Great site! I've been searching for this answer but can't find it. I live in Paris, and buy single t+ tickets as I need them, storing them in my iPhone. I understand those work for RER in Zone 1. I also know I can buy a CDG RER ticket as long as I don't have any t+ tickets on the phone (or Navigo card).
All good. The thing I can't figure out is whether it's possible to buy a single use RER ticket which goes outside of Zone 1 via the phone? So far it seems I need to buy from a machine, which usually involves waiting in line. Am I missing something or is this really how it is? (Sometimes the lines are so long I just buy a day pass from my phone, but then I'm spending something like 20€ to cover a 6€ ride just to skip the line.)
Thanks!
1 answer
RER/origin-destination tickets are not actually available yet on any other support device besides paper tickets. So, IDF phone app, Apple Wallet, Navigo Easy all do not support the plain-old RER billet origin-destination tickets.
The CDG Airport ticket you mention is actually not a RER ticket per se, but a new fare the IDFM created (this is the terms of sale & use for that particular fare). This is the fare that cannot be put onto a device that has Ticket t+ on it. The old RER-style fare for CDG to Paris still exists and can be bought as a single-use paper ticket. And only as a paper ticket; it can't be put onto any other device or card.
Unfortunately I don't have a solution to your question about how to avoid the lineups for buying RER point-to-point tickets. The only solution I ever had was having a monthly pass which obviated the need to buy single tickets. But of course this only makes sense if you're needing at least 15 RER rides in a month.
Thanks for the kind words about the site.