Housing Insurance
Note that it is required by French law to get insurance for your apartment, even if you rent.
These are a couple of organizations offering student housing insurance :
Complementary Health Insurance
In order to get reimbursed for the portion of medical expenses that is not covered by Social Security, students may subscribe to a private complementary health insurance ("Mutuelle santé"). These two of the organizations offering that service:
Gas/Electricity
It varies with the time of the year: €15 - €30 per month in the spring and the summer, €50 or more in the winter.
Telephone
If there is not a phone already installed in your apartment, opening a new line will cost €50, opening an existing line costs €35. There is a monthly service charge of about €12, but all local and long distance charges are additional. The bill is sent every two months.
France Telecom While generally more expensive than other agencies, France Telecom has priority over most phone lines and their access is superior. They offer all sorts of phone call services, including international ones (Primaliste), which is free and offers you 25 % reduction on phone calls to one particular country.
Inexpensive telecom companies are : One Tel and Cegetel
Other inexpensive International Phone Call Companies : Vectone or Iradium
You can buy these phone cards from any Indian store or newspaper stand in the 10th, the 9th or the 18th arrondissements. The rates are really interesting, giving you a couple of hours of calling time in Europe and up till 10 hours of calling time in the United States. The cards require you to call an intermediary number in Paris before dialing out of France and enjoying the low rate.
Mobile Phones
There are three main operators in France from whom you can buy a mobile phone with or without a monthly subscription (abonnement) : Orange / France Telecom / SFR / Bouygues Telecom
Television, Cable
If you would like to buy a TV set, you should know that the French government is very rigorous on collecting the €116,50 per year, mandatory taxation on any TV set. The TV program is published daily in such free journals like the daily Metro and 20 Minutes) and the weekly A Nous Paris (available at any metro station).
The most popular cable providers are : Noos Canal +
Internet Access
     
Transportation
Metro Tickets
One ticket costs €1.50 while 10 tickets in a "carnet" cost €11.10. A single ticket is valid for only one direction and can be used to make a transfer within the metro system. However, it is not valid for a transfer from bus to metro or metro to bus and another ticket is needed. Refer to the RATP website for any transportation inquiry, they also have a great interactive metro and bus map.
Carte Orange
A monthly pass, giving you unlimited travel within Paris, costs 53.50 € and is valid on any public transport, bus or metro (zones 1 and 2).
Carte Imagine'R
If you are under 26 years old you can benefit from a year's student transport pass which costs €30.90 per month. The pass also gives you preferential movie rates and store reductions. Subscription is available only from August to January as this is when the French school year begins. For more information ask for an Imagine R dossier at any metro station or visit the provider's website.
Carte Intégrale
If you are not eligible for the Carte Imagine R and would like to have a year's pass, you should ask for a Carte Integrale dossier from any metro station. This card will cost the same as if you were to buy 10 Carte Orange passes, but it saves you from the endless first-day-of-the-month queues.
Going Outside of Paris
SNCF (National Transportation Company) : Prices vary depending on the destination. If you are below 25, you can purchase the Carte 12-25, which allows you to claim up to 50% off all train tickets, provided you book in advance.
Taxi : consult the latest information on Parisian taxis
Car Rental : Consult the EasyCar website
Eating In And Out
Groceries
Expect to spend around 30 € to 80 € on food per week. You might spend between €30 and €50 if you buy groceries and €80 to €100 (and even more) if you go out to restaurants. Smaller épiceries, which are open later and more frequently than the supermarkets, are considerably more expensive but convenient for last-minute shopping.
ED is the most economical of all grocery stores. Other stores offer also good bargains for the price-conscious consumer include : Leader Price, Monoprix, Casino, Leclerc, Atac
Restaurants
There are student restaurants where you can have a full meal (starter, hot meal, cheese and / or dessert) for €2.60. Consult the CROUS website for their location.
Paris is also full of wonderful restaurants that feature budget menus and cuisines from around the world as well as "typical" French food. Fixed-price meals (starter, main dish, and dessert) can cost as little as €15 and up to €30 and more. Service is most often included. The cheapest restaurant areas are located in the Latin Quarter and around Montmartre.
Other Prices : Laundry
In every district there are places where you can do your own laundry. Prices vary depending on the district where you live.
Going Out
Movies
Usually movies cost between €6 and €9. On Sunday, some movie theaters offer séances de matin for €4,50. The weekly schedule of the movies is available in the magazines Officiel des Spectacles (€0,35) and Pariscope (€0,40), which come out every Wednesday. Most movie theaters offer student rates on Wednesday, while regular fares apply on Fridays and during the weekend. Most movie theaters also offer special filmcards for €30 to €50, which allow you to see 5 to 10 movies within a certain period. UGC and Gaumont are the biggest movie companies and they offer very advantageous one-year subscriptions (for those who go to the movies at least once a week).
Opera, Theater, Comedy, Dance Show
Prices vary considerably, depending on the size of the show and the quality of the venue. Generally, larger and more prestigious theaters charge higher prices.
Occasionally, rush tickets are available the day of a performance at a significant discount. They can be bought at the Kiosque Place de la Madeleine (2nd arrondissement) and at the Kiosque Gare Montparnasse (14th arrondissement).
Dance Clubs
Cover charge between €12 € and €20 (usually includes a drink). You can refer to CityVox for information on shows, clubbing, concerts, and other cultural and social events.
Sports
Your Mutuelle (SMEREP) gives you the privilege to buy a year's Club Med Gym pass for the cost of €520. Of course you can choose from Other Gymclubs.
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