Travel help needed for 1st trip to France

It really isn't that complicated, it just gets complicated when you want the best price.
You might think about booking a late train to Colmar. There is a direct train at 6:55 pm and takes under 3 hours to Colmar. Three months out it goes for 60 euro total for 2. Regular price is 214 euro, so you are getting it for almost 25% of the normal price. That would give you time to walk around Paris for the afternoon to fight off jet lag.

Colmar to Beaune can also be bought 3 months in advance for good savings.

Beaune to Annecy can be done with TER trains, as well as the day trip to Chamonix.

Annecy to Paris can be bought 3 months in advance.

We did a very similar trip 3 years ago, but spent 4 nights in Paris at the start, so it was no problem committing to advance nonrefundable tickets (through Capitainetrain).

TER tickets, if not part of a TGV journey, cannot be printed at home and must be picked up at the train station. You can just buy them when you get there. We went from Beaune to Geneva and stopped 4 hours in Lyon to tour on the way.

And just tell them you are 60 and older when you buy the tickets at the station. You will get the 25% discount if it is available, usually not on "rush hour" trains.

Three posts from a newcomer, schizoflo, and each one touting a Paris planning website. Hmmmm

hi, Sam, is that Paris-Colmar deal all the time? What about in July and summer weekends? We are traveling with 6 persons and Colmar would work as a stopover for us on the way to Zurich. I am worried that there will not be such good deals Bastille Day weekend leaving Paris.Also, should there be similar deals PAris-Dijon?

Hi Sam, I must be doing something wrong. I cannot find any direct train from Paris to Colmar at 6:55pm. How did you find this (steps)? I was hoping to go from the airport straight to our first destination but it appears it is more costly that way. Is taking the bus from airport into Paris and then TVG to Colmar the way to go? Oh my, I was hoping to sightsee Colmar that first day and allow the next day for touring the area before leaving for Beaune. But it looks like even though I have a 9:40am arrival, that the first day is a wash as far as Colmar goes.
Thanks Norma for the heads up. Does sound fishy!

I was looking at 3 months ahead to see what the discount would be. I see direct trains from Gare de l'Est, leaving at 6:55, 10:55, and 18:55. prices from 50 to 80 euro for 2. There is another at 12:55 on Saturday.

If you wanted to do it this way, take the RER to Paris Gare du Nord, walk 4 blocks or so to Gare de l'Est and store your bags, then you are free until 6 pm when you return to the station, collect your bags and board the train. The RER is 10 euro per person.

@ Elaine, Keep in mind that there will be a Europe-wide train schedule adjustment the second week of June, so you will not see the actual schedules and prices until April, and you cannot buy tickets until 3 months in advance (generally). For 6, I see as low as 138 euro for 6. Prems Offre Mini Groupe price. nonrefundable, nonchangeable.

Thank you Sam! Appreciate the info. I think my mistake was I put in Paris to Colmar instead of the name of the station. Might have to be the way to go :-)

I was on the TGV website to look at the prices. You actually use the Paris (all stations) origination point. It will automatically show trains from Gare de l'Est, since that is where all TGVs to northern Alsace leave from. Captitainetrain will give the exact same prices in my experience.

Sam, I believe I see the problem. That 6:55 train is in the morning which is of no help to me since my plane lands at 9:40am if on time. Correct?

No, there is an 18:55 train, aka 6:55 pm.

Linda, if you are flying with Air France, they offer a flight & train package to Strasbourg. Then you can take the local train into Colmar. Here is their link with the information and service they provide you when choosing this option:http://www.airfrance.us/US/en/common/resainfovol/avion_train/reservation_avion_train_tgvair_airfrance.htm

I will be in Paris the same time frame myself, enjoy your trip.

Hi,

As an alternative in your planning, you can take a TGV from Paris Est to Strasbourg. Time it right you'll get a direct connection. I've taken that connection.

4 nights in Annecy, and only 3 nights in Paris ??

No David, my trip to Chamonix is not a day trip. Spending 2 days there and only going back to Annecy to sleep so as to get a better start to Paris the next day. Only 1 1/2 days in Annecy. Wish I had more time to travel but it is what it is.
Not traveling Air France but it is a nice perk.

