Train Barcelona to Paris

Shirley, Using the bahn.de website, there appears to be a night train departing Barcelona Sants station at 17:16 on 3 November, arriving Paris Austerlitz at 07:22. There's one change at Cerbére at 19:57, but after that it's direct so you should get a good sleep. The second leg is a Couchette train so reservations compulsory of course. As this only has one change at a fairly decent hour, this is the best option (IMO). You could of course use a budget flight instead, which would likely be cheaper and would most certainly be quicker and more efficient. Two choices on that route..... > Vueling, which currently has flights to Paris / ORY listed as low as €69.99 on 3 November. > EasyJet which currently has flights to Paris / CDG listed as low as €124.49 on 3 November. If you decide to travel by air, BE SURE to read their Terms & Conditions carefully, especially relating to luggage weights. If you think your checked bag will be over their allowable weight limit, it's cheaper to pay for that at the time of booking rather than at the gate. Also, EasyJet usually only allows ONE carry-on item per passenger, and they're fairly strict about that. As usual with budget flights, the tickets are cheaper for those who book early. I've flown with both airlines and would definitely recommend either one. Happy travels!

You probably know that direct TGVs between Paris and Barcelona were supposed to start earlier this year. The actual start date still seems uncertain, according to the news page on The Man in Seat 61 (which is as close to a definitive source as you'll find unless you know someone inside SNCF or RENFE): These trains are currently only open for sale up until 14 October, with dates after that likely to on in mid to late August. The Trainhotels are reduced to running only 3 times per week. No, there's no more news on when exactly direct TGVs will start between Paris and Barcelona (and the direct Spanish AVEs between Barcelona and Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse), other than the last report which said it could be the end of October. Or on whether the Elipsos trainhotels Paris-Madrid & Paris-Barcelona will or won't be discontinued when this happens. I'll post and tweet any news when I get it! Keep checking back on SNCF and RENFE, and on The Man in Seat 61: http://www.seat61.com/news.htm