Public Transportation in France: A Practical Guide

Published on January 14, 2026 and written by Cyril Jarnias

Traveling in France without a car is not only possible but often faster, cheaper, and more eco-friendly. With one of the densest rail networks in the world, metros in several major cities, ultramodern trams, buses everywhere, and a wide variety of passes, it’s easy to get lost. This practical guide provides a concrete overview to understand, choose, and use public transportation in France, with a particular focus on the Île-de-France region and Paris, while giving reference points for the rest of the country.

Understanding the Structure of Transportation in France

The French system relies on a fairly clear articulation between national, regional, and urban transport, even if the brand names and acronyms can be daunting at first.

The backbone of the country is the rail network. The SNCF, the national company, operates the TGV, Intercités, and regional TER trains. Major cities complement this with their urban networks: metros (in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Lille, Rennes), trams in around thirty urban areas, buses everywhere, not to mention bike-sharing services.

Overview of the Main Modes of Transport

Rather than listing them, it’s useful to compare the major families of transport on a national scale, by typical use.

Mode	Primary Usage Zone	Key Strengths	Main Limitations
TGV / TGV INOUI / Ouigo	Long distances between major cities	Very fast (up to 320 km/h), frequent, comfortable	Dynamic pricing, mandatory reservation
Intercités (day & night)	Medium and long distances	Connects cities not on high-speed lines, night trains	Lower speed, variable comfort depending on the line
TER / Transilien / RER	Regions & large metropolitan areas	Detailed coverage, stable prices, bikes often accepted	Uneven frequency, sometimes crowded
Metro	Major cities (6 networks in France)	Fast, very frequent, avoids traffic	Limited accessibility, saturated during rush hour
Tramway	~28 cities	Accessible, easy to understand, integrated into urban planning	Moderate speed, less dense network than buses
City Buses & Noctilien	Everywhere, including at night in Paris	Universal, dense network, 100% accessible in Paris	Affected by traffic, sometimes less intuitive
Long-distance Coaches	Intercity / international	Very economical, dense network (FlixBus, etc.)	Longer travel times than train
Bike-sharing	Many cities (Vélib’, etc.)	Flexible, inexpensive, ecological	Depends on topography and weather

This multi-layered network explains why it is perfectly realistic to visit France (and live in a major city) without a car, by combining train, metro, tram, bus, and bike.

Trains: The Backbone of Travel

For connecting major cities, the train remains the most used mode of transport for the French. France has about 31,000 km of railway tracks, with a fairly clear hierarchy of services.

TGV, Intercités, TER: Who Does What?

The TGVs, including the low-cost version Ouigo, provide fast connections between French metropolitan areas and European capitals. A Paris–Bordeaux trip takes two hours, while the same journey on a regional train can take over eleven and a half hours; Paris–Nice drops to about 5h30 by TGV versus sixteen hours on a classic train. Intercités occupy a middle ground, connecting important cities that are not all on high-speed lines, by day and night. The TER (Transport Express Régional) weave the fine web between medium-sized cities, small towns, and rural areas.

In addition to these national categories are the Transilien and RER trains around Paris, comparable to large suburban TERs, as well as some services under regional brands (Nomad in Normandy, TER Fluo in Grand Est, TER ZOU! in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur…).

Buying Your Ticket and Reserving Your Seat

The rule is simple: the faster the train, the more mandatory seat reservation is. TGV, most Intercités, night trains, and international trains require a named reservation, while TERs largely remain open access with a ticket valid on a specific train (or even for the day). TGVs and Intercités use dynamic pricing: the earlier you book, the cheaper it is.

Here is a summary of reservation practices.

