CDG空港からパリ中心街へ列車（RER B線）を使って移動する際のご案内です。市内から空港へのご案内は列車でパリ市内からCDGへのページをご覧ください。

列車でパリ市内からターミナル1へ 、列車でパリ市内からターミナル2へのページでは、各所の案内を写真でご確認いただけます。

CDGからパリ市内へ

利用路線 => RER B (青色)

主な到着駅 =>  パリ北駅、シャトレ・レ・アル駅、サン・ミシェル/ノートルダム駅、ルクサンブール駅、ポール・ロワイヤル駅、ダンフェール・ロシュロー駅、シテ・ユニヴェルシテール駅

チケット =>  “イル・デ・フランスのチケット”のページ参照　 CDG空港からパリ市内  (ゾーン1からゾーン5へ)

運賃 => 9,25€(大人料金　2012年4月現在) / 6,40€ (子ども料金4-9歳) / 無料 (子ども 3歳以下)

利用可能な割引切符 =>パリ・ヴィジット（1日乗り放題チケット）、パリ・ナヴィゴ（デクーベルト） （1週間、1か月用定期券）

CDGからパリ市内への始発/終電 => 04:56 / 23:56 (2012年中頃までは終電は22:58 )

写真付きの案内ページ： ターミナル1からパリ市内へ、 ターミナル2からパリ市内へ

詳細

RER B線のご案内

もっとも早くそして安い料金でシャルル・ド・ゴール空港(CDG)からパリ市内へ移動するには、ターミナル2、またはターミナル3のロワシーポールから出発する高速郊外鉄道RER B線を利用するのがおすすめです。

このRER B線は、パリ市内を南北に走る路線で、主な停車駅は、ロンドン・パリ間のユーロスターの到着駅であるロンドン・パリ間のユーロスターの到着駅であるパリ北駅、メトロ4号線と他のRER B線との「総合」乗り換えができるシャトレ・レ・アル駅、サン・ミシェル/ノートルダム駅、ルクサンブール駅、ポール・ロワイヤル駅、ダンフェール・ロシュロー駅、シテ・ユニヴェルシテール駅で、南に位置するオルリー空港までを結びます（オルリー空港ではアントニー駅でオルリーヴァールへの乗り換えが必要です）。

シャルル・ド・ゴール空港には、「シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅」と「シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第2TGV駅」の2つの駅があり、第1駅はロワシーポールビル内のターミナル3の近くにあり、第2TGV駅はターミナル2Eと2Cの間にあります（CDG空港の地図は以下でご覧になれます）。

シャルル・ド・ゴール空港からパリ市内への始発電車は4:56、「シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第2TGV駅」発で、2分後に「シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅」に到着、市内のパリ北駅の到着は5:26です。

CDGからパリ市内へのRER B線の最終電車は日付が変わる直前の23:56発で、パリ北駅の到着は0:26です。（最新の情報はRER B 線の時刻表をご覧ください）。CDGからパリ市内へのダイヤは、休日を含めて毎日同じです（全時間帯の時刻は、「RER B線の時刻表」ページをご覧ください）。

***ご注意。2010年から2012年中頃までおこなわれているPER B線の建設工事にともない、夜の遅い時間帯に発着するCDG空港発パリ市内行きの列車に影響が出ています。月曜から金曜のCDG空港発パリ市内行き直通列車の最終は22:58発です（土曜、日曜日の時刻ついては変更ありません）。上記の時間外にPER B線を利用する場合は、空港第1駅からAulnay-sous-Bois駅行きのシャトルバスに乗ってください。Aulnay-sous-Bois駅から出るPER B線で市内へ移動できます。

空港駅まで移動する

各所での写真は、CDGターミナル1からパリ市内への写真付きガイド 、  CDGターミナル2からパリ市内への写真付きガイド でご覧いただけます。

ターミナル1に到着した場合は、シャトルトレインCDGVALに乗ってPER駅のあるターミナル3内ロワシーポールに移動してください駅の名前は「シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅」ですが、「ターミナル1」の「1」と混同しないように注意してください。この「第1」は、「ターミナル1」の意味ではなく、単にCDG空港内にある2つの駅のうち、1番目の駅という意味です。ターミナル1内のCDGVALトラムの案内にしたがって進めば問題ありません。

紛らわしいですが、ターミナル3はターミナル1と2の間に位置しますので、西方向から東方向へターミナル移動する場合は、ターミナル1、3、2の順になります。CDGVALトラムはターミナル1と3の間の駐車場駅(Parc P-r)と、ターミナル3と2の間の駐車場駅 (Park P-x)に停車しますので、降り間違えることのないようご注意ください。車内では、各駅に到着する際にフランス語と英語のアナウンスでお知らせします。

シャルル・ド・ゴール空港（CDG）の地図 のページ(PDF ファイル-  ADP提供)

ターミナル2には7つのサブターミナルがあります。ターミナル2に到着した場合は、サブターミナル2Eと2Fの間にある乗車駅に移動してください。パリ行きPERの乗車駅を示す案内はターミナル内のあちこちにあります。

チケットを買う

シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅は広く大きなアトリウム状の建物で、 シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第2TGV駅は白い壁の3階建てでエスカレーターの付いた独特のデザインですが、どちらの駅もチケットの券売機がたくさん設置してあります。切符は必ずイル・デ・フランスの青い券売機で購入し、SNCF TGVの黄色い券売機は使わないでください。これから乗るER B線の切符は青い券売機でしか購入できませんのでご注意ください。

さらにご注意いただきたいのは、アメリカと、ヨーロッパ以外の会社が発行するクレジットカードは、ICチップが内蔵されておらず4桁PIN番号が登録されていない場合は、券売機で利用することができません。その場合、シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅では大きな有人窓口があり、3名のSNCF（フランス国鉄）のスタッフがRERのチケットを販売しています。ターミナル2では、1階に濃いガラスで仕切られた事務所があり、端のカウンターでPERとSNCF、/TGVのチケットを販売しています。このオフィスで購入する場合は、正面向かって左側の入り口がパリ市内行きPERのチケット売り場です。正面向かって右側の入り口は、それ以外の目的地への切符のみを販売しています。通常は英語が話せるスタッフが少なくとも1名はおり、窓口の端にイギリスの国旗が表示されていることで分かります。どの窓口でも、パリ市内までの片道チケット「Paris Aller-Simple」を購入できます。パリ市内までのPER B線の運賃は、大人で約9.1€、子ども（9歳以下）で6.4€です。

RERに乗る

シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅では、券売機エリアからプラットフォームが見えるので非常に分かりやすくなっています。また、グリーンのランプがついた回転式改札機も目に入ります。シャルル・ド・ゴール空港第2TGV駅も分かりやすく、「パリ市内行き電車」の案内にしたがって進むだけですので、プラットフォームから発車するパリ市内行きの列車に乗り損ねる心配はありません。列車の停車駅は、プラットフォームで列車を待っている間にモニターで確認できます主な停車駅は、パリ北駅、シャトレ・レ・アル駅、サン・ミシェル/ノートルダム駅、ルクサンブール駅で、その他の駅にも停車します。上記4つの駅はすべてパリの中心地にあるので、旅行者の大半はこの駅のいずれかに向かいます。パリ北駅はサクレ・クールやモンマルトル近辺にあるホテルを利用する場合、シャトレ・レ・アル駅はルーブル地区のホテルを利用する場合の最寄り駅で、サン・ミシェル/ノートルダム駅はセーヌ川を渡った左岸に位置し、ルクサンブール駅はリュクサンブール公園の近くにあります。

急ぐ場合には、両空港駅発の「快速列車」を利用することもできます。CDG駅から上記4つのパリ市内駅までの停車駅は、モニターで簡単に確認できます。 快速列車はシャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅からパリ北駅までノンストップで走ります。普通列車はシャルル・ド・ゴール空港第1駅からパリ北駅までだいたい9つの駅に停車します。快速列車に乗れば普通列車よりも約12分早く到着しますが、普通列車でもパリ北駅までの所要時間は34分程度です。

それでは、パリでの滞在を存分にお楽しみください。

お役だちリンクはこちら

RERでディズニーランドへ

RERの地図 (PDF)

シャルル・ド・ゴール空港(CDG)からパリ北駅までのPER B線の時刻表

これは、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナルからパリ市内へ向かう列車、RER- B線を利用する時の順序を追った写真付きガイドです。シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港到着ラウンジからパリ市内までの移動の仕方を、順を追ってご案内します。もし第１ターミナルにご到着の場合は、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第１ターミナルからパリへの写真付きガイド をご覧下さい。

*** RER- B 線工事中のため、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナルからの最終列車はの１０：５５PM (２２:５５) です（月曜日から金曜日、２０１２年半ばまで）。週末は工事の影響はありませんが、２０１０年１１月６日は終日、列車はシャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港には止まりません。

シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港到着

ロワシー・シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナル到着後、飛行機を降りてからまず最初に入国審査があります。これは、あなたの飛行機の座席位置によって、とても速いことがあります。もしあなたが飛行機の最前列付近に座っていて最初に飛行機を降りたのであれば、フランス警察による入国審査を通る最初の人となります。この場合、入国審査を５分以内に通過することができます。（もし、あなたが大きい飛行機を降りる最後の人であれば４０分かかります）。
次に、コンベアーで荷物を受け取ります。荷物取り扱いに特別なことが起こらない限り、３０分程で荷物受け取りが完了するでしょう。しかし、場合によっては３０分以上になるかもしれません。

次は荷物の税関検査です。これは入国審査とは別に、荷物受け取りエリアの出口付近にいる税関検査官によって行われます。税関検査官はたいてい搭乗者をチェックして、彼らの興味を誘うような人物を呼び止めます。この後、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港のセキュリティー区外へ出て、自由にパリや他の都市へ列車で行くことが出来ます。

もし、シェンゲン圏（ヨーロッパ無国境地区）ターミナルである２Gターミナルから到着の場合は、RER列車に乗るために、シャトルバスを使って２E/F ターミナルへ移動する必要があります。シャトルバスは４、５分間隔で運行しており、２G到着エリアのすぐ外にあります。〔　Lynne P.さん、更新情報ありがとうございます　〕

