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[TinkSassy]

Hello - I will be arriving in Paris on on Friday and staying until the following Saturday.  This is my first trip from the US to Europe so the city is on my to-do list as well. 

I plan on buying an unlimited metro pass (zones 1-5) so that I can go back and forth into the city and move around freely.  The Navigo is only good Monday-Saturday and is the cheapest option.  There is also the Paris Viste but will be more expensive and only covers 5 days consecutively.

My question is (I will be there during the Oct. holiday arriving on the 16th) should I spend the initial weekend at DLP only then start the Navigo pass - or is the upcharge worth it to start on the weekend and avoid the Saturday/Sunday crowds at DLP?

[daddyof2]

I've not visited Paris, but I imagine the City will be similar to DLP - i.e. busier on the weekend. October 16th is before UK holidays, but I don't know about French holidays

[HildeKitten]

If you can, visit DLP on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. They are the quietest days (although if it's a bank holiday or school holiday, it can still get rather busy).
Personally I'd avoid weekend crowds anyway.

[stifle]

First of all the Navigo week pass is valid Monday to Sunday (not Saturday). I realise your arrival and departure dates mean this isn't any good to you, but just putting it out there in case someone comes across this in the future and gets confused.

If you do choose the weekly zone 1-5 Navigo for €40.40, you must have with you a small photo for the ID card that goes with it. The photo required is smaller than a passport photo at 25mm (1 inch) across and 30mm (roughly 1 and a quarter inches) tall.

Do you really expect to be travelling in every zone, every day though? If you're going to the parks, you may want to stay there for the day, and if you're in central Paris, you probably won't venture often beyond zone 2 or 3. The Mobilis ticket is likely to be better value for travelling only on 1 or 2 days out of 5 or using only a few zones – although it isn't valid to get the train to any airports.

Paris Visite is unlikely to be the right choice. It's more expensive than Mobilis or Navigo (except in a few corner cases like wanting to travel in all 5 zones for 5 consecutive days including a Sunday and Monday, or going back and forth to airports). It's marketed heavily at tourists for this reason.

The parks are busiest on Saturdays and that holds true of the city centre as well. Not all shops open on Sundays and those that do may be open for less time. Also, many museums and attractions close on Mondays (except the Louvre which closes on Tuesdays instead).