Weird and wonderful facts about the Paris Metro

• Thanks to careful planning each station can be found 550 yards away from another – making Paris also has the most comprehensive underground rail system in the world.
   
• The Paris Métro runs more than 600,000 miles per day – that works out as 10 times around the world each day!
   
• The first metro line was opened in 1900 just after the Paris World Exposition making it the fourth oldest metro in Europe after London, Glasgow, and Budapest
   
• During WWII, the Paris Métro was too shallow to be used as bomb shelters, so they became a meeting place for the French Resistance - allowing them to conduct swift assaults on the Germans throughout Parissenal, Haxo, or Porte Molitor.

• The Paris Métro is famous for its art and décor, each with its own theme. For example, the Arts et Métiers station is designed to look like a submarine, and the Bastille station walls depict the historic French Revolution.
   
• Since 1997, the Espace Metro Accords (EMA) began holding auditions to decide which musicians could showcase their music in the metro – now 100 lucky candidates are selected each year and given permission to play music on the metro.
   
• All around Paris, you’ll find ghost stations; stations which haven’t been used for years and are now closed to the public. Some of these include Arsenal, Haxo, or Porte Molitor.

With the Paris Pass you can enjoy free travel around the Paris underground as a Paris Visite Travelcard is included in the package. This will allow you to explore central Paris at your leisure. Learn more about how the Paris Pass and travelcard works.

Here are some useful Paris Metro Tips to help you navigate the city like a pro.