In short: Public transportation in Paris in 2026
- Metro and RER ticket: €2.55 per ride anywhere in the Paris region, including Versailles and Disneyland.
- Bus and tram: €2.05 per ride, and it’s a separate ticket from the metro one.
- Airports: a special €14 ticket covers the RER B from Charles de Gaulle and metro line 14 from Orly.
- Airport taxi: a flat rate, €56 or €65 from Charles de Gaulle and €45 or €36 from Orly, depending on which bank of the Seine you’re headed to.
- Paper tickets: no longer sold, and on the metro they’re only valid until December 15, 2026.
- How to pay: through the phone app or with a Navigo Easy card, which costs €2.
- Israeli phone numbers: can’t load a weekly pass onto the phone, so for a weekly pass buy a Navigo Découverte card for €5.
Paris is one of those cities where it’s incredibly easy to get from place to place (seriously, it’s a joy). The reason is the crazy abundance of transportation options, their high quality, and the price, which, between us, is still pretty reasonable for what you get. But all this abundance can confuse the average tourist, and the countless questions popping up in my Facebook groups morning and night prove it.
So I decided to bring some order to the chaos and write you the complete guide to getting around Paris. Here you’ll find everything you need to know, from getting from the airport in style (without going broke), through ticket prices and apps, all the way to renting a bike if you’re feeling brave. All prices in this article are current as of September 2026.
Getting from the Airport to the City: Taxi, Shuttle or Train?
A taxi is not cheap. Within Paris itself? Usually completely unnecessary thanks to the wonderful metro. But there’s one case where I urge you not to be stingy: getting from the airport to your hotel.
If you’re young, carrying just a small carry-on, and arriving in the middle of the day, the metro is a great option. But if you’ve got big suitcases? Do yourself a favor and skip it.
Most Paris metro stations are a maze of stairs with no elevators. Dragging a 23-kg suitcase up the stairs at the Châtelet station isn’t a sport, it’s torture. Plus, during rush hour, squeezing into a car with a huge suitcase is a recipe for angry looks from the locals (and rightly so).
Here are all the options from each of the two airports, with current prices:
- Taxi: a flat rate of €56 to the Right Bank of the Seine and €65 to the Left Bank.
- RER B train: about 30 minutes to Gare du Nord and Châtelet-Les Halles, with a €14 ticket.
- RoissyBus: stopped running at the end of February 2026.
- Taxi: a flat rate of €45 to the Right Bank and €36 to the Left Bank.
- Metro line 14: about 25 minutes to Châtelet with no transfers, with a €14 ticket.
- Orlyval: to the Antony station and from there the RER B, on the same ticket.
- OrlyBus: stopped running in March 2025.
The flat taxi rate is the same in both directions, and booking the taxi in advance costs up to €7 extra. For the train and metro you need the airport ticket, and a regular metro ticket won’t get you through the gate at the airport station. If you have a Navigo Semaine or Paris Visite pass, you don’t need an extra ticket, but the daily pass (Navigo Jour) doesn’t cover the airports. At the Aéroport d’Orly station on line 14, there are also machines that let you buy a ticket with a contactless credit card (€14.80).
On March 28, 2027, the CDG Express train is set to open, connecting Gare de l’Est to Terminal 2 of Charles de Gaulle in about 20 minutes. It’s a separate train with its own ticket, not part of the transport authority’s fare system.
In the arrivals hall, drivers will wait for you offering a “Taxi.” Don’t fall for it, go only to the official taxi line outside.
Uber in Paris
If you’re less into planning ahead and more of a “here and now” person, the app works great in Paris. It’s convenient, it’s available, and sometimes it’s cheaper than a regular taxi (but watch out for surge pricing during rush hour!). Just download it, book a ride, and watch the car approach on the map. For airport rides, by the way, it’s worth comparing first with the official taxi’s flat rate.
The 2026 Revolution: Tickets and Apps
Now we get to the interesting part. 2026 is a turning point for Parisian transit. If you used to come home with pockets full of small, worn-out paper tickets, forget about it.
Say goodbye to the nostalgic paper ticket. Paper tickets haven’t been sold since November 2025, as of May 1, 2026 they’re no longer accepted on buses and trams, and on the metro and RER you can use them only until December 15, 2026. Found old tickets in a drawer? You can exchange them at RATP and SNCF ticket counters until January 14, 2027 (up to 5 tickets per day), and they’ll be transferred to a Navigo Easy card.
The future is already here: everything is moving to your mobile phone or a rechargeable plastic card (Navigo Easy).
