Planning in August to take the train from Paris to Lyon, Lyon to Nice then return to Paris. I've read that I need an advance reservation for all of these destinations. Since I'm unsure of exact travel dates would it be better to wait to get to Europe to buy tickets or because of the popularity of these routes would it be impossible to get a ticket a few days in advance. Would it be better to buy a France railpass or travel point to point? I would appreciate any comments or suggestions. Thanks.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32310 posts
Nancy,
Given the routes you mentioned, it's highly likely that you'll need seat reservations as you'll be using the TGV (fast train).
With only three journeys, I would definitely use P-P tickets as a Railpass wouldn't be cost effective.
Although August is peak travel season, I would probably wait until you arrive in Europe to buy the tickets (which will include reservations). You didn't indicate how many days you would be in Paris prior to the first journey, but you shouldn't have any problem getting tickets if you buy them as soon as you arrive or at least a few days before you travel.
Check the web for locations of the nearest SNCF Boutique to your Hotel,and buy the tickets for all of your trips at that time.
Hopefully one of the rail experts here will have some further comments.
Happy travels!
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
Although the French like to go on vacation in August, if you need flexibility in your travel dates and times, you'll still be fine waiting until you get to Paris to buy your tickets. There are 23 trains/day from Paris to Lyon. There are 13/day from Lyon to Nice. There are 11/day from Paris to Nice plus the direct night train.
Buy all your tickets as soon as you arrive in Paris. As Ken says, on trains that require seat reservations (like TGVs) the reservation is included in the price of the ticket. You might not get a seat on the train of your choice, but you'll certainly be able to travel on the day of your choice. (Exception: the night train is likely to sell out weeks in advance.)
Posted by
US Pacific Northwest
10344 posts
For newbies to Europe train travel, two useful websites:http://www.seat61.com/http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/rail_menu.htm
Posted by
Chicago, IL, USA
435 posts
Hello Nancy,
I recently traveled in France and, like you, I was hesitant to buy tickets in advance because I wanted more flexibility in travel times.
I wish I had bought the tickets in advance because there were originally several discounted fares I could have gotten "PREMS" but theses cheap fares disappeared a few weeks before we left.
This site has a railpasses tab, where you can investigate if the point to point would be cheaper than the rail pass. I imagine the point to point tickets would be much cheaper if you get the PREMS fares, though there are train experts on the helpline who could advise you better.
Have a great trip!
-Matti
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
See this page for more train tips.
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
How flexible are you? There are many trains on these routes--even a night train from Nice to Paris--and you can almost certainly get onto one of them a few days in advance. But if it would ruin your trip to miss a particular train, that's an argument for reserving early.
Another argument is that there are often discounts on these routes for those who buy early (not available on the notorious RailEurope site). These tickets are restricted and nonrefundable, so you should only consider this if you are certain of your plans.
If that's not for you, it is possible that the 2nd class French railpass (not Eurail) would be a good value on these routes. The only way to know is to shop and compare. You can get prices from the TGV Europe site--but tell the web site you live in great Britain, because if you pick the U.S. it will send you to Rail Europe.
But finally, the Nice-Paris trip is lengthy, and you might do better to fly. Or even better, arrange to end your trip in Nice and fly directly home from there, bypassing Paris. Or visit Provence instead of Nice and take the TGV directly from Avignon to Charles deGaulle the day of your departure.
I hope these remarks are helpful! Good luck.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
Adam is right. A three-day 2nd class France railpass costs $250 (€195 at today's exchange rate). Depending upon the time of day (peak or off-peak), a p2p ticket for Paris-Lyon ranges from €66 to €85. For Lyon-Nice it's from €68 to €82. For Paris-Nice it's from €98 to €122. If bought in Europe, your seat reservation with a railpass for each train will be €4. However, be aware that the number of seat reservations allotted to passholders is limited. You could get to Paris and find out that all passholder seats are gone and you'll be faced with having to buy a full fare p2p ticket. It might be safer to buy the reservations in advance from Rail Europe even though you'll pay more for them.
If you need an incentive to set your travel dates and times in stone and book well in advance (up to 90 days allowed), the lowest PREM'S fares are €22 for Paris-Lyon, €22 for Lyon-Nice, and €35 for Nice-Paris.