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Getting around Paris

Public transport: 

The Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP) (tel: 3246, in France only; www.ratp.fr) is an integrated, five-zone system of bus, metro and trains that is both cheap and efficient (except during strikes, which are frequent). Free transport maps are available at Paris métro stations, bus terminals and the tourist office.

‘Paris Visites’ offer one-, two-, three- and five-day visitor passes for Paris and its immediate suburbs (zones 1-3), which can include transport to the airports, Versailles and Disneyland Paris (zones 1-5).

Taxis: 

Taxis in Paris can be hailed in the street or caught at taxi ranks found at airports, stations and close to main road junctions. Tipping is not compulsory but drivers expect around 10%. Taxi numbers are displayed at the ranks and listed in the yellow pages. These include Alpha Taxis (tel: 01 4585 8585), Taxis Bleus (tel: 0891 701 010) and Taxis G7 (tel: 01 4739 4739).

Driving: 

Driving in central Paris is not advised. Most hotels do not have garages, parking is difficult (illegally parked cars are towed away) and traffic jams (embouteillages) are frequent. Parking prices vary throughout the city but are in the region of €2-5 an hour, for a maximum of two hours.

Car hire: 

The minimum age for car hire in Paris varies from 21 to 25 years. Drivers must have held a national driving licence for at least one year. It is usually requested that the cost is paid for with the driver's credit card.

Major car hire companies include Avis (tel: 01 4418 1054; www.avis.fr), Budget (tel: 01 4587 08 23; www.budget.com), Europcar (tel: 01 3044 9384; www.europcar.fr), Hertz (tel: 01 3938 3000; www.hertz.fr), National Citer (tel: 01 4438 6045; www.citer.fr), and Sixt (tel: 01 4438 5552; www.sixt.fr).

Bicycle hire: 

Vélib’ (tel: 01 3079 7930; www.velib.paris.fr) is Paris's city-wide bike hire service. The first half hour is free, with low charges thereafter. The 800 stands mean you are never more than 300m (1,000ft) away from picking up one of the 20,000 bikes.

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