How to transfer between Gare du Nord and Gare Montparnasse
Paris has several main train stations, all serving national and international trains to different parts of the country. When travelling through Paris by train it is almost always necessary to change from one station to another.
Between Gare du Nord and Gare Montparnasse
Metro line 4 connects these two stations. A metro train departs every 2-5 minutes. No need to take an expensive taxi!
The metro journey between the two stations takes around 16 minutes. However, the metro stop at Montparnasse station is about a 15-minute underground walk away from the train platforms. Including walking and buying a metro ticket (if necessary) the whole trip takes about 35 minutes. This also depends on how much luggage you have with you: elevators are available at both metro stations, but fo please take a couple of minutes to find these.
We generally recommend planning at least 75 to 90 minutes to transfer in Paris, to allow time for delays, finding the right metro line and platform, buying tickets if necessary, and boarding the next train.
How to buy tickets
- Parisian public transport is run by RATP. For tickets download the RATP and SNCF apps to buy tickets on your phone with your credit card.
- Use your phone's NFC function to use the tickets at the metro stations.
- If you don't have a smartphone with NFC, a paper NAVIGO pass can be bought from ticket machines at every train station or metro stop, which can be topped up with money as you travel.
- A single ticket between any two train stations as described above usually costs €2.50.
Single use metro tickets are being phased out, with the top-up Navigo pass being the best alternative if you have no phone with internet and NFC functions. It used to be possible to buy single tickets on board of TGV and Eurostar trains, but this is slowly being phased out.