train to Paris from Koblenz

"the IC/EC site" ?? Use http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en
and you'll get the connecting train stations; at the far left of each itinerary, click on the arrow that's pointing to the right, and the connecting stations will be provided. Yours is undoubtedly Köln / Cologne, is a Thalys destination.

Your fastest routes are (1) a regional train to Koeln and a Thalys train from there to Paris and (2) a regional train to Saarbruecken and an ICE train from there to Paris. If you book well in advance (up to 92 days allowed) on the German Rail site, you can get a Europa-Spezial Franckreich fare as low as €39.00 for route #2 (includes both legs). If you book well in advance on either the German Rail site or thalys.com, you can get a Smoove fare as low as €35.00 for Koeln-Paris. The fare for Koblenz-Koeln on a regional train is €18.10. No discount for advance booking.

Thank you both so much for your help. I was able to see the details of the connection (from the Bahn site) and it is to Koln, then Paris. Would that be the quickest route? I am traveling into the Rhineland from Koln and thought maybe I didn't have to backtrack through Koln again thinking I read somewhere that I can return to Paris thru Luxumborg. But if the fastest route is Koln, so be it. Thanks again.

Returning to Paris through Luxembourg will be slower, and probably more expensive and more complex to book (probably best to book separate legs divided at Luxembourg), but you will enjoy some really spectacular scenery for the first leg out of Koblenz down the Mosel and coming into Luxembourg.

If you want to travel via the Mosel River and through Luxembourg, simply enter Luxembourg as a stopover where it says "enter stopovers" (underneath "destinations" - you don't have to enter any stopover time if you don't want to stop.) The number of stops and the time involved will be shown.

The travel time for a regional train to Koeln and a Thalys train from there to Paris is actually about 15 minutes longer than a regional train to Saarbruecken and an ICE or TGV from there to Paris. As I said in my previous post, you'll get the cheapest discount fare by booking Koblenz-Saarbruecken-Paris as one ticket ASAP (up to 92 days in advance) on the German Rail site. Important correction: In my previous post I made a typo. Route #2 (Strasbourg-Saarbruecken-Paris), not route #1, is cheaper, if you book far enough in advance. (I've edited that post and made the correction.)

Only my opinion, but I would opt for the Koblenz-SaarBrucken-Paris route...even if it were longer. The train up through the Mosel Valley is scenic and something new vs backtracking to Koln.

Sally, Depending how much time you're allowing to arrive in Paris, I myself would go this way: take an RE or ICE direct from Koblenz-Frankfurt Hbf, take a lunch break there ca. one hour or so, take the 13:01 ICE to Paris, arriving 16:50. This way you avoid using a Thalys train, going through Köln. I prefer the middle route than the northern route.

Thank you all for the invaluable info and help. We have a bit more tweaking to do on our itinerary before booking the tickets, even though our trip is in three weeks. I am inclined not to backtrack though Koln but try to see different scenery. Our original thoughts were to visit the many towns going down the Rhine, and end at Koblenz. However I am seeing many of the attractions we are interested in are not open for the season yet such as the Burg Eltz and the river cruises, so revision is in order. Thank you very much again as all your help is greatly appreciated.