Chamonix to Lyon by train or bus

Old Apr 28th, 2015, 04:46 AM
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Chamonix to Lyon by train or bus

Need urgent help for booking tickets from Chamonix to Lyon by train or bus whichever is more cost effective and with least number of changes.

I am looking at Capitaine website and sncf and they show me a train at 7 am and then at 3 pm. Am I doing something wrong? I was given to understand that Annecy is on the route but I am unable to see the stations names.

Please advise quickly we are 2 adults and 2 children of 14 and 13 years.

Thanks.
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 04:49 AM
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Currently price shown is Euro 114.50 for four of us. If I wait more are the prices likely to rise?
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 06:45 AM
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There are about hourly departure possibilities - a good one leaves week days Chamonix at 9:15 am and goes as follows:

Chamonix dep 09:15 Bus61504 Bus
Train replacement bus
St-Gervais-les-Bains arr 09:57
Transfer time 7 min.

St-Gervais-les-Bains dep 10:04 TER84662
La Roche sur Foron arr 10:47

La Roche sur Foron dep 11:20 Bus39504 Bus
Annecy We, 29.04.15 arr 11:55

Annecy We, 29.04.15 dep 12:00 Bus39522 Bus

Ar Lyon 13:45

There are no real direct trains between Chamonix and Lyon - currently the train from Chamonix to St-Gervais-les-Bains is being replaced by a bus whilst the tracks are worked on

You always have to transfer at St-Gervais coming from Chamonix - the other transfers are in smallish stations and easily done - this service does go thru Annecy but others do not.

What date did you enter at www.capitainetrain.com to get that fare - if full fare then it will always be the same if an advanced discounted fare it could rise.

For lots of great info on trains - www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Those trains and buses (run by railways in this case) are all regional trains that typically have a flat fare - price should be about the same always (not totally sure of that as I did not thoroughly peruse all various rail-bus links and do not know anything about going all by bus.
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 07:14 AM
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http://www.rome2rio.com/s/Lyon/Chamonix

Details on buses - takes 4 hours and some go direct.
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 07:29 AM
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Thanks PalenQ for your quick revert.
My date is May 15. I am looking at Capitaine website but it does not display 9:15 time. How do I get access to these options?
I am worried if the fares go on rising. If not, I can arrive in Chamonix and then do the booking.
In from tab I will key Chamonix Mont Blanc
In to tab do I key in Lyon or Gervais les Bains

Please advise. Just want to close everything. Guess next time I will stick to places with easy accessibility.

Kind regards,
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 08:48 AM
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Use www.voyages-sncf.com to get the full schedule of local train.

I don't think the Capitaintrain bothers with all the local train options. These TER tickets are fixed price irrespective of when you buy them, no assigned seats, and I don't think there is a capacity limit. So those buying tickets 3 months ahead has the same chance getting on the train as those buying tickets the day of the trip at same cost. I bought my ticket out of Chamonix while I was staying in Chamonix: on the day I visited Montenvers since the Montenver train station is right next to the Chamonix SNCF station.

If you limit your options to places with easy accessibility, you will be limiting options to only places frequented by the masses. The difficulty of your connection is the two cities chosen and not the location in itself. If you connected Chamonix to Annecy, the trip would have been shorter.
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 09:25 AM
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Is there some reason you want to stop in Annecy or something?

I'll admit I've checked voyages-sncf on 5/15 and it doesn't show anything at 9:15 nor that you must transfer at ST-Gervais-les-Bains. It has one route leaving around 7 am that does, but the one in the afternoon does not, it only has one change and it is Bellegarde (really it is but to there, then direct train to Lyon). It clearly shows where you change trains, though, so I'm not clear on the difficulty with that. The bus leaving at 3:45 pm does cause two transfers, first at LaRoche to a train and then at Annecy for another train to Lyon. The lat two are trains, not buses. If you see that train, I don't know why you can't see where it transfers. I checked Capitaine Train and it clearly shows the connections by name (on the right side under trajet). It doesn't show all the interim stops, if there are any, though.

