It's me the train lady.
I am booking a ticket from Lille to Paris Gar De Lyon. But then it only brings up tickets to Paris Nord. Which I know is the main station. My question is once we arrive at Paris Nord.... Do I have to buy another ticket to Gar de Lyon or is it included? I would assume there is a connection.
Let me know if I am off the rails ;)
(That was for my dad)
There is no main station in Paris, there are a number of large terminal stations and which one you arrive at depends on where you leave, they serve different geographical areas and you rarely have a choice. (Here is a good map of what areas the stations serve: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Railway_stations_on_departure_from_Paris_map-en.svg )
However, if you buy a ticket to Gare de Lyon the last trip should be included. Otherwise it's easy to buy a ticket for the RER, it's two stops on the RER D.
are you going to the Gare de Lyon for a booked hotel there, or to catch a train south?
I'm asking because there are trains direct from Lille to the south of France - which would avoid the need to cross Paris- whether by metro or RER (the way I would do it), or bus (which some people recommend) or by taxi (which others suggest).
You won't get a through ticket from Lille to ay other Paris terminal station than Nord, so would have to buy a separate ticket on the day for the cross city transfer.
You don't get to choose your train station in Paris. Each station serves a different region. As someone noted if you are taking a train south book it fro Lille and see if you can get something either direct or where the change occurs at the same station. If you transfer in Paris from Nord to Lyon then you are on your own for that and need to factor that in when booking. The RER D goes from Gare du Nord to Gare de lyon and I would want at 60 minutes to make the transfer. the travel time is 15 or 20 minutes but being new to two train stations even well signed means you need the time. The track for the Gare de Lyon train goes up about 20 minutes before but the station is a bit complicated and it often takes the 20 minutes to get to your car and aboard. The tic ket for the RER ride is 2.10 and you can get it from a machine a the RER station at Gare du Nord. (probably a line and be sure he is pick pocket proof and knows to refuse any 'help' getting the ticket from the gang of pick pockets who will often be 'helpful.')
If he is staying near Gare de Lyon in Paris for a few days because he will have a later trip --well then no rush.
If you have slightly more time, you can get the bus route 91 from Nord to gare de Lyon without any problems with stairs or escalators. The bus leaves from the bus station adjacent to the railway station.
I am not sure how you are booking your trains. I just returned from 2 weeks in France which included Paris, Normandy, Amboise and Verdun. We took trains between several of those places. We booked using Trainline which you can do in a website browser and they also have a great phone app where you can access all the tickets digitally. One thing I learned is to check the journey details because it will show the different trains and stops you’ll make. For example, when we went from Amboise to Verdun, it passes through Paris. The Amboise to Paris leg arrived at Gare Paris Austerliz and then the next leg from Paris to Verdun left out of Gare l’Est. There was a metro line that goes directly between those two train stations but the transition time was a little tight for my group. One of our group walks with a cane so we chose a different Amboise to Paris train to give us more transition time.
I second using Trainline. You might also like the info at https://www.seat61.com. Others have given you good information that’ll be very helpful. Safe travels and have a wonderful time.
Badger, I absolutely LOVE the visual of the train stations map you linked!!!
