Hello, arriving CDG on Friday morning, departing CDG the following Friday.
What metro pass shall I get? I plan to take metro from/to CDG. No trip for Versailles or Disneyland.
I am staying near the Latin Quarter just south of the Seine River.
Does the CDG have both the ATM and SIM card for sale? Merci!
There are ATMs at CDG in the baggage claim area before you go thru the customs walk thru.
Are you arriving THIS Friday?
On any Friday you can no longer buy the Metro Pass the Navigo Decouverte as they stop selling them on Thursday. You can buy one for your week of Monday thru Friday with the return to the airport.
The Metro does not go out to CDG. There is a train called the RER B that provides service to the airport but with a Navigo Decouverte pass covering zones 1-5 you can use that on the RER.
https://www.ratp.fr/en/visite-paris/english/getting-train-stations-and-airports
Pam - not the OP but hijacking to ask if you recommend taking the RER or the bus to CDG? I took the RER into the city last time and it was a weekday morning so ended up getting very crowded. This time I'm going to be leaving on Easter Sunday, I'm not sure if everything will have the same hours.
I don't know why I'm finding the Metro system so confusing this time when looking it up, I didn't have any problems last time 10 years ago. Must be brain fog setting in!
Hi,
As pointed out, you take the RER "B" from CDG to Paris. The terminus of RER B is Magenta station, next to Gare du Nord. The two stations blend into each other.
When I land at CDG from SFO, I get the ticket for the RER from a staffed ticket counter, where you can pay by credit card or cash. I've done it both ways. I don't use a Metro pass , just single tickets valid on buses and the Metro.
When you reach Magenta, then you can go by the Metro or take a taxi outside of Gare du Nord.
The station on the RER B Line from CDG is Gare du Nord not Magenta. I'd hate for someone to miss their stop looking for a station named Magenta while on the RER B. Also, Gare du Nord is not always the terminus of an RER B train heading south from CDG.
The RER B also goes to Les Halles, St. Michel, Luxembourg, Port Royal, Denfert-Rochereau, and Cité Universitaire within Paris
I am arriving on Friday Nov 18!
So go to staffed counter at the airport and purchase a single ticket from CDG to Paris on RER B? I need to get to Saint-Michel or Cluny.
Is it worth buying a weekly pass for the following Monday to Sunday (leaving for CDG on Friday)? Friday I will be taking the train from Saint-Michael to CDG.
@Kristi - I actually just budget to take a taxi from the airport to the hotel. I'm not a fan of trying to do the Metro with luggage for myself although I know that works for many others.
Omaloho...yes, you've got it. I think whether you purchase the Navigo Decouverte for Monday thru Thursday depends on how much you think you might use the Metro on Monday-Wed. The Navigo Decouverte is 22.80 Euro + 5E for the actual physical card itself. The RER to/from the airport is 11.40E. You can buy a "carnet" of 10 rides on the Metro (excluding the airport) for 14.90E plus 2E for the physical Navigo Easy chipped card.
So go to staffed counter at the airport and purchase a single ticket from CDG to Paris on RER B? I need to get to Saint-Michel or Cluny.
We went to a automated machine & bought our RER B ticket. We were surprised at the tiny paper ticket. We even asked a staff person "Is this really our ticket?". He confirmed & we were off. Very easy. Not all the gates take the paper tickets.The ones that do have a small slot on the front of the entry gate. Pop it in & it comes out the top of the gate & doors open. Walla (my favorite word...we heard it all over.)
But.....remember to take your ticket with you. Don't throw it away. You will need it to exit the automated gates at your arrival station
Here is a youtube video that walks you through how to do the RER B.
Hi, we always just ride the RER to or from CDG. My favorite neighborhood is near the Luxembourg Garden, so that’s one of the less crowded stops and no transfers.
You can certainly buy a carnet of metro tickets for the rest of your time in Paris and buy a few more individual tickets, if needed. But, I’ll share that the two times I purchased the Monday - weekly pass, I really enjoyed being able to go on a whim to any section in the center of Paris throughout the day. I didn’t have to stop and think whether it was worth taking a couple of metros; I just enjoyed the flexibility to explore. And usually it’s cost-effective with at least one RER ride using the weekly pass.
Isn't St Michel still closed for renovation?
St-Michel construction is impacting RER C, i.e. the train passes through without stopping at this station. It's open for RER B, although today with limited service due to the strike.
Walla??
Voila!
Nowadays it's also worth getting what's called the Navigo Easy, which is a credit card that you can put tickets on. (Note that this isn't an actual pay-as-you-go ticket like Oyster, you have to actually buy tickets from the machine and load them on the card).
@Mark McG those tiny tickets drove me crazy! I also only ended up getting marks on some of them after using them so I have probably 20 tickets in my memorabilia box and I have no idea which are new and which were used, lol. (Assuming they would even still work after 10 years, I'm not going to try it).
Thank you everybody for your input. Leaving today! I will write a report to let you know my first trip to Europe ever.
Really appreciate your help :)