How much does a ride cost? 2026 prices
Since the start of 2025, prices in Paris are much simpler: there’s no more zone division for single tickets, and there are two main tickets, one for the metro and trains and one for buses and trams. These are the official prices from the Île-de-France region’s transport authority (Île-de-France Mobilités):
| Ticket | Price | What you need to know |
|---|---|---|
| Metro, train and RER | €2.55 | The Métro-Train-RER ticket. Valid for two hours, including transfers between metro lines, the RER and trains across the whole region, including to Versailles and Disneyland. Not valid for the airports. |
| Bus and tram | €2.05 | The Bus-Tram ticket. For buses and trams only, and switching from the metro to a bus requires two separate tickets. |
| Airports | €14 | The Paris Région ↔ Aéroports ticket for the RER B, metro line 14 and Orlyval, from any station in the region. |
| Daily pass | €12.30 | Navigo Jour: unlimited travel for one day, across all zones. Doesn’t include the airports. |
| Weekly pass | €32.40 | Navigo Semaine: unlimited travel, including the airports. Note that it’s always valid Monday through Sunday, not seven days from the moment you buy it. |
| Tourist pass | €30.60 / €45.40 / €63.80 / €78 | Paris Visite for one, two, 3 or 5 days, including the airports. |
| Navigo Easy | €2 | The plastic card you load tickets onto. Buy it once and keep recharging it. |
Children under 4 travel free, and children ages 4 to 10 pay half price (€1.30 for the metro, €1.05 for the bus and €7 for the airports). You can’t hold both full-price and discounted tickets on the same Navigo Easy card or phone, so a child needs their own ticket.
Which is better: app or physical card?
That’s the million-dollar question. Here are the differences, to make it easier to decide:
- The most convenient option there is. Your phone is always with you.
- Buy tickets right from the couch at your hotel.
- You can also load a weekly pass, but only with a verified account and photo.
- Requires an iPhone XR or newer (with iOS 17.5 or later), or an Android phone that supports NFC.
- Completely personal, and if your battery dies, so does your ticket.
- Reliable “low-tech.” No battery needed.
- Can be passed between people (but not on the same ride!).
- Can’t load a weekly pass onto it. For that you need a Navigo Découverte card.
- If you lose the card, you lose whatever balance was on it.
How to pay? The two apps I recommend
I highly recommend not messing around with the machines at the station. Download one of these apps and buy your tickets right from your phone:
To load a weekly (Navigo Semaine) or monthly pass onto your phone, you need to open an Île-de-France Mobilités Connect account and upload a photo (an inspector may ask to see it). The problem is that the account can only be opened with a phone number from a country on the authority’s list, and as of September 2026, Israel (country code 972) is not on it (a French or other European number that receives SMS will work).
The simple fix: buy a Navigo Découverte card at a station ticket counter (costs €5), stick a small photo of yourself on it, and load your weekly pass onto that.
Modes of transportation: how to get around the city
These are the four main ways to get around Paris, with the pros and cons of each:
- Fast, efficient (usually) and reaches every corner.
- €2.55 per ride, including transfers within two hours.
- Since October 2025, new, roomier MF19 trains run on line 10, and on line 7bis they’re supposed to replace all the old trains by the end of 2026 (a welcome upgrade!).
- Most stations have no elevators.
- €2.05 per ride with the bus-tram ticket.
- You can pay by contactless credit card directly at the reader by the door (€2.55, no transfers).
- Switching from the metro to a bus requires an extra ticket.
- Cheap, fast and incredibly fun.
- You can also rent shared electric bikes through the Bonjour RATP app.
- Just be careful, Parisians ride like maniacs.
- Shared electric scooters (like Lime or Dott)? Forget about it. In April 2023, Parisians voted with their feet (and at the ballot box), and since September 1, 2023, they no longer operate in the city.
Where to stay to save on travel time
The simplest way to save travel time in Paris is to choose a hotel near a major station. Novotel Paris Les Halles sits right next to Châtelet-Les Halles, the station where RER trains to Charles de Gaulle Airport and Disneyland stop. Holiday Inn Bastille is close to Gare de Lyon, Meslay République is near Place de la République, where 5 metro lines meet, and Hôtel De Nice sits on metro line 1, which passes near the Louvre and the Champs-Élysées. I’ve personally stayed at the last three.
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Novotel Paris Les Halles
★★★★Great location for families and shopping. Right by the metro with direct access to Disneyland Paris and the airport. -
I’ve stayed here!
Holiday Inn Bastille
★★★★A beautiful, modern hotel I stayed at recently and absolutely loved! Located very close to Gare de Lyon station (super convenient for getting to Disneyland Paris).- Living space: Rooms that are fairly large for Paris
- Transportation: Right next to the RER (great for Disneyland)
- Keep in mind: Fairly standard chain-hotel décor
-
I’ve stayed here!
Meslay Republique
★★★A basic, very clean hotel that offers excellent value for the price. Located right next to Place de la République and excellent public transit.- Transportation: Right next to Place de la République (a major metro hub)
- Value: Excellent value for the price
- Keep in mind: A basic hotel with no special frills
-
I’ve stayed here!
Hôtel De Nice
★★★Don’t let the vintage look scare you off. A boutique hotel with excellent service and a reasonable price in one of the best locations in Paris.- Right in the thick of it: Perfect location in the heart of Le Marais
- Great price: Excellent value for the area
- Keep in mind: Dated vintage décor (for fans of the style)
For more hotels, by budget and by neighborhood, check out the recommended hotels in Paris page. If you’re still deciding which area to stay in, it’s worth reading where to stay in Paris.
