Want to take the train from Paris to Carcassone - help!

Do not go to Rome2Rio for train information. It might lead you very badly astray. Use the SNCF Connect website; SNCF runs the trains.

SNCF Connect

SNCF has the following discount card for seniors that might be advantageous for you:

Carte Advantage Senior TGV INOUI

The card costs 49 euros and yields a 30% discount on many fares. You need to check fares on those two trips you plan to take to see whether the savings would exceed the cost of the card. If you're prepared to buy your tickets very early, not too long after they go on sale, the fares might be low enough the Carte Advantage Senior wouldn't pay off. If you're not comfortable buying the tickets very early, the fares will probably be considerably higher and the 30% discount will be more meaningful.

Fares vary a great deal. I took a quick look at tickets for tomorrow and tickets for January. I saw Carcassonne-Paris tickets from 46.50 euros to 137 euros and Bordeaux-Paris tickets from 29 euros to 99 euros. Because of this wide range, there's not a clear answer as to whether the Carte Advantage Senior would benefit you.

Check refundability of the Carte and changeability of train tickets before committing.

Thanks. We'll buy the tickets ASAP. I'm a bit nervous about buying them, but it seems like the SCNF app is the best way to go.

What is the name of the train station in Carcassone, and which train station should we leave from in Paris. We're staying in the Saint Germaine area.

The station in Carcassonne is simply called "Carcassonne". Trains for Carcassonne leave from either Gare de Lyon or Montparnasse in Paris. On the SNCF website you'll be entering "Paris" as your origin and "Carcassonne" as your destination. The list of trains will then specify the correct Paris station for each departure time. I'd consider total travel time, number of connections (1 is obviously better than 2), convenience of departure time, cost and which of those two Paris stations is easier to reach from your hotel in Paris.

Check back here for more info if a Ouigo train looks best to you. They are often less expensive, but I believe there are some quirks, like needing to be at the station earlier than usual. I've never taken a Ouigo train myself.

Tickets will not be on sale for February or a while.

You should not rush to buy train tickets. This is mass transit. A lot of people from outside Europe seem to suffer from "seat anxiety", believing that if you do not book ages in advance you will be left stranded.
That is not the case. If trains really sold out weeks in advance they would be useless. Go to www.sncf-connect.com and look up Paris to Carcassonne for today, and you see that there are still tickets for immediate departure.

You book in advance for the discounts, not because all tickets might be gone. But for that booking about 2 months in advance is sufficient.

On the trip planner you will notice that when you start typing a town name that the list with suggestions usually contains an item that is marked "city". That just refers to the town name. Just select that, and the system will pick the good stations for you.
And lastly: You will often be offered connections. Changing trains is a normal and expected feature of train travel. The only downside in France is that the transfer times are often very long. Transfers of more than 15 minutes are quite common.

Tickets generally go on sale on the SNCF site 90 days before the travel date.

Thank you!
We're driving to Dordogne after Carcassone. Any suggestions for stops along the way to Scarlet Le Caneda?*