A group of my friends and I will be taking a TGV from Avignon to Nice in September. We will be traveling fairly light, but it looks like there will not be space for our standard carry on bags to stay with us. Some websites say you have to pay $6.00 and check them. Has anyone done this route lately? In Italy we were able to keep all our bags with us! Thank you!
Posted by
Portland, Oregon
5687 posts
Where did you read about the $6 charge? I took the train from Nice to Arles in 2017. I had only carry-on bags, but I don't recall anyone from SNCF hassling passengers about the size of their bags. (Only on Iberia airlines LOL!) There are usually storage areas at the end of the train cars. I just don't recall on these particular trains - but on the TGV trains, at least, there probably are.
Posted by
Portland, Oregon
5687 posts
In any case...is it really going to matter? Is it going to affect your choice of transportation? I recommend packing light anyway, but if you have to pay 6 euros extra per bag, so what? Compared to the cost of the train ticket etc. it's not exactly going to break the bank is it? If you have to pay it, deal with it then as needed.
Posted by
OP
Spokane, WA, USA
191 posts
I forgot to mention it is $6 if you pay in advance, but if you wait until you are there it is $40! The info was on the TVG/INOUI website. I will probably pay the $6, just in case, but it surprised me that the trains would be so different from the ones in Italy.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10192 posts
That's the new-fangled low-cost or budget train. Traditional trains don't work that way.
Posted by
San Diego, California, USA
798 posts
Oui.go is essentially TGV trains run cheaper "for the masses" and they have what are essentially airline carry-on rules. One under seat bag and one personal item or you have to pay a fee. This is a change from the traditional TGV where it was "just pile in" and some people seemed to be moving with their luggage. There are also no luggage fees with the older SNCF trains just the Oui.go ones.
https://en.oui.sncf/en/help-en/transport-luggage
I was just in France and booked the "TGV" (not knowing about Oui) and didn't encounter any baggage issues despite several trips. I saw Oui.go trains in the stations (they make employees wear their horrible color themed clothes) but didn't take one. According to the ever knowledgeable and invaluable "man in seat 61" you can't book Oui.go tickets on exterior websites and since I almost always use Loco2.com I was apparently booking old school TGV without luggage restrictions.
https://www.seat61.com/trains-and-routes/ouigo.htm
I actually just tried to book Nice to Avignon TGV on Oui.go and was unable to get it to complete. Nice to Aix was successful and the baggage warning appeared but if I get it to complete Nice to Avignon it doesn't. I have a feeling that Nice to Avignon is regular TGV and not Oui.go, but this is just my guess from what I can see.
My advice is that it's a small enough price to pay as part of train ticket to not worry about it when you get there and hassle on vacation.
Hope that helps - have a great trip!
=Tod
Posted by
Corvallis OR
7034 posts
Before these new 'discount' OUIGO fares I took the TGV from Nice to Avignon and no problem with carry-on size bag. You should still be able to get regular TGV fares, but if the OUIGO fare + the $6 is less than the TGV fare, then go for it but definitely pay the bag fee up front.
Posted by
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
4044 posts
You should be prepared for much slower speeds than the train name implies. It's still a TGV -- train at great vitesse/speed -- but from Marseille to Nice the tracks do not support those head-spinning speeds. Like others who have used the regular rather than bargain service, I found a decent, but not abundant, amount of luggage storage aboard. A lot of it will already have been taken. The Avignon TGV station has signs on the platforms indicating roughly where the train will pull in so you can be waiting where your reserved car stops to board quickly.