376223 5 Location 452868 <p>If you're tired of strolling the lovely boulevards in the city, join the underground denizens of Paris and take the Metro. You're gauranteed a quick, cheap and colourful ride as there are many talented buskers who hop from train to train, bringing a smile to everyone. </p><p>Of course, you're never obliged to pay for this free entertainment. Just refuse politely if you're stingy or totally out of Euros ( haha, really?) </p><p>A ticket on the Metro cost about 1.30 euros. If you intend to travel more than once, buy 10 tickets for 10.50euros and save! Just approach the person at the ticket counter and ask for a carnet (say CAR-NAY) of tickets. Of course, the proper way to say it would be, "Bonjour ! oon carnay sil' vous plait.." </p><p>The Paris Metro(politain) is the fastest and most convenient transportation system. The Metro opened on 19, July 1900, its first line from Porte de Vincennes to Porte Maillot (line number 1). Fulgence Bienvenue was the engineer in charge of construction, the architect Hector Guimard being responsible for the Art Nouveau entrances . </p><p>The system has over 200 km of track and 16 lines; the line 14 is completely automatized. There are 368 stations (not including RER stations), 87 of these being interchanges between lines. Every building is within 500 metres of a métro station. There are 3500 cars which transport roughly 6 million people per day. </p><p>It's a beautiful public transit system, with both the subway and regional trains feeding both downtown and suburban Paris, and criss-crossing the city to an extent that it feels like one is never more than 3 blocks from a Metro station.</p><p>Both the Metro and the RER (Reseau Express Regional) are run by the RATP - Regie Autonome des Transports Parisiens. The RATP also runs the busses. . . </p><p>As a point of attraction, most hotels advertise that they are within walking distance from a métro stop. It is rather clever, as it would be very difficult to find *any* part of the city that is not within walking distance of the métro. </p><p>The earliest métro run is at 5:30AM and the latest is around half past midnight. On New Year's Eve, all the major lines run continuously all night long and no ticket is needed. </p><p>For tourists who want to stay for a longer period and travel out to the suburbs (CDG, Versailles, Disneyland, etc), Carte Orange is a good buy. The cost of Carte Orange varies depending on the number of zones you wish to travel. </p><p>Website: <a href="/go?l=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ratp.fr%2F&tracking=external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.ratp.fr</a><br /></p> 2006-08-01T17:04:54-07:00 570425350 2006-06-20T17:00:00-07:00 0 -9223372036854775790 156571 1890999 376223 0 181083 0.124363011405804 2006-06-19T17:00:00-07:00 Published 75.5 2006-08-01T17:29:47-07:00 89178 0