my family and i will be going to Paris, we will be using the bus and train system so we will need Navigo passes. 4 of us have cell phones so we will be using out phones as tickets (IDF Mobility) — is it true that i can load a physical card from my phone, can i tell my phone how many tickets and of which type to transfer to the card and is there any issue mixing bus and train/RER tickets this on the phone or card?
Posted by
Alsenborn, Germany
2675 posts
My experience is that's rather complicated. The easiest thing to do (IMHO) is to go to one of the smaller Metro line stations, where they have a information booth (usually right next to the ticket machines), and just ask them to give you 7 tickets. They can do that really fast, you only have one charge on your card, and you can easily just hand everyone a ticket. I usually do this when family's in town, loading them with 6-8 trips, and let them know they can add to the total if needed.
In fact, I usually do this before they show up, mail it to them, and then nobody has to fight the ridiculous lines at the Gare.
Posted by
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA
17204 posts
Yes, you can load a physical card from your phone and you specify how many tickets you want to add. You can also check to see how many rides you have left on a card by using your phone. I only use the Metro so my experience is in adding Metro not bus tickets.
I will add that when I did this last month in Paris I had a terrible time getting my phone to read the card. I held it crossways across the top, crossways across the underside of my phone, Up and down, at an angle, ugh. I FINALLY got it to read. I did this a couple of times during my last trip and had difficulty both times.
This does not apply to you but I also could not get it to read my Navigo Decouverte card. I wound up having to go to the staff member at the nearby Metro station. Last Fall I was able to get my phone to read the ND AND the Easy cards.
The kind of ticket you can't mix is an airport transfer ticket.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thank you -- I think that covers it....
Such a great Rick Steves group
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
11837 posts
Bus tickets are separate from metro tickets, but you can put both on the same card. For example, I ask the person at the service window to load five metro and five bus tickets onto my card. It’s very fast to get what you need at the service window.
I prefer the bus whenever possible.
Posted by
3230 posts
you can easily just hand everyone a ticket.
I guess you could if paper tickets were still sold (assuming that is what you mean). They are not, and any that you may have left over cannot be used after the end of June. All fares now are electronic, loaded onto either a card or configured smartphone.
is there any issue mixing bus and train/RER tickets
There is an issue with mixing MTR (métro/Transilien/RER) tickets with airport tickets, which is not possible. You can mix bus/tramway tickets with either MTR or airport.