Luggage/boarding assistance

I am 158 years old and not as hearty as I used to be.

Wow! I don't care how hearty I am at 158 yo, just to be travelling will be an accomplishment.

Make sure you travel with very little luggage. And look on the SNCF website for information about disabled assistance. There are no porters in stations and this kind of assistance has to be reserved ahead of time.

Seriously, though. I'm not familiar with the trains where you will be going, but over the last 10 years in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Czechia, I can't remember a single train that did not have platform level loading. No 30 cm step up like in the 80s. I was not quite as old as you, only 73 at my last trip, but I didn't encounter problems getting on/off with luggage.

If you are not wearing a backpack bag, you might have to lift your luggage slightly to get over the gap, but otherwise, no problem. The stair getting to and from the platform might be more of a problem, but again, in Germany, a lot of stations have elevators to the platforms.

I'm still encountering quite a few trains with steps up to the carriages, so in the absence of definitive information from folks who've taken the exact trips you plan to take (and it might need to be on the same type of train), I think you're smart to assume you will not have a level entry. I'm nearly certain I've encountered more carriages with steps than without, but my travels have not been limited to France and London, and I cannot comment on the situation at the specific stations you mention. I've also run into carriages in which all the seats were either up a few steps or down a few steps, so the challenge didn't end with getting on the train.

I'm 70 myself (and female) and normally have a 23" - 24" bag I have a bit of difficulty with. Fairly often some kind passerby grabs it and lifts it up or down for me. It's not something I count on, but I appreciate it when it happens. If you know you will not be able to manage without help, you are smart to research the possibilities of assistance now rather than counting on good luck and the kindness of strangers to get you through. For maximizing the chances of spur-of-the-moment help, you would be well advised to have one not-large bag each.

There is no way to definitively determine the exact height of the steps required to board each of these trains. Nor are there people generally available to assist you unless you are handicapped and have arranged for assistance in advance.

Possible options:

• You arrange to have your baggage shipped. Prices start at 29€ per bag

https://mesbagages.sncf-connect.com/#%2F=

• You carry only the luggage you can easily handle.

• You arrange for car transportation through the SNCF

https://monchauffeur.sncf-connect.com/reserver-un-taxi-vtc

I am not sure to what extent a driver is able to assist.

First, there are still porters in major Paris stations; we used one at Gare de Lyon last October as we were transporting large suitcases of household items that had been stored with family. I knew that luggage space in the bottom compartment of double-deck trains fills quickly, even in first class, and that the platforms can resemble a mob scene once the platform is announced, so, we hired a porter as we entered the station. She barreled that cart right through the crowd and got our luggage stowed.

Yes, there are still steps on intercity trains but not TGVs---except that the trains running along the Rhone Valley could pose a bigger problem as they are all double-deck with steps either down or up once through the train door. Your transportation from Lyon to Aix and then Aix back to Paris to get to London would be double-deck, unless you chose to take slow local trains, which have steps. And as I said, the luggage racks in the downstairs compartments fill first; some people sitting in the upstairs compartments don't want to haul their suitcases up and down the stairs, so they drop them off and then go upstairs.

Another consideration is that the racks at the ends of the train car all have three shelves. We recently had to hoist a suitcase, again filled with household items we were bringing from the States, to the top shelf when the lower and middle storage shelves were filled. The overhead shelves above the seats in the double-deck trains are too low to store anything larger than a sack, no carry-on suitcases will fit. We're in our 70s but manage to do this except for the time we were hauling family items and hired a porter.

Back to steps into the train: chances are anything from the Loire to the Rhone is an intercity, but you have to look that up. I don't know if an employee at a smaller station such as Tours would be available to help you. Generally, people help each other.

Normally, if visiting, we travel with nothing larger than a carry on and maybe a small backpack. We aren't 158 years old, only in our 70s, but we can still handle train travel on our own. But your question makes me realize that a time will come when we won't be able to navigate these trains anymore.

It is likely that on at least one of those trains you will have steps that could be considered high, although they will be platform level on others.

To be safe you should reserve Access Plus for all of your trips. Access Plus - which is free - is available on TGV, TGV INOUI, TGV OUIGO, Intercities (for intercities you need a disabled card), and international trains. They can help you at the initial station and will also meet you on arrival or for a connecting train. You have to reserve the service at least 48 hours before departure and you have to arrive at the station at least 30 minutes before departure.

They can refuse to assist you if you arrive with multiple large pieces of luggage. Officially they will help you with one piece of luggage that does not exceed 15kg/33 pounds. Trains aren't great for large luggage anyway so packing light is the best bet.

Information on Access Plus (only in French, use google translate on Chrome browser)
https://www.accessibilite.sncf.com/informations-et-services/nos-services-pour-l-autonomie-des-voyageurs/nos-services-d-assistance-
Reservations (in French, use google translate)
https://sncf.force.com/aplus/s/demande-prestation

Tocard!
Excellent...that is what I was too dense to see.
Thank you