How to Get From CDG and Orly to Paris City Center: RER B, Line 14, Taxis (2026)

The fastest way from CDG to central Paris for most travelers is still the RER B, at €14 and about 35 minutes to Gare du Nord, but the right answer now depends on how many people are traveling, which bank of the Seine the bed is on and what time the plane lands. A couple heading to the Marais on a weekday afternoon pays €28 by train. A family of four going to the 7th pays €65 by flat-fare taxi, which is less than four adult train tickets at €56 plus the effort of hauling bags up the stairs at Saint-Michel. From Orly, metro line 14 has turned a fiddly transfer into a single train to Châtelet in under 25 minutes.

Most pages that answer this question were written before 2025 and have not caught up. They still send people to the Roissybus, which made its last trips on February 28, 2026, and to the Orlybus, withdrawn in 2025. They quote €11.80 or €13 airport fares, a paper carnet of ten tickets that no machine sells any more, and taxi fares of €53 and €58. They rarely say that the airport ticket and the metro ticket are two different products, that one Navigo Easy card cannot hold both, or that Orly is the cheaper airport by taxi for anyone sleeping on the Left Bank. And almost none mention that CDG’s terminals are being renumbered in March 2027, with new signs going up through the end of 2026.

Prices, hours and booking rules below were checked against official websites in November 2026.

The Airport Ticket Is Not a Metro Ticket

The single fact that decides most airport trips is that Paris has two ticket prices for the same metro and RER network. Since the fare reform of January 2025, one metro-train-RER ticket costs €2.55 in 2026 and takes a rider anywhere in the Île-de-France region by metro, RER or suburban train within two hours. Anywhere except the airports. The RER B stations at CDG, the metro line 14 station at Orly and the Orlyval shuttle all sit behind gates that only open with the Paris Région–Aéroports ticket, at €14 full fare and €7 for children aged 4 to 9.

That one rule explains why the standard advice goes wrong. A traveler who buys ten metro tickets at the airport machine and uses one for the RER B into town has not bought a valid ticket for that ride, and ticket inspectors regularly check passengers on that line. A traveler who loads a €14 airport ticket onto a Navigo Easy card that already holds metro tickets finds the machine refuses: Île-de-France Mobilités does not allow the airport ticket to share a card with another ticket. The workaround is a second €2 Navigo Easy card, or loading one of the two on a phone.

It also explains the two honest shortcuts. Buses at both airports take the ordinary €2.05 bus-tram ticket. And the €32.40 Navigo Semaine and Paris Visite include the airports at no extra cost. The €12.30 Navigo Jour does not.

The second decision is taxi or train, and it turns on arithmetic rather than comfort. Taxis from both airports charge government-set flat fares to any address inside Paris, for up to four passengers, with nothing added for luggage. Four adults on the RER B pay €56, the same as a taxi to the Right Bank. Two adults and two children aged 4 to 9 pay €42 by train, against €56 or €65 by taxi. For a solo traveler, the train wins on price by €42 or more. The CDG to Paris guide and the Orly to Paris guide run these numbers for every party size.

Charles de Gaulle: Which Terminal, Which Station

Charles de Gaulle sits about 25 kilometers northeast of the city and has two RER B stations. Which one a traveler uses depends on the terminal.

Terminal 2 (2A to 2G): Aéroport CDG 2

Terminal 2 is the long building with seven halls, used by Air France, most SkyTeam carriers and many long-haul flights from North America. The station called Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 2 TGV sits in the middle of the complex, between halls 2C–2E on one side and 2D–2F on the other. It serves both the RER B and the TGV high-speed trains. From 2E or 2F, the walk is 5 to 10 minutes along signed moving walkways. Hall 2G is linked by shuttle bus.

CDG 2 is the RER B terminus. Trains start here empty, which means a seat and room for luggage.

