Transportation in france

Hi Clara. Hard to answer, because you don't say your desired timing / stops along the way.

It sounds like you plan to stop along the way from Germany to Paris and from Paris to Nice. How many days do you think you will be riding trains? Have you figured out some possible itineraries? If so, what are they?

Clara,, before you consider a pass you need to work out a route, and then compare buying point to point tickets. For example, i am training from Paris to Nice this summer, I can't buy yet because its too soon( usually can't buy till 120 or 90 days out) but entering phantom dates the prices I am looking at for one way is about 35 to 45 euros. So, if I was you i would map out route and stops, then price it out. Use TGV or iDTGV sites for prices,, enter your dates, or later if they are not up yet, to get an idea. Also don't discount flying, I am flying back from Barcelona to Paris on Easyjet,, for two of us, with all extra( they charge for checked luggage) taxes and fees) it will be 170 euros. Cheaper then the train,, and only 1.5 hours instead of 12!

Eurailpasses in France are generally more expensive than point-to-point tickets because you have to pay heavy fees for reservations on the high speed TGV trains, and there are only limited seats available to passholders, and it can be very hard to get a reservation in advance before your trip without paying through the nose. Whereas it is easy to buy point-to-point tickets with SCNF online and they will almost always be cheaper than any given "day" of a eurail pass in France once you factor in the mandatory reservation costs. The point-to-point tickets for TGV trains in France already includes the reservation fee. SCNF really seems to want to discourage use of passes, for whatever reason, but anyway, that's my advice. You can save money if you buy in advance. idtgv.com is a good way to look up cheap fares on a 'special train' aimed at young adults, prices as low as 19 euro per "leg" of a trip within france (like say from paris to marsielle).

Thanks so much for the great information you have shared! We are planning to just jump from town to town going into paris towards lyon and onto the southern coast, spending a lot of time from marseille to nice. The dates are not set in stone, but overall a month. So it sounds like getting a pass whether it be bus or train may not be our best option because of the limited seating and the overall price may be more expensive (?). I bought a book that had main train/bus roots and looks like hopping from one to the next may be most suitable?

If I were again your age, I'd get a BMW or Moto Guzzi motorcycle and have at it. This for you could be the trip and adventure of a lifetime.

Clara, Your main criteria in your OP was "cheapest," but can I suggest that one way to keep your costs down is to avoid "hopping from one to the next" . I realize that hopping around as the thought takes you can be very very appealing. But I advise you to actually make concrete plans. If you do so you can get discounts, sometimes really big ones. If you just buy tickets on the day, when you wake up and say to each other, "lets go," you will pay full price. That's true both on the train and plane. You may be able to find a cheap bus that you can walk up to, but I don't know about the bus. Also, checking out, no matter hostel or hotel, or tent, takes time. Elsewhere on this website you can see conversations about moving from town to town. Figure that in addition to travel time it will also cost you nearly half a day when you include packing checking out getting to the station getting tickets finding the train waiting for the train allowing for a late train getting off the train finding the tourist information office figuring out the new town finding your new sleeping place getting lost acquainting yourself with the new town
checking in ... happy planning ...

Passes tend to pay off only if (a) you can travel second class (which you can) and (b) if your trip includes sufficient long-haul trips. I suspect that if you are traveling many days, but not many miles per day, that tickets would be cheaper. Cannes to Nice, for instance, is less than 5 euros. But if you really want to be sure you need to do the math yourself. Passes would free you from the need to stand on line for tickets (except for trains where reservations are required).

For any rides on express trains within Germany and rides that go from Germany into France, you can get discount fares by booking in advance (up to 92 days allowed) on the German Rail site. However, you are locked into a specific departure date and time. You can do the same within France by booking on the French Rail site. For regional trains within either country just buy tickets as you go.

Adding to my previous post. In Germany you can buy Laender tickets that allow 2-5 people to travel all day in one Land (region) on regional trains for one set price. No need to buy them in advance.

Thanks for all the great information, I am going to look further into everything you've said!