Hello Ben, I think your website is fantastic. It is one of the most informative and easy to understand I've come across. And for that I thank you. I have a couple questions you might be able to answer. My family and I will be arriving from Brugge to Paris on Easter Sunday. In light of the most recent train strikes, will service be affected? Fewer trains? What is a normal holiday schedule like? Also, I am very much interested in The Navago Decouverte travel card since we will be in Paris Mon-Sun. We are staying in the Latin Quarter. What nearest Metro station will likely have the cards available for purchase? Do the smaller stations carry them? How likely will it be ticket booths will be open on Easter Monday? Fewer trains as well? We have tickets for the Eiffel Tower Easter Monday at 10:30am and we're hoping to be able to buy our cards and get there on time. Any suggestions or comments from you would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance. Cheers, Wendy
1 answer
Hi Wendy,
There's no strikes affecting trains planned/announced for April 9th, 2023 just yet. But, the announcements for strike action are usually released 3-5 days ahead of the actual strike date.
For example the strike happening on March 23rd, 2023, the announcement was made on March 18.
Service disruptions usually come in the form of fewer trains as opposed to zero trains, so train service should continue, but it will be more crowded and more annoying to use.
To check for train strike service disruptions, keep an eye on this page from the Paris Metro transit authority (RATP): https://www.ratp.fr/infos-trafic
The information will only be in French, but Google Translate can help give you an idea of what's upcoming in the next several days (but not much further).
Holiday RER & Metro train service in Paris is usually less frequent on the holiday "day" itself. Also, the day before the holiday, hours of operation run later than normal, by about one hour.
In the Latin Quarter I'd suggest visiting the ticket booths at RER stations for Navigo cards (if the closest Metro station doesn't have any new cards for you). Since Saint Michel Notre Dame RER station is closed for construction, Luxembourg station is the closest. The last resort is across the river at Chatelet Les Halles, which is enormous.
Metro/RER Ticket booths will be open on holidays, but you may have to check other entrances for a given station as they usually only staff some of the ticket windows, rather than all ticket windows at the same time.
You can purchase the Navigo cards on the Sunday and load them with week passes at the same time. They won't become valid for travel until midnight (00:00 Monday morning), but this way you don't have to rush to get your Navigo cards on Monday morning.
Unfortunately since Saint Michel Notre Dame RER station is closed until April 16, 2023 you'll need to take an alternate route on Metro, such as Metro 4 + Metro 6. (Google Maps itineraries should work fine and take into account of closures.). Bir-Hakeim Metro station on line 6 will be the closest station to the Eiffel Tower.
Have a great visit Wendy. And thanks for the kind words about the website.
-Ben