The Paris City Pass – Skip The Lines, Ride The Metro… And More!

Paris is very popular… and very busy. That's why we are always looking for ways to avoid the crowds and skip past the long lines. That's goal number one for us. And we're no different from you, we don't mind saving money whenever we can.

That's why we like this Paris city pass — it gets you into the top museums and monuments for free, it gives you unlimited rides on the Metro, it saves you money, plus it includes a couple of extra perks. Most importantly, it lets you bypass the long Paris line-ups. Let's find out how the pass can make your visit even better.

9 Things You Get With the Paris City Pass

1. Get into Museums for Free

The Paris City Pass gives you free museum entrance. Not just a few museums, but for nearly all museums and monuments in Paris, including the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, Centre Pompidou, the Pantheon — the things you really want to see. And along with the big museums, you also get access to dozens of small, intimate museums.

2. Priority-Access Entry

To our way of thinking, the time you save not standing in lineups is alone worth the cost of the pass. We'd use our Paris City Pass even if we didn't save money, just to skip the long lines — it's that important. For example, the Louvre tickets lineup can be over an hour, and even longer for Chateau de Versailles.

3. Ride the Metro for Free

The best way to get around Paris is on the Metro and the Paris City Pass provides unlimited travel. Instead of buying tickets every time you ride the Metro, you have a transportation card in your pocket that allows you to hop on the Metro, the RER, city buses, tramways, even the Montmartre funicular — whenever you want, wherever you are.

4. Save Money

The Paris City Pass is a one-time purchase, everything you do with it is free. So, the more activities you do, the more museums you visit, the more you will save. How much can you save? Based on a busy 5-day itinerary in Paris, more than $100.

In addition to that kind of savings, you can also save by using our readers-only discount code. Get an extra 5% savings off the 2-day and 5-day passes. Remember to use this discount code when placing your order — INSIDERS5. (That's "insiders five")

This pass was seriously the best! We were blown away by all the museums we were able to get into using the pass! You walked right up to the front of each line and didn't have to wait. As an art lover I was blown away with the Palace of Versailles, a must-see! Loved this pass!
– Traveler 5-Star Review

5. Entry to the Palace of Versailles

Paris without a visit to Versailles? Not possible. Now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Versailles is the most-visited attraction in France. That kind of popularity means very long lines. With our pass you get to skip the line-ups and save your energy for wandering the Hall of Mirrors, the famous gardens, the Grand and Petit Trianon and the magnificent fountains.

6. Free Seine River Cruise

Included with every Paris City Pass is a Seine River cruise. The bateaux takes you past the best of Paris — the famous bridges, the Musée d'Orsay, the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Cathedral. You'll instantly see how the river divides the Left Bank from the Right Bank and how close the monuments truly are to each other.

7. Hop-On-Hop-Off Bus Tour

If you've never been to Paris, the open-air bus tour will give you an instant overview of the city. There are nine stops that take you from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame to the Louvre Museum. Sure, maybe it's a bit touristy, but we still love it — it gives you a fun, quick, visual understanding of the city. Worth it.

8. Visit the Small, Intimate Paris Museums

Another thing we really like about the Paris City Pass is that it takes you to places you might never normally discover — the museums and monuments that are smaller or less visited. The places where locals enjoy their city. Visit the stunning La Sainte Chapelle, the peaceful Rodin Museum (shown in the photo above), the Cluny Museum of the Middle Ages, and the Guimet Museum of Asian Arts. There are loads more.

9. There's a Generous Cancellation Policy

If you change your mind, you can cancel your Paris City Pass purchase up to 3 days before you travel. That's really generous, and makes buying the pass pretty much worry free.

What's Included With the Paris City Pass

1. The Paris Museum Pass

This pass gets you into dozens of the best museums in Paris. Even though it's called a Museum Pass it also includes monuments. Here's a taste — Louvre, d'Orsay, Arc de Triomphe, Palace of Versailles, La Sainte Chapelle, Centre Pompidou. The Paris Museum Pass is included with the Paris City Pass package.

2. The Paris Metro Pass… Plus!

Paris Visite is the name of the Paris transportation card, and it's also included with the Paris City Pass. This lets you ride the public transportation system for free — Metro, RER, buses, trams, even the Montmartre funicular.

3. Bateaux Parisiens Seine River Cruise Ticket

There's nothing like this boat trip along the most beautiful river in the world.

4. Paris L'OpenTour Hop-On Bus One-Day Pass

Unobstructed, second-level views of the iconic monuments and historic buildings.

Who Should Buy a Paris City Pass?

If this is your first trip to Paris, or if you visit infrequently, our Paris City Pass is a good solution. It takes the guesswork out of planning, makes it easy to get around and takes you to places you might never discover. The pass is perfectly suited to visitors who want to experience a lot of things in a few days.

If you're in Paris for a week we suggest you buy the 5-day pass (which includes a 5-day Metro pass and a 4-day museum pass), see everything you want, and save a few days at the end of the week to take it easy and to revisit areas that resonated with you. And be sure to use the discount code to save an additional 5% — INSIDERS5