Getting Around Paris: Transport, Airport Transfers and Where to Leave Your Bag
Last updated: October 2026
Intro
The paper metro ticket is gone. Sales of the cardboard t+ stopped on 5 November 2025, and a single metro, train or RER ride is now €2.55 on a Navigo Easy card or a phone. The old zone puzzle has mostly collapsed into one flat fare, but the airports sit outside it: Charles de Gaulle (CDG) and Orly each need a separate €14 ticket, the Roissybus from Opéra stopped running on 1 March 2026, and the Orlybus has gone too. Prices below were checked in October 2026.
Disclosure: Ciceru earns a commission if you book luggage storage through its Radical Storage link, and you get 10% off. It does not change what is recommended.
Once the bag is dropped, a self-guided walk in the Ciceru app has a story and a quiz question at each stop, plus a free 500 MB global eSIM. The free Notre-Dame to Louvre walk takes about 2 hours, and the €7 Eiffel Tower to Arc de Triomphe walk about 3.
⚡ Quick answer
- Airport to centre: RER B from CDG or metro line 14 from Orly, both on the €14 Paris Region Airports ticket. Taxis are fixed at €56 or €65 from CDG and €45 or €36 from Orly
- Normal rides: €2.55 for metro, train and RER, €2.05 for bus and tram, loaded on a Navigo Easy card (€2) or a phone
- Best pass: for most visitors, none. The one-day Navigo is €12.30 and only beats single tickets from the fifth ride
- Bank cards: work on Paris buses and one Orly exit gate, not at metro gates yet
- Luggage: SNCF lockers cost €5.50 to €9.50 for 24 hours at the big stations, but check the payment type. Radical Storage fills the gaps
✈️ From CDG
RER B is the standard answer. It stops at all three terminals, runs every 6 to 15 minutes and reaches Gare du Nord and Châtelet-Les Halles in roughly 30 to 50 minutes. The ticket is the €14 Paris Region Airports ticket, which works on any metro, train or RER journey between the airport and anywhere in Île-de-France for 2 hours, no round trips.
Roissybus is finished. The Opéra to CDG coach stopped on 1 March 2026 after passenger numbers fell by almost 40% since 2023. Many guides still list it.
Cheap options are slower. The new express bus 9517 links CDG to Saint-Denis-Pleyel in about 30 minutes for a €2.05 bus fare, where you change for metro lines 13 and 14. Buses 350 and 351 take 60 to 90 minutes. Night buses N140 and N143 run via Gare de l'Est.
CDG Express is not open yet. It starts on 28 March 2027, 20 minutes to Gare de l'Est, from €25 one way.
🛫 From Orly
Metro line 14 is now the answer, about 20 minutes to Gare de Lyon or Châtelet according to Paris je t'aime. It takes the same €14 airport ticket, and a plain t+ will not open the gate.
If you arrive with nothing, there is a rescue: since 30 June 2026 you can tap a bank card, phone or watch at the exit gate of Orly station. It charges €14.80, and works only when leaving.
Orlyval is the automatic shuttle to RER B at Antony, also on the €14 ticket. Tram T7 is the €2.05 budget route to line 7, 35 to 40 minutes. The Orlybus no longer runs.
🎫 The ticket system, explained once
Forget zones for ordinary use. A metro, train and RER ticket costs €2.55 wherever you go in zones 1 to 5, with changes allowed for 2 hours. A bus and tram ticket costs €2.05, valid for 1 hour 30 minutes, and does not mix with the metro.
Both live on a Navigo Easy card (€2, sold at station machines and counters) or on your phone through the Île-de-France Mobilités or Bonjour RATP apps.
Old cardboard tickets already in a drawer still work until 15 December 2026, and can be exchanged for a digital version at RATP or SNCF counters until 14 January 2027.
Airport tickets are the exception. The €14 airport ticket cannot go on a card that already holds t+ tickets. Put it on your phone and keep the card for the city, or buy it first on a fresh card.
💳 Which pass is worth it
Five rides at €2.55 is €12.75, so the €12.30 one-day pass wins from the fifth ride. Most visitors who walk the centre take three or four.
- 💶 Navigo Jour, €12.30: runs midnight to 23:59 on one calendar day, all zones, but excludes both airports. Buy it for a day trip, not for arrival day
- 💶 Navigo Semaine, €32.40: runs Monday to Sunday only, whatever day you start, and loads onto a Navigo card or phone. Worth it for a full working week, poor for a Thursday arrival
- 💶 Paris Visite, €30.60 for 1 day, €63.80 for 3, €78.00 for 5: includes the airports. Three days at €63.80 against three Navigo Jour passes (€36.90) plus two €14 airport tickets (€28) is €64.90, a saving of about €1 at best. It is not refundable
For most trips, singles on a Navigo Easy are cheapest. The wider cost picture is in Paris on a budget.
