Transport in Paris, France

Getting There

By air: Paris has two major airports - Aéroport Charles de Gaulle and Aéroport d’Orly, which is only 14km south of the city. Most international flights arrive into CdeG. Trains connect both airports to the city centre and depart every 15 minutes. If you fly with Ryanair you will fly to Paris Beauvais which is 80 minutes from the city centre. There is a bus service into the city centre after every flight. The journey takes approximately 80-90 minutes.

By train: Paris has six stations where trains travelling from long-distance destinations arrive:
Gare d’Austerlitz: Loire Valley, Spain and Portugal
Gare de l’Est: Eastern France, Luxembourg, southern Germany
Gare de Lyon: South-eastern France, the Alps, Switzerland, Italy
Gare Montparnasse: Brittany, south-western France
Gare du Nord: Northern France, the UK, Belgium, northern Germany
Gare St Lazare: Normandy

By bus: Most buses arriving from long-distance destinations arrive in Gare Routière Internationale on the eastern side of Paris.

Getting Around

On foot: Paris is Europe’s second largest city after London. It is divided into 20 ‘arrondissement’ (districts) and getting around them on foot is no easy chore. You will probably have to use the Metro at some stage but landmarks such as the Arc de Triomphe/Champs-Elysses, the Louvre, and the Notre Dame Cathedral are all within walking distance of each other. Just make sure to have a comprehensive map with you at all times.

By metro and train: The metro is integrated with the RER (the city’s train system) and, between them, operate throughout most of the city. Metros run from 5.30am-12am, while trains run from 5am-12am.

The metro is the most widely used mode by commuters. Opening in July 1900, the first line in operation ran from Porte de Vincennes to Porte Malliot. Today the system uses 199km of track and operates on 15 lines. They say that no building in the city centre is more than 500 metres from a metro station.

By bus: Buses operate between 5.30am and midnight, with night buses travelling on 18 different routes from 1am-5.30am.

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