Rail Network

We are going to Paris mid June. We arrive at Charles De Gaulle airport at about 2.30pm. I would like to purchase the 5 day rail/bus pass for our stay in Paris. Will I be able to buy the tickets at the airport station and then get to our hotel in the La Defense area, by using these tickets? I am assuming this is the cheapest way to get to our hotel from the airport. Can anyone help?

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If you buy a five-day Paris Visite pass for zones 1-2, it will not cover your journey from the airport. You would have to buy a separate ticket from CDG to central Paris.

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For purposes of using public transportation, la Défense is zone 3 - outside of the area defined as central Paris (zone 1 - zone 2). If you are taking the RER into Paris, you will need a zone 1-3 ticket/pass.

I mention this because if you utilize the Métro, specifically M1 which starts/ends at la Défense, you can use zone 1 - zone 2 tickets. This can cause confusion and as most tourist do not travel to la Défense, this distinction is not often discussed.

CDG is in zone 5, a ticket to la Défense is 8.40€ one way, using RER B connecting to RER A.

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Thank you for replies. So what is my best option transport wise, if we wish to access central Paris daily from La Defense? We are staying from 18-23 June 2009.

We do like to walk, but would like access to public transport to get to and from the major sights more quickly.

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the previous posts explain it all clearly:

At CDG buy a RER ticket to your hotel in La Defense. Once there use you Paris-Visite card (zones 1-2) to take the metro ligne M1 (the metro, NOT the RER) from / to La Defense to wherever you go in Paris everyday. Use the METRO, not the RER.

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Fantastic, thank you for the info. I understand.

If there are any special recommendations, I would appreciate suggestions. However, I have been reading all the commments on the forum for Paris.