Type of Train	Seat Reservation	Typical Ticket Sales Start	Pricing Policy
TGV INOUI	Mandatory	Up to 4 months in advance (6 months for intl)	Dynamic prices (Prems, Seconde, 1st)
Ouigo (low-cost TGV)	Mandatory	2 to 9 months in advance	Low base price, optional services
Intercités (day)	Generally mandatory	~4 months in advance	Dynamic fares and discount cards
Intercités de Nuit (Night)	Mandatory (berths)	~4 months in advance	Berth supplements, private spaces
TER / Transilien	Except in specific cases, no	3 to 5 months depending on region	Fixed regional fares
International Trains	Mandatory	Up to 6–11 months depending on operator	Dynamic prices, sometimes high supplements

Tickets can be purchased on SNCF Connect (website or app), Raileurope, Trainline, Omio, or at ticket machines in stations. For paper tickets, some regions still require prior validation at yellow “compostez” machines; the move to all-digital is progressing but is not yet completely uniform.

E-tickets, sent by email or stored in apps, are presented on a smartphone or printed. On lines with mandatory reservation, checks are systematically made on board; on TERs, conductors move between carriages and require the ticket to be already validated.

Rail Cards and Passes: Choosing Wisely

Between international passes, discount cards, and youth subscriptions, the choice is broad. Again, a few reference points help make sense of it.

Passes for Non-Residents and Frequent Travelers

Two passes specifically cover France for European and non-European travelers: the Interrail France Pass for European residents, the Eurail France Pass for other nationalities. They provide access to TGV, TER, Intercités, and night trains on a chosen number of days within a month (e.g., 3, 5, or 8 days) and include discounts for those under 28 and over 60. They do not exempt from reservation supplements on high-speed or night trains, usually charged between €10 and €30.

Discount Cards for Residents

For people living in France or staying long-term, paid SNCF cards are more advantageous than international passes.

Card / Subscription	Target Audience	Main Benefits	Indicative Price
Carte Avantage (Youth, Adult, Senior)	Ages 12–27 / 27–59 / 60+	Up to -30% on TGV/Intercités, price caps, -60% for accompanying children	€49/year
Carte Liberté	Frequent travelers, professionals	High flexibility, significant discounts	More expensive, business-oriented
TGVmax	Under 28 years old	Unlimited subscription on TGV/Intercités (subject to seat availability)	~€79/month

In summer 2024, a €49 Monthly Rail Pass was even trialed for 16–27 year-olds, giving free access to TER and day Intercités, with reduced fares on night trains. The idea of a seasonal or annual pass is now inspiring several regions.

Accessibility, Assistance, and Passenger Rights

Not all trains and stations are yet autonomously accessible for people with reduced mobility, but progress is being made. SNCF offers a free service, Accès Plus, which organizes assistance, help boarding/alighting, reservation of adapted seats, and ticket purchase. It must be reserved at least 48 hours in advance, and you must arrive at the station 30 minutes before departure.

Legally, passengers have very clear European rights in case of delay, cancellation, or missed connection. In case of a delay on arrival of at least one hour on a rail journey covered by EU regulation, a partial ticket refund is provided: 25% of the price for delays between 1h and 2h, 50% beyond, except in “extraordinary circumstances” (extreme weather, natural disaster, sabotage, etc.) which remove the compensation obligation but not the duty of assistance (meals, drinks, hotel night if necessary).

Traveling with a Bike: A Very Regulated Case

Taking your bike on a train is possible but requires knowing the rules well, which vary by operator, region, and season. The general principle is twofold: either the bike is disassembled and packed in a bag (usually max 130 x 90 cm), it is then considered luggage and travels for free or a small fee; or it remains assembled, and you need a dedicated bike space when the train offers them, often requiring a paid reservation.

A few broad guidelines emerge.

Type of Train / Region	Non-dismantled Bike Accepted?	Reservation / Usual Cost
TGV INOUI	Yes, on certain lines only	Reservation mandatory, ~€10
TGV to Nice, TGV Lyria	No	Bike only allowed in a bag
Ouigo Grande Vitesse	Not assembled, bag only	Bike bag fee ~€5
Ouigo Train Classique	Yes, limited number	Reservation mandatory, ~€10
Intercités (day)	Yes, on most lines	Reservation mandatory, €5–10 depending on line
Intercités de Nuit (Night)	Yes, on a few lines	Limited bike spaces, reservation essential
TER (many regions)	Yes, no reservation	Free in theory, except seasonal schemes
Summer TERs (several regions)	Yes, but with reservation	Mandatory €1–3 fee in summer
RER / Transilien (Île-de-France)	Yes outside weekday rush hours	Free, bikes prohibited during weekday rush hours