Terminals 1 and 3: Aéroport CDG 1

Terminal 1 is the round concrete building used by many Star Alliance airlines. Terminal 3 is a low building used by charter and some low-cost flights. Both connect to the Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1 station, at Roissypôle, by CDGVAL, the free driverless shuttle that also links the terminals, the parking lots and Terminal 2. From Terminal 3, the station is a short walk.

CDG 1 is the second stop for trains coming from Terminal 2, so seats can be taken by the time the train arrives. Roissypôle is also where bus 9517 stops and where Noctilien night buses leave, which makes Terminal 3 the transport hub for anything that is not the RER B.

The renumbering of March 2027

Groupe ADP, which runs CDG, is replacing the current letters with numbers from 1 to 7 in March 2027, timed to the opening of CDG Express. Under the published mapping, Terminal 1 keeps its number, Terminal 3 becomes Terminal 2, halls 2A and 2C become Terminal 3, halls 2B and 2D become Terminal 4, and halls 2E, 2F and 2G become Terminals 5, 6 and 7. Signs are being changed between September and December 2026, first with temporary stickers.

For a trip in late 2026 or early 2027, this means a boarding pass and the signs inside the airport may not use the same name for the same building. The RER B station names are not changing.

RER B From CDG: The Default, With Caveats

How it works. Trains run every 6 to 15 minutes in both directions, from about 4:50 a.m. to midnight, every day. The fare is the €14 Paris Région–Aéroports ticket, valid for one direct trip between the airport and any metro, RER or train station in the region, with connections inside the metro and RER included. Machines in both airport stations sell it and take bank cards. Paper tickets are no longer sold, so the ticket goes on a €2 Navigo Easy card or a phone.

Where it goes. After the airport and a string of suburban stops, the RER B reaches Gare du Nord (10th) in about 35 minutes from CDG 2. It then runs underground through the center: Châtelet–Les Halles (1st), Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame (5th), Luxembourg (5th), Port-Royal (5th and 14th), Denfert-Rochereau (14th) and Cité Universitaire (14th). Some trains skip suburban stops, saving about 5 minutes.

What goes wrong. The RER B shares tracks with the RER D between Gare du Nord and Châtelet, and a problem anywhere on either line slows the whole corridor. Works close parts of the line on some evenings and weekends, with replacement buses, announced weeks ahead on the Île-de-France Mobilités traffic pages. Some trains on the northern branch terminate at Mitry-Claye and do not serve the airport, which only matters on the way back: check that the screen says Aéroport CDG before boarding in Paris.

Stairs. Gare du Nord, Châtelet and Saint-Michel all involve stairs or long corridors to reach the metro or the street. A traveler with two large suitcases should plan to carry them at least once.

Pickpockets. The RER B is the line where luggage theft is most reported. The usual pattern is a bag lifted from beside the door at Gare du Nord as the doors close. Keep bags in front, keep the phone out of a back pocket and ignore anyone who approaches at the ticket machines offering help. The Paris pickpockets guide maps the other hotspots, and the scams guide covers the ticket-machine routine in detail.

The verdict: worth it for one or two people with manageable bags going near a RER B or line 4 station. Not worth it for three or four people, for late arrivals with heavy luggage, or for a trip needing two changes.

The Buses That Replaced Roissybus

The Roissybus ran from Opéra to CDG for decades. Île-de-France Mobilités ended it on Saturday, February 28, 2026, citing a 40 percent fall in ridership since 2023 and unreliable journey times through ring-road traffic. There is no direct bus from central Paris to CDG any more.

Bus 9517: Saint-Denis–Pleyel to Roissypôle

Express line 9517 started on Sunday, March 1, 2026, operated by Transdev for Île-de-France Mobilités, using the same coaches as the old Roissybus. It runs from Argenteuil through Saint-Denis to Roissypôle, the bus station next to Terminal 3 and the CDG 1 RER station. The section that matters to visitors is the express run between Saint-Denis–Pleyel and Roissypôle, about 30 minutes in light traffic and up to 45 minutes at rush hour.