第２ターミナルの駅へ行くには

シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナルの到着ホールはこんな感じです：

青の頭上サインに気付かれましたか？これらはGare SNCF（国鉄の駅）、Paris par Train（パリ行き電車）を指しています。これらのサインに従って、第２ターミナル内にある駅へ進んで下さい。

これらはシャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナル駅を示すサインのクローズアップ写真です：

それぞれのターミナルビル（第２ターミナルには２A、２B、２C、２Dのサブターミナルがあります）の端には、他のターミナルや駅に行くまでの所要時間が書かれた大きなサインがあります。この写真では、２Fターミナルから第２ターミナルの駅まで歩いて３分から５分かかることが分かります。

これは、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナルの配置を示す、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港地図です。第３ターミナル、第１ターミナル（ターミナル自体の駅がある）、また、３つのターミナルと立体駐車場を結ぶシャトル列車も確認できます。

（ADP提供）

第２ターミナルのサブターミナル間にある動く歩道は、歩く時間を確実に速めてくれます。

駅の辺りへ近づくにつれ、さらに駅へと指示するサインが見られます。

駅エリアへ着いたら、吹き抜けの４階に出ます。端にはシェラトンホテル、もう一方の端にはHSBC銀行があり、Gare/Station/Paris by Train（国鉄駅/パリ行き電車）を示すサインがいくつもあります。

３階から反対方向を撮った駅の吹き抜けの写真です（１階上にHSBC 銀行が見えます）。駅の場所を示すサインはとても明確です。あなたはHSBC銀行の機械（下の写真の上部右側に見える）でユーロの現金を下ろしたいかもしれません。もしあなたのクレジットカード（ヨーロッパ発行でない、ICカードでない）が自動券売機で使えない場合は、SNCF/RATP（フランス国鉄/独立パリ交通管理局）の券売窓口でも使えないでしょう。このため、切符を買うのにユーロの現金が必要です。

吹き抜けの一番下の２階は、実際の駅の階になっていて、ホールの片側に色々なお店や飲食店があり、もう一方にSNCF（フランス国鉄）券売オフィスがあります。駅の真ん中の至る所に、青と緑のBilletterie Ile-de-France 自動券売機があります。

SNCF（フランス国鉄）券売オフィスは２つに分かれており、それぞれ特定の種類のチケットしか売っていません。向かって左側の券売オフィスは、パリ内やイル＝ド＝フランス地域圏（Billets Ile-de-France として知られる）を移動する券やパスを売っています。

右側のオフィスは、フランス内の他の都市を移動する列車用のTGVチケット（販売、コレクション、払い戻し、変更）を取り扱っています。

もしあなたがICクレジットカードかユーロコインを持っていて、単純な乗車券を購入したい場合は、青のBilletterie 自動販売機 を使って乗車券を購入出来ます。（この写真の券売機は第３ターミナルのものですが、機械は同じです）。 Pass Navigo （パス・ナヴィゴ）やParis Visite cards（ パリ・ヴィジット）などの数日パスは機械では売られていません。パスを購入するには、券売オフィスへ行かなくてはなりません。

北アメリカ発行のクレジットカードのほとんどは、これらの機械で使えないことを心に留めて置いて下さい。なぜなら大抵の場合、IC チップやPIN番号が保護されていないからです。

乗車券やパスを買ったら、駅プラットフォームへ向かって下さい。プラットフォームのある１階へは、さらにエスカレーターか階段で下りる必要があります。パリのプラットフォームは　“Voie”（“プラットフォーム”）１１、１２と書いてあり、また、ロワシー・シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港とパリ市内間を運行する地域エキスプレスネットワーク列車である、“RER B Paris par Train“（“RER- B線パリ行き”）とも示してあります。

これは、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナル駅にある、パリ行き列車のプラットフォームを見下ろす写真です。

プラットフォームでは、すべての列車がパリ行きだというサインがあります。なぜなら、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港は、RER- B線の終点で、最終駅だからです。

プラットフォームのサインは、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港２TGVと書いてありますが、この写真のプラットフォームはTGV列車用のプラットフォームではありません。単に、駅全体の名前です。

TGV列車のプラットフォームは、駅の反対側からアクセス出来ます。もし、パリ以外の他都市へ行くためにTGV 列車を使う場合は、列車のプラットフォームはこのような感じです：

移動の間中は必ず乗車券を携帯しておいて下さい。乗車券検査官から有効な券を見せるように言われることもあり、さもなければ罰金として３５ユーロ支払わなくてはなりません。また、乗車券はパリの到着駅を出るためにも必要で、入り口を守るのと同様に、出口を守る改札があります。パリに到着したら、持っているRER（フランス地下鉄）乗車券は、パリメトロや他のRER路線への乗り継ぎにも有効です。パリ市内から他のメトロやRER列車へ乗り継ぐのに、別のParis Metro/RER Ticket T+を購入する必要はありません（バスやトラムは新しい券が必要です）。

パリ市内の最初の駅は、Gare du Nord（ガール・デュ・ノード）で、シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナルを出てから３０分ほどかかります。Gare du Nord駅 の後、RER- B線のパリ市内の駅は、Chatelet Les Halles（シャトレ・レ・アール）、St. Michel-Notre Dame（サン・ミシェル＝ノートルダム）、Luxembourg（ルクセンブルグ）、 Port Royal（ポートロイヤル）、Denfert Rochereau（ダンフェール・ロシュロー）、Cité Universitaire（シテ・ユニヴェルシテール）です。

参考資料

以下に示す電車の時刻表は、パリ行きのRER- B列車がシャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナルを出発する時刻を示しています。（２ページ目は無視して下さい。）

RER- B 列車時刻表 (出発時刻) シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナル発パリ行き月曜日から金曜日(祝日を除く)

RER- B 列車時刻表 (出発時刻) シャルル・ド・ゴール国際空港第２ターミナル発パリ行き土曜日、日曜日、祝日

How to use the Paris Metro subway

Paris Metro maps, schedules, tickets, passes, helpful travel tips.

The Paris Metro consists of 300 stations on 16 lines covering the 10×10km area of central Paris. ^[1][2] Metro lines are numbered from 1 to 14 with two “bis” or secondary lines 3b and 7b.

Paris Metro Maps

The public transit authority of Paris (RATP) offers three Metro system maps that can be downloaded together at ParisByTrain.com :

a basic Paris Metro map of lines with stations and interchanges

a condensed small format Paris Metro map

a Paris Metro map with city streets

Other Metro maps such as individual line maps can be downloaded directly from RATP.fr (in french).

Paris Metro Schedules

The Metro runs from 05:30 till 00:40 (5:30am - 12:40am) Sunday thru Thursday and 05:30 - 01:40 on Fridays, Saturdays and on days before a holiday. Frequency between most trains range from 2 minutes during rush hour up to 8-10 minutes during off hours, holidays, and sundays. A complete list of first and last Metro trains for each line plus their frequency can be found at RATP.fr.

Route Planning

The RATP offers a route planner via their website which can use street addresses, station names or well known locations to create a travel itinerary for you, including necessary connections and total travel time. Clicking on the Advanced Search link opens itinerary options of least connections, least walking and fastest route (default).

Tickets & Passes

There are a wide variety of tickets available including single ride tickets, books of 10 or 20, single day passes, multi-day passes, Monday to Sunday week passes, monthly passes and year passes.

Single Use Tickets

Single tickets for the Metro are known as “Ticket t+”. These tickets are valid for a single continuous journey of any length, throughout the Metro system, including changes to other Metro lines and RER interurban trains within Zone 1. These tickets are sold as single units or in books of 10.

Tickets can be purchased from ticket windows inside stations or through automated ticket vending machines accepting Euro coins and smart chip credit cards.The single ticket price as of July 1, 2011 is 1,70€.

Books of ten, called a “carnet” [kar-nay], are sold at a discount for 12,50€ (1,25€ each, a little over 25% off the regular fare). Children from ages 4 to 9 years old can use reduced fare tickets, which are available only in books of 10, for 6,25€ per book of ten. Children 3 and under ride for free. Keep in mind that non-smart chip credit cards will not work at either the automated ticket machines nor at ticket windows, thus Euro cash or coin would be required.

Day tickets

A day ticket is called the Ticket Mobilis which is good for unlimited rides on the Metro system during operating hours for the day it is used. Physically it’s a coupon of about the same size as the Paris Metro Ticket t+.

Ticket Mobilis is available in various fare zone coverage from 1-2 zones to 1-5 zones. If you’ll be traveling strictly within central Paris, zones 1 & 2 cover the entire Metro system, and a 1-2 zone Ticket Mobilis is the recommended ticket. Price as of July 1, 2011 is 6,30€.

The complete price schedule for this Paris day ticket is as follows:

As the Ticket Mobilis can be purchased on one day and used someday in the future you must print the date of use on the ticket before use. To prevent people sharing tickets, first and last names are also required.

Multi-Day Paris Metro Tickets

Multi-day tickets aimed at tourists and visitors are known as the

Carte Paris Visite, available in 3 zone and 5 zone versions, for 1, 2, 3 or 5 day lengths. Prices for duration and zones are as follows:

The Carte Paris Visite consists of a plasticized ticket coupon (similar to a Ticket Mobilis) and a black paper folding card. The card requires the printed name of the bearer and the ticket coupon requires the card number and date of use.

Discounts to attractions in and around Paris are included with the Paris Visite card, which are obtained by showing the black card along with a valid coupon ticket (like the orange ticket shown above).

Paris Metro Week Tickets/Passes

Week long tickets are sold in the form of plastic contactless smartcards known as the Pass Navigo Découverte.

This pass is valid for travel strictly from Monday till Sunday, rather than any continuous 7 day period, which makes it less attractive for visitors arriving mid-week. It is purchaseable for use in the current week from ticket windows at most Metro, RER and large train stations up until Wednesday end of service. No week passes are sold on Thursday. Starting from Friday, week passes for the following week are on sale. The Pass Navigo Découverte week pass is not available from automated ticket vending machines. 4 different fare zones are available with prices as follows (Tarifs Semaine = Weekly Price):

Zones 1-5 will cover travel to & from Airports Charles de Gaulle (CDG) and Orly (ORY) , which are in zones 5 and 4 respectively and Paris-Versailles trains (zone 4).

The prices above do not include the 5€ fee for the plastic card itself, non-refundable, unlike the London Oyster card.

