Trains in France – How to travel quickly and comfortably without a car

My parents never had a license and I got mine at 25 (and I've hated driving ever since). Since I've been traveling in France since I was 3 (first with my parents and then by myself), during a large part of my travels I got to know the France By train.

As you will see, there are quite a few advantages to traveling by train, and the goal of this article is to provide you with all the information about trains in France that you will need so that you can get anywhere in this wonderful country quickly, easily, and comfortably. However, before we begin, here is a short video that will show you the variety of places that the train can take you.

Trains in France – Three Advantages and Three Disadvantages

Before we dive in and talk about where to buy train tickets, types of trains, and more, it's worth first saying a few words about the advantages and disadvantages of traveling by train so that you can decide whether it's better for you to get around by train and public transportation or rent a car (or both).

Advantages of traveling by train

Advantage number 1 – No license required

Well, this is perhaps the most obvious advantage of it. If you don't have a driver's license or you really hate driving, the train becomes the ultimate means of transportation for you because it can take you anywhere in France.

Advantage number 2 – Convenience

There's no need to find parking, fill up, take the car, return the car, and concentrate on what's happening on the road. All you have to do is buy a ticket, get on the train, and relax in your seat. In this sense, a train is even more comfortable than a plane because the seats are more spacious, and in most cases, there's even WiFi to help you make the trip enjoyable.

Advantage number 3 – Speed

This is a huge advantage over domestic flights. After all, if you take into account the time it takes to get to the airport, go through security, wait for the plane, land, wait for your luggage, and then travel to the city center, then in most cases you will find that the net travel time by train is shorter than the flight time.

And the truth is that in most cases, a train will get you to your destination faster than a car because it won't be stuck in traffic jams and you won't have to drive on narrow roads where you can drive at a speed of no more than 60 km/h.

Disadvantages of traveling by train

Disadvantage number 1 – price

Train ticket prices in France are not cheap and can cost many tens of euros each way (depending on the distance, class, and season, of course). So if you are a family traveling in France, it is very possible that a rental car + gas will cost you less than a family train trip.

Disadvantage number 2 – Lack of flexibility in timing

If you are an independent person who loves your freedom and wants to be spontaneous, then the train is not for you. When you travel by train, you commit to a very strict schedule. Did you miss the train? You will probably have to wait another hour or even more at the station (depending on the train, of course). And believe me, if it is a small station in the middle of nowhere, it is not such a pleasant experience.

Disadvantage number 3 – You can’t get everywhere (at least not easily)

This is, in my opinion, the biggest disadvantage of the train and it is what makes me rent a car many times even though I hate driving. Trains in particular and public transport in general are great for urban trips. However, if you want to travel between the small villages and castles, you will find that many times there is no train there (or it comes once, twice a day). This of course also affects your accommodation quite a bit because some of the most charming places, such as the castle Manoir de la Chausee, are far from public transportation.

Where should I buy train or bus tickets?

My unequivocal answer to this question is: buy online.

Just like everything else aboutAttractions, Hotels And of course Flights Buying through relevant websites allows you to save quite a bit of money, and more importantly, save time. The reason for this is that not only do you not have to stand at the box office when buying these tickets, you don't even have to validate them (which will save you a lot of unpleasantness with the ticket agents. And thanks toOrna Lieberman on this tip.).

There are several recommended sites for booking train and bus tickets and I have compiled them all here.The Francophile's toolboxYou are welcome to go there, check the prices on each site, because sometimes there are big differences, and buy the ticket that suits you best.

Types of trains in France

While searching for the train that best suits you, you will come across several types of trains, and in order to avoid confusion, I thought it might be worth saying a few words about each of them.

TGV

TGV stands for Train à Grande Vitesse or in Hebrew: Trains that travel at great speed. These are super fast trains (second perhaps only to the trains of Japan) and they allow you to reach your destination comfortably and quickly. Here are some examples:

• Paris Reims – 45 minutes
• Paris Dijon – 1:35 hours
• Paris Lyon – 2:00 hours
• Paris Bordeaux - 2 hours
• Paris Strasbourg – 2:25 hours
• Paris Avignon – 2:40 hours
• Paris Marseille – 3 hours

TER

Although TER stands for Trains Exprès Regionaux, they are often not very fast trains. These are trains that travel within a specific region, and unlike the TGV, which can only take you to the big cities, the TER can also take you to towns and villages.

