alright, i should have looked a little harder. :> I found the eiffel tower on the map.. now – any idea, stay on the Blue RER, or get on the Yellow RER. Rough estimate on how much this will cost?

You should transfer to the yellow line. The way it works is that youd buy a ticket from the airort (zone5) to the center (zone1). You can transfer for free to anotehr RER line or metro line. as long as you get off in zone 1 it doesnt matter how often you transfer etc (Les invalides is closes to the eifel tower).

You’ll take RER line B to St Michel, and then transfer to RER line C. You can actually go to Champs de Mars station to be closest to the Eiffel tower, but try to find the metro stop nearest to your destination, and see which metro line you’ll need, and where you’ll need to transfer from the RER system to the metro system.
As others have said, your ticket from the airport will be valid until you’ve reached your final destination, so don’t lose or discard your ticket until you’ve completed your trip. When you transfer from one RER line to another, or from the RER to the metro, you’ll often have to go through turnstiles, and you have to insert your ticket to go through.

Get ready for a fun time … the Paris metro was the most confusing to me. I had no problems in Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Interlaken or London, but Paris really threw me for a loop for some reason.

RER trains don’t run as often as metro trains. Another option would be to transfer from the RER to the mtro system (no, there’s no extra charge. You use the same tickets: you are issued 2 tickets for the RER, an entry ticket and an exit ticket. Use the exit ticket to transfer to the metro from the RER.) You can transfer to metro line 6 at Denfert-Rochereau or metro line 10 at St-Michel/Notre-Dame.

I found the Paris metro lines to be okay when you’re not in a hurry. When switching trains sometimes you have a ways to walk, so just keep your eyes open for signs saying which way to go in the underground tunnel system to get onto the line you want.

As well, although this may be obvious to those who take subways frequently, make sure you keep your ticket, even after you get on the last metro that you’ll need. You never know when the metro police (?) are going to ask to check to make sure you have a ticket.

My first time to Paris i had to transfer from one train station to another on the metro..and I think i spent a good 10 minutes walking up and down stairs, from platform to platform, trying to find out where i should be. So if you have the option of changing metro’s at a station where only a few metro’s go to instead of at a huge station (like any of the Gare’s), i would go for that option.

I hope thats a bit of help.
Jackie

Thank you so much for all of your help. Not having much experience with subways at all (not too many subways in texas).. I am trying to get as much information as possible. So that maybe I can be a tiny bit prepared when I arrive in paris – although I have a feeling it is going to be one of those live and learn type things.

:>

If you could tell us the street on which you’ll be staying, it’d be easier to give you more accurate advice. For example, you’d said you wanted to be near the Eiffel Tower, in Arr.7, and if you’re in the 7th, then the Invalides stop might actually be the closest RER stop. From there, it’s a short walk to many parts of the 7th and, as another poster pointed out, sometimes you’ll do a lot of walking inside the RER/metro system while making transfers. If it’s a nice day, you might as well walk outside.
I have to disagree with luv_the_beach on several points: First, you’ll be given only one ticket, not one for entry and one for exit. Second, there is very frequent day-time service on the RER, especially on line C; I doubt that you’d have to wait more than five minutes for a train, so don’t get the impression that you’ll be stranded waiting for an hour. Finally, I think that the easiest connection by far would be RER B to St Michel with a transfer to RER C to Invalides (and perhaps farther, depending on your exact destination). From Invalides, you could walk or transfer to metro line 8, direction Balard for stops such as Latour Maubourg or Ecole Militaire. I’ve walked from Invalides to the Ecole Militaire area with luggage many times, and it’s not too far—- provided that the weather’s good!

Basie,

as I am a rare RER user, you got me. One question, however:

quote: you’ll be given only one ticket, not one for entry and one for exit.

Have they changed this? It’s been a few years since I left France.

quote:
I’ve walked from Invalides to the Ecole Militaire area with luggage many times, and it’s not too far—- provided that the weather’s good!

I think the walk from Trocadéro is just as beautiful, if not much more dramatic. But what should really matter is where exactly larnold’s hotel/hostel is located, seeing that he will have to haul luggage. And we both forgot to ask him that. Maybe this should be the determining factor regarding his commute. He describes the 7th arrondissement as the "Eiffel Tower area" when there are parts of the 15th and 16th arrondissements that are just a stone’s throw from the tower.

Hi luv,
I also think I remember that system of entry/exit tickets for the RER, but it has changed, but I don’t know when. I was just in Paris about 10 days ago, so I’m sure that the system now requires a single ticket.

That’s great!! Thanks for the info, Basie, otherwise I’d continue giving people outdated information on my favorite big city. That entry/exit ticket system was so confusing. On frequency of trains: Oh yeah, I know that RER trains are frequent during weekday rush hours. I have this different impression of the RER system, because I remember waiting a relatively long time once, but in all fairness, that was on a Saturday. (But as you pointed out, it’s not like you’re stranded for hours). I lived inside the city limits, so I rarely had to use the RER system.