quarter and you want to visit the Louvre. You look at your map and find Jussieu and notice lines #10 and #7 go through there. You want to go to the Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre stop and that is line #7 (pink on most maps). Follow line #7 past the Louvre to the end and you will see the last stop is La Courneuve. That is your magic key. Go into the Metro and follow signs pointing to La Courneuve until you get to the tracks. The rest is easy. When the train arrives, hop on and relax. The line is on a map above the doors so you can watch where you are and see where you are going. Each station is very well marked so you can tick them off in your mind. Make a note of the station right before your Louvre station and start to get ready to get off. (Pont Neuf is right before Louvre). When you see the signs for Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre, get off and follow exit signs (and all the other people) to the Louvre. You can go into the museum right from the station and skip most of the lines!

It gets more complicated if you have to change trains, but as long as you remember to look for the last station on your line, you are okay.

Example of a Change (called a Correspondence): Let's say you are at La Tour Maubourg station and you want to go to the Louvre. You will take line #8 (the only one available at Maubourg) and go in the direction of Creteil-Pointe du Lac but you will get off at the Concorde station to change trains. (That is the 2nd stop for you.) You now want the #1 line in the direcion of Château de Vincennes so you stay underground and simply follow signs to Château de Vincennes (line #1) to get to your next train. You will go up and down stairs and have lots of company but every time there is a turn or stair, you will see signs. Keep following Château de Vincennes until you come to the train tracks. Wait for your train, get on and go to the Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre stop (the stop before it is Tuileries) and get off and you are at the Louvre.

As long as you know the last station in the direction you are going, you can't get lost. If you go the wrong direction, simply get off at the next station and follow signs to that last station again and you'll be fine.

Starting June, 2019 there is a new card pass called Navigo Easy that does not require a photo, costs 2 euros plus the number of rides you want to put on it. The paper tickets are being phased out to help the environment but if you have some old ones, you can turn them in at a ticket office and have them put on your pass. You can also put the app on your phone. Click here for Tickets and Fares

There are separate tickets for (1) Metro, train, RER, (2) Bus, tram, (3) Paris Viste Travel Pass, (4) One-day Navigo Travel Card and (5) a special pass only for the French. You can put all of these on your EASY pass but and it will use the appropriate section. You need a separate Paris Region Airports ticket for travel to and from the Airports or there are various options with the Paris Viste Travel ticket. I don't use the Paris Viste Pass because it is rather expensive. We get the EASY with enough tickets loaded on it for the amount of time we'll be in Paris. If we're there a longer time, we use the weekly pass. Click here for official information on the EASY Pass. EASY Pass official web site

You may want to download a Metro map at the website below. Print it out and practice a few trips before you go. You will be addicted to the fast, easy train system in Paris. Paris Metro, Train and Bus Maps

Here is a web site for trip planning that is in English. Planning your Metro trip in English

Paris Metro Website: Paris Metro web site in French