To purchase the pass Navigo Découverte you will be required to present and attach a face photo measuring 2.5cm tall x 2cm wide to the paper nominative card that comes in addition to the plastic smartcard.

Home printing of this photo, black & white or colour, is acceptable. You will be required to print your name on this card as well. After the paper card is completed a self-adhesive clear plastic cover is folded over the face of the card, protecting the picture and name of the holder. The contactless smart card and the paper card must be carried together to be valid for travel.

There is some confusion between the Carte Orange and Pass Navigo in terms of week passes. Carte Orange was previously a physical coupon like ticket (much like the Ticket Mobilis) and paper nominative photo card that is now no longer in use. This coupon and paper card has been replaced by the new contactless smart cards known as the Pass Navigo and Pass Navigo Découverte (for non-residents of France). The regional transit authority decided to keep the name “Carte Orange” as the name of the weekly or monthly “subscriptions” that you must purchase and “add” to your Pass Navigo or Pass Navigo Découverte.

Riding the Paris Metro

Paris Airports

Paris airports are accessible via the RER train system, rather than the Paris Metro. See instructions on the RER B from CDG to Paris, Orly to Paris and Paris Beauvais Airport Train for more information.

Paris Stations & Metro Tickets

Most of Paris’ 300 Metro stations are located underground with a handful above ground. Stations are marked with various styles of signs as shown below.

Some Metro stations are joined with large train stations (”gare”) serving other types rail transport such as intercity surface trains and RER regional express trains which travel both above and below ground. Some notable large stations within Paris serving all three types of train transport include: Gare St. Lazare, Gare du Nord , Gare de l’Est, Gare de Lyon, Gare d’Austerlitz and Gare Montparnasse. Most stations and Paris Metro lines are not handicap accessible save for a few exceptions . Stations have multiple entrances/exits, up to ten for the largest underground station, Chatelet Les Halles.

Street maps are posted throughout central Paris providing information on the local district (”arrondissement”). These maps can be useful in locating nearby Metro stations.

Within a Metro station, tickets can be purchased from manned ticket windows and from automated ticket vending machines. Most passes are only sold from ticket windows although the Ticket Mobilis day ticket is available via the machines.

Ticket windows may not be open nor manned at all times thus requiring use of the vending machines. Certain entrances to stations may give direct access to train platforms, which require that you already have your ticket or pass. Ticket vending machines such as the one shown in the photo accept Euro coins (for purchases up to 30€) and smartchip credit cards. Cash notes or bills are not accepted at these machines. See the guide on using Paris Metro ticket vending machines for more information.

Access to Metro train platforms is controlled via turnstiles or gate type barriers which are operated by either magnetic stripe coupon tickets (Ticket t+, Mobilis, etc.) or contactless smart cards such as the Pass Navigo Decouverte. To operate the barrier with a ticket, insert the ticket magnetic stripe side down, into a turnstile that is not marked with a red X or red circle which indicates an exit only turnstile. The ticket slot should be on your right while inserting the ticket (see the photo below). The ticket will be ejected on the top of the turnstile which you must retrieve to unlock the barrier.

If the ticket is accepted a short high pitched buzzing sound will be emitted, sometimes along with a message displayed on the turnstile requesting you take your ticket back (”Reprenez votre ticket”). Remove the ticket and walk through the turnstile or approach closely the gate barrier and wait for it to open. Some gates are slow to open, especially side swinging double door gates. If your ticket appears to have been accepted, yet the gate has not swung open, be sure you are sufficiently close to the gates in order to trip the sensor. Be patient and don’t panic. The gate should swing open within 5 seconds maximum. A ticket that is not accepted will cause the turnstile to emit a longer, lower pitched (unpleasant) buzzing noise, sometimes with a message in red indicating your ticket was not valid. See an employee at a ticket window or information booth for help in this case. They will usually open a wheelchair accessible gate for you to pass through.

Operating barriers with contactless smart cards works by passing the card over the purple reader zone on the tops of the turnstiles or barriers. The smart cards may take a second or two to be recognized by the transponders, so keep the pass over the reader area until a “ding” sound is emitted for an accepted pass. Keep in mind that passes near expiration will cause the barrier to emit a buzzing noise instead of a ding, along with a message noting the date of expiry. Pass through the turnstile or gate as per normal.

Many Metro stations serve multiple lines through several different train platforms within a single station. To find your way to the correct platform in the correct direction requires that you to keep a mindful eye on signs posted throughout the pedestrian tunnels.

At each subterranean intersection you will see Metro line numbers and possibly station names which are used to denote direction of travel. Direction of travel is always denoted by the terminus station, the last station or stop on the line, rather than magnetic pole directions such as north, south, east, west. To understand whether the line is going in the direction you wish to travel, you should refer a Paris Metro map, which are posted near station entrances and on all train platforms.

Nearly all train platforms have overhead signs showing the time remaining till the next two trains arrive at the station, denoted in minutes. These signs are also a way to verify that you’re on the correct line, heading in the correct direction. The photo below shows Metro Line 4 in direction of Porte d’Orleans with 4 minutes remaining till the next train arrives. On the opposite side of this platform will be another sign of exact same color and number, but the direction will be marked as Porte de Clignancourt, the opposite direction. Keep in mind that the train arrival times posted on these signs are only estimates and are not always accurate. Due to traffic congestion and rider issues minutes may be added or subtracted at any moment.

On rare occasion, but worth mentioning, some Metro line platforms are accessed by traversing another platform for a different line. This means you’ll arrive at a platform and think the current platform is the correct one, but in reality, your desired line is further along. Pay special attention to the overhead signs and the system maps posted on the platform walls to ensure you’re on the correct platform.

Paris Metro Trains

Metro train cars come in a variety of different shapes, colours and sizes.

Nearly all Metro cars require manual operation to open their doors. This is done through either a lever or a button on the door itself near the centre opening. Metro Line 14 is a notable exception being completely automated and driver-less.

Fold-down seats are available just inside Metro train car doors, but these seats should only be used when there is sufficient space for travelers to easily enter and exit the train car. Rush hours will generally be too busy to use these seats.Rush hour travel on the Metro in Paris is a chance to exercise your “personal space” limits. Don’t be surprised if you end up completely pressed up against other passengers. It’s normal, it’s accepted… it’s simply a slice of commuter life in Paris.Don’t worry about not being able to descend the train when your stop arrives. Simply say “Excusez-moi” and people will immediately begin making room for you to alight, even if it requires that they descend the train also, just to let you off. Parisiens are very well versed in Metro manners and if you’ve read up to this point… you are now as well.

Exiting

After having arrived at your desired station you can make your way out of the station by following the blue “Sortie” signs.These signs will often be mixed with directional signs for various Metro lines shared by a station. This photo shows the multitude of exits and lines available for both the Metro and the RER at the world’s largest underground station: Chatelet Les Halles.

Each exit is usually referred to by the street or landmark upon which it exits.

To determine which exit is best for you refer to an exit map located within the Metro station, usually just after exiting the fare paid zone (see next paragraph).

To exit the fare paid zone within stations you’ll either pass through exit turnstiles (look for green lights on the face of the turnstiles or for open gates) or through doors opened by pressure plates or infrared sensors.(Pressure activated doors are visible on the left hand side of the photo below.)

Frequently Asked Questions

Paris Metro vs. RER - What’s the difference?

The Metro is a classic subway system: mostly underground, many stops, frequent service, short line distances, serving the urban city centre, non-scheduled train timings. The RER (Réseau Express Régional) is a commuter train system that covers much of the greater metropolitan area of Paris (Ile-de-France ), much further out than that covered by the Metro, including specifically both Paris Airports: Paris Roissy-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) and Paris-Orly (ORY) , Euro Disney, and Chateau Versailles. The confusing part is that the RER traverses central Paris with a handful of stations, acting like an express Metro system with fewer stops, larger trains and faster movement. Paris fare zones apply to the RER train system, unlike the Metro and there are six of them. Using a Metro ticket, the Ticket t+, is permitted on the RER, but only to the limits of Zone 1, the true center of Paris, bordered by the ring road surrounding it, the Boulevard Periphérique.

Have a question? Ask it at the ParisByTrain forums and I’ll answer it. Commonly asked questions will be reposted here.

Have a suggestion on improving this article? Don’t hesitate to post a comment or edit this article directly.

Further Reading

History, facts and figures of the Paris Metro (wikipedia, en français )
Paris Regional Transport Authority, RATP (partial site available in in English )
Photos of the Paris Metro system (wikipedia commons)
Guides on Paris Airport trains, Paris Disney train and Paris train stations

References

1. STIF: Les Chiffes, 2005. “Le Reseau du Transports en Commun”. http://www.stif-idf.fr
2. Extension of M14 & M13 lines in 2007 & 2008 has added 3 new stations, now totalling 300. http://extension-reseau.ratp.fr

(Click here for English)

Cet article explique comment prendre le RER A de Paris à Disneyland Paris. Si vous allez de l’aéroport Charles de Gaulle au Parc Disneyland, vous pouvez prendre ou bien un TGV direct de CDG à Disney (Marne-La-Vallée) ou prendre d’abord le RER B jusqu’à Paris, puis, à la station Châtelet-Les Halles, prendre la correspondance avec la ligne A du RER vers Marne-La-Vallée.

Note : Vous pouvez économiser 15% sur les billets DisneyLand Paris en les achetant avant votre arrivée.

Aperçu

Fiche Horaire RER A direction Marne La Vallée

Ligne => RER A (rouge)

Direction => Marne-La-Vallée (ligne RER A4)

Stations de départ => Charles De Gaulle-Étoile, Auber, Châtelet-Les Halles, Gare de Lyon, Nation

Gare d’arrivée => Marne-La-Vallée Chessy

Destination => Marne La Vallée–Chessy

Prix => 7,40€ (Zone 1 - Zone 5)

Abonnements acceptés => Carte Paris Visite (5 zones), Passe Navigo ou Pass Navigo Découverte 5 zones, Ticket Mobilis 5 zones

Temps de Trajet => 39-45 minutes

Premier train / Dernier train (Gare de Lyon - Disney) => 05 h 22 / 00 h 39

Fréquence des trains => environ toutes les 15 min. (de 9 à 30 minutes entre les trains)

Horaires complets => Horaires RER

Détails

Stations RER

Le RER A effectue des trajets de Paris intra-muros à Disneyland pendant toute la journée à environ 15 minutes d’intervalle, à partir de cinq grandes stations RER de Paris intra-muros : Charles De Gaulle-Étoile (sous l’Arc de Triomphe), Auber (au centre commercial des Galeries Lafayette), Châtelet-Les Halles (immense centre commercial souterrain et plus grande station souterraine de métro au monde), Gare de Lyon (la plus grande gare ferroviaire de Paris) et Nation.

