The City of Love via the Metro

Unlike much of the UK where visitors soon get sued to the lack of a well run public transportation system with cancelled and late train's commonplace; the Metro system in Paris is an example of how a public transport system should work. Noted for its pretty architecture and running predominantly underground, the Metro boasts 300 stations and runs for an impressive length of 214kms.

There are 16 different lines to make use of and it serves both visitors and commuters in the pretty city all year round. The different lines are easy to use as they are identified by a colour and number code while delays and maintenance problems are largely unheard of. It was designed in an art nouveau style and is well worth using if interesting buildings are a fascination.

The Metro here is the second busiest in the whole of Europe behind only to that of the one used in Moscow. A grand total of 4.5 million people use it every single day and more than one billion in the space of a year. The world's largest underground station is part of the Metro in Paris and many visit the Chatelet-Les-Halles to take in its grandeur. Your Paris hotel will be able to direct you to the nearest station where you can also pick up a map.

Opening hours: both sides of each line begin their daily service at 05:30 and the final train of the day finished its run at 01:15. Friday and Saturday nights welcome a slight extension of the opening hours and finish running at 02:15 while the other exception to opening hours is welcomed during the New Year's celebrations when services run throughout the whole night. The last train if the night is known locally as the balai, meaning broom, as it literally runs through the stations picking up the last travellers of the night.

Tickets: There are four different types of ticket available with daily, weekly and yearly passes all available and a travel card that can be used for one, two, three or five days. The most commonly used ticket is known as a ticket T+ and is usable for a multi-destination journey that must be used within one hour, 30 minutes from the time it is validated. Visitors should be aware that this can also an unlimited amount of times during the period and the ticket stub must be retained throughout the journey.

How to use the trains: tickets can be purchased at various kiosks located around the stations as well as at the automated machines here. Tickets and travel cards should be used in the automated gating system to get to the platform and the gates will throw the tickets back out for passengers to take and keep. Pressing a button or pulling a simple lever will be necessary on most carriages to get on or off the trains and Parisians are usually fast to open the doors when getting to a stop.

The majority of stations boast food and drink shops and toilets as well as ATMs and they are often located close to major attractions such as the Champs Elysees. Paris hotels are also often found close to the stations and will be happy to provide information pertaining to the trains during your stay with them.