Some regions (Brittany, Pays de la Loire, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, etc.) now impose a €1–3 “bike ticket” on their TERs during the tourist season to limit overcrowding. In Paris, non-folding bikes are prohibited on the metro, buses, trams, and the Montmartre funicular, with the exception of metro line 1, which is tolerant on Sundays and public holidays until late afternoon. Folding bikes are accepted everywhere provided they are folded and do not cause obstruction.

French Metros: 6 Cities, Very Contrasting Networks

Six cities have a metro network: Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Lille, and Rennes. The capital dominates by far: 16 lines, over 300 stations, an extremely dense network that allows quick movement from one point to another. Lyon follows with 4 lines, while the other cities operate 2 lines each.

In medium-sized cities, the absence of a metro is largely compensated for by trams and a dense bus network, often simpler for a visitor to use.

Tramways: The Renaissance of a Sustainable Mode of Transport

After almost disappearing in the mid-20th century, the tram has become a symbol of the “sustainable city” in France. Nantes reopened the way in 1985, followed by Strasbourg, Grenoble, Montpellier, Bordeaux, Nice, Reims, Dijon, Tours, Brest, Le Mans, Marseille, and many others. There are now a good thirty networks, often integrated into large urban projects: pedestrianization, bike lanes, street redesign, planting.

Most of the time, tickets are identical to bus tickets and are purchased at station vending machines, with validation on board. Trams are 100% accessible for wheelchairs and highly recommended for people with reduced mobility who want to avoid metro stairs.

Buses, Coaches, and Night Transport

The bus is one of the few modes present absolutely everywhere. In large cities, it complements the metro and tram by providing fine connections and serving neighborhoods without rail. In rural areas, it sometimes becomes the only public transport.

Major highways are also served by long-distance coaches (FlixBus, among others). Since the market liberalization in 2015, they have taken a notable place on some routes, offering fares often half the price of the train, at the cost of longer journeys.

Paris and Île-de-France: Noctilien and Extreme Coverage

In Île-de-France, the bus network is extensive: about 1,900 lines cover the region, including over 200 daytime lines in Paris. At night, when the metro closes (around 1 AM on weekdays, later on weekends), the Noctilien network takes over, roughly between 12:30 AM and 5:30 AM. The lines, prefixed with “N”, radiate out from a few major stations (Châtelet, Saint-Lazare, Gare de Lyon, Gare de l’Est, Montparnasse) to serve the capital and the outer suburbs, with two circular lines (N01, N02) that go around Paris.

Paris: Complete User’s Guide to the Transport Network

Île-de-France concentrates one of the densest and busiest transport networks in the world: nearly 3 billion annual journeys on train, RER, and metro lines alone. Understanding its logic can turn an apparent labyrinth into a very efficient tool.

Metro, RER, Tram, Bus, Transilien: Who Does What?

In the Paris metropolitan area, four main modes structure daily travel.

– The Metro: 14 main lines (numbered 1 to 14) and two “bis” lines. Very dense within Paris intra-muros, they serve every neighborhood within a few hundred meters. High frequency, but stairs are omnipresent and trains are packed during rush hour.

– The RER: five lines (A, B, C, D, E) that cross Paris to serve a vast suburb. Within Paris, they run underground like a metro but have greater distances between stops. They are essential for reaching the airports, Disneyland Paris, Versailles, the Stade de France.

– The Tram: 11 lines in Île-de-France, a few within Paris. They often run along the ring road or serve areas poorly covered by the metro.

– Buses and Noctilien: dense surface network, allow you to see the city, provide connections between stations, and take over at night.

The New Fare System: Single Tickets and Navigo

Since 2025, the Île-de-France fare system has been simplified, especially for occasional travelers. The old t+ ticket and zones have given way to three main types of single-journey tickets, plus daily, weekly, and monthly passes, and tourist passes.