Titres de Transports - RER de Paris à DisneyLand Pari

Pour un ticket aller-simple, un billet Île-de-France, de Paris intra-muros à Disney, il vous en coûtera 7,00 € (tarif en vigueur en juillet 2011). Vous pouvez acheter ces tickets au guichet de n’importe quelle station de métro ou de RER ou dans des billetteries automatique de tickets (en utilisant des pièces de monnaie ou une carte bancaire à puce) à l’intérieur des stations. Vous pouvez partir de n’importe quelle station de Métro / RER dans Paris intra-muros (zone 1) en utilisant ce ticket et simplement prendre une correspondance avec la ligne A du RER si vous n’êtes pas déjà dessus. Vous n’avez pas besoin d’acheter un billet distinct pour la partie en métro de votre trajet. Le ticket de Métro normal, le ticket t+, ne fonctionne pas pour ce voyage puisque Marne-La-Vallée et le Parc Disney sont dans la zone 5. Les abonnements suivants sont acceptés pour

Les titres de transports ci-dessous sont valable pour le voyage entre Paris et Disneyland:

• Carte Paris Visite 5 zones (et non zones 1 à 3 ),
• Forfait Navigo ou Forfait Navigo Découverte 1-5 zone,
• Ticket Mobilis 5 Zones (forfait 1 journalier RER / Métro / Bus)

Dans un gare RER

Dans l’une des stations RER parisiennes mentionnées ci-dessus, il vous faudra prendre le RER A en direction de Marne-La-Vallée, mais soyez conscient que la direction peut également être Boissy-St-Léger, comme le montre la photo ci-dessous.

Vous trouverez des indications et des panneaux de stations semblables à celui ci-dessus dans toutes les stations du RER A mentionnées précédemment. Suivez ces indications pour parvenir au bon quai du RER A. Dans certaines stations, comme Châtelet-Les Halles et Gare de Lyon , ces panneaux et indications du RER vous mèneront à un seul quai central desservi de chaque côté par des RER qui vont dans des directions opposées. Pour éviter toute confusion quant au côté qui dessert la bonne direction, regarder les panneaux de station RER qui sont suspendus au-dessus de chaque côté du quai comme celui montré ici :

Chaque station sur la ligne sera indiquée sur ces panneaux, mais le prochain train ne s’arrêtera qu’aux stations dont les noms sont signalés avec un carré lumineux jaune (la moitié gauche dans la photo précédente). Ainsi, ces panneaux servent à deux choses :

1. vous indiquer que vous êtes du bon côté du quai : si vous voyez votre gare d’arrivée sur le panneau, c’est qu’au moins, vous êtes du bon côté du quai. Dans ce cas, il vous faudra voir Marne-La-Vallée Chessy parmi les stations.

2. vous indiquer si le prochain train s’arrête à la station désirée. Si Marne-La-Vallée Chessy est signalée par un carré jaune, prenez le train qui arrive. Sinon, attendez un train qui s’arrête à Marne-La-Vallée / Parc Disney.

Une fois à bord d’un RER A en direction de DisneyLand Paris, pensez à conserver votre ticket à portée de main tout au long de votre trajet : des contrôleurs pourraient vous demander de le leur présenter. Si vous ne pouvez pas présenter un ticket valide, le contrôleur vous fera payer une amende de l’ordre de 40 € payables sur place par carte bancaire. Et, alors que les distributeurs automatiques de tickets n’acceptent pas les cartes de crédit sans puce, les terminaux mobiles qu’utilisent les contrôleurs n’ont vraiment aucun problème de ce genre. À la fin de votre trajet, vous aurez également besoin de votre ticket ou forfait

Voici le quai de Marne-La-Vallée à Disneyland Paris où vous arriverez :

Une fois que vous aurez quitté le RER A, prenez les escalators ou les escaliers en suivant les panneaux Sortie. Cela vous mènera aux tourniquets de sortie (et entrée) du RER comme le montre la photo suivante :

Utilisez votre billet Île-de-France dans les tourniquets, ce qui vous permettra de traverser la section principale de la station, qui est équipée d’un stand d’information, de guichets, et de diverses boutiques qui vendent des journaux / magazines et des en-cas.

Une fois sorti de la station Marne-La-Vallée Chessy, vous remarquerez que le motif de la station elle-même est le style de Disney, avec ses flèches qui ressemblent à un château-fort.

Voici une photo panoramique de la gare RER / TGV de Marne-La-Vallée Chessy au milieu de quelques attractions de DisneyLand Paris.

Au moment de rentrer à Paris, vous ferez ce trajet en sens inverse. Dans la station Marne-La-Vallée Chessy, vous devrez acheter un nouveau billet Île-de-France vers Paris (7,00 €), dans un distributeur automatique de tickets ou au guichet, puis passer par les tourniquets et descendre vers le quai du RER A. Le quai sera bien signalé avec un panneau indiquant quel train est en partance pour Paris :

Bonne visite à Disneyland !

Liens Utiles

Économisez 15% en réservant en ligne - Disneyland Paris

Ceci est un aperçu de l’itinéraire pour se rendre au centre de Paris depuis l’aéroport CDG avec le RER B. Pour des instructions concernant la direction inverse voir Paris to Airport CDG by Train.

Pour des instructions pas-à-pas voir Terminal 2 à Paris par le RER ou Terminal 1 à Paris par le RER.

Aperçu CDG jusqu’à Paris

Ligne => RER B (Bleu)

Direction => Paris (Robinson, Antony, St-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse)

Stations d’arrivées => Gare du Nord, Châtelet les Halles, St Michel/Nôtre Dame, Luxembourg, Port Royal, Denfert-Rochereau, Cité Universitaire

Ticket => “Billet Ile-de-France” Aéroport CDG - Paris (Zone 5 -> Zone 1)

Coût => 9,10€ (plein tarif, tarif au 1er Juillet 2011) / 6,40€ (enfants entre 4 et 9 ans) / gratuit (enfants de moins de 4 ans)

Pass Acceptés => Paris Visite, Passe Navigo (Découverte)

Premier Train / Dernier Train CDG en direction de Paris => 04:56 / 23:56 (22:58 L-V jusqu’à mi-2012)

Guides Photo: Terminal 1 à Paris, Terminal 2 à Paris

Détails

A propos du RER B

Le moyen le plus rapide et le moins cher de se rendre à Paris depuis l’Aéroport Roissy-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) est de prendre le RER B au départ des Terminal 2 et Terminal 3/Roissypole de CDG.

Le RER B traverse le centre de Paris du nord au sud, et s’arrête à Gare du Nord, la gare Eurostar Londres - Paris, puis à Châtelet Les Halles la “super” station de correspondance avec 4 lignes de métro et 3 lignes de RER, puis Saint Michel/Notre Dame, Luxembourg, Port Royal, Denfert-Rochereau, Cité Universitaire, et continue au sud vers l’Aéroport Orly (un changement à la station Antony pour le métro OrlyVal est nécessaire).

Les deux stations de l’Aéroport Charles de Gaulle sont nommées “Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1″ et “Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 2 - TGV”, la première étant située à proximité du Terminal 3 dans le bâtiment Roissypole et la seconde étant située entre le Terminal 2E et 2C. (Une carte de l’aéroport CDG est fournie ci-dessous).

Le premier train au départ de l’Aéroport Charles de Gaulle en direction de Paris part à 4:56 du Terminal 2, s’arrête à la station “Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1″ deux minutes plus tard, puis arrive ensuite à Gare du Nord à Paris à 5:26.

Le dernier RER B à partir de l’aéroport CDG en direction de Paris part à 23:56 (mise à jour: voir l’avertissement ci-dessous), et arrive à Paris Gare du Nord à 00:26. Les horaires des RER de CDG à Paris sont les mêmes tous les jours de la semaine, y compris durant les vacances. (Pour les horaires complets, voir les horaires du RER B).

*** Avertissement! Des travaux sont en cours sur la ligne du RER B, de 2010 à la mi-2012 et affectent les derniers trains en soirée au départ de l’aéroport CDG en direction de Paris. Le dernier train direct au départ de l’aéroport CDG en direction de Paris part à 22:58, du lundi au vendredi (les trains du samedi et du dimanche ne sont pas affectés). Les voyageurs essayant de prendre le RER B après cet horaire seront invités à prendre une navette à la station Aéroport CDG 1 jusqu’à la station Aulnay-sous-Bois où le RER B fonctionne normalement en direction de Paris.

Se rendre à la station

Pour des instructions pas-à-pas basées sur des photos voir Guide Photo CDG Terminal 1 direction Paris ou Guide Photo CDG Terminal 2 direction Paris Photo.

Si vous atterrissez au Terminal 1 vous devrez emprunter un train-navette nommé CDGVAL pour le Terminal 3/Roissypole afin de prendre le RER. Le nom de cette station est “Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1″. Ne pensez pas que le “1″ dans le nom signifie “Terminal 1″, car ce n’est pas le cas, il s’agit simplement de la première des deux stations de l’Aéroport CDG. Il vous suffit de suivre les indications pour le tram CDGVAL à l’intérieur du Terminal 1.

Pour rendre les choses plus confuses, le Terminal 3 est situé entre les Terminaux 1 et 2, donc en vous déplaçant d’ouest en est à travers les terminaux vous atteindrez le Terminal 1, puis le 3, et enfin le 2. Gardez à l’esprit que le tram CDGVAL s’arrête aux parkings entre les Terminaux 1 et 3 (Parc P-r), et Terminaux 3 et 2 (Park P-x), donc ne descendez pas trop tôt du CDGVAL. Des annonces vocales en anglais et en français sont faites à chaque arrêt pour vous guider.

