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Museum queues, TGV timetables and the Paris fare reset
Most first trips to France are really trips to Paris plus one region, whether the Loire, Provence, the Alps or the Côte d'Azur. Two things decide how the week feels: did you book timed museum slots before you flew, and did you buy the right transport ticket in Paris? Both changed in 2026, so the numbers below are worth reading even if you have been before.
The Louvre, booked in advance
Open every day except Tuesday, 9:00–18:00, with late openings until 21:00 on Wednesday and Friday. The museum advises every visitor to book a timed slot online, including those entitled to free entry.2
It is genuinely the busiest museum on earth
The Louvre counted 8.7 million visitors in 2024. The Olympics dented that summer's numbers, yet it stayed the world's most-visited museum.3
Music in the street on 21 June
The Fête de la Musique fills French towns with free open-air concerts every 21 June, a state-backed event now copied in cities worldwide.4
Our take: book the Louvre for a Wednesday or Friday evening slot. The late openings are the only hours when the Denon wing is not shoulder-to-shoulder, and the surrounding restaurants are still serving when you leave.
One flat metro fare, no more zones
Since the Île-de-France fare reform, a single metro/RER/train ticket is one price everywhere in the region except airports: €2.55 from 1 January 2026. Bus and tram tickets are €2.05.1
The weekly pass is the tourist's best-kept deal
Navigo Semaine costs €32.40 for all zones, less than 13 single metro tickets. It also covers RER journeys out to Versailles rather than stopping at the city boundary.1
Airport journeys are priced separately
Dedicated airport tickets (CDG and Orly) cost €14, or €7 reduced. The flat €2.55 fare does not cover them.1
Our take: if you arrive Monday to Wednesday and are staying at least four days, buy Navigo Semaine on arrival. It runs Monday–Sunday, not a rolling seven days, so a Friday arrival usually does better on single tickets.
Museum entry now depends on your passport
Louvre admission is €22 for residents of the European Economic Area and €32 for visitors from outside it. Under-18s, and EEA residents under 26, go free.2
Paris transport rose 2.3% for 2026
The January 2026 adjustment lifted the Navigo Mois to €90.80 and the annual pass to €998.80, alongside the single-ticket prices above.1
Biometric borders, no more stamps
The EU Entry/Exit System has been fully operational since 10 April 2026 across 29 European countries. Non-EU visitors are registered with facial image and fingerprints instead of a passport stamp, and stays are tracked automatically.5
ETIAS is not live yet
The EU's travel authorisation for visa-exempt visitors is not in operation and no applications are being collected. The start date will be announced in advance on the official EU travel page.6
Our take: allow extra time at your first EU border of the trip. The biometric enrolment happens once, on the way in, and later crossings reuse the record. The queue on that first arrival is still longer than the old stamp-and-go.
112 works everywhere
112 is free to dial from fixed and mobile phones anywhere in the EU and reaches police, ambulance and fire brigade. 116 000 is the EU-wide missing-children hotline.7
Check what is on before you fix dates
The City of Paris publishes municipal event, opening and closure notices. Check them for the week you are travelling, particularly around the public holidays in May.8
France asks a lot of your data plan, and in a particular way. Nearly everything you book, from museum slots and TGV seats to Navigo top-ups and restaurant tables, lives in an app or a QR code you open at the door. Coverage in Paris, Lyon, Marseille and along the TGV corridors is dense; deep metro tunnels and parts of rural Occitanie and the Alps still drop to 4G or nothing. Download offline maps for hiking days, and save your boarding pass and museum QR codes to the phone rather than trusting a signal at the turnstile.
In practice, yes. The Louvre advises all visitors to reserve a timed slot online, including under-18s and others with free entry. Slots for popular mornings go before the day itself, so book as soon as your dates are fixed and pick a Wednesday or Friday late opening if you can.2
It pays for itself after about 13 metro journeys: €32.40 all-zones versus €2.55 a ride. The catch is that it runs Monday to Sunday, so it is strong value for a Monday or Tuesday arrival and poor value if you land on Friday.1
Not yet. ETIAS is not in operation and applications are not being collected; the EU says it will announce the start date ahead of launch. What has changed is the Entry/Exit System, live at all Schengen external borders since 10 April 2026, which registers your face and fingerprints instead of stamping your passport.5,6
Mostly. Platforms and many tunnels on the newer lines carry mobile signal, but coverage drops in older sections and deep interchanges. Screenshot or download anything you need to show at a gate, such as a Navigo QR or a museum ticket, before you go underground.
Every price, date and rule above is taken from the operator, museum, city or ministry that sets it, and was checked against that source on August 31, 2026. Lines marked "Our take" are our own recommendation, not a sourced fact. Fares, fees and opening hours change — confirm anything your trip depends on before you book.