We were supposed to have celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary in France last summer so now with travel restrictions being lifted, we are set to give it another go with two weeks in Paris in mid-July. It's going to be hotter than heck then but we were given the chance to stay at a studio apartment in the Marais (with A/C thank goodness) so we are giddy with excitement. We were able to secure flights from Newark to CDG using our United airmiles and are happy to have that hurdle done with. We're currently in the middle of watching for flights from SFO to Newark (crazy expensive) and figuring out the whole 72 hour PCR test requirement.
We would very much like to take the train from Paris to Pau/southwest France to visit an old friend for a day or two who is quite ill. The train ride on the TGV is about 4 1/2 hours each way but it just dawned on us that with COVID and the variants, maybe being in a train compartment for those many hours would not be a safe thing to do even if we're fully vaccinated/Moderna? We did the same trip two years ago and we're trying to remember if the windows opened on the TGVs in which case we would feel more inclined to make the trip with the circulating air for better ventilation. Any advice from experienced train travelers? Does anyone know if the French railway has made changes and accommodations to address safer long distance train travel? Thank you in advance once again.