The problem is the easiest route with only one transfer (but to Bellegarde then train to Lyon) isn't until 3:45 and you don't get into Lyon until about 9:30 pm. But that is the easiest. The one that arrives in Lyon only 30 minutes earlier requires two transfers.

If the bus is direct and only four hours, that sounds better to me.
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 09:30 AM
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OK May 15, 2015 - I look at the German Railways web site for any European train schedule - easiest to use but no fares given for external to Germany trains - the best connections seems to leave Chamonix at 7:14 and 9:14 - and the Chamonix gto St-Gervais train is again running - no bus substitution.

Chamonix-Mont-Blanc Fr, 15.05.15 dep 07:14 TER
St-Gervais-les-Bains Fr, 15.05.15 arr 07:57
Transfer time 7 min.

St-Gervais-les-Bains Fr, 15.05.15 dep 08:04 TER
Train Express Regional


Bellegarde(Ain) Fr, 15.05.15 arr 09:50
Transfer time 2:08 h

Bellegarde(Ain) Fr, 15.05.15 dep 11:58 TER96562 Train Express Regional
Lyon Part Dieu Fr, 15.05.15 arr 13:22

This is the quickest one except for the 9:14 and you have over two hours in Bellegarde - take a nice lunch in town

The 9:14 train is just as quick and involves 3 changes of train the last one involving a TGV train on which you must get a seat reservation - included with any ticket you buy so it you buy that one online the mandated seat reservation should come with it and be included in the price.

The 7:14 as greg says is all regional (TER - train express regional or something like that) so that ticket will cost the same if you buy it in Chamonix or not and I would just buy it there as in the meantime things could change or you may find some bus that is quicker, etc.

The one involving a TGV I guess I would buy ahead as TGVs have a limited capacity whereas regional trains never can be full as you can always board (in decades of French train travel only once have I seen a regional train so so full no one else could physically board it and that was due to trains being cancelled due to a rail accident on the line).
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 12:37 PM
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early riser? here's the fastest link I found for that morning:

Chamonix-Mont-Blanc Fr, 15.05.15 dep 06:14 Bus49902 Bus
St-Gervais-les-Bains Fr, 15.05.15 arr 06:57
Transfer time 6 min.

St-Gervais-les-Bains Fr, 15.05.15 dep 07:03 TER84150 Train Express Regional

Annecy Fr, 15.05.15 arr 08:29
Transfer time 31 min.

Annecy Fr, 15.05.15 dep 09:00 Bus39518 Bus
Transfer time 31 min.
Annecy Fr, 15.05.15 dep 09:00 Bus39518 Bus
Lyon Part Dieu Fr, 15.05.15 arr 10:52

This one goes by Annecy in case you wanted to go that way - at least see the gorgeous lake and town from the bus.

Again regional trains and buses - no reason to book in advance as per the other ones.

Cheers!
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 12:40 PM
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Trains about every hr from 6.14 until 17.15. Have a look at the timetable.
http://www.ter.sncf.com/rhone-alpes/depliant/recherche
or
http://fahrplan.sbb.ch/bin/query.exe/en
It's incredibly easy!
Change at either Bellegarde (faster itinerary) or Annecy.

Commuter trains, gondolas, city buses, escalators etc. can usually not be booked in advance.
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Old Apr 28th, 2015, 04:01 PM
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Thanks all for your quick replies and efforts to check out.
I think we will go there and book tickets.
I am okay with not going through Annecy as we will have 3 big suitcases. Just need to depart at a decent hour and arrive at a reasonable hour as this is our first time and do not want to take any chances arriving at a new place with bags and children too late.
I have been looking if I go till st Gervais les Bains then I do get other connections. Besides St Gervais is there any other rail hub?

Thanks once again.

Kind regards,
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Old Apr 29th, 2015, 06:18 AM
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Yes you must go thru St-Gervais-les-Bains on any rail connections - the train from Chamonix terminates there because it is narrow-gague - tracks closer together than the standard-gauge tracks - wider tracks so trains cannot physically go thru - so you get off one train and on another, usually IME on an adjoining track.
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Old Apr 30th, 2015, 07:57 AM
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Palen:

but variable gauge axles are going to be implemented on the Montreux