Thalys

This is a high-speed train that connects France to neighboring Germany and the Netherlands.

pay attention: These trains pass through several major cities in France but cannot be used for travel within France itself, only to neighboring countries.

Eurostar

For me, this train has one and only function. To bring Francophiles, who are lucky enough to be in London, straight to Paris at the highest speed. If you decide to do the opposite route, you are welcome to unfriend me 🙂

RER

These are the suburban trains of Paris that can take you to all kinds of attractions around Ile de France (EuroDisney, Palace of Versailles, etc.). I wrote about the RER in an article about Transportation in Paris Therefore, I will not elaborate on them here.

Train stations in Paris and where you can go from them

Since a large part of you will start your trip inParis And from there he set out to travel through the magical regions of France I thought it might be worth writing a few words about each of the main train stations in Paris, so that you can know which trains depart from it.

Gare du Nord

The oldest train station in Paris that serves the northern part of France. Here are some of the places you can get to from it:

• Charles de Gaulle Airport
• Chantilly Castle
• The city of Lille
• Brussels
• Cities in Germany and the Netherlands
• London

And by the way, if you've already arrived there and have a few hours to explore Paris, let me recommend an itinerary for you. Suddenly a man comes out of the Gare du Nord and starts walking..

East Railway Station

This station is located not far from Gare du Nord (both are in10th DistrictFrom here you can reach the following places:

• Strasbourg
• Provins – a medieval town located not far from Paris.
• Nancy
• Metz
• Various cities in Germany

Gare Montparnasse

This is the train station that takes passengers from Paris to western France. You can reach these places, among others:

• Chartres
• Blois and other cities בLoire valley.
• Nantes
• Ran
• Saint Malo
• Bordeaux

And by the way, if you are around, you are welcome to do the itinerary. The itinerary following the bohemian life of Montparnasse.

Gare de Lyon

From this station, trains depart to South of France And it can be used to reach the following places:

• Lyon
• Avignon
• Dijon
• Milan

Gare d'Austerlitz

This is a very old but relatively small train station. From there you will reach the Loire Valley to cities such as Orleans But also toNice, Toulon and Limoges.

Gare St. Lazare

This train station is located in8st arrondissement of Paris And from there you can reach Normandy, to cities such as Evreux and Le Havre.

Corona guidelines for train travel

Unfortunately, starting in 2020, another hidden and unpleasant partner has joined train travel: the coronavirus. In order to deal with the pandemic, the French government decided on a series of guidelines and restrictions, which deal, among other things, with public transportation. Since these guidelines are constantly changing, I decided to compile them in one place, so before you decide whether to travel by train or not, it is highly recommended to go to the article Coronavirus guidelines in France And see what has changed.

Tips for traveling by train

Before we end this article, let me give you a few important tips regarding trains in France.

Book your tickets as far in advance as possible.

The further in advance you book your tickets, the lower their prices will be. Either way, it is strongly recommended not to book at the station, both because of the price, which will usually be higher, and because of the time it takes.

Don't forget to validate your card.

You will find ticket machines on the train platforms. If you bought a ticket at the box office Do not board the train before you have validated your ticket.If the ticket officer sees that your ticket is not valid, you may receive a fine, which is a shame. As mentioned, this rule is not relevant if you bought the ticket online on the sites I recommended.

First class costs less than you think

I always thought that, just like on planes, a first-class ticket on trains costs a fortune. However, one time, when I booked tickets online, I discovered that the fee wasn't that bad and that sometimes it was a relatively small fee to upgrade. If that's the case, I highly recommend buying a first-class ticket because it will give you more space and much more comfort, which will make your long journeys more enjoyable.

Even if you decide to rent a car, it is highly recommended to travel by train.

For example: You decide to travel in Paris and Brittany. If you pick up the car in Paris and return it in Brittany, you will have to drive for quite a few hours on rather boring roads and burn quite a bit of fuel. On the other hand, if you take a train from Paris to Nantes and there Rent the car. And return it, you will save both money and quite a bit of time.