Overnight Train Paris to Nice

Not since the TGV came into being. Last time was 1981, and I wouldn't even consider doing it again. Start and stop in every little town to pick up the mail, screech go the brakes, lights from the tracks in the station shining in, six people sleeping on the bunks, hot and sweaty with the window closed or cold and windy when we opened the window for some air. I always had a cold by the time I got off the thing. I recommend the TGV or fly.

Actually according to Bahn.de the train is nonstop as far as Toulon (where it arrives at about 6:45 AM).

I agree that night trains can be dicey (plus it's only 6 hours by day) but as night trains go this one does not look too bad.

Thanks everyone! day-trip TGV it is!

-Vivien

According to sncf.fr it leaves at 21:23 (9:23), takes 11 hours and 23 minutes, and is more expensive than other options. That's the amount of time it used to take. And it says "direct" so you don't have to change trains, but it stops for every bag of mail between Paris and Nice. Actually, I'm not kidding. The first car or two used to be mail sorting cars. Post office people worked in them all night between the cities. Certainly, it's all done by machine now.

On the man in seat 61, we can see it's an old train (rock back and forth and squeaky) with the steps that's been refurbished, not a TGV.

Thanks Bets.
Ironically I found flight tickets on Easy Jet from Orly to Nice for the same price as the train ticket and with little over an hour of flight time!

-Vivien

Bon voyage!

I'd fly on a low cost airline for a trip of this distance. Cheaper, faster, better.