Plan de l’Aéroport Charles de Gaulle (CDG) (PDF: ADP)

Si vous atterrissez au Terminal 2, gardez à l’esprit qu’il y a 7 sous-terminaux et que vous devrez vous rendre à la station située entre les sous-terminaux 2E et 2F. Il y aura de nombreux signes à travers les terminaux indiquant le RER pour Paris.

Acheter les Tickets de RER

A la station Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1, un grand atrium ouvert en béton, ou à la station du Terminal 2, un impressionnant ensemble d’escalators blancs à trois niveaux, vous trouverez de nombreuses machines automatiques vendant des tickets. Assurez-vous d’utiliser les machines bleus Billetterie Ile-de-France et non les machines jaunes SNCF TGV , étant donné que seules les machines bleues vendent les tickets que vous recherchez pour le RER B.

Il est encore plus important de noter que la plupart des cartes de crédit américaines et non-européennes (sans les puces intelligentes et sans numéros à 4 chiffres) ne fonctionnera pas avec ces machines. A la station de CDG 1 il y a un grand guichet avec 3 employés SNCF qui vendent des billets individuels pour le RER. Au Terminal 2, il y a une salle en verre foncé à carreaux au niveau inférieur, dont un côté assure la vente des billets de RER et SNCF / TGV. Si vous êtes confronté à cette pièce de verre, l’entrée sur la gauche sera pour les billets RER à Paris. L’entrée sur la droite est uniquement pour les billets à destination d’autres villes. Il y a presque toujours au moins un vendeur de billet qui parle anglais et il sera signalé par un petit drapeau britannique dans le coin de sa fenêtre. De toute façon, vous cherchez à acheter un billet pour “Paris Aller-Simple» [Poire-Ee Alleh-Som-Pleh] qui est un billet aller simple. Le prix devrait être d’environ € 9,10 pour les billets adulte et € 6,40 pour les enfants (9 ans et moins) pour les billets RER B direction Paris.

Prendre le RER

Pour la station de l’Aéroport CDG 1 la direction devrait être assez évident étant donné que le quai est visible depuis la zone des machines automatiques et vous verrez des tourniquets avec des reflets verts. Le Terminal 2 n’est pas bien pire: il suffit de suivre les panneaux qui disent «Trains en direction de Paris”. Il serait assez difficile de les manquer et tous les trains à partir de ces quais sont en direction de Paris. Vous pouvez consulter les écrans situés sur le quai pour voir tous les arrêts du RER. Les arrêts devraient inclure la Gare du Nord, Châtelet les Halles, Saint-Michel-Notre Dame, Luxembourg, et autres. Les quatre cités ici sont ceux que la majorité des voyageurs rechercheront car ils sont tous au centre de Paris. Gare du Nord est la meilleure sortie pour ceux dont l’hôtel est situé près du Sacré Coeur / Montmartre, Châtelet les Halles pour ceux qui restent près du Louvre, Saint-Michel-Notre Dame est sur la Seine (rive gauche), et le Luxembourg est à proximité du Jardin du Luxembourg (Jardin du Luxembourg).

Pour les voyageurs qui en veulent plus, il y a des RER B «express» qui partent des deux stations. Il suffit de regarder les écrans sur le quai et de vérifier le nombre d’arrêts entre les stations de CDG et les quatre stations parisiennes centrales mentionnées ci-dessus. L’express RER B ira directement de l’Aéroport CDG 1 à Gare du Nord, sans s’arrêter à aucune station entre les deux. Le train régulier fera environ 9 arrêts entre l’aéroport CDG et Gare du Nord. Vous économiserez environ 12 minutes en prenant l’un des trains express, mais même les non-express RER B vous emmèneront à Paris (Gare du Nord) en environ 34 minutes.

Bon séjour !

Liens utiles

Disneyland Paris par le RER

Plan du RER (PDF)

RER B Train Horaires de l’Aéroport Charles de Gaulle (CDG) à Paris Gare du Nord

I recently switched from PHPBB software to VBulletin, mostly for the ease of handling SPAM, but also for refinements to how questions & answers are posted.

VBulletin is a paid service, costing about 100£/year if you keep up with all the updates.  PHPBB is free which lends itself to the try-before-buy methodology, which I did. The Paris by Train forums are active enough that I felt it was time to upgrade to a “commercial” forum software, which has more refinement, features, and especially SPAM protection.

Stop by and post a question that you have on traveling Paris by Train and I’ll try my best to answer it within 48 hours.

Hi Everyone,

Apologies for the site outage between March 4th and 7th.  There was another site (of mine) on this web server that went haywire and swallowed up all the memory and most of the CPU processing power, rending my dear ParisByTrain site unavailable.

Rest assured, I’m still here and the site will stay up as long as it stays a useful resource for travelers coming to Paris.

The new job and new and soon-to-be-furnished apartment are taking up all my time currently, but I hope to get back to answering questions and adding articles in a couple of weeks.  The new apartment won’t even have Internet for at least two weeks, so that’s a major issue.

Anyways, I’ll try to keep a closer eye on ParisByTrain and make sure things are running smoothly.

Take care all,

Ben

A friend of mine recently became a fan of TED (Technology. Entertainment. Design) and it led me to watch this 18 minute talk on creative genius by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love.  She talks about inspiration, where it comes from, how people deal with it, and offers an idea of how to we can channel it as a positive force rather than a destructive one (often afflicting tormented artists).

It’s quite an interesting, if not inspirational, talk in itself and I recommend it for a watch to anyone who has to deal with the creative process in their work (hopefully all of us).

For me personally, Paris by Train draws its inspiration from the belief in spreading knowledge and having a positive impact on people’s lives.  One of the biggest effects I hope this site has is to reduce anxiety.  It can be a tough thing to set foot in a country where there may be serious barriers to communication.  The idea of not being able to get to shelter or to feed yourself due to an inability to simply communicate is a scary thought. And to some it is enough to stop cold any ideas or dreams of visiting far off places to experience different cultures and perspectives.  So, Paris by Train is my small stab at helping make this leap of faith by travelers a little bit less scary, allowing them to focus on the beauty of discovery & learning different places & people.  To help people look forward to such an experience with anticipation instead of anxiety, I think is something well worth the effort.

I recently met Rosa Jackson, a Canadian culinary educator & prolific food writer based in Nice & Paris.  She currently offers French Provençal cooking classes in sunny Nice with her cooking school Les Petits Farcis.  When not in Nice, she’s leading culinary/market tours in Paris (Edible Paris).

If you’re looking to get to know the local food scene in either Paris or the Provence region of southern France, you need to get in touch with Rosa at either Edible-Paris.com or PetitsFarcis.com.

Read about a typical cooking class with Rosa at Gourmet magazine.

TGV Pro train ticket exchange & refund policies are unique.  I’ll attempt to explain the conditions of sale for these business class TGV train tickets below.

First misconception: Pro tickets are first class train tickets.  This is not true.  Pro tickets can be bought for seats in either the first class or second class train cars on TGV trains

The main difference between Pro (Business) and Loisir (Leisure or Economy or other types of) tickets is their refund/exchange policy.

Exchange and Refund Conditions for TGV Pro tickets:

• TGV Pro tickets are exchangeable for another TGV ticket on any other TGV train route, without exchange fee, up until your train leaves. You must pay any differences in fares, if applicable.
• TGV Pro ticket holders, from one hour before your scheduled departure to one hour after your scheduled departure, may take trains on the same route, without exchanging your ticket.  This does not guarantee you a seat!  If you have time, you should visit a automated ticket vending/exchange machine (Yellow for any type of TGV ticket, Purple for Pro TGV tickets) to officially exchange your ticket and reserve a seat.
• TGV Pro tickets are fully refundable up until the time of departure of your scheduled train, free of cancellation fees.
• After your scheduled train departs and up until 60 days afterwards, you will lose 50% of your ticket value for any refund or exchange of the ticket.  After 60 days, an unused TGV Pro ticket is worthless.
• Exchanging/Refunding tickets using automated machines or ticket counters in any major train station is free of charge.
• You may cancel/refund a TGV Pro ticket by telephone at any time up until 60 days after scheduled departure. To speak to a SNCF travel agent by phone to exchange/refund tickets call 08 92 35 35 01 when in France (0,34€/min).

If you are unsure of your travel plans in terms of schedule, it may make sense to purchase TGV Pro train tickets. Loisir tickets are exchangeable, free of service charge, up until the night before the day of travel.  On the day of travel, Loisir TGV tickets are subject to a 10€ exchange/refund fee (plus difference in fares if applicable).  After the departure of your scheduled train, Loisir tickets are worthless.

The train to DisneyLand Paris from London is a Eurostar high speed train with travel time of 2 hours 55 minutes. Tickets start at £59 return.

The train to Disney Paris leaves once a day at 08:35 from London St. Pancras International Train station (King’s Cross Tube station) and arrives at DisneyLand Paris park gates at 12:30 (Paris time, which is one hour ahead of London time).

Search for London-Disney Paris ticket availability at Eurostar.com.

More information: Eurostar train to DisneyLand Paris.

If you plan on visiting Paris before making a trip out to DisneyLand Paris, there is also city train service to Paris Disneyland. The train to DisneyLand from Paris is the RER A commuter train which offers non-reserved seating train service between Paris city centre and DisneyLand at Marne La Vallée–Chessy train station. Ticket price is 7,00€ one way or 14,00€ return.

Schedules, maps, tickets/passes and more information can be found here: Paris RER to DisneyLand.

Trains to DisneyLand Paris also leave directly from CDG Airport arriving at Paris Disney park gates in less than 15 minutes with ticket prices less than 15€ one way.

More information: TGV Trains from CDG to DisneyLand Paris.

Useful Links

Save 15% by booking online - Disneyland Paris

I recently met Gail Bosclair of Perfectly Paris which offers Paris vacation apartment rentals in the Montmartre area.

Visitors to Paris these days are getting savvy to the idea of renting out apartments for a few days to a week at a time.  They end up paying less than they would for a hotel while getting a real taste of what it’s like to live in a beautiful area of Paris like Montmartre, which has spectacular views over the city.

She’s got some really beautiful Paris apartments under management.  I encourage you to check out her properties.

