Paris 2024 – What You Need to Know

Are you planning to travel to France for the Paris 2024 Olympics? Or perhaps you’re following along from home but have always wondered it’s like to go? If you’ve read my recent itinerary, you already know that I’m heading to the Olympics in Paris this year.  (And if you haven’t read it, you should).  I’m very excited because it will be the trip of a lifetime!  And to get into the spirit while I countdown the days until I leave, I wanted to put together a few things you need to know about the 33rd Summer Olympiad. 

Gender Equality

This year, for the first time ever, there will be even numbers of female and male athletes participating!  The games have slowly been inching towards gender equality and were close at the summer games in Tokyo 2020, coming in at 48% female and 52% male.  And the winter games in Beijing in 2022 had 45% female athletes and 55% male athletes.  In fact, it was the first Paris Olympics in the year 1900 that the first female athletes participated.  If you want to read more about female representation in the Olympic games, you can read about it here.

In addition, the Paris 2024 Olympics will feature a non-binary and transgender athlete, Nikki Hiltz on the women’s USA Track and Field team. While transgender and non-binary athletes have been allowed to compete since 2004, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was the first time that barrier was broken with three transgender or non-binary athletes. For more information on the Framework, which is the IOC’s nondiscrimination policy, check out this link.

There are NEW Sports

There are two new sports debuting at the Paris 2024 Olympics!  The first is Breaking, or break dancing.  It will consist of 16 B-boys and 16 B-girls who will go head-to-head in solo battles.  The athletes are judged in 5 categories: technique, execution, originality, vocabulary, and musicality.  It sounds like it will be really fun to watch.

If you are interested in watching the canoeing events, you’ve probably heard of slalom and sprint, but for the first time, there is a new event – Kayak Cross.  There are a bunch of requirements, like a 360-degree roll in a kayak, but basically, it’s canoeing downstream against rapids.  And racers compete against each other instead of time.

Pass Jeux (Games Pass)

Due to the security for the Opening Ceremony, there is a secure area surrounding the Seine River. In order to enter the secure zone, you must have a Pass Jeux.  It is in effect between July 18 to July 26.  As of 1:00 PM on July 26, a ticket to the Opening Ceremony will also work in place of the pass.  This pass is both for tourists and locals alike.  If you are staying at a hotel or live in one of these areas, or have a reservation or appointment in one of these areas, you must apply for the pass. The pass is a QR code and you will need to show it to enter any of the secure areas.  The gray area requires the pass for both vehicles and pedestrians however, vehicles are restricted to emergency vehicles and those that are essential such as delivery vehicles.  The red area allows vehicles, but you will still need the pass if you plan to drive in this area. You will not need it if you are entering the red zone by foot.  Personally, my hotel is not in one of these areas and I won’t arrive until right before the Opening Ceremony, so I have not applied for this pass, but you can check the interactive map to see if you need to apply for this pass. Or visit the official website for more details.

Public Transportation

I don’t pretend to be an expert on the Paris Metro, but I did do quite a bit of research on the Paris 2024 Pass before I purchased it.  First, yes the prices are doubling for the duration of the games.  And yes, you could have purchased individual tickets to use at the regular price if you were physically in Paris or had a Navigo pass previously on your phone. However, I’m going to discuss the general terms and pricing of the Metro and other forms of public transportation during the games.  These prices are in effect from July 20 – September 8.  You can purchase individual tickets for €4 or you can buy an unlimited day pass.  This pass comes in 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7 day passes ranging from €16 to €70.  The pass covers transport between Paris and surrounding areas on metro, RER, bus, and more.  These passes can be purchased in advance and shipped to your house, which is what I did, or at a kiosk at any Metro station.  The card itself costs €2, but you can top it off once you have it without purchasing a new one.  Or you can purchase the pass via the Olympic Transport app available for both iOS and Android. 

Restricted Items Allowed at the Events

So far, the rules on what you are allowed to take with you into any of the venues for the events seem very reasonable.  As an American, I’m used to having to take a clear bag the size of a postcard into the venue.  So the fact that you can take 25L bags, is pretty awesome in my book.

Cameras are allowed as long as the lens is under 20 cms, which is approximately 7.8 inches, so that’s pretty substantial!  Photos and videos of the events and inside venues are allowed for personal use only.  Commercial use is strictly prohibited.  Unfortunately, that means I won’t be able to post any of the footage I take on here or on my other social media channels, but I will be documenting and posting the general atmosphere in Paris and everything outside of the actual events. We will also be visiting some of the hospitality houses (and I can post content from them!) More on those later.

Other items allowed are:

• travel umbrellas,
• aerosol sunscreen,
• empty water bottles up to 25oz,
• food in reasonable quantities, and
• small flags representing those countries participating in the games. 

These are subject to change of course, but you can read more in the terms and conditions. 

Hospitality Houses

Prior to planning this trip and really delving into everything going on at the Olympic games, I’d never heard of a hospitality house. I still feel like maybe I don’t have a great understanding as to what they are, but what I do know is that it’s a unique experience I don’t want to miss. Based on my understanding, countries participating in the games rent out a venue somewhere in the city and throw one big cultural party. They have food and drink from their culture (some even fly in famous chefs from their countries), live music (again, artists representing their country!), the athletes stop by and sometimes have medal ceremonies, and you can also watch the games from them. Basically, it sounds like a great way to learn about the country and its culture in a really fun and highly energetic setting.

Some charge a cover (aka tickets) to get in, some are free, and some have a combination. We currently have tickets to Club France, NL House, Ireland House, and Belgium House. There are a few free houses we hope to pop into if we can find the time.

I hope that helps if you are planning a trip to the games this year. Or even if you are just curious as to what it’s all about. These are some of the main questions I’ve seen asked for those preparing to take on the Olympics in a few short days.