🚇 Validation, fines and traps
- Bank cards on buses only. Contactless cards and phones work on buses in Paris and the inner suburbs and the Montmartre funicular, at €2.55 a ride, with no connections included. They do not work at metro gates yet. When they arrive, the price is set at €3.35 per ride, and the rollout runs line by line to 2030
- Fines rose in June 2025. RATP lists up to €70 if paid on the spot, up to €120 if paid later and €180 if left unpaid. Check the amount on ratp.fr
- Navigo Jour and Semaine do not cover Orlyval or airport buses, and the Jour excludes the airport stations too. Validate at every entry, RER included
🚶 What you will actually walk
The centre is compact. Ciceru's Louvre, Pont des Arts, Sainte-Chapelle, Conciergerie and Notre-Dame route covers 2 km end to end and takes about 3.5 hours with stops. The Eiffel Tower to Arc de Triomphe route is 4 km, about 3 hours. Walk within the centre, and use the metro to cross Paris.
Vélib' bikes are the alternative: a single ride is €3 for 45 minutes, a 24-hour classic pass €5.
🧳 Luggage storage in Paris
Left luggage in Paris splits into three: station lockers, airport desks and shop networks. Stations first. SNCF lockers cost €5.50 small, €7.50 medium, €9.50 large per 24 hours, then €5 for each extra day. Each station works differently:
- 🚉 Gare de Lyon: Concourse 3, level -1, Rue de Bercy side. 06:15 to 22:00. Cash only
- 🚉 Gare du Nord: staffed desk on level -1, by the Rue de Maubeuge exit, 06:15 to 23:15. Priced by time, €4 up to 4 hours, €7.50 up to 12 hours, €9.50 up to 24. SNCF says it can fill up or close for works, with a partner point five minutes away
- 🚉 Montparnasse: Concourse 1, level 2, near track 24. 07:00 to 22:00. Bank card only, small and large lockers only
- 🚉 Gare de l'Est: level -1 next to Paul, 07:30 to 22:30. Coins only
- 🚉 Gare d'Austerlitz: opposite tracks 1 and 2, 07:00 to 23:30. Cash only. Collect at least 20 minutes before a train
- 🚉 Gare Saint-Lazare: SNCF's station pages show only a Nannybag partner point about five minutes away, 07:00 to 23:30, so do not count on a locker
Airports: Bagages du Monde runs left luggage at CDG Terminal 2 (TGV station, level 4) and Orly Terminal 3 (arrivals level, by line 14), 07:00 to 21:00. Prices are not published online.
The Louvre will not take large luggage. Bags must fit 55 x 35 x 20 cm, and free lockers are for smaller items only.
Where Radical Storage wins: Radical Storage lists 419 verified spots across Paris from €1.90 a bag a day (near Gare du Nord, from €3.90), with no size or weight limit and a €10,000 guarantee. Use it when a locker is full, when you only have card or only have cash, when you need hours the station desks do not cover, or when the case is too big. Ten per cent off with Ciceru's link.
🚕 Taxis and ride apps
Taxis from the airports run on fixed fares, with no luggage supplement:
- 💶 CDG: €56 to the Right Bank (north of the Seine), €65 to the Left Bank
- 💶 Orly: €45 to the Right Bank, €36 to the Left Bank
The minimum fare is €8, and a receipt is mandatory from €25. Official rates are revised each February, so ask for the fixed fare before you leave the rank. Cards must be accepted. A real taxi has a roof light, a meter, fares posted on the rear window and a black plate on the front right wing.
Ride apps quote a price when you book and move with demand. No official price list exists, so compare the quote with the flat fare before you confirm.
🕐 Your first hour in Paris
- Buy the €14 airport ticket on your phone, then a Navigo Easy card (€2) at the station machine.
- Take RER B from CDG or metro line 14 from Orly, about 30 to 50 minutes from CDG, 20 from Orly.
- Too early to check in? Use a station locker, but check whether it takes cash or card.
- Load three or four t+ tickets onto the card. Keep the airport ticket separate.
- Walk.
❓ FAQ
How much is the metro in Paris in 2026?
€2.55 per ride on metro, train or RER, loaded on a Navigo Easy card (€2) or a phone. The cardboard ticket is no longer sold.
Can I use a contactless bank card on the Paris metro?
Not at the gates. Cards and phones work on buses in Paris and the inner suburbs, and on the Montmartre funicular, at €2.55. The Orly metro exit also accepts them, at €14.80.
Where can I leave my luggage in Paris?
SNCF lockers at Gare de Lyon, Gare du Nord, Montparnasse, Gare de l'Est and Austerlitz cost €5.50 to €9.50 for 24 hours, and each takes a different payment. Radical Storage has 419 spots from €1.90 a day.
✅ Before you go
Load a Navigo Easy rather than hunting for cardboard, keep the airport ticket separate, and carry coins for the lockers. For the bigger picture, start with Paris Explained, and once the bag is dropped, the free Ciceru walk from Notre-Dame to the Louvre is a gentle first look.
