Pl help me understand paris metro? are the lines known by 1, 2 , 3 etc?

Question

but the maps dont show any lines mark? and also whats the best and comfortable way to reach cdg airport from paris city.

we are obivously tourists, dont speak french , group of 4

Answer 1

Yes the Metro lines are numbered.

In the stations when transferrring from one line to another you'll be looking for the word "correspondence" with the name of the last station on the line in the direction in which a particular line is going.  

So, for example, if transferring to line 4 from Line 1 at the Chatelet-Les Halles station you would be looking for either "Porte de Clignancourt" or "Porte d'Orleans" depending on which direction you wanted to go on line 4.

To get from CDG into the city simply take the RER B commuter rail line at the station in the airport. Tickets are sold from machines or at the ticket office.

Don't be overly concerned about not speaking French. Almost everyone in the hospitality/tourist industry speaks at least some English and tales to the contrary are hogwash.

However, you can't expect anyone you stop on the street to speak English and even if they do they may not be inclined to drop whatever they are doing to chat with some tourist. This is not rudeness its self preservation given that in the high season you can't swing a cat without hitting a tourist.

Be polite, be patient, and confine your attempts to elicit English conversation to people who make their living being nice to tourists.

Answer 2

Ditto to the above. Plus, Paris sites almost always have the nearest Metro stop included any time they are mentioned. The larger Metro stops will have maps on wall with a set of buttons. You push the button of the stop where you want to get off and the route you need to take, including any transfer points will be marked for you.

Without speaking French, you are at a disadvantage. The French are the Americans of Europe, in that they expect everyone who comes there to speak their language. Get a phrase book so you can find the phrase you need and show it to the person you're talking to.

Have you considered hiring someone through craigslist Paris?  There are lots of people offering to teach French, any one of whom might be hire-able. With any luck, you might find folks who want to improve their English who'd accompany you around, doing translations, for nothing more than chatting along the way.

Answer 3

The most important thing to know on the Metro is the destination terminal.  Look on the map, follow the Metro line you are taking, and find the name of the station at the far end.  When you go into a Metro station, the destination is used to indicate the direction.

Here is the web site for the Metro and RER lines that go further out from Paris (like to CDG):

http://www.ratp.fr/

At the top of the home page, click "International Passengers".

I'm sure others will help with the specifics of transiting from the airport into the City of Light.

And here's a little tip that I found useful: Nearly every word in English that ends in "-tion" has (about) the same meaning in French.  Destination, direction, etc.  Their pronunciation is different than in English, e.g. des-tee-nah-see-ohn, but you can do some basic communication using them as questions.  

Bon Voyage et Bonne Chance !