Lyria Paris to Switzerland--which way does train go?

The TGV-Lyria trains have drive cars on each end. It is difficult to say which is which. Each car has a share of seats facing each direction. Are you wondering which way you will be facing?

https://www.tgv-lyria.com/sites/default/files/inline-files/LYRIA-Seating_plan-2020-EN.pdf

That is a strange question and impossible to answer with any degree of certainty. Trains cars run equally well in both directions. And that direction can change during a trip. In most train cars half of the passengers will always be riding backwards. I don't think you will know till you get on the car.

thanks. might have to spend some time in the lounge onboard if backwards.

If you are trying to avoid riding backwards, it can become a dice roll. If that is critical and you are traveling with someone else, then try to reserve the two seats facing each other in the center of the car so you can switch seats if necessary.

Yes the trains runs between Gare de Lyon, a terminal station, and Zurich Hbf, another terminal station. So the front of the train one direction is the back of the train going the other direction. I do not believe it changes directions on this train. I rode it going the other way a few years ago. Some trains do change directions if there is a terminal station along the way. For instance, if you go from Rome to Venice, the train calls at Florence SMN station which is a terminal station. So it heads into the station, and when it departs, it is going the other way. The lead driver car is now the tail driver.

My wife hates riding "backwards", so we always get seats across from each other at a table. If we guess wrong about the direction, we just switch seats. BTW, the bar car only has bar stool type seats, so not too comfortable for a long ride. If the train is not too crowded, you can probably just grab another seat. If it is the Lyria to Zurich, it does not stop again until Belfort, 2 1/2 hours after you leave Paris.

There are actually only 16 carriages. A TGV set is composed of 2 power cars, and 8 passenger carriages in between them. If they only use on trainset the cars are numbered 1-8, and if there are two trainsets the first one has cars 1-8 and the second one 11 to 18.
1-3 and 11-13 are first class, 4 and 14 are the bar car, and the rest is 2nd class.

It is not always known in advance which way a train will be running. So you could be in the first or the last car. You'll find out when you are there.

I actually do not understand why people believe they must face forwards when travelling by train. Trains have always had half the seats facing one way, and half the other. So travelling backwards has been a fact of train travel since forever. And it is really not an issue. Just stop worrying about it and enjoy the trip.