Sam, I see your train on TVG but does not show on Capitaine. So I guess they do not cover all trains available. And to top it off, I put in one Thurs. and then the following Thurs. and both have different times. How is a person supposed to do any serious planning when you have to wait just 3 mo. prior to do so. Sorry France, but I'm beginning to give up on you (and this would have been the year) and seriously start to look into some other country. Sad, very sad 😢

Given that you have already travelled through Austria and Switzerland, I would perhaps pinch a night from the alpine part of your plan to give you extra time in Paris.

Mon. day 5 - morning in Beaune, train to Chamonix (2 nights)
Tue. day 6 - day spent in Chamonix/Mont Blanc
Wed. day 7 - train to Annecy (1 night)
Thu. day 8 - train to Paris (4 nights)

Don't get discouraged, Paris is worth a mass. Here is what Deutsche Bahn has to say about TGV 2377. DB often gives more detailed information than the home country rail sites.

not every day, 15. Dec 2015 until 1. Apr 2016 Tu - Fr; not 24., 31. Dec 2015, 29. Mar 2016

You will have to wait until spring to get more up to date info. You will definitely be able to get to Colmar on your arrival date, perhaps with a connection at Strasbourg. They may reinstate this train after April 1.
If it is any consolation, If you buy airline tickets 7 months in advance, there are almost sure to be changes along the way. Airlines have no compunction about changing or even cancelling flights whenever the mood hits them. Rails will at least give you some commitment 6 months out.

Have you considered flying into Paris and home from Geneva? You can get a van from Chamonix to the airport if you make Chamonix your last town. If you like mountains, you will really enjoy the goldola over to Helbrunner, practically floating past Mount Blanc. Spend extra days in Chamonix to increase your chance of good weather. Also, check the opening dates, this year was May 30, so timing does matter for Chamonix.

I think trains are possible and I hope you find a route that works! I want to take the trains when we can no longer drive :-) and France is grand. The route might be easier if you save Colmar for another trip. It is tucked in behind the Vosges Mountain, so perhaps not as well connected as other areas.

Enjoy the planning and the trip.

Thank you David, Sam & Beth! I am frustrated with France's rail system but will see what I could do to make this work. Have been considering somewhere else in Europe but my heart still pulls me back. Will see.

I am in the same boat (or train). Also, I know that those super low fares in the winter are not always offered for prime summer travel. I would love to be able to get 27 euro fares from Paris-Dijon or Strasbourg, but it could be as high at 100 euros PP. With 6, that's a huge difference. We have a 2 day window to travel from Paris-Zurich, and would like to stop over in Dijon or Colmar, but if it is $500+ additional, we'll skip it. I made a few refundable reservations in a couple different cities and will then cancel, depending on what the train fares are. We also made a van reservation to get us to Dijon, in case all the Paris routes are sky high after Bastille Day. June should be OK, as it is not vacation time for France yet (which will start on July 15).
I would travel the 1st 2 weeks in June, as you are getting warmer and chance for better weather. Mid-May can be rainy and chilly in France.

Thank you Elaine. You gave me an idea. we did not want to drive but maybe for the first leg of the trip, it might be the way to go. Rent a car at the airport and head over to Colmar. I read to see the Route du Vin, you are better off with a car than bus or train. Then before we leave, drop off the car. Or drive to Beaune, our next stop, and drop it off there but I would prefer Colmar, if possible. This way we don't have to worry about missing our train if plane is delayed or waiting for later and getting in Colmar late in the day and messing up that whole first day with travel.

I'm going to start a new topic asking for info on this subject and see where it takes me. But I think it might work best. Thanks again Elaine! Good luck with your plans also :-). Linda

Maybe it's best on these scenarios to start with a rental car. They will hold the car if the plane is late and with six people a car will be cheaper per person. Easier to visit vineyards in beaune with a car as well. You can switch to rail travel at any point.

One concern about taking a car for your first leg is jet lag. You'll be getting off a transatlantic flight, with little sleep and 7 hours of time difference. Not the best recipe for driving in an unfamiliar car, on unfamiliar roads, and not knowing the language. I hate to be a wet blanket, but safety first! Also, I think you said there will be 6 people? That would be one big car.

