TGV train

If you haven't applied for your health pass yet, you won't get it in time. Apply immediately and you might get it a few days into your trip.

What you will have to do now is get tested for Covid when you arrive at CDG. That will give you a three day health pass. At the end of three days, you will have to test again. Here's a link to the website with all the information:

https://www.parisaeroport.fr/en/passengers/services/covid-19-test-pcr-antigenic

It's doubtful you will be able to take a train that day.

Bring your vaccination card with you.

Where do you plan to get the health pass at the airport? I am under the impression that the testing facilities at the airports are geared toward departing travelers. Assuming that you can get the test and the temporary pass at the airport upon arrival, you may already know this but I'll mention that to get a test at the airport, you will need an appointment at doctolib.fr. Of course, you can buy your ticket after the plane lands. At this point, given how close you are to your travel date, you will not save much (if any) money by buying your ticket now.

I thought if I had my vaccination card with QR code I could get the pass…maybe I thought wrong.

Just to be clear, you are not "reserving" a seat, you are buying a ticket that has a seat reservation included, just as if it was a plane ticket.

There is as far as has been reported here so far no way to get the QR code with your CDC card at the airport.

The French govt expects you to apply on line for that. Some people have had luck with local pharmacies, but most report being turned away from them.

@ maryleept, from whom did you get this QR code that you have? If you got it from a US authority like say the California Department of Health or the New York Department of Health, it will do you no good in France. At this point, it seems to me that unless you get your pass by applying at https://www.demarches-simplifiees.fr/commencer/passe-sanitaire-etrangers, you should consider going to Paris to get a rapid test administered and get the 3-day health pass before going to Gare de Lyon to catch a train to Lyon. Another option would be to take the train to Lyon (using your CDC card to be allowed on the train) and get your temporary pass there. Up until now, SNCF has been accepting CDC cards to allow holders on to the trains, but I recently read an article that suggested that this may longer occur after September 12th. Thus, I think the stop in Paris might be the better plan. But maybe, you got your code from another EU country and if that is case, you do not need to get a health pass in France.

Just to clarify general information for anyone reading..
Anyone can get a Covid test at the airport. It's on the departure level in the public area. You should make an appointment on doctolib.
This means it's convenient for departing passengers, less so for arriving passengers. In addition, an arriving passenger will have trouble pinpointing an appointment time. Walk-in testing may be available if they aren't too full.

Here is your desperation plan. If you really, really want to get to Lyon that day, you can take a TER train to Lyon. TER trains are not affected by health pass requirements. There is a TER train from Paris Bercy to Lyon Part Dieu departing at 15:33. It will be easiest to take a taxi to Bercy, unless you are very confident navigating the Paris RER/Metro system.

That train takes over 5 hours to get to Lyon vs less than 2 on the TGV. But it will get you there. TER trains are unreserved, so you will have to find seats for yourself. Price is reasonable at 65.60 EUR. Maybe you'll want to upgrade to 1st class, costing 98.50 EUR.

So if your plane lands close to on-time, it should be doable.

What QR code do you have?

😉😉😉for sure, the wrong one…from California!

Hi -- After landing at CDG earlier in the month, there was a C-19 test station as we made our way to baggage claim/customs. We were on Air France, so I don't know if that would be the same for all airlines. I expect you'd have to wait ~30 mins for the result.

I don't know about the 12 Sep date. I did a search online, and the only reference I found was starting tomorrow (12th) , that the SNCF fares are no longer easily refundable. I don't think the status of the pass has changed as the sncf website had said the pass is required since early in August, but people have been getting by with the CDC card.

We've been using the TGV quite a bit and no one has ever asked us for any proof of vaccination. We head back into Paris tomorrow from Avignon, so I'll post an update if there is any change concerning the pass (I have a pass, but my wife is still waiting for hers (she filed for it 30 Aug)).

if I had my vaccination card with QR code I could get the pass

Now that it is clear you are talking about your California QR code, I think we can offer a little better advice as to what is and isn’t posssible.

Pharmacies have been told NOT to convert Americans’ vaccination records to French health pass/pass sanitaire/QR code any more. (However, we still are hearing dribs and drabs of reports of people who are having success — but they are few and far between.)

You CAN go to a pharmacy and take an antigen test for €29; you will get the results in 15 minutes, and if (hopefully) the result is negative, they give you a QR code that is good for/serves as a health pass for 72 hours.

To apply for the conversion of your American/California vaccination record into a longer-term French health pass/pass sanitaire/QR code, you need to apply via the MFA-link website (which I think you have already done and are waiting to hear back).

I hope that helps you understand your options.

Thank you for the advice…just hoping things aren’t too complicating for this senior, non French speaking, optimistic traveler!

Mary, I am in France after landing at CDG last Monday and taking two trains to Aix-en-Provence. No one on either train asked me for a vaccination card. We had two other sets of friends who took different trains upon arrival at CDG and it was the same. No one is asking.

Buy your TGV ticket. Get your TGV QR code to show at the train station on your phone. That’s it.

Once you get to Lyon, I think your California QR code will work fine. We have used ours multiple times a day for six days now. Sometimes a waiter will say it’s not working, and I say it is the United States QR code. Then that is that.

Truly, we have not had one issue.

❤️❤️❤️❤️ hearing this. At this point, i will have CDC card and get on train…hopefully they will not throw 2 “blank” looking, senior citizens off!

On the TGV now from Lyon to Gare de Lyon (Paris). Nothing has changed. No one inquired about our pass sanitaire and I didn't see anyone else getting bothered about it either. So if you have the CDC card, I don't think I'd fret too much about just using that.

Have fun.

Such good news…I am going to stop fretting over it. Have you been in France awhile, and never needed it? Thank you!

Haven't needed the qr code anywhere so far. Lyon. Avignon. And now Paris. Sometimes I just go with the cdc card as it's easier to display than pulling up the downloaded qr code on my phone.

But try to keep up with any changes if possible. And when your qr code gets approved, do download in case it gets more restrictive during your visit.

We trained from Zurich to Paris today. All they wanted was train tickets, no CDC cards, no health questionnaire. Maybe First Class helps? Not sure