This April, my wife and I will land at CDG Airport, and would like to travel to Bayeax. Is it a difficult trip by train? Any estimate on the cost of the ticket?
Also, is it possible to fly from Caen to Munich? We have read that air travel often
is as reasonable as travel by trains...
First, you'll have to take the RER regional train from CDG to Paris Gare du Nord, then transfer to Gare St. Lazare, which is the station for all trains to NW France. There are several from St. Lazare each day, taking just over two hours to make the run to Bayeux, the last departing at about 6:30 pm. Prices per person range from 15 Euro for a second-class PREMs advance purchase ticket (n0 exchange, no refund) to 48 Euro for first class; on this short a journey, probably no need for first class. Check timetables,prices, and purchasing at http://www.voyages-sncf.com. You can buy up to 90 days out, so purchase ASAP to take advantage of the cheaper fares. Cost from CDG to Paris Nord is about 8.50 Euro each. Nothing from Caen, but Air Berlin flies Paris-Orly to Munich for anywhere from 29 to 77 Euro pp. The train ride is about 6 1/2 hours from 65 Euro and up from Paris. With transport to Orly, security, waiting for luggage, the flight time's not much less. If you book Air Berlin, do it ASAP!
All trains go through Caen, many requiring a change there. If you can get a PREM'S fare for Paris-Bayeux, leave France as the default country, do NOT choose cancellation insurance, and print the ticket yourself. (Choosing cancellation insurance requires giving an address, and SNCF doesn't recognize addresses in North America.)
While you can get a PREM'S fare for times that require changing in Caen, Paris-Caen is the PREM'S leg and Caen-Bayeux is a regional train leg. Therefore you CANNOT print the ticket but must have it mailed to an address in France. (Obviously, this won't work in your case.)
There are two ways around this. (1) Book only the Paris-Caen leg online and print the ticket. Buy a Caen-Bayeux ticket when you get to Gare St-Lazare, or (2) Pick a direct train to Bayeux. Print the PREM'S ticket. The lowest PREM'S fare (15€) is for direct trains.)
Steve, Norm has provided (as usual) a very comprehensive list of your rail options. The trip from Paris to Bayeux is an easy two hours from Gare St. Lazare.
There are flights from Caen (Carpiquet) to Munich, but they are horrendously expensive! Have a look at www.openjet.co.uk for one example.
Given the "lead times" for air travel (check-in, etc.), you might find it's just as easy to take the train back to Paris, and then use the TGV to Munich. The trip (depending on which one you select) is just over 6 hours, with one or two changes. You could also take the train back to Paris and take a budget flight from one of the airports there.
Good luck!
Tim,
A bit off topic but...
Can SNCF not send any ticket to a US address? I remember getting a ticket sent home on a trip I took from Paris to Luxembourg a few years ago. Does the SNCF website always allow you to print your ticket if you chose France as your location?
Thanks.
Norm, Tim, Ken & Alex
Thank you for taking the time to forward the very valuable travel hints. We will continue to plan our April trip to Europe, and very much appreciate your help.
Steve
Alex, the official position of SNCF is that it does not mail tickets to North American addresses. However, I've read several reports from people who mistaken gave their US address and did receive their tickets in the mail. If you leave France as the default country, you can print a PREM'S ticket. For others you either must have them sent to an address in France (to be safe) or pick them up at a train station or SNCF boutique.
An up-to-date example: I was helping another person on the Helpline who had given her US address by mistake. I told her to call the SNCF English-speaking number. The agent told her, "We don't mail tickets to the US. But if it doesn't come in the mail, stop at a station when you get to France to straighten this out." Go figure!
Thanks for the info Tim.
I did a little searching on SNCF website. It looks to me that if you buy a PREMs international ticket (ie Paris to Frankfurt) then they only give you the option of sending it by post, even if you leave France as your country. Not sure what you should do with this when buying from the US if you want an international ticket. Maybe you are stuck going through rail europe or trying to get the system to send it to your US address.