Did you look into flying into Basel, Zurich, or Strasbourg? All are a lot closer to Colmar than Paris is, and your train ticket would be correspondingly less - giving you more flexibility with your schedule and maybe eliminating the need to book way in advance.

Just don't give up on France - you'll have a wonderful time!

I know your primary focus is France but can you consider flying into Zurich (2h train ride to Colmar) and fly out of Paris? It is very easy to get a train from the Zurich airport, unlike Paris where you have to travel into the city by RER to a train station where you go to another train station to take a TGV. The initial train ride is shorter and it has fewer transfers between transportation systems.

Edit: I had just researched trains from the center of Zurich to Colmar. If you travel from the airport in Zurich to Colmar it involves a fairly easy airport to Basel change,then on to Colmar. (1 change). This adds 23 minutes to the 2h previous route making it similar in time to Paris to Colmar but with an easier airport and only 1 medium sized train station (Basel) for a train change instead of 2 in Paris.

Somehow, I think the OP is planning on Aer Lingus. We are starting to mix up Linda's questions with Elaine's.
Really, train travel in France is super easy, and fast once you are on the train. Cars can't go 300 kph, at least not without breaking a whole lot of laws.

I understand any TVG trains have to be reserved and paid for 2 mo in
advance for best fare. How do I decide what train to reserve when I
have no idea if my plane will be on time, how long to get from
terminal to train station, etc. If I play it safe & take a later train
and everything goes well, I could be wasting hrs til my train leaves.

I think only 1 of the last 4 flights I've had to Europe landed within 30 minutes of the scheduled time, the rest were more delayed. Maybe coming from Chicago your odds are better.

But what we do is plan on staying the nite in my arrival city and then moving on by train. So for example United has a direct flight to Frankfurt, we connect to Paris. We are supposed to arrive early afternoon. Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't, but I feel confident that we will get to Paris before the day is over. The next day we take our deep-discount train out of town.

we also like to stay put at our arrival city or have easy cheap transportation the 1st day (like a local train). One option is to stay in Paris your 1st night and then train out to Disney Paris and pick up a car there--why? It is cheap easy 35 minute commuter train ride and you are well out of Paris traffic and in the direction of Colmar. Avis and Hertz are both at the Chessy train station right at Disney Paris. We never book expensive train tickets on a day we fly in from overseas. You would have to pad in several extra hours. I would also think about getting a day room at CDG and getting a few hours of sleep before I rented a car and drove for several hours.

Keep in mind the European Football (aka soccer) championships will be hosted by France June 10-July 9. This is a HUGE event and expect big crowds and festival atmosphere in the host cities. Paris is the only host city in your list, others are Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lens and Lille.Hotels will be booked well in advance and prices may be inflated so book early! Pick a team to cheer for (other than the Netherlands who didn't qualify) and join the party!

Thank you Sam! You're right, some responders are mixing up my itinerary with what Elaine wrote. But after so many wonderful (different) suggestions, I think I will go ahead with my France plans and just hope for the best. Flying in & out of different cities is out. It is much more costly and the flight I found on Aerlingus in & out of Paris is unbeatable. Although my husband & I have made many trips to Europe and never have any problems with jet lag, I am less enthused about renting a car after reading what is involved in doing so. So that leaves just taking a late train into Colmar or just staying in a hotel in Paris and taking a cheap early train out. Either way, I'm losing a 1/2 day of sightseeing in Colmar that I can't make up or get back. So it is what it is.

I want to thank everyone for all your help!! If anyone has any further suggestions on the places in my itinerary with hotels, restaurants, & tours, I would so appreciate it. Thanks all 💕

and thanks to all who helped with my family of 6 trip! didn't know abouth the soccer stuff. We are in Paris 7/6-7/8, yikes! still deciding between stopping over in Dijon or Colmar or spending an extra day in Paris and taking a train directly to ZRH to fly home (already have ZRH tickets-only place we could use FF miles back to US). Seems a shame not to stop in either Dijon or Colmar, as either is on the way. Guess the train ticket prices will somewhat dictate.

Elaine, you might get more answers if you post your own topic on this site.

agreed. will do when we get sooner to the trip. good luck.