Overview

• Costs 1,70€ per journey (with an individual Ticket t+)
• Children 4-10, cost is 0,85€. Children 3 and under ride for free.
• Passes Accepted => Pass Navigo, Navigo Découverte, Paris Visite Card, Ticket Mobilis
• First trains leave terminus stations at 05:30
• Last trains leave terminus at 00:40, 01:40 on Fridays, Saturdays and nights before holidays

Paris Metro

The Parisian subway is known as the Metro, short for “chemin de fer Métropolitain” [metropolitan railway].  The network of underground rail lines has 245 stations scattered throughout central Paris’ 20 “arrondissements” [districts].

Tickets for the Paris Metro are purchased from blue or green “billetteries” [ticket vending machines] or from “guichets” [manned ticket windows] within stations. The current price (July 2011) for a single ticket known as a “Ticket t+” is 1,70€. Tickets can also be purchased as a book of ten or twenty, known as a “carnet” [booklet], for a slight discount (booklet of ten Ticket t+ is 12,50€ or 1,25€ each).

During your journey, keep your ticket with you until you arrive at your destination station and pass through the exit gates or turnstiles.  “Controleurs” [ticket inspectors] may stop you at any point during your journey to ask to see a valid ticket or pass.  Failure to provide a valid fare will result in a fine of €35, payable on the spot through credit card.

Paris Metro stations are mostly located underground with a few above ground due to local geography. Entry into the Metro stations is free up until the turnstiles which mark the area from which you must have a valid transportation ticket or pass. Some station entrances are unmanned, having no ticket window nor ticket vending machines, only turnstiles which accept tickets and smart card passes (Pass Navigo) for entry.

Metro lines are numbered from 1 to 14, each a different color, with two “bis” [b or secondary] lines making 16 in total.

Each Metro line has two (or more) terminus stations. These end-of-line stations are used to note the direction the train is traveling. Each Metro line platform within a station will be marked with the line number and the direction the trains will travel from that platform.

Signs within Paris Metro stations mark the way to train platforms on a given line, in a given direction. Metro lines are signified by the letter M within a circle.There are several Metro stations that serve multiple lines in various directions. This causes some stations to have several vertical levels accessible sometimes only by stairs, but often with escalators and sometimes with elevators for extremely deep stations.

As you make you way toward the line platforms within a station, stairs often descend or ascend onto the either side of the rails.  Each stairwell is often marked with a detailed Metro line sign showing number, direction, and stations that will be visited as the train travels toward the terminus.

(photo by roboppy)

Exits from Metro stations are marked by blue “sortie” [exit] signs and often note the street or area they give access to.

(photo by kygp)

Stations often have several exits leading out to various streets and pathways.  There is often a map provided within the station, outside of the ticketed turnstile area, but still within the station, showing all exits in relation to above ground streets and establishments.

Links

Paris Metro Google Knol

Paris Metro Line Schedule/Timetable with frequency and neighborhood maps for stations

More Metro photos & information at nycsubway.org

This is a step-by-step photo guide of taking RER B Paris city trains from Airport Charles de Gaulle Terminal 2 to Paris city centre. From the the CDG arrivals lounge to central Paris, I’ll guide you step-by-step on how to make this transfer. If you’re arriving at Terminal 1, see the CDG Terminal 1 to Paris photo guide.

*** Due to construction on RER B line, the last train leaving CDG Airport Terminal 2 is 10:55 PM (22:55), Monday to Friday (inclusive) until mid-2012.  Weekend service is unaffected, except for November 6, 7 2010 when no trains will stop at Aeroport Charles de Gaulle, for the entire day.***

Arrival at CDG

Upon arrival at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport Terminal 2 the first thing that will happen after exiting the plane is immigration/passport control, which can be very quick depending on where you are sitting on the plane.  If you’re seated near the front of the plane and are the first to exit, you’ll be the first to go through immigration screening by French national police.  Thus you could be past immigration within 5 minutes (or 40 if you’re the last to exit a large plane).

Next you’ll collect your baggage at the carousels.  Estimate a good 30 minutes for this, nothing out of the ordinary in terms of expediency, perhaps even a little slow.

Customs control for baggage is next, which is separate from passport control and handled by customs officers near the exit of the baggage collection area.  In general the customs officers spot check passengers and only stop those who rouse their curiosity.  After this you’ll exit into an unsecured area of Charles de Gaulle Airport free to make your way to Paris or other cities via train.

If you happen to be arriving via Terminal 2G, the new Schengen (Euro Borderless Zone) terminal, you’ll need to take a shuttle bus to Terminal 2E/F in order to catch the RER train.  The shuttle buses, circulating every 4-5 minutes, can be found just outside the arrivals area of 2G.  [Thanks to Lynne P. for this updated information].

Getting to the Train Station at Terminal 2

The CDG Terminal 2 arrivals hall will look like this:

Notice the blue overhead signs? Those will point to Gare SNCF / Railway Station, Paris par Train / Paris by Train. Follow these signs to make your way to the train station located right within Terminal 2.

Here are some close-up photos of signs pointing to the CDG Terminal 2 train station:

At the end of each of the terminal buildings (there are six sub-terminals at Terminal 2: terminals 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E and 2F) will be a large sign noting how long it will take to reach other terminals and the train station. In this photo, we see that the train station at Terminal 2 is 3 to 5 minutes walk from Terminal 2F.

Here is a map of Charles de Gaulle Airport showing the layout of CDG Terminal 2. Also visible are Terminal 3, Terminal 1 (which has its own train station) and CDGVAL shuttle train between CDG’s 3 terminals and parking structures.

(Courtesy of ADP)

The moving sidewalks between Terminal 2’s sub-terminals definitely speed up walking times:

Closer to the train station area you’ll find more signs directing you down to the station.

When you’ve arrived at the train station area, you’ll be on Level 4 of an atrium with a Sheraton hotel on one end, HSBC Bank on the other end and multiple signs pointing to the Gare/Station/Paris by Train.

Another photo of the station atrium taken on Level 3 facing the opposite direction (towards HSBC Bank, one level up). Signage is quite clear on the station location. You may wish to withdraw some Euro cash from the HSBC bank machine (visible at the top right in the below photo).  If your (non-European, non-smart-chip) credit cards don’t work with the automated ticket machines, they won’t work at the SNCF/RATP ticket windows either.  Thus you’ll need Euro cash to buy your tickets.

At the bottom of the atrium, Level 2, the actual station level you’ll have various stores and eateries on one side of the hall and a SNCF ticket purchase office on the other side.  Scattered throughout the middle of the train station are blue or green Billetterie Ile-de-France train ticket vending machines.

The SNCF ticket office is split into two halves, each selling only certain types of train tickets.  When facing the ticket office the left half sells tickets and passes for traveling within Paris and the Ile-de-France area, known as Billets Ile-de-France.

The right half deals with TGV tickets (for sale, collection, refunds and changes) for trains traveling to other cities within France, known as the Grandes Lignes.

If you’re wanting to buy a simple train ticket to Paris and you have a smart chip credit card or Euro coins, you can use the blue Billetterie vending machines to purchase such tickets. (The machines shown in this photo are from Terminal 3, but they are otherwise identical). Note that multi-day passes such as Pass Navigo or Paris Visite cards are not sold by the machines.  You must visit the ticket office to purchase passes.

Bear in mind that these machines will not work with most North American credit cards, which in general do not have smart chips nor are PIN number protected.

After buying your train tickets or passes it’s time to turn towards the train platforms which will require descending another set of escalators or stairs onto Level 1. The Paris Train platforms are marked as “Voie” (”platform”) 11 and 12 and also show “RER B Paris par Train“, the Regional Express Network trains that operate between Roissy-Charles de Gaulle and Paris city centre.

This is a photo overlooking Paris bound train platforms 11 and 12 at CDG Terminal 2 Station.

On the platform itself you’ll see signs noting that all trains are going to Paris, since Aeroport Charles de Gaulle is the terminus or end-of-line station for the RER B train line.

Note that although the platform sign reads Aeroport Charles de Gaulle 2 TGV, this platform shown is not the TGV train platform, it’s simply the name of this station as a whole.

The TGV train platforms are located and accessed from the other side of the station.  If you’re taking a TGV train to another city besides Paris, the train platform area should look like the following:

Remember to keep your train ticket with you at all times throughout the journey.  You may be asked by a ticket controller to show a valid fare or otherwise pay a penalty fare of 35€. The tickets are also required to exit the arrival station in Paris as there will be turnstiles protecting the exits, just as they protect entrances.  Finally, your RER train ticket is also good for connections onto the Paris Metro and other RER train lines once you’ve arrived in Paris; There’s no need to purchase a separate Paris Metro/RER Ticket T+ for making connections within the city centre onto other Metro or RER trains (but not buses nor trams, which require a new ticket).

The first Paris city centre station will be Gare du Nord, requiring about 30 minutes for the voyage from Airport CDG Terminal 2.  Paris stations along the RER B line after Gare du Nord will be Chatelet Les Halles, St. Michel-Notre Dame, Luxembourg, Port Royal, Denfert Rochereau and Cité Universitaire.

Resources

The following train timetables show depature times of RER B trains leaving CDG Terminal 2 towards Paris.  (Ignore the second pages).

RER B Train Schedule (departure times) CDG Terminal 2 to Paris Mondays to Fridays (except holidays)

RER B Train Schedule (departure times) CDG Terminal 2 to Paris Saturday, Sunday and holidays

Here are ten ways to ride the Paris Metro like a local (or better).

