I'm going to Chambery which is located in the Rhone Alpes region of France. I know that in the US and Canada you have to carry exact change to board public buses.
I would appreciate anyone's reply. I'm a little bit nervous regarding navigating around France during my stay there since I've been told that only a very few people speak English.
You will find three types of buses in France:
City buses. Exact rules and fares depend on the city but for a single ticket, you can typically pay cash to the driver and don't need exact change. Everywhere I have been so far, exact change is appreciated but not required and you can pay with a small bill (5/10, perhaps 20, most drivers would not have enough change on board to break a 50). Alternatively you can buy tickets in advance, typically there is a “bus shop” somewhere in the center and numerous resellers (often tobacconists/press shop); here is a list for Chambéry.
As a student, you probably qualify for a cheap monthly or yearly bus card, you should probably look into that if you use the bus regularly. Also, for completeness's sake, note that a few (typically smaller) towns also have city buses that are completely free for users.
TER/regional intercity buses. Those are operated under the aegis of the regional authorities and are typically integrated with the regional train network (TER), serving smaller towns where there is no train lines at all or train service has been deemed to be uneconomical. You can typically buy tickets at train stations, with the driver or online. Bus cards for repeated travel are also available but should be bought in advance.
Long-distance private buses, marketed as a cheaper alternative to the train. As far as I know, buying a ticket from the driver is always possible but the best fares are obtained by booking online, as early as possible.
