paris to geneva, then Amboise

diane I'm a little confused. How much do you like to go to Las Vegas (or near to you sort of Las Vegas equivalent) and put large sums of money on risky bets? The answer will help you with these questions. You don't say what time your flight might land, if it is on time, and you don't say in this post how experienced you are in negotiating the transportation of Paris? You are looking at over 4 hours from the airport, once you join the RER, at least, because you need to get the train at Gare de Lyon and then 3:05 on the train to Geneve. The gambling question is related to the train ticket prices. You can save the most money by buying as soon as they become available (22nd of January) but you have to commit to a specific train. How tight do you want to cut it? If you miss the train you lose the tickets and have to pay walk up prices. Leave it too long and you waste time, too close you get stressed and lose money. What if your plane is late or there are long queues at immigration or you have difficulty getting across Paris? As long as you are at CDG wouldn't it be easier to fly a discount airline to Geneva? Why Geneva? What do you mean by "up the mt"? Which "mt"?

Hello Rick, Thank you for your reply. I land in Paris from Dtw 8 am 23rd of April, and wish to head out same day to Geneva 12pm ish, on the 24th I have purchased a Viator Mt Blanc, Chamonix day trip. Then the following morning{25th} head to Amboise by way of Lyon, if I understand that to be the best way. I read where some say to hop on tgv back to Paris then back down to Tours. Does that make sense to you?
My further thoughts 2 nights Amboise 25-27, where on 27 head up toward Rennes Lamballe area when on the 28th I'm being picked up in Lamballe for a week long cooking class. At the end of the class on may 4 I head to Paris for a week with bro and sis in law. I've been to Paris 6 yrs ago, learning some conversational French now,to get along on the trains, I'm I nuts in these plans. I appreciate your help Rick. Diane

There are no budget airlines that fly directly from CDG to Geneva. Direct TGVs from Gare de Lyon in Paris to Geneva depart at 09:11, 11:11, and 12:11. The standard 2nd class fare is 92 euro. However, if you book ASAP (up to three months allowed) at tgv-europe.com, you can get a Piccolissimo fare of 25 euro. Booking the 12:11 train would give you lots of time in case your plane is late. Allow up to one hour to get through immigration/passport control at CDG and another hour to get to Gare de Lyon on the RER. To keep the tgv-europe site in English, choose Great Britain as your country of residence. When you are asked if you wish to go to the UK Rail Europe site, choose to stick with tgv-europe. Choose France as your ticket collection country. Your fastest way from Geneva to Amboise is via Paris, not via Lyon. According to the timetables on the German Rail site, for Amboise to Lamballe your fastest route is to leave Amboise at 07:39; connect in St-Pierre-des-Corps, Nantes, and Rennes; and arrive in Lamballe at 13:21. The tgv-europe site gives a different route: Leave Amboise at 11:38, connect in Paris and Rennes, and arrive in Lamballe at 18:42.

Mr Rick, I thank you so much for your timely response. I'm so grateful! thank you Diane

Diane, Just a note-Rick Steves himself does not frequent this Helpine. We are all "members of the traveling public," just like yourself. So, to find out who responded, look to the left of the post, and you'll see that Nigel and Tim (two of our most regular and helpful participants) are the ones you should thank.

Ah, my bad ! Thank you Nigel and Tim, I will pay more attention overseas also. :) Diane