1. Plan your route. Before making a trip, use a Metro map and the official RATP Paris Metro route planner to find the shortest route with the least number of line changes.  Station to station a Metro train will take just over a minute. Making connections will cost you about 3 minutes at small interchanges with few intersecting lines and up to fifteen minutes at mega stations Chatelet Les Halles, Gare du Nord, Gare Montparnasse, Saint-Lazare.  These stations are enormous, sprawling, multi-level, and likely confusing (especially Chatelet Les Halles). You could be walking up to a kilometer to reach the next train platform. If you’re changing trains more than twice, search for a more direct route.
2. Don’t wait till Monday morning or the first day of the month to buy your Metro ticket t+ or  Navigo Semaine for the week.  The lineups for both vending machines and ticket windows are extremely long on these particular days, since Navigo Semaine expires on Sunday evening / last day of the month.  Thus, an unusually large number of people will be renewing their pass.
3. Take the RER if you can, even if it means back tracking on the Metro.  With far fewer stops and higher speed, the RER is almost always faster than the Metro.  Use it as much as possible.
4. At rush hour on the station platform, walk to the far end, furthest away from the entrance stairwell.  People tend to bunch up just next to the platform entrance, reducing your chance of getting on the train.  You’ll also get last second “jumpers” who push themselves onto the last metro car as the doors are about to close, squishing everyone else already on the over-packed car.
5. Time flies: Most platforms have overhead signs showing minutes till the next train.  These are hardly atomic clocks.  2 minutes can mean immediate arrival or actually 6 minutes.  Don’t wander off in the meantime.
6. Choose the best train car.  Many people stand at the edge of the platform near the rails to be closer to a car door when the train arrives thinking this will guarantee they get on. This is untrue.  Trains often arrive with cars which are full and no one is descending. If you happen to be waiting at the doorstep of such a train car, you’re not getting on. Furthermore, when you turn around to go to the next train door, you’re no longer at the head of the line, you’re at the rear, as everyone else behind you has turned toward the next train car as well, and you’re behind them.  By standing back, you can survey the train cars as they pass, allowing you to quickly move to the one that is not overly full and where there are people descending.  Stand back as the train arrives to watch multiple doors. Some train cars will have many people descending, some none at all.  Your best chance of getting on a busy Metro train is with a car somewhere in between these two extremes.  Standing back from the fray allows you to see the action from afar and choose the best train car.
7. Take off your backpack & keep it near your feet/between your legs. You’ll take the personal space (at a premium on the Metro) of two people with it on your back.  It’s bad form, screams “ignorant tourist” and is more prone to having uninvited “inspections” for wallets and other valuables (not common, but possible).
8. During rush hour, stand, don’t use the folding seats near the train doors, which allows more people to be crammed into the train car, a national past time in Paris.
9. Prepare for takeoff: Make your way to the door (carefully) before the train arrives at your station. If this is not possible at least make motions that you’re getting off at the next stop.  Everyone reads that body language and will prepare to get out of your way when it’s time.  This allows you to alight quickly so that others have time to enter the train before it departs.
10. Wash your hands after your journey. The amount of other people’s lives on handles and poles on a Metro train would make the monkey in Outbreak shudder.

(Photo by jmanners)

RER Train Line Maps

The following RER Train Line maps are specific to a single RER Train line, A, B, C, D, or E.

Each RER Line map shows:

• Stations along the RER line
• Branches & Terminus (last) stations for each branch, used to specify direction of travel for RER trains along their platforms within stations
• Interchanges or Connections to Paris Metro lines
• Connections to other RER train lines
• Transfers to TGV Trains, Transilien/Ter commuter train lines at large Paris train stations (known as “Gare” in French). This includes Gare du Nord, Gare de l’Est, Gare de Lyon, Gare de Austerlitz, Gare de Montparnasse, Gare St. Lazare.
• Zones for Pass Navigo / Paris Visite / Mobilis tickets and passes
• Handicap accessibility at stations
• Famous attractions near stations

These maps can be found on all RER train cars just above their doors.

RER A Train Line Map

RER B Train Line Map

RER C Train Line Map

RER D Train Line Map

RER E Train Line Map

Paris and the surrounding area is divided into 5 concentric zones for use in pricing public transportation passes.  Travel into the 5th and farthest zone is the most expensive, while zones 1-2, central Paris, are the least expensive.  Examples of popular destinations and their zones: Chateau Versailles & Orly Airport - Zone 4, CDG Airport & Euro Disneyland - Zone 5, Fontainebleau - Zone 5.

This Paris Transportation Zone Map (PDF) displays Fare Zones 1 to 5 which apply to:

• Pass Navigo / Pass Navigo Decouverte
• Paris Visite Pass
• Ticket Mobilis (day pass)
• Ticket Jeunes (day pass for 25 and under, valid only on weekends/holidays)

What’s visible on the Zones map:

• Fare Zones (”Zones Tarifaires”) 1 through 5
• RER A, RER B, RER C, D, E train lines
• RER & Transilien train network in Ile-de-France (administrative region around Paris)
• Station names along all RER/Translien train lines
• Connections (”Correspondances”) and transfer possible between different RER, Transilien, and RER to Transilien trains
• Shuttle bus (”navettes bus”) from RER C station: Pont de Rungis and Orly Airport
• Orlyval train to Paris-Orly Airport between RER B station: Antony and Orly West / Orly South airport terminals, which requires a special fare (”tarification spéciale”)
• Major tourist sites (”Sites touristiques”) accessible from certain stations

(Zone map courtesy of RATP)

This RER C Train Map shows:

• All stations along each RER C branch (C1 - C7)
• Interchanges with Metro Lines / RER Lines
• Famous Sites and Attractions at stations on RER C
• Zone regions (Zone 1 to Zone 5)

Downloadable RER C Line Map (PDF)

Popular Destinations

Along RER C (with station names in brackets) in and around Paris:

• Notre Dame Cathedral (St-Michel Notre Dame)
• Orsay Museum (Musée d’Orsay)
• Tomb of Napolean / Army Museum (Invalides)
• Eiffel Tower (Champ de Mars/Tour Eiffel)
• Massy TGV Train station (Massy/Palaiseau)
• Palace of Versailles (Versailles Rive-Gauche)

More Information

RER Train Map (RER A, B, C, D, E) (PDF)

Maps on Paris by Train

Grace à Google Translate.  Il y a un widget disponible sur la rubrique gauche où vous pouvez changer le langue de la page instantement en plusiers langues, français par exemple.  Et, le traduction ce n’est pas mal du tout. Loin de parfait (comme mon français, evidemment), mais, pour la plupart, il marche.

Google.. vous ne cessez jamais de me surprendre.

Paris by Train Forum

Paris by Train forum is now open for questions, answers, general discussion about all things public transportation in Paris.

Have a question on Paris Train Schedules?

How to get to your hotel in Paris?

Where are the best baguettes in Paris?

Ask your question on the Paris by Train forums!

The best detailed Paris street map to buy is The Paris Mapguide from Michael Middleditch.  I’ve not found a Paris street too small to be included in this book.  There are some outlying arrondissements that are not covered fully though, so beware if you’ll be traveling at the outer edge of any of the border arrondissements of Paris.

I wouldn’t recommend this map book for Paris if I didn’t love it myself, and I seriously love this map book. This Paris map book is soft cover, just slightly bigger than paperback size (not thickness, it’s 64 pages), and is extremely detailed. It contains a Metro/RER map, RATP bus routes and shows Metro stations within neighborhoods/quarters. This last feature is not to be overlooked.  A Paris Metro map from the RATP is great to have, but if you overlay the metro stops with a Paris street map you’ll have a god-like understanding of how to move about Paris.  You’ll be giving locals directions with this map (this has happened to me multiple times, including once where I gave a nice elderly Parisien lady directions near Charles de Gaulle Etoile and just after helping her another nice Paris gentleman stopped and asked me: “You OK?”, not realizing that I was the one giving directions to the local Parisien woman).

Where can you find/buy this Paris street map? That depends on where you live.

The Paris Mapguide at Amazon.com for those living in the United States.

Live in the UK? Buy the Paris Mapguide from Amazon.co.uk

Canada? Amazon.ca

Vous habitez en France? Amazon.fr now carries The Paris Mapguide.

Michael, if you come across this page, I owe you a pint (or a beverage of your choice).

Overview

Departure station => Paris-Gare de Lyon

Line => SNCF Ile-de-France / Transilien / RER

Direction => Montereau / Sens / Laroche Migennes

Arrival Station => Montereau (Zone 5, 9,40€)

First Train / Last Train => 05:57 / 22:46 (see notes)

Details

To fastest way to get to Montereau from Paris is to take a Transilien train from Paris-Gare de Lyon to Gare de Montereau, which takes from 55 to 65 minutes.

Start by finding the schedule for Paris to Fontainebleau trains at Transilien.com. Search for trains leaving from station Gare de Lyon, in Paris, going to destination city Montereau, without specifying the destination station. Frequency of trains from Paris to Montereau can range from 20 minutes apart during rush hour to 1 hour 30 minutes apart during quiet periods of mid-morning, mid-afternoon and late at night.

Unless you have a ticket Mobilis (day pass) / Passe Navigo Découverte / Paris Visite card good for all 5 zones, you’ll have to buy a special billet Ile-de-France [bee-yah Eel-duh-franz] for this train. This can be done only at the SNCF Ile-de-France ticket window just west of the Blue platform, or at the blue, boxy ticket vending machines (Billetterie Ile-de-France), just outside the building, further west of the ticket window. Most of the ticket windows and vending machines in Gare de Lyon only sell tickets for the Grandes Lignes trains, which depart for cities outside of the main Parisian/Ile-de-France area, so don’t make the mistake of lining up in one of these queues as they won’t be able to sell you the ticket you need.

At the ticket window, simply ask for “Montereau Aller-Rétour” [mon-tuh-row alleh-ray-tour]. You’ll get two tickets, one for each direction, for about 17€. You’ll have to pay by cash unless you happen to have a smart-card / Euro credit card. North American credit cards will most likely not work at any SNCF ticket window nor ticket vending machine, so keep some cash handy.

With tickets in hand it’s time to find out which platform your train will depart from. At Gare de Lyon there are two platforms, Blue and Yellow. The blue zone or platform is marked with lanes or “voie” that are letters A to N, ascending from left to right, on signs with a blue background. The yellow zone or platform has lanes that are numbered from 5 to 23, in ascending order from right to left, with signs in yellow.

Trains leaving for Fontainebleau can be on either platform, on any lane so find the Gare de Lyon Departures board at either one of the platforms (taking care not to mistake it for the Arrivals board, also available at each platform). What you’re looking for on the board is the terminus station, i.e. the last station that the train will stop at, which may not necessarily be Montereau. Your train will be one of the following:

• Laroche-Migennes
• Montereau
• Sens

The board will note the train number (useless information), the terminus station (any one of the four noted above), time of departure, and which platform and lane. At the right hand side you’ll see a blue or yellow square. This corresponds to which platform your train will leave from, Blue or Yellow. The number or letter for the lane will often not be marked on the board until 15 minutes before the train leaves, but make your way to the correct platform before that. At the right platform you’ll notice a crowd of people staring at the big black Departures board. What they’re waiting for is the lane number or letter to appear on top of the yellow or blue square, denoting exactly which lane the train will depart from. During busy hours, once that lane letter or number is posted, there is a hurried rush towards the train parked in that lane. If you wish to have a seat for the hour long ride, be one of those people.

