Hi,
I will be arriving Bellegarde station at 18:50 pm on 25 Dec 2017 by regional train from Chamonix-Mt. Blanc. I have a 10 min connecting time to TGV train which leaves at Bellegarde at 19:00 p.m. for Paris. May I know if it is enough? The next train departs at 19:50,which will be the last train for the day. This sector of train ride (Bellegarde to Paris via TGV) requires seat reservation. I am afraid of missing my connection, yet trying not to take the last train, since I have a flight to catch at Paris next afternoon. Does anybody know whether Bellegarde is a large station where finding the next platform will be difficult or is it just a matter of going down the stairs and going up another flight of stairs several platforms away? Another question, if I really did miss my connection, can I still make reservation for the next train (last train), since the next train is less than an hour away, and I suppose the ticket window will be closed on 25th Dec?
Posted by
Florida (previously California)
3990 posts
I don't know the answer to your questions but you may be able to figure it out by doing this Google search "gare en mouvement bellegarde." That will take you to the station-specific information that SNCF has for each station in its system.
Posted by
Washington DC
28084 posts
I have not been through that station, but I found a diagram of the station layout by Googling.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
If you miss the reserved TGV connection, your ticket will not be good on the next train (unless you paid full fare, which you're not likely to choose). On the better news side, I would expect that this is a station where the TGV would wait if the regional train arrives late, since Bellegarde is the only stop the train makes between Geneva and Paris. You need to be at the door prepared to jump off when the first train pulls in.
If trains are running, there should either be a ticket window open, or you can buy tickets from the conductor or on your smart phone. But it would also be possible for the next TGV to be full.
Alternatively, you might plan to take a shuttle or taxi from Chamonix to Geneva and catch the TGV there.