Lost passport

Why go all the way to Paris? Tomorrow is Thursday. It will probably be a long process either place.

Pre-Covid and assuming that you have a copy of the lost passport, the process took a couple of hours. Sadly, know this because on three separate occasions (twice in Barcelona and once in Paris) a travel companion has had their bag stolen and their passports were in their bags. You have the same process whether you go to the embassy in Paris or a consulate so if Marseille offers the services tomorrow, I see no reason to go to Paris. There might be less of a wait in Marseille because I think that there are fewer Americans in Marseille than in Paris and therefore fewer Americans looking to replace lost passports.

We are flying out of Paris, we have decided to go to the embassy there. They allow walk-ins too.. we are in Avignon now so we thought we might give Marseilles a try
We are pretty sure the bag with passport and new camera was left on the train. We made a declaration of lost items at the tgv station. We are hoping that it will be found in the next day or so.
I must say the man at the train station was very helpful and kind.

So sorry to hear of this trouble. It would be really nice if you have an opportunity to come back and let us know how this resolves.

I will indeed report back when we get it done. Since it's a holiday Monday we plan to extend our trip so we can get to Paris embassy Tuesday.

Kerouac..I didn't know it was so difficult to use a false passport. Good to know. That was a big worry.

Passports are not a target of thievery and even cameras are not really targets either as no one wants big clunky cameras anymore -- it is mostly expensive phones, credit cards and money. But of course it all depends on an honest person finding the bag and turning it in and if they stole the cameras then they probably threw the rest in a waste bin somewhere. We have been lucky the few times one of us (always the same one) has left a camera bag, or computer bag somewhere. we have always been able to retrieve it -- pure luck

I always carry passports on my body when in transit as I can easily imagine losing a bag, leaving a bag or having a bag taken -- so a money belt, a cross body purse or a hidden inner pocket.

Sorry you have this stress -- hope it resolves quickly --

Our passports were stolen in Chile but I imagine the process is the same. This was in 2009. . We traveled to Santiago from where we were staying ,several hours north, had our photos taken and were at the US Embassy when it opened at 8 I think. Short line. Handed everything in to a staff member at a window. We had new passports at 3pm that day. The embassy staff were very helpful.
Print out and fill in all the forms ahead of time. They are available online. There also should also be a list of photographers who know how to give you the proper sized photo. This advance work speeds up the process. Our hotel printed out the forms we needed. It was all much easier than we anticipated. I assume Marseille is a Consulate and offers new passports as well.

Hello Forum Folks,
We returned from France yesterday. I thought I'd let you know how things transpired, since people offered suggestions on how to resolve the situation.

We returned to Paris, stayed at a hotel near the embassy and were there at 8:00AM, with photos, and paperwork in hand. We were the first ones there, and were assisted immediately, and had a new passport in hand about an hour later. I'm glad we arrived at 8:00, because shortly after, the room filled up quickly with folks with various problems. (One couple had all their luggage stolen by a group of 4, and were left with nothing and were in a real fix).

Just a couple of notes, in case anyone finds themselves in the same situation.
a. Things are not always what they seem: the US embassy website indicated no phones, backpacks, tablets, etc. Well, people brought phones, and backpacks, and were let in.
b. There is a photo machine, so you can get your passport photo at the embassy, and there is a photocopier too.
c. We had a copy of the lost passport, and that sped things up, according to the man at the counter
d. The embassy had an efficient system for getting served,...you take a number, get called to a certain counter, tell your story, go to another counter and pay the fee, and then wait for your name to be called with a new passport. They had many monitors around the room, so you could see what numbers were being served, and there were clear, verbal announcements given too.
All in all, it was a forthright, efficient way of operating.

A couple of non-related notes:
Pass Sanitaire was required everywhere, even small cafes, with a few exceptions
Museums were busy, but not overly crowded
During our time there, we only heard english spoken once, on the TGV from Avignon to Paris
No word yet from SNCF about lost bag, but they do give you a confirmation number, and website where you can check progress on the investigation....so far nothing.
The man at the "lost and found", at the train station, and a taxi driver we asked, were very helpful and
did everything they could to help us. (We first thought we had left the bag in the taxi....)
Oh.....one more thing....getting the COVID test for return to U.S. was interesting. We went to a pharmacy recommended by the hotel. Instructions were in French. Again, the pharmacist was very, very helpful...we had to download the form, fill in the form, then go to another website to log in. The actual test site was outside the train station, in a tent. Had our results in 10 minutes, and it cost 50E.

We really enjoyed Avignon, Arles, and Paris. I had planned for day trips to Nimes and St. Remy, too, but we never made it to those places. Maybe next time.

Best wishes to all.

So glad it worked out and thanks for reporting back; if it happens to us in the future we know what to expect.

I am glad it all ended as well as possible and thanks for getting back with your experience!

Thank you SO much for coming back with an update. Even those of us who did not offer advice were concerned for you.

It's good to know a photocopy of the passport page is helpful. I'd seen different experiences reported here but it's easy to do and just keep in your moneybelt. Also good to know to get there early.

Here is a link to stocking stuffers for all travelers, lolol!!

https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/travel-accessories/security

Glad you otherwise had a good trip!

So glad it worked out easily, and so sorry you lost your bag.

I had a friend who was here in Paris right just pre-Covid (like February 2020), and she lost her passport as well — she also told me that it was a quick and efficient process getting her replacement passport. Not a service I hope ever to need, but nice to hear that it’s not the nightmare one might imagine !