To double check that you’re on the right train, take note of the television or LCD displays at the beginning of the train “voie” (lane). The display will show each stop the train will make on its journey. One of them should be Montereau. If that stop isn’t listed, check the Departures board and find the correct lane for your train.

The train, once underway will often make several stops before arriving at Montereau, so be sure to check which station you’re at before jumping off. The stops are generally Melun, after 25 minutes, then Bois-le-Roi, Fontainebleau-Avon, Thomery, Moret, St. Mammés, and finally Montereau.

When arriving, if you happen to be the first at the door, look for the door button as the doors do not automatically open. Don’t be surprised if the doors are a bit sticky and require some encouragement (pushing) to get fully open.

Enjoy your trip.

Notes

The schedule for trains going from Paris to Montereau change depending on day of the week, holidays, special periods of the year and special days of the year. In general the first train of the day is 5:57am, the last train is 10:46pm. On Sundays and holidays, the first train leaves Paris-Gare de Lyon at 6:31am. You can always verify train times at Transilien.com.

Links

PDF map of Gare de Lyon

To find a route from CDG to a Metro station use the Paris Metro Journey Planner, operated by the Paris public transit authority - RATP.

Find a route from CDG to Paris Metro Station

Here is a step by step example of finding a route from CDG Airport Terminal 1 to St. Sulpice Metro station in Paris.

Step One - Route Planner

First, open up the Paris Metro Route Planner in a web browser. You’ll see a page similar to the one shown here.

Step Two - Departure Metro Station

First decision to make: Address or Station?  If you know the name of the Metro station closest to your final destination, click on the radio button next to Station

In this example, we’re leaving from CDG Airport Terminal 1.  To enter your departure station enter: Aeroport CDG 1

If you’re arriving at CDG Terminal 2 enter: Aeroport CDG 2. To find a route from CDG Terminal 3, use Aeroport CDG 1 as this is the closest station to Terminal 3.

Step Three - Destination Metro Station

Next, we’ll select a Destination station.  In this example we’re going to St. Sulpice Metro station.  Select the Station radio button and type St Sulpice in the text box below.

Step Four - Options

By default the route planner will search for the fastest route between the departure and destination stations.  At times this can result in several connections between several Metro or RER train lines. If you’re traveling with heavy luggage or suffer from mobility issues, choosing fewest connections or shortest walking distance options may result in a better route.

Step Five - Departure Time & Date

There is an option near the bottom of the Route Planner that allows you to enter the Date and Time that you plan on making this journey.

It’s important to specify the same day of the week and approximate time of day (in 24 hour clock) that you will be making this trip to get accurate results.  You do not have to specify the exact date & time of travel if this information is not available.  If you’re not sure of when you’re traveling, simply choose a time and day that makes sense, i.e. don’t use a time in the middle of the night. Somewhere between 8am to 9pm (21 hours) will give you good results.

Step Six - Being Precise

Click the Search button (bottom right corner) to start the Route Planner.

99% of the time the Paris Metro Route Planner will not show you a route, but will instead ask you to specify more precisely the departure and destination stations

The Paris Metro Route Planner will ask you to select from station names that closely matched your search criteria (Aeroport CDG 1 and St Sulpice).

Most of the time the suggested stations are correct, but you can click on the selected items to see the other suggestions.  Above are the exact station names that the Paris Metro Route Planner needs to use.

Finally, click again the Search button.

Important! The Paris Metro Route Planner will open a new browser window to show you the route results. This is considered a “Pop-Up Ad” by most browsers such as Firefox or Internet Explorer and their Pop-Up Blockers will not show the route planner results window.  You need to allow your web browser to show this Pop-Up Window, either permanently or just for this session.  To permanently allow the Route Planner to show Pop-Up Window route results, see the Purdue University page on allowing Pop-Ups from certain websites.  For the “address of Web site to allow” use: ratp.info.  The RATP uses several Web servers to provide the Route Planner results, so it is important to specify only “ratp.info” rather than www7.ratp.info or something similar since that number “7″ will change from time to time as the website spreads out the server traffic load to several different Web servers.

Step Seven - Review Route Planner Results

The Pop-Up Paris Metro Route Planner results page will show something similar to this:

Examining Route Planner Results

Looking closer at the results we see that the Paris Metro Route Planner gives total Travel Time for the journey (51 minutes).

Each part of the journey is broken down into steps specified along the left hand side column (1 & 2):

Each step shows details on which line you must take, in which direction, and which station you need to descend or stop at.

This first step specifies the type of train: RER, the line: B, the direction: Saint-Remy-les-Chevreuse, from the departure station: Aeroport Charles de Gaulle 1, and the destination station which is either your final destination or the station where you’ll need to transfer to another line: Chatelet Les Halles. At the airport train stations, on the train platforms, you can verify the direction of the RER train by looking at the overhead television screens which show the direction and departure time of the train.

Note: the direction for trains leaving CDG is not important if you’re destination is within city centre Paris, since the RER B train stops at all RER B stations within Paris itself: Gare du Nord, Chatelet Les Halles, St Michel Notre Dame, Luxembourg, Port Royal, Denfert Rochereau, and Cité Universitaire.  Thus, if you see a different direction name listed on the overhead television information screens than the one you received from the Route Planner, don’t panic, the train will stop at all the downtown Paris RER stations.

See the following photo guide articles for more information on catching the RER B train from Paris CDG Airport to Paris city center: CDG Airport Terminal 1 to Paris and CDG Airport Terminal 2 to Paris.

In this example, the second leg of the journey is completed on a different type of train: the Paris Metro, Line 4.  In this step, direction is very important.  Every Paris Metro line will have two (or more) directions which are specified by the name of the last station on the line (the terminus station) at that end of the line.  In this case, the direction is Porte d’Orleans.

When you are transferring from the RER B train line to Metro Line 4 at station Chatelet Les Halles, you’ll have to follow signs within Chatelet Les Halles that show Metro Line 4 and the direction Porte d’Orleans, if the sign you’re reading denotes directions.  Not all signs within Metro stations show line directions (to save space) and some signs show both directions, since you’re so far away from the actual Metro train platforms that the path you’re on leads to both sides (and directions) of the Metro line.  Only when you get close enough to the two train platforms, each heading in opposite directions, will the Metro signs start specifying a single direction/terminus station.  For this particular trip, the opposite direction for Metro Line 4 is Porte de Clignacourt, but we’re after Porte d’Orleans.

On the right hand side of the Route Planner results is a column specifying the time each part of the journey will take, including walking time (in green) to the train platforms themselves.

The final piece of information on the Route Planner results is the Paris Fare Zones you’ll be crossing during your journey.  This tells you the approximate cost of the trip and the type of ticket required for the journey.

In this case, CDG Airport to Paris (any Metro station) is a special fare and is priced as such: 10,00€.  For journeys purely within the Paris Metro system, the Fare Zones are 1-2, and will require only a single Ticket t+ at a current cost of 1,70€ (as of July 201).  Any journeys beyond zones 1-2 will require additional Ticket t+ tickets good for the Metro and Bus, or special station to station priced tickets called Billet Ile-de-France.  Tip: Billet Ile-de-France tickets, when arriving or departing in central Paris, such as on this trip from CDG Airport to Paris, are good for both the Paris RER and the Paris Metro; you’ll use this single ticket on both types of trains to complete your journey.

Ready to try this for yourself?  Here is a pre-saved version of the above journey: Aeroport CDG 1 to St. Sulpice Paris Metro Route Planner search.

Travel from CDG to Disneyland Paris can be done in two ways by train:

• TGV high speed train from CDG to Disneyland, or
• RER B city train from CDG to Paris, then RER A train from Paris to Disneyland Paris

TGV trains from CDG to Disneyland take only 12 minutes to complete the journey. Ticket prices for CDG to Disneyland vary from 15€ to 30€ for first class tickets (more legroom, wider seats).  Tickets can be purchased ahead of time: see Buying TGV Tickets for more information.  CDG to Disneyland tickets can also be purchased upon arrival at the Terminal 2 train station.  A related article, CDG Terminal 2 to Paris, has some photos of CDG Terminal 2 that should help you get your bearings in this station.

RER trains from CDG to Disneyland always connect at Chatelet Les Halles underground station in central Paris.  Ticket prices for RER train travel from CDG to Paris, then Paris to Disneyland at Marne La Vallée station cost 14,85€ as of January 2009, requiring two tickets to complete the journey. Travel time is roughly 80 minutes, station to station.

See the articles Paris to CDG and Paris to Disneyland for more information on taking RER trains from CDG to Disneyland.

High speed TGV trains from CDG to DisneyLand Paris take just 11 minutes to travel between Charles de Gaulle Airport TGV station and the DisneyLand Paris park gates. TGV train ticket prices vary from 15€ to 24€ each and can be purchased ahead of time from:

• RailEurope.com for USA residents
• RailEurope.co.uk for UK residents
• RailEurope.ca for residents of Canada
• and TGV-Europe.com for other travelers

CDG to DisneyLand Paris trains leave from a train station located inside of Terminal 2 at CDG Airport. For instructions on getting to the CDG Terminal 2 train station see the article CDG Terminal 2 to Paris photo guide. (Note that the TGV train station is located opposite of the RER train station, which is described in the previously mentioned article. The picture above is the CDG Terminal 2 TGV train station.)

Ticket purchases for the TGV train from CDG to DisneyLand Paris can also be made directly at the airport train station from the Grandes Lignes section of the ticket office. CDG to DisneyLand Paris train tickets can also be purchased from yellow ticket vending machines available throughout the station. But, keep in mind that most North American credit cards without embedded smart chips nor PIN number protection will not work with these machines. These TGV ticket vending machines will appear similar to the ones shown in the photo below.

CDG to DisneyLand Paris Schedule

Trains from CDG to DisneyLand Paris leave the airport with a frequency anywhere between 15 to 60 minutes apart. The first TGV train leaves CDG at 06:54 and arrives at DisneyLand Paris 12 minutes later. The last TGV train from CDG to DisneyLand Paris departs at 21:55 in the evening, seven days a week.

Search for exact TGV train times CDG to DisneyLand Paris at RailEurope.com or RailEurope.co.uk depending on your location.

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