Ticket Type (Île-de-France)	Indicative Price	Main Validity
Bus-Tram Ticket	€2.05	90 min on buses and trams (IDFM operators, funicular)
Metro-Train-RER Ticket	€2.55	120 min on metros, RER, Transilien, trams T11, T12, T13
Airport Ticket	€14	Journeys to/from Orly and CDG (metro 14, RER, RoissyBus)
Navigo Day Pass	€12.30	Unlimited on all modes (excluding airports) for 1 day
Navigo Weekly Pass	€32.40	Unlimited on all modes, airports included
Navigo Monthly Pass	€90.80	Unlimited on all modes, airports included
Navigo Annual Pass	€998.80/year	Same as monthly, with one “free” month
Paris Visite (1–5 days)	€30.60–78	Unlimited tourist pass, airports, Disneyland, Versailles

Children aged 4 to 9 get a 50% discount on all RATP/IDFM tickets, while children under 4 travel free.

To load these tickets, several media exist. The Navigo Easy card (€2, anonymous, valid 10 years) is suitable for tourists and occasional users; it stores up to 20 tickets or day passes. The Navigo Découverte card (€5, personalized with a photo) holds weekly, monthly, and annual passes, as well as Paris Visite. Compatible smartphones can also serve as a digital medium via the Île-de-France Mobilités app, which allows purchasing, storing, and validating tickets with NFC, or reloading an existing Navigo card.

Apps, Contactless Payment, and Tips

The Île-de-France Mobilités and Bonjour RATP apps are true mobility dashboards: route calculation, real-time wait times, elevator status, disruption alerts, ticket purchase. The first manages the entire IDFM offering (train, metro, bus, tram, Vélib’, Communauto car-sharing, etc.), the second focuses on the RATP perimeter.

Accessibility: Historic Metro, Modern Buses and Trams

The Paris network was not originally designed for wheelchair users, those with strollers, or large luggage. Narrow stairs, spiral staircases, long corridors, overcrowded platforms: the reality of the historic metro requires being clear-eyed. Only line 14 is fully accessible, with elevators and level platforms. Some key RER stations and major train stations (Gare du Nord, Gare de Lyon, Montparnasse, Châtelet–Les Halles) have elevators, but their location is not always intuitive, and occasional breakdowns are not rare.

Safety, Fraud, and Good Practices

In terms of safety, the network is generally safe, but pickpocketing is a known problem, especially on lines frequented by tourists (metro lines 1, 4, 9, 13, RER A and B) and in a few major stations (Châtelet–Les Halles, Gare du Nord, Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame, Charles-de-Gaulle–Étoile). Rush hours and crowded trains are fertile ground for pickpockets.

Basic advice remains the most effective: carry your bag in front, close pockets, no wallet in the back pocket, hold your phone firmly and discreetly. Very loud conversations, music on speakerphone, and feet on seats don’t just attract disapproving looks: some of these practices can result in a fine, for example up to €200 for using a smartphone speaker in a train car.

Ticket checks are frequent, upon boarding, on board, or when exiting. An unvalidated or missing ticket exposes you to a fine that can increase quickly if not paid promptly; however, specific procedures exist to contest a ticket with the collection center, then the mediator.

Other French Cities: Metros, Trams, and Passes

Outside the Paris region, each urban area defines its own transport offering, but there are constants: a network centered around trams and buses, sometimes complemented by a metro.

The single ticket usually ranges between €1.50 and €2, with booklets and day / 3-day passes. Each network has its own app for purchasing digital tickets and checking schedules; Google Maps, Citymapper, or equivalents complete the arsenal.

Notably, a few cities have taken the step of totally free public transport. Approximately seven French communes currently practice this policy, Montpellier being the largest among them to offer free transport (with a specific schedule and conditions). Elsewhere, free transport remains targeted at certain age groups or time slots.

Tourist Passes and Urban Mobility

For visitors, several passes combine public transport and access to museums or monuments, with a promise of savings provided they are used enough.

