End of the line for Paris’ iconic metro ticket

Thames99 · 1 Mar 2025

Thank you, signed.

So, I assume that she would have to download the IDF Mobilités app first. She is only going to be there for a few days, so am I right to think that her best options would be either buying a number of 2.50 tickets or using 12.00 day tickets?

Paris Visite seems very expensive and offer no more than a Navigo day ticket. Am I looking at an old version of the site or missing something?

List of tickets and fares

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www.iledefrance-mobilites.fr

Her child is 12 and I don't think there are any reduced fares available for her, so I think she will need her own smartphone and use normal adult fares.

Apologies for the stream of questions!

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BahrainLad · 1 Mar 2025

You don’t need to download an app, you can just do it within the existing Wallet app on a suitable iPhone. Another app only complicates things unnecessarily.

Hit the ‘+’ logo top right, then “Travel Card” and follow the prompts.

It allows you to buy a range of tickets, including refused fares (eg €1,25 for the metro as opposed to €2,50) so I think it would work for a child although I don’t know how you’d select that at the barrier.

island · 1 Mar 2025

Thames99 said:
Her child is 12 and I don't think there are any reduced fares available for her, so I think she will need her own smartphone and use normal adult fares.

Child is 4-9 on RATP (or 4-11 on some tickets) so she will need adult fares. If taking 5 or more trains a day, a day ticket will be better, otherwise pay per journey.

When done through Apple Wallet you can put multiple virtual cards for multiple people on one phone. You cannot use one card for multiple people, even if you have lots of tickets on that one card.

Thames99 said:
Paris Visite seems very expensive and offer no more than a Navigo day ticket.

Paris Visite is an overpriced tourist trap. It is valid to/from the airports which Navigo Day is not, but due to the enormous price premium there is almost always a better combination of tickets available.

Thames99 · 1 Mar 2025

Thanks again. It looks as if child fares stop at the age of 10 in Paris and she definitely looks older than that!

https://www.ratp.fr/en/titres-et-tarifs/reduced-fares-children

Edit: Cross posted with island

Thank to both of you.

Dougal2345 · 22 Apr 2025

Just a really quick question - are the standard paper single Metro tickets still available from machines taking coins at Gare du Nord? Have to do a quick-ish transfer to the Gare de Lyon in a couple of weeks so want to be prepared...

D6130 · 22 Apr 2025

Dougal2345 said:
Just a really quick question - are the standard paper single Metro tickets still available from machines taking coins at Gare du Nord? Have to do a quick-ish transfer to the Gare de Lyon in a couple of weeks so want to be prepared...

If I were you, I would purchase a Navigo Easy card from the café on board Eurostar before arrival in Paris. A wee bit more expensive, but much less hassle and it's already loaded with two journeys....so you can use it when you return and top it up for future visits.

Hadders · 23 Apr 2025

D6130 said:
If I were you, I would purchase a Navigo Easy card from the café on board Eurostar before arrival in Paris. A wee bit more expensive, but much less hassle and it's already loaded with two journeys....so you can use it when you return and top it up for future visits.

Or alternatively download the free Navigo app on your phone and use that. Instructions available in english, you simply buy the ticket you need in the app and off you go.

I wouldn't be queueing up at the ticket machines at Gare du Nord - horific queues when I was there in January and a good way of identifying yourself as a tourist to the pick pockets etc.

bluegoblin7 · 23 Apr 2025

Or if you’re using an iPhone, just go into Wallet. ‘Add Card’, Travel Card and get a new Navigo straight from there. No apps necessary.

Dougal2345 · 23 Apr 2025

Thanks for all the advice! Sadly I don't have an "NFC-capable" 'phone, which I think would be needed - and besides I don't much like having to get my 'phone out and wave it around at busy ticket barriers - so will get the Navigo card on the Eurostar, hoping it's not too expensive...

bspahh · 23 Apr 2025

Dougal2345 said:
Thanks for all the advice! Sadly I don't have an "NFC-capable" 'phone, which I think would be needed - and besides I don't much like having to get my 'phone out and wave it around at busy ticket barriers - so will get the Navigo card on the Eurostar, hoping it's not too expensive...

https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/visiting-paris.275411/ is from October 2024. It says:

Their Oyster-equivalent is a Navigo card. You can load a card with N single journeys in advance, up to 10 maybe. On the Eurostar train the buffet car will sell you a Navigo card preloaded with 2 journeys for (I think) Euro 7.85. I did this and it worked fine, my wife had a Navigo card left over from a previous visit. The alternative is to buy Navigo cards at Gard du Nord on arrival, but only some ticket machines will sell you a new Navigo (most machines will top up an existing one). I think that might be a slightly cheaper option but will take a bit more time. The website seat61.com has more detailed advice. Each time you use a Navigo a screen on the ticket gate tells you how many trips you have left.

This is the Seat61 article

Option 3, use a Navigo Easy smartcard - easy once you've got hold of a card

Navigo Easy is a contactless smartcard which can be loaded with metro/RER or bus/tram tickets. Once you've got hold of a Navigo Easy card you can top up the card with tickets using your phone or a metro ticket machine.

Step 1, get hold of a Navigo Easy smartcard, one card for each person in your party.

This is the time-consuming bit, but once you've got one you're sorted for future trips to Paris. You first need to acquire a physical Navigo Easy card for €2 from any staffed metro ticket counter.

Or you can buy one from designated ticket machines at the Gare du Nord and other major metro stations. Look for a ticket machine marked Ici, vente de passes Navigo Easy. Load it with at least one ticket. You can pay by contactless bank card or cash.

Step 2, once you have a Navigo Easy card, you can add tickets for future trips to Paris in 3 ways:

Option 1, download the Bonjour RATP app for iPhone or the Bonjour RATP app for Android) and set up an account. You can then buy tickets on your phone with a credit card or Apple Pay. After buying tickets, it will ask you to hold your Navigo Easy card against your phone's NFC reader to load the tickets onto it.

Option 2, if you have the SNCF-Connect app for iPhone or SNCF-Connect app for Android (useful for showing & managing SNCF mainline tickets bought at www.sncf-connect.com) this has a Paris and its region button which works in exactly the same way as the Bonjour RATP app. Click the Paris and its region button and hold your Navigo Easy card against the back of your phone to check what's already loaded on it. Buy more tickets using a credit card or Apple Pay then hold your Navigo Easy card against the back of your phone to load them onto it.

Option 3, you can add tickets at any self-service machine marked Navigo. These can be used in English and (depending on the machine) accept bank cards & cash. Hold your Navigo Easy card against the machine's card reader and add tickets to it using a contactless bank card.

Dougal2345 · 23 Apr 2025

€7.85 sounds okay, presumably if bought in France it would be €2.00 for the card, and 2 x €2.50 for the journeys - so it's only an 85 cent markup.

I wonder why they don't sell them in the departure hall at St Pancras too, to save one having to mooch through the train - but perhaps it's a way to get customers into the buffet and try to upsell them some comestibles.

D6130 · 23 Apr 2025

Dougal2345 said:
€7.85 sounds okay, presumably if bought in France it would be €2.00 for the card, and 2 x €2.50 for the journeys - so it's only an 85 cent markup.

I wonder why they don't sell them in the departure hall at St Pancras too, to save one having to mooch through the train - but perhaps it's a way to get customers into the buffet and try to upsell them some comestibles.

They used to sell the paper tickets at the enquiry desk in the Eurostar departure lounge at St Pancras - as well as in the on-board café - but not any more.

Jam381 · 23 Apr 2025

If I buy a single or day ticket on the IDF mobilities app, how do I scan the ticket at the gate?

I am also planning to buy the Navigo Decouverte when I'm Paris, do the app let you see your journey history like the Oyster card does in London?

Many thanks

signed · 23 Apr 2025

Jam381 said:
If I buy a single or day ticket on the IDF mobilities app, how do I scan the ticket at the gate?

Tap your (ideally locked and screen off if you have a Android or Express Transit mode enabled on Apple Wallet) phone on the purple or blue part of the gate. No need to open the app or anything

Jam381 said:
I am also planning to buy the Navigo Decouverte when I'm Paris, do the app let you see your journey history like the Oyster card does in London?

Not on the physical card as this info isn't saved (apart from the deferred charge Liberté+ which is only available for the region resident)

On a ticket loaded in the app you will only see timestamps of validation and the mean of transport used

Note that you can load on your phone a Week or Month pass, (this is the best way in my opinion), and you can load a week pass on Easy. With a Navigo Découverte you will need a passport photo as well.

Be however warned that a week pass is from Monday to Sunday inclusive.

From a Friday in a week, you can only buy for the following week. Same thing with month pass which are on sale from the 23rd of each month.

And NEVER buy a Paris Visite tourist ticket, if you fly in and out in a single week, a week pass is a LOT cheaper and valid on Airport runs as well

NCT · 23 Apr 2025

Being used to the British norm of a week or a month can begin on any day for Season products, I find it baffling certain systems still insist on Monday starts and 1st of month starts even when things are already completely digitised.

rvdborgt · 23 Apr 2025

signed said:
Tap your (ideally locked and screen off if you have a Android or Express Transit mode enabled on Apple Wallet) phone on the purple or blue part of the gate. No need to open the app or anything

Last time I had to open the Android app. There was even a warning about it on my phone when I tried without opening.

island · 24 Apr 2025

Jam381 said:
I am also planning to buy the Navigo Decouverte when I'm Paris, do the app let you see your journey history like the Oyster card does in London?

Why would you buy a Navigo Decouverte if you have the app? It's cheaper and considerably less faff to buy your day, week or month ticket on the app as well.

Jam381 · 24 Apr 2025

island said:
Why would you buy a Navigo Decouverte if you have the app? It's cheaper and considerably less faff to buy your day, week or month ticket on the app as well.

It's a souvenir from the city

Dougal2345 · 5 May 2025

Following the sage advice here, to-day I made my way to the Eurostar Café, bought a Navigo Easy (£7 or €8.75, I think) and on arrival at the GdN, strode confidently up to the RER gate...

Unfortunately nothing happened, the card was not recognised at all. So it was all the stress of the machines, a new card and ticket purchased, and a bit of a rush.

Tried "topping up" the Eurostar-supplied one, but it wasn't recognised by the machines either. Methinks an email will be heading to Eurostar when I get back home...

signed · 5 May 2025

Dougal2345 said:
Methinks an email will be heading to Eurostar when I get back home...

Make sure you pass by a ticket office to verify what's exactly happening, will likely help your case for a refund

Dougal2345 · 5 May 2025

signed said:
Make sure you pass by a ticket office to verify what's exactly happening, will likely help your case for a refund

Sadly I didn't have time today, already speeding to Perpignan, and my journey home is via Lille so I won't have a chance then... Still £7 is not the end of the world (but I hope I get it, it's the principle of the thing

).

signed · 5 May 2025

Dougal2345 said:
Sadly I didn't have time today, already speeding to Perpignan, and my journey home is via Lille so I won't have a chance then... Still £7 is not the end of the world (but I hope I get it, it's the principle of the thing ).

Try scanning it using your phone, it may give you a error code or thing (using IDFM, RATP or SNCF Connect app)

Dougal2345 · 5 May 2025

signed said:
Try scanning it using your phone, it may give you a error code or thing (using IDFM, RATP or SNCF Connect app)

I think I'd need an NFC-capable 'phone to do that, but I'm behind the times...

signed · 5 May 2025

Dougal2345 said:
I think I'd need an NFC-capable 'phone to do that, but I'm behind the times...

Indeed you do

brooklynbound · 7 May 2025

It may well be that Eurostar are still selling the old Navigo cards which can now only be topped up with bus tickets. I managed to get my old card swapped for free at a metro station and top up worked fine. Be aware that the cards have a life expectancy. The date shows up if you get a receipt when topping up.

The exile · 7 May 2025

brooklynbound said:
It may well be that Eurostar are still selling the old Navigo cards which can now only be topped up with bus tickets. I managed to get my old card swapped for free at a metro station and top up worked fine. Be aware that the cards have a life expectancy. The date shows up if you get a receipt when topping up.

They do - but the one I bought last week suggests it’s 10 years (no new uploading after 9). Doubt a Navigo Easy would physically last that long if actually being used by a regular visitor.

WolvertonWorks · 7 May 2025

Can I have some advice please in light of this for our upcoming trip.

I was planning on buying two of these (one for myself, one for my husband) Navigo cards onboard the Eurostar to Paris, using one of the journeys on Metro Line 4 from Gare du Nord to Gare Montparnasse as we are staying overnight near Gare Montparnasse and leave from there the following morning for Bordeaux.

We want to do a bit of sightseeing during our afternoon and evening in Paris and while we will do most of it by walking I was hoping to be able to use the Navigo card, toping up as needed, for any journeys we decide to take.

We won't be crossing Paris on the return journey as we are coming back via Lille but we will be making an outward journey crossing Paris again next year so I'm assuming that if we top up the cards with say 10 Euros on each the balance will remain valid for use in 2026 (I will keep the cards in a safe place in the meantime!) but that I'm best to join a queue to purchase the cards once we get to Gare du Nord and not buy them on the Eurostar?

Oh and I'm a bit of a luddite and I don't use apps so use of my mobile isn't an option.

The exile · 7 May 2025

WolvertonWorks said:
Can I have some advice please in light of this for our upcoming trip.

I was planning on buying two of these (one for myself, one for my husband) Navigo cards onboard the Eurostar to Paris, using one of the journeys on Metro Line 4 from Gare du Nord to Gare Montparnasse as we are staying overnight near Gare Montparnasse and leave from there the following morning for Bordeaux.

We want to do a bit of sightseeing during our afternoon and evening in Paris and while we will do most of it by walking I was hoping to be able to use the Navigo card, toping up as needed, for any journeys we decide to take.

We won't be crossing Paris on the return journey as we are coming back via Lille but we will be making an outward journey crossing Paris again next year so I'm assuming that if we top up the cards with say 10 Euros on each the balance will remain valid for use in 2026 (I will keep the cards in a safe place in the meantime!) but that I'm best to join a queue to purchase the cards once we get to Gare du Nord and not buy them on the Eurostar?

Oh and I'm a bit of a luddite and I don't use apps so use of my mobile isn't an option.

On the Navigo Easy you load journeys, not money.

danchester · 7 May 2025

The exile said:
On the Navigo Easy you load journeys, not money.

This. On the Eurostar they'll ask you how many journeys you want the cards to be loaded with at the point of purchase. So definitely buy it there, you'll be able to choose exactly what you need and will never have to queue for a ticket machine!

The exile · 7 May 2025

danchester said:
This. On the Eurostar they'll ask you how many journeys you want the cards to be loaded with at the point of purchase. So definitely buy it there, you'll be able to choose exactly what you need and will never have to queue for a ticket machine!

I don’t know whether it was a one-off, sympathy action with their human colleagues, or just par for the course, but all the machines at the Gare du Nord yesterday were excruciatingly slow compared with the others I’d used over the previous few days. Interestingly - given the original raison d’etre of this thread, the one I used printed the card receipt on “iconic” ticket stock, not standard receipt roll.

End of the line for Paris’ iconic metro ticket

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