Saint-Denis–Pleyel is on metro line 14, which reaches Saint-Lazare in about 10 minutes and Châtelet in about 15. So the full trip to the center is bus plus metro, roughly an hour, for €2.05 plus €2.55, a total of €4.60. Buses run daily from about 5:20 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., every 15 minutes at weekday peaks, every 30 minutes at other times, and every 20 minutes on weekend days.

From Terminal 2, reaching the 9517 means riding CDGVAL to Roissypôle first, which is free and adds 10 minutes. Worth it for a budget traveler with one bag going to the 8th, 9th or 17th. Not worth it with large suitcases.

Buses 350 and 351

Bus 350 runs from Porte de la Chapelle (18th) and bus 351 from Nation (on the edge of the 11th, 12th and 20th) to the airport. Both take the €2.05 bus-tram ticket, both have been run by Transdev since March 1, 2026, and both are slow. Île-de-France Mobilités gives 60 to 80 minutes for the 350 and 70 to 90 minutes for the 351, depending on where the passenger boards, with a bus every 15 to 35 minutes. They are commuter lines with little luggage space.

The 351 suits one case: a traveler staying near Nation who would otherwise need two changes to reach the RER B.

Paying on board

Tickets for all three buses can be loaded in advance on a Navigo Easy card or a phone at €2.05, or bought on board by SMS or by tapping a contactless bank card at €2.55. A bus-tram ticket does not allow a change to the metro, so the line 14 leg after bus 9517 needs its own €2.55 metro ticket.

Taxis From CDG: The Flat Fare and the Fake-Taxi Problem

A licensed taxi from the official rank is the most predictable way from CDG to a Paris address. The fare is set by the state, not by the driver.

The flat fares for 2026

An order of December 24, 2025 fixes the 2026 airport flat fares. From CDG, a direct trip to any address on the Right Bank of Paris costs €56, and to the Left Bank €65, in either direction. The Left Bank means the 5th, 6th, 7th, 13th, 14th and 15th arrondissements, south of the Seine. Everything else inside the city limits, including the 1st to 4th, the 8th, the 16th and the islands, is Right Bank.

The flat fare covers up to four passengers and their luggage. No supplement may be added for bags, for night hours, for weekends or for the booking, with one exception: €5.50 per passenger from the fifth. Drivers must accept bank cards for any amount. The flat fare applies only to addresses inside Paris itself. A trip to La Défense, Boulogne or Disneyland runs on the meter, with a pick-up charge of up to €4.48.

In time, the taxi operator Allocab gives 35 to 60 minutes between CDG and central Paris depending on traffic, and more at rush hour. The flat fare protects the price, not the time.

Where the official taxis are

Every terminal has a signed taxi rank outside the arrivals level, with a marshal at the busiest times. A licensed Paris taxi carries a roof sign reading TAXI PARISIEN, lit green when free and red when taken, a meter, and a license number displayed inside the car. The driver should state the flat fare on request. Saying “forfait rive droite” or “forfait rive gauche” before the car moves settles the price.

The fake-taxi approach

Inside the arrivals halls, particularly in Terminal 2 after long-haul flights, men approach passengers and ask if they need a taxi. They are not taxis. Some lead travelers to an unmarked car and quote a figure well above the flat fare once the bags are in the trunk. Licensed taxi drivers do not solicit inside the terminal. The rule is simple: never accept a ride from someone who approaches indoors, and walk to the signed rank outside. If an official taxi charges more than the flat fare, ask for a receipt, which must show the license number, and file a complaint with the Préfecture de Police.

The verdict: worth it for three or four travelers, families with small children and late arrivals. Not worth it for a solo traveler with a backpack at 2 p.m. The taxis and Uber guide covers booking a taxi back to the airport and the reservation charges that apply to that direction.

Uber, Bolt and Private Drivers

Ride-hailing apps work at CDG and Orly, with pick-ups at designated zones the app points to. Prices are not fixed. They depend on demand and traffic, and they can drop below the taxi flat fare on a quiet afternoon or rise well above it when several long-haul flights land at once or when trains are disrupted.

