Paris Transport: Which is the better RER/Métro transfer point?

April 22, 2023 9:00 AM

Which is the better transfer point from the RER B to the Métro Line 4: Châtelet-Les Halles to Les Halles, or Saint-Michel Notre-Dame to Saint-Michel?

Myself and herself are headed to Paris soon for the first time in 15 years (hooray!) and we need to get from CDG to where we’re staying which is along Line 12. The Bonjour RATP app suggests RER B → Line 4 → Line 12 with the change from the RER at Saint-Michel Notre-Dame to Line 4 at Saint-Michel.

But! We’ll be travelling with carry-on cases and from the looks of it, those connected stations are small and old and pokey with lots of stairs that we’d rather avoid with luggage of any kind. (Not that they’ll be too heavy, just awkward.)

Would it make more sense to change one stop earlier, from the RER at Châtelet-Les Halles to Line 4 at Les Halles? I’m aware it’ll be busier, and may be technically further to walk, but if it’s more straightforward and minimises all the ups and downs and winding around, that would be much more preferable.

posted by macdara to Travel & Transportation around Paris, France (13 answers total)

There's probably a guide to Paris Metro stations somewhere, which would be worth looking for.

I was only at Les Halles one time, more than ten years ago, but my memory is:
- It's a mall, with mall eats available somewhere -- of course there is food everywhere in Paris, but it's something to consider if you will be hungry

- It's a weird mall, with upscale shops that are not as bustl-y as I'm used to. I was there by accident, so maybe there are friendlier areas somewhere

- I think I was there to change trains, and it was a little hard to figure out where to go (even though I could read basic French). I think one train was in one area, then I had to walk across a (flat) second area (maybe with restaurant kiosks?) to get to the other train. Also I had to ask directions. This was after spending a fair amount of time in Paris, learning a bit about the suburban trains, etc. -- so, what I'm saying is, prepare.

- I remember escalators and elevators, but, again, you'll probably be able to find details by looking for a repository of Metro station info (if nothing else, I think there's a guide to the stations that focuses on the art in each - Arts et Metiers was especially cool).
posted by amtho at 9:10 AM on April 22, 2023

Oh also: there was a very accessible outside area with tables, public art (I think a giant hand?), quiet - a good place to recover from crowding. However, this might involve a bit of a hike from the train area. If your luggage has wheels, might be an option.
posted by amtho at 9:12 AM on April 22, 2023

Best answer: It has been a few years since I've done those transfers, but I don't recall either of them being particularly great. Depending on where on the line 12 you're going, I might be inclined to take the RER B to Denfert-Rochereau and then Métro Line 6 to Pasteur. The transfer from 4 to 12 at Montparnasse is a mess, too, if memory serves.
posted by brianogilvie at 9:27 AM on April 22, 2023

Where on line 12 do you need to go? That will make a difference for the best transfers when you've got luggage to lug around.
posted by pendrift at 2:08 PM on April 22, 2023

Response by poster: Where on line 12 do you need to go? That will make a difference for the best transfers when you’ve got luggage to lug around.

I’d rather not be too specific but let’s say in the 15th. Our destination station has an escalator exit but even if it didn’t, I can lug ’em up for the last stop. We just want to get to the hotel with minimal fuss and drop off our stuff. (No, we’re not paying €60 for a taxi.)

brianogilvie’s recommendation might work perfectly if the interchange at Pasteur is easy. From what I can gather that would be going down stairs if anything?

Just to be clear, I only want to minimise walking up steps over and over again while carrying bags. I’ve been all over the Métro before (just not this particular part of it) and I know how those steps just keep on coming… Escalators are fine, they’re doing all the work. We’d rather not use an elevator. And the return trip isn’t a factor as we have different plans.

I will also add if it helps: This trip will be at rush hour on a Monday (our short flight gets in between 4 and 5pm) so we fully expect all that comes with that.
posted by macdara at 12:29 AM on April 23, 2023

Best answer: Hi, I live in Paris in the 15th!

The transfer from 4 to 12 at Montparnasse is actually the easiest transfer, a very short walk then down one set of stairs.

Changing from the RER is way easier at Saint-Michel than at Châtelet, Châtelet has been and continues to be renovated and is an enormous station.

When a station has an escalator there will often be stairs to get to the escalator FYI.

The Citymapper app is better than the Bonjour RATP app for journey planning and will tell you which part of the train to sit in to minimise walking. It will also show disruptions to lines with strike days.

Feel free to memail me for specific advice.
posted by ellieBOA at 4:22 AM on April 23, 2023

Best answer: Been 2019 since I've done it last, but Châtelet was just ~3 escalators and no stairs to get from RER-B to Line 4 that time. But as @ellieBOA mentions, you can never count on the state of works, and it is an enormous station.
posted by kaszeta at 7:08 AM on April 24, 2023

Best answer: Chatelet - Les Halles, as the name suggests, is two stations (really three) that have merged. That said, it has a lot of distance to cover but the vertical tends to have elevators or escalators, depends on how you roll.

I would note that you may not have a choice if there is a strike going on. A common strike measure is to eliminate the trains that go from the CDG airport past Gare du Nord or Chatelet, so you might have to switch there anyway.

It's important to check the RATP page for strikes, construction, and other closures:

Some of the info is in English but it's mostly in French.
posted by wnissen at 10:22 AM on April 24, 2023

Response by poster: Thanks for all the responses! I’ve got the Citymapper app and it actually recommends the Denfert-Rochereau → Pasteur connection, which is fine by me. But I wouldn’t be fazed navigating a big station like Châtelet-Les Halles, either.

As for strikes, it is what it is. I’m a dues-paying union man so I’m very much on the worker’s side, but fingers crossed for no disruption as we can’t change our dates! If we’re forced to change trains at Gare du Nord, we’ll figure it out. (There’s a bus that goes from there to close to where we’re staying, too, but that will take well over an hour.)
posted by macdara at 2:45 AM on April 25, 2023

The strikes don’t disrupt the entire city, you can still have a nice visit if there is a strike on with a bit more planning!
posted by ellieBOA at 8:28 AM on April 25, 2023

It has been over 20 years since I was in Paris, but the only strike that disrupted our travel was banking related meaning none of the ATMs were working. At the time that was a big deal, but maybe less so now in a more digital banking era. Have fun!
posted by terrapin at 10:03 AM on April 27, 2023

The ATMs are fine, not impacted by the strikes.
posted by ellieBOA at 10:45 AM on April 27, 2023

Response by poster: Just an update from my trip to Paris which was last week: We changed at Denfert-Rochereau, but we encountered precisely the kind of stairs we wanted to avoid. I thought I was very clear about that in my original question… in hindsight we wish we’d changed at Châtelet–Les Halles, which while further to walk would have been easier on my knees. Changing within the Métro from there was easy enough, thankfully, and since Line 12 is just below the street surface there was an escalator right off the platform to street level at our final stop.

Already looking forward to our return to Paris, even though I got pickpocketed on the RER on the way back to the airport! (I was tired and inattentive, so that’s on me, and luckily for me it seems thieves don’t want an iPhone SE with a PIN-locked screen as it was handed right back to me.)
posted by macdara at 3:33 AM on May 24, 2023