In many cities, city cards include unlimited transport and entry to cultural sites. Bordeaux City Pass, Marseille City Pass, Dijon City Pass, Lyon City Card, Lille City Pass, Pass Nantes, Toulouse Pass Tourisme, Pass Côte d’Azur, Avignon City Pass… are gathered on a single platform, Pass France Multidestinations, which allows purchasing them via an app and cumulating a 10% discount.

In Paris, the offering is even more fragmented. The Paris Museum Pass opens more than 50 museums and monuments but does not include transport or the Eiffel Tower. More comprehensive passes like GoCity (“The Paris Pass”) add a Seine cruise, tourist buses, even Disneyland. The tourism office offers the modular Paris Passlib’, while the Paris City Pass (Turbopass) aggregates over 60 attractions. In most cases, transport tickets (Navigo, Paris Visite, or single tickets) must be purchased separately, as combined passes rarely include travel for pricing clarity reasons.

Behavior, Schedules, and Unwritten Rules

Beyond technical aspects, successfully traveling by public transport in France also comes down to a few local habits.

Schedules follow fairly uniform timeframes: in urban areas, most networks operate from about 6 AM to midnight, with later extensions in Paris. French metros do not run 24/7 continuously, unlike some capitals; at night, the service is taken over by night buses (Noctilien in Île-de-France).

In terms of etiquette, a few reflexes are expected: let people off before boarding, move inside to clear the doors, vacate a flip-down seat when the train fills up, give up your seat to the elderly, pregnant women, or people with disabilities – a “carte mobilité inclusion” (mobility inclusion card) may be presented to signal this need. Feet on seats, bags taking up a seat, or strong-smelling meals are very frowned upon, sometimes finable.

Escalators are generally used by standing on the right to let those who want to walk pass on the left. On buses, it is customary to board at the front (unless indicated otherwise), greet the driver, validate your ticket, and exit at the rear.

Accessibility, Disability, and Specific Assistance

France has undertaken a fundamental movement to improve the accessibility of its tourist infrastructure, including transport. Two labels structure this approach: “Tourisme & Handicap”, for accessible sites, accommodations, and facilities, and “Destination for All”, which highlights entire territories (urban planning, activities, inclusive transport).

Numerous digital resources complement this foundation: collaborative platforms (Jaccede, Streetco, Handimap for some city centers), apps to find accessible restrooms (Accessaloo, “Où sont les toilettes ?”), to locate reserved parking spots (Handicap.fr) or request geolocated help (Lpliz). On the rail network, the Accès Plus service orchestrated by the SNCF manages the interface between passengers, stations, and trains. For air travel, European regulation imposes free assistance from arrival to boarding for passengers with disabilities, with an obligation for airlines like Air France (service Saphir) to transport at least two medical or mobility devices free of charge.

How to Optimize Your Transport Costs

Between single tickets, day passes, weekly, monthly passes, discount cards, and city cards, optimizing your transport budget requires asking a few simple questions: length of stay, number of trips per day, travel radius, travelers’ ages, split between long-distance train and urban transport.

When it comes to standard train tickets, the basic rule remains the same as in most European countries: book early, be flexible on days and times, consider Ouigo or Intercités trains instead of TGV Inoui at peak hours, and compare options (via Trainline, Raileurope, Omio…) while checking exchange and refund conditions.

In Summary: A Dense System, Coherent Once Decoded

Public transport in France forms a rich but coherent ecosystem. On a national scale, rail structures major flows – TGV for speed, Intercités for complementary routes, TER for capillarity – with cards and passes that reward planning and frequent use. In cities, metros, trams, buses, and bikes collaborate to offer a credible alternative to private cars, supported by public policy focused on ecological transition.

For the visitor as for the resident, the key is to familiarize oneself with a few concepts – TGV vs TER, metro vs RER, Navigo Easy vs Navigo Découverte, single ticket vs pass – and then rely on digital resources, from mobility apps to accessibility information sites. Once this decoding is done, public transport in France becomes a valuable ally for discovering the country, limiting your carbon footprint, and immersing yourself in the daily life of its inhabitants.