The app only wins inside Paris when its price is clearly below the flat fare. It is the better choice for destinations outside Paris, where taxis run on the meter, such as La Défense or Disneyland.

Prebooked private drivers waiting with a name sign are a legitimate service and cost more than a taxi. They make sense for a large group or a traveler with reduced mobility.

Arriving After Midnight

CDG has no train service between roughly midnight and 4:50 a.m. Flights landing after 10:30 p.m. leave little margin for immigration, baggage claim and the walk to the station, and the last trains are the most likely to be cut by evening works.

Two Noctilien night buses run every night of the year from Roissypôle and the terminals to Gare du Nord and Gare de l’Est (10th). The N143 is the faster, about 45 to 55 minutes via Saint-Denis and Porte de la Chapelle, roughly every 30 minutes. The N140 takes 75 to 85 minutes through the eastern suburbs, roughly hourly. Both take the €2.05 bus-tram ticket, and Navigo passes and Paris Visite are valid. At Terminal 2 the stop is at the TGV-RER station level, at Terminal 1 at the departures level.

They suit a solo traveler on a tight budget. For anyone else after midnight, the flat-fare taxi is the honest answer. The Paris at night guide covers late transport inside the city once the metro closes.

CDG Express: Not Yet

CDG Express is a dedicated nonstop train between Gare de l’Est (10th) and CDG Terminal 2, built to bypass the RER B. It is scheduled to open on Sunday, March 28, 2027, three years later than first planned. Trains are due every 15 minutes from 5 a.m. to midnight, with a journey time of about 20 minutes. The operator is Hello Paris, a joint venture of Keolis and RATP Dev. The single fare announced for launch is €25, close to double the RER B, and €16.50 for holders of a monthly or annual Navigo pass. Children under 16 travel free with an adult. The operator says its fare grid will be final by the end of 2026.

For any trip before March 2027, CDG Express does not exist. After it opens, it will suit the 10th, the 9th and the 3rd. The Left Bank stays better served by the RER B.

Orly: Line 14 Changed Everything

Orly, about 14 kilometers south of the city, used to need a shuttle and two changes. Since metro line 14 reached the airport on June 24, 2024, it is the simpler of the two airports for most of Paris.

Metro line 14

The station called Aéroport d’Orly sits next to Terminal 3 and is signed from all four terminals. Terminals 1, 2 and 3 share one building, and Terminal 4 is a few minutes’ walk away. Line 14 is driverless, step-free at every station and runs at peak every 85 seconds. It reaches Gare de Lyon (12th) in about 20 minutes and Châtelet (1st) in under 25, then continues to Pyramides, Madeleine and Saint-Lazare (8th) and on to Saint-Denis–Pleyel. It keeps metro hours, from about 5:30 a.m. to after 1 a.m.

The fare at Aéroport d’Orly station is the €14 Paris Région–Aéroports ticket, the same as the RER B at CDG. The next station, Thiais–Orly, is outside the airport and takes a normal €2.55 metro ticket. That creates the cheapest route from Orly: bus 183 from the terminals to Thiais–Orly or Pont de Rungis, under 10 minutes on a €2.05 bus-tram ticket, then line 14 or the RER C on a €2.55 ticket, for €4.60 in total. It saves €9.40 a person.

The verdict: line 14 is the default from Orly for anyone going to the 1st, 4th, 8th, 9th, 12th or 13th, or to any station one change away. It is not ideal for the 7th or the 15th, which need a second line.

Orlyval and the RER B

Orlyval, the automatic shuttle from Orly to Antony on the RER B, is still running in 2026, every 5 to 7 minutes, about 6 minutes from Terminals 1, 2 and 3 to Antony and 2 minutes more from Terminal 4. It costs €14, and the same Paris Région–Aéroports ticket covers Orlyval plus the RER B into Paris. Navigo Liberté+ is not valid on Orlyval, and outside special periods the weekly and monthly Navigo passes do not cover it either. Paris Visite does.

