City Transportation

The great news is that you are finally in Europe. The not-so-great news is that you are now in an airport. Obviously you need to get out of there as fast as you can, and head for whatever accommodations you have reserved. I have to say that very few issues seem to worry prospective travelers more than moving around foreign cities on public transport. It really should not. Remember that you are not the first person to come to Paris without knowing how to speak French. If only for their own convenience, transportation authorities all over Europe do their best to help foreign visitors. Read the section below and with a little practice you will be well on your way to becoming an expert.

One of the really nice aspects of traveling in Europe is the incredible public transportation that is available in the major cities. Most European cities have combinations of subways (metros), streetcars (trams), and buses that shame the best in the United States, or anywhere else in the world for that matter. Paris and London, in particular, have extremely convenient subway and bus systems. Since most of the famous sights, museums, and monuments are usually clustered in the centers of the larger cities, walking, combined with riding the bus or metro, is an easy way to see a multitude of attractions quickly.All this convenience conies at a price, however, and intracity transport can be a surprisingly large expense. Buying tickets one at a time is almost never the cheapest way to travel. In major cities like London, Rome, Madrid, and Paris, take a serious look at how much moving around you are going to do, and see if a day or week pass makes sense.

In Central London, for example, a one-way trip on the tube costs £1.90, at least in the central zone, while an all-day, unlimited travel pass for Central London costs £5.30 (or £4.10 if] you buy it off-peak). Even though, at over USD 8, the day pass is expensive, it is a good deal for someone who is planning on packing a lot into a day, especially those who want to go out in the morning and afternoon, come back to where they’re staying, and then go back out in the evening. A weekly pass, which requires a small photo, at £19.30 is even cheaper per day. If you’re staying a week and aiming to see a lot of the city, it may make the most sense.