Train Avignon to Paris

Yes, you will arrive in Gare de Lyon. The surrounding area is OK, but the Paris transport system is good enough that you can travel to any other bit of central Paris easily. Tickets go on sale for French trains around three months in advance.

I have no clue of cost, any idea?

I purchased my ticket last year as soon as they went on sale and it was 39 Euro. The sooner you get them the cheaper they are. I plugged in next week and they ranged from 59 Euro to 110 Euro depending on time of day. That was in 2nd class, if you want 1st class it would be a little more. So get them as soon as possible and it helps if you're flexible as to time of departure.

Yes, 90 days in advance they can be as low as 35 euro. http://en.voyages-sncf.com/en/train-ticket
Use "France" as your ticket collection country or you may get bounced to another website.

Very low fares on some routes, including yours, have just gone on sale for the winter. Starting in mid-December and running through March, the iDTVG price Avignon-Paris now is 19€. That's for at least two trains a day. With no personal experience, I believe this service is based on separate cars connected to the train. The cars have distictive ambiance, from quiet to lively to bar. http://www.idtgv.com/en/ As always, expect the price to rise as the seats are sold.

Thanks for all the help! Our trip isn't until June, just trying to figure out all the logistics and costs to see if I can even afford it!

Look at the two websites given above (here they are made clickable: http://en.voyages-sncf.com/en/train-ticket and http://www.idtgv.com/en/). Price tickets for tomorrow, to get the most expensive possible fares. Then price tickets as far out as possible (not sure if it's 90, 92, or 120 days), to see the cheapest possible fares. Then, armed with this knowledge, plan your purchase accordingly. I agree that it's easy to take the Metro or a taxi from Gare de Lyon to your hotel, so you can stay wherever you want, and don't need to restrict yourself to hotels close to the station.

Excellent, Harold. I've never seen those web sites. I ususally do check soon and then later, but I wasn't sure what the maxumum number of days was. Good to know, thanks!

I wouldn't spend the extra money for first class. I get emails about the sales they gave on the French trains. I will try to remember to forward the next one so you can check it out.

Susan and Monte, there are two train stations in Avignon. Avignon Centre and Avignon TGV. No tracks between these two stations. Avignon Centre is in the center of Avignon. To get to Avignon TGV, you take a 15-minute bus ride. Next, there are 2:39 - 2:44 runs to Paris for as low as 25Euro from either station. Gare-de-Lyon is the Paris train station. I can show you these runs the next time you show up at our monthly meetings.