Orlyval plus RER B makes sense for the RER B stations of the 14th and 5th: Denfert-Rochereau, Port-Royal and Luxembourg. For anywhere else, line 14 is simpler.

Tram T7

Tram T7 runs from Orly to Villejuif–Louis Aragon, the southern end of metro line 7, on a €2.05 bus-tram ticket, from about 5:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. With a metro ticket on top, the total is €4.60, but the trip to the center takes close to an hour.

Taxis from Orly

The 2026 flat fares from Orly are €45 to the Right Bank and €36 to the Left Bank, under the same rules as at CDG: up to four passengers, no luggage supplement, €5.50 for a fifth passenger, card payment accepted. Allocab gives 25 to 45 minutes to central Paris depending on traffic, and more at rush hour. A taxi to the 7th, 14th or 15th costs €29 less from Orly than from CDG.

Beauvais: The Shuttle Is the Only Sensible Answer

Paris-Beauvais is not a Paris airport in any practical sense. It sits about 85 kilometers north of the city and is used mainly by low-cost carriers. No train or metro serves it, and Navigo passes do not cover it.

The Aérobus shuttle runs from the airport to Porte Maillot, 22-24 boulevard Pershing (17th), with departures timed to arrivals, about 20 minutes after each flight lands, and every 15 to 30 minutes from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. The shuttles wait for the last flights of the day, even when they are delayed. A one-way adult ticket costs €17.90 online or €18 at the airport, and a return €29.90 online or €35 on site. Children aged 4 to 11 pay €9.90 one way online. The trip takes from 1 hour 15 minutes, longer in traffic.

From Porte Maillot, metro line 1 reaches Charles de Gaulle–Étoile in a few minutes and Châtelet in about 20, and the RER E connects to Saint-Lazare. A taxi from Beauvais has no flat fare and runs on the meter. For the shuttle timetable on the return, which leaves Paris about 3 hours 30 minutes before each departure, see the Beauvais airport guide.

Arriving by Train: Gare du Nord, Gare de Lyon and the Others

Rail arrivals land in the city and need only a €2.55 metro ticket. The Paris train stations guide covers every station.

Gare du Nord (10th): Eurostar and northern trains

Eurostar trains from London, Brussels and Amsterdam arrive at Gare du Nord. Border checks for the Schengen area happen before boarding at St Pancras, so passengers from London walk off the train and out of the station with no passport control in Paris. The London to Paris by Eurostar guide covers the EES biometric checks at the London end and the timing.

From Gare du Nord, the RER B and RER D reach Châtelet in one stop, about 5 minutes, and the RER B continues to Saint-Michel and the Left Bank. Metro line 4 runs south through Châtelet, Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Montparnasse, and line 5 runs to République and Bastille. The taxi rank is signed from the platforms, and taxis from the station run on the meter. Gare du Nord has the same taxi touts as CDG in the main hall: use the rank.

Gare de Lyon (12th): TGVs from the south and the Alps

Trains from Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Geneva and Italy arrive at Gare de Lyon. Metro line 14 reaches Châtelet in about 4 minutes and Saint-Lazare in about 10, and metro line 1 runs west along the Right Bank to the Louvre, Concorde and Charles de Gaulle–Étoile. The RER A reaches Châtelet in one stop and continues to Étoile and La Défense. Line 14 also runs south to Orly in about 20 minutes.

Gare Montparnasse (14th and 15th): trains from the west

TGVs from Bordeaux, Brittany and the Loire arrive at Montparnasse. Metro lines 4, 6, 12 and 13 serve the station, with line 4 running north to Châtelet and Gare du Nord. The walk from the TGV platforms to the metro is long, through corridors and moving walkways. The Montparnasse neighborhood guide covers the area around the station.

Gare de l’Est and Gare Saint-Lazare

Gare de l’Est (10th), for Strasbourg and Reims, is served by metro lines 4, 5 and 7. Gare Saint-Lazare (8th), for Normandy, is served by metro lines 3, 12, 13 and 14 and the RER E.

The TGV station at CDG

Aéroport CDG 2 TGV has direct high-speed trains to about 50 French cities, including Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Lille and Strasbourg, and to Brussels. The same station has direct TGV trains to Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy, the station for Disneyland, in under 15 minutes, covered in the Disneyland day trip guide.

Tickets, Passes and Phones at the Airport Gates

Since January 2025, the ticket t+, the paper carnet of ten and the old airport tickets are no longer sold. Every ticket now lives on a card or a phone. The Paris metro guide covers the city network.

Navigo Easy (€2)

An anonymous, rechargeable card sold at ticket machines and counters for €2. It holds single tickets: €2.55 metro-train-RER, €2.05 bus-tram, €14 airport, or a Navigo Jour at €12.30, which does not cover airports. It cannot hold a weekly pass. It cannot hold an airport ticket at the same time as another ticket, so a traveler who wants both buys two cards or puts one on a phone. Each person needs their own card.

Navigo Découverte (€5) and the Navigo Semaine (€32.40)

The Navigo Découverte is a named card with a passport photo, 3 by 2.5 centimeters, glued on by the holder. It is sold only at staffed ticket offices, including those at CDG and Orly stations, for €5. It holds the Navigo Semaine, €32.40 in 2026 for all five zones, which covers unlimited metro, RER, bus, tram and the RER B or line 14 to both airports. It does not cover Orlyval.

The week always runs Monday to Sunday, not seven days from purchase. It goes on sale the Friday before. A traveler landing on a Thursday who buys a Semaine for the current week loses four days of it. For a Monday-to-Sunday stay with airport trips at both ends, it is the best value in the system: two airport tickets alone cost €28. The Navigo Easy vs Navigo Week guide sets out the break-even point for each arrival day.

Paris Visite

The tourist pass covers zones 1 to 5, both airports and Orlyval, for €30.60 for one day, €45.40 for two, €63.80 for three and €78 for five, with child fares at half price. It costs more than a Navigo Semaine for any stay of three days or longer.

Navigo Liberté+

A pay-as-you-go account billed monthly, at €2.04 a metro trip and €14 an airport trip. It requires a French bank account, which rules out most visitors.

Phones and bank cards

The Île-de-France Mobilités app sells all single tickets and loads them onto Android phones with NFC and onto iPhones through Apple Wallet, where a virtual Navigo card can be created. A phone ticket does not work with a dead battery, so a charged phone or a backup card matters on arrival day. Tapping a contactless bank card on a metro or RER gate does not work in Paris in 2026. On buses, a contactless card buys a single ride on board at €2.55.

Which Arrival Point Suits Which Arrondissement

The two airports approach Paris from opposite sides, and the RER B and line 14 serve different neighborhoods. Choosing the arrival point by the arrondissement of the bed saves more time than any other decision. The arrondissements guide describes each area, and where to stay in Paris matches them to traveler types.

1st to 4th: Louvre, Les Halles, the Marais, the islands

Both airports work. From CDG, the RER B to Châtelet–Les Halles puts a traveler in the middle of the 1st arrondissement, a walk from the Louvre and the Marais. From Orly, line 14 reaches Châtelet in under 25 minutes and Pyramides a minute later. By taxi, all four are Right Bank: €56 from CDG, €45 from Orly.

5th and 6th: Latin Quarter and Saint-Germain

The RER B is the spine of the 5th arrondissement, with Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame, Luxembourg and Port-Royal all served directly from CDG in 40 to 45 minutes. For the 6th, Saint-Michel and Luxembourg are the stops, or metro line 4 from Châtelet to Odéon and Saint-Germain-des-Prés. By taxi, Orly is the cheaper airport: €36 against €65 from CDG.

7th and 15th: Eiffel Tower and Invalides

Neither airport has a direct rail line. From CDG, the RER B to Saint-Michel and the RER C to Invalides or Champ de Mars–Tour Eiffel takes about an hour. From Orly, bus 183 to Pont de Rungis and the RER C reach the same stations for €4.60. This is where taxis earn their fare: €36 from Orly to the 7th or the 15th, €65 from CDG.

8th, 16th and 17th: Champs-Élysées, Étoile, western Paris

From CDG, the RER B to Châtelet and a change to the RER A or metro line 1 reaches Charles de Gaulle–Étoile, or bus 9517 and line 14 reach Saint-Lazare and Madeleine in the 8th. From Orly, line 14 runs straight to Madeleine and Saint-Lazare in about 30 minutes. By taxi, the 8th, 16th and 17th are Right Bank: €56 from CDG, €45 from Orly. Beauvais arrivals land at Porte Maillot, on the edge of the 16th and 17th, and are effectively already there.

9th and 10th: Opéra, Pigalle, Gare du Nord, Canal Saint-Martin

CDG is the clear choice. The RER B reaches Gare du Nord in about 35 minutes, and from there line 4 or 5 or a short walk covers the 10th. Eurostar arrivals are already here. For the 9th, bus 9517 and line 14 to Saint-Lazare also work.

11th, 12th and 20th: Bastille, Gare de Lyon, Nation

From Orly, line 14 reaches Gare de Lyon in the 12th in about 20 minutes with no change. From CDG, the RER B to Châtelet and the RER A to Gare de Lyon or Nation works. By taxi, Right Bank rates apply from both airports.

13th and 14th: southern Paris

Orly is the near airport. Line 14 serves Bibliothèque François-Mitterrand, Olympiades and Maison Blanche in the 13th within 15 to 20 minutes. For the 14th, Orlyval and the RER B run to Denfert-Rochereau and Cité Universitaire, and the RER B from CDG reaches Denfert in about 50 minutes without a change. Taxis from Orly cost €36, from CDG €65.

18th and 19th: Montmartre and the northeast

CDG is closer. The RER B to Gare du Nord and metro line 2 or 4 reaches the foot of Montmartre in the 18th in under 50 minutes, and bus 350 ends at Porte de la Chapelle in the 18th. A taxi costs the €56 Right Bank fare.

Travel Times to Five Central Stops

Rail times from the airport platform, rounded to 5 minutes. Add 10 to 15 minutes for the walk from the gate. Times with a change are estimates, counted on the line maps at about 1.5 minutes per stop and 5 minutes per change.

By Situation

You are two people landing at CDG Terminal 2E at 3 p.m., staying near Châtelet

Take the RER B from Aéroport CDG 2 TGV. It is the terminus, so seats are free, and Châtelet is about 40 minutes away. Buy two €14 tickets on two Navigo Easy cards or two phones. Total: €28 plus €4 for the cards.

You are a family of four landing at CDG with a stroller, going to the 7th

Take a taxi from the official rank outside arrivals. The flat fare is €65 to the Left Bank, for all four people and every bag. Two adults and two children aged 4 to 9 would pay €42 by RER B and RER C, with two changes and stairs at Saint-Michel. The Paris with toddlers guide covers car seats in taxis.

You land at Orly and are staying in the Marais or near Gare de Lyon

Take metro line 14. Gare de Lyon is about 20 minutes, Châtelet under 25, with no change and no stairs on the line itself. One €14 ticket per adult. For four people, the €45 Right Bank taxi costs less.

You are on a tight budget with one bag

From CDG, take CDGVAL to Roissypôle, bus 9517 to Saint-Denis–Pleyel and line 14 into town: €4.60 and about an hour. From Orly, take bus 183 to Thiais–Orly and line 14 from there: also €4.60. Both routes save €9.40 against the airport ticket.

Your flight lands after 11 p.m.

At CDG, the last RER B trains leave around midnight and are the most exposed to works. Take a flat-fare taxi, €56 or €65. For a solo budget traveler, Noctilien N143 from the terminals reaches Gare du Nord and Gare de l’Est in about 50 minutes for €2.05. At Orly, line 14 keeps running after 1 a.m., which makes Orly the easier late arrival.

You arrive by Eurostar and are staying on the Left Bank

Take the RER B from Gare du Nord to Saint-Michel or Luxembourg, or metro line 4 to Saint-Germain-des-Prés. One €2.55 ticket. The first time in Paris guide covers the first afternoon.

What It Actually Costs

All fares are 2026 prices set by Île-de-France Mobilités and the French state. The airport ticket and taxi flat fares are per trip, one way.

Children under 4 travel free on all public transport. The reduced fare applies from 4 to 9 years old, and from the tenth birthday a child pays the adult fare. There is no child Navigo Semaine for visitors, so children pay €32.40. Taxi tips are optional, as the tipping guide explains.

What Other Guides Get Wrong

1. They still send travelers to the Roissybus and the Orlybus. The Orlybus was withdrawn in 2025 and the Roissybus made its last trips on February 28, 2026. There is no direct bus from central Paris to either airport. The replacements are bus 9517 from Saint-Denis–Pleyel and metro line 14 to Orly.
2. They treat the metro ticket and the airport ticket as one product. The €2.55 metro-train-RER ticket is not valid into CDG, Orly’s line 14 station or Orlyval. The airport fare is €14 in 2026, not the €11.80 or €13 still printed on older pages. And the two cannot sit on the same Navigo Easy card.
3. They quote old taxi fares and the wrong bank. The 2026 flat fares are €56 and €65 from CDG, and €45 and €36 from Orly. Many pages give €53 and €58 or €50 and €55. Fewer still explain that the Left Bank is the expensive side from CDG and the cheap side from Orly.
4. They describe paper tickets and the carnet of ten. Paper tickets are gone. Every ticket now lives on a €2 Navigo Easy card, a €5 Navigo Découverte or a phone, and a contactless bank card does not open the metro gates.
5. They announce CDG Express as open, or as coming in 2025. It is scheduled for March 28, 2027, with a single fare announced at €25. For any trip before then, the RER B, a taxi or bus 9517 are the only options.
6. They say the Navigo week pass lasts seven days from purchase. It always runs Monday to Sunday. Bought on a Thursday for the current week, it covers four days, and it does not include Orlyval.

Detailed Guides

• CDG to central Paris: which of the RER B, bus 9517 or a flat-fare taxi wins at each hour and party size.
• Orly to central Paris: line 14 against Orlyval, bus 183 and the €36 or €45 taxi, terminal by terminal.
• Beauvais airport to Paris: the shuttle timetable logic, the return departure 3 hours 30 minutes before the flight, and the real door-to-door time.
• Taxis and Uber in Paris: flat airport fares, booking a taxi back to the airport, ride-hailing prices and where to find a cab in the city.
• Navigo Easy vs Navigo Week vs Paris Visite: the break-even point for each pass, by arrival day and length of stay.
• Paris metro guide: tickets after the 2025 reform, how the lines connect, last trains and etiquette.
• London to Paris by Eurostar: booking windows, EES checks at St Pancras and what to do on arrival at Gare du Nord.
• Paris train stations: which of the six main stations serves which destination, and how to cross between them.
• Cycling in Paris: Vélib’ passes and whether a bike replaces the metro.
• Paris hop-on hop-off bus: whether it beats a metro ticket and bus 69 for a first day after landing.

Where to Go Next

The airport trip decides the first two hours of a stay, and the arrondissement decides the rest. Travelers who have not yet chosen where to sleep should start with where to stay in Paris, then use the left bank vs right bank guide with the taxi fares above in mind. For the ticket decision once in the city, the Navigo comparison settles which card to buy at the airport machine. Travelers with a long connection rather than a stay will find a timed plan in the Paris layover guide, and anyone budgeting the whole trip can fold these fares into the Paris travel budget.