As someone who studies sustainable development and urban planning, I am continually blown away at how fantastic Paris’ public transportation system. As the densest metro system in the world, it boasts 16 lines, 700 trains, and 245 stations, all within the Paris city limits. One of the stations, Châtelet, is the largest subway station in the world. It’s so expansive that one time it took me 10 minutes to find my line, and I eventually had to ask for directions…in a train station!
The public transportation system here also consists of a regional line called the RER, and a bus system. I am inherently wary of buses, probably because of experiencing so many delays and breakdowns in Boston buses. But the Parisian buses run as smoothly as their metro system does, and I swear, you cannot walk more than 5 minutes without running into a metro or bus stop. But not only is Paris’ public transportation expansive, it’s also clean, reliable, and safe. My only gripe is that it doesn’t run all night, so you have to make that difficult decision to either go home early, or stay out till 6:00 am. From experience though, I’ve always felt much safer waiting in the metro station in the early morning hours rather than walking home alone.
A single ride on the subway costs around $1.80, and you can technically use that ticket as many times as you want within a 2 hour window. This is because—in theory— you might have to switch from metro, to bus, to RER. But I’ve used a single ticket for a round trip before, and just took a different metro line home than the one I took there. A monthly pass (includes metro, bus, and RER) costs around $89, but special student rates are available at 50% off if you stay in Paris for the year. Or your employer could reimburse part of it, like mine does. I’m cheap as hell, but a monthly pass is still definitely a must for me.
Three of the subway lines are actually fully autonomous, and have no driver or anyone controlling the train. This also means they have massive gates separating you and the track, since there’s no driver to stop the train if someone falls in. But these self-driven trains are the most efficient, high-tech pieces of public transportation that I’ve ever encountered. Never late, always enough seats (since there’s no wasted space for the control room or driver), and located in very convenient areas for tourists and locals alike. I always forget which lines are the automated ones, and I get such a pleasant surprise and become so excited when it pulls up. Nerdy, I know. Paris is planning to have an additional four more automated train lines by 2022.
Growing up, I always heard stories from family or friends about traveling around Europe via regional train. This was the quintessential backpacking trip I had seen in movies and read about in books! So I was sort of disappointed when I got to Europe for the first time as a solo-traveler and realized how expensive regional trains actually were. Because of the plethora of low-budget airlines like EasyJet, RyanAir, Hop, and Vueling, many flights are actually cheaper than the train option. It’s very dependent on the timing of when you buy your ticket. But there is something romantic about the notion of taking the train through the French countryside, I’ve got to admit. If you’re in for a dose of nostalgia, taking regional trains is a great way to go for a scenic route and peaceful trip. Just be prepared for your trip taking hours longer.
Another option for traveling around France is driving, or using a ride-sharing service like BlaBlaCar. BlaBlaCar is a long-distance carpooling service, where you find people going in the same general direction as you and hitch a ride. While I’ve personally never used this service before, tons of my classmates and friends have…with mixed reviews. Several friends were stuck in a car with a quarreling married couple for 5 hours, and things got pretty heated and awkward. On the other hand, I know a group of people who made it down to the South of France for only $70 USD. You can also choose if you want an extra talkative carpool buddy, or a silent and painless trip to your destination. But if you care to make a roadtrip out of it and you have the time, I’d definitely recommend renting a car and driving yourself. Jamming seven friends in a car for 5 hours is a blast, even if it doesn’t seem like it at first! Plus, if you’re in a country that drives on the other side of the road, experiencing that is a treat in itself. Just keep in the mind that if you only drive automatic, rentals will probably be more expensive. I’ve been the butt of so many jokes because I don’t know how to drive manual, but hey, at least that got me out of driving shifts.
While Uber definitely has a foothold here in Paris, there are many other smaller French companies that offer the same services for cheaper. One of them is called ChauffeurPrivée, and I saw a coupon code on a billboard that has given me 5 euros off every ride until the end of the year! And since I’m now passing on that information to other future Parisians via this blog, I guess you could say their ad campaign is pretty effective. I stopped using Uber when I was still in Boston due to personal morals, but I’ve found that drivers on other apps are a lot happier with their working conditions and pay.
As you can see, the options for transportation around Paris are endless. You never have an excuse that something is too far, as most things end up being just a 20 minute train ride away. Just another reason why Paris is one of the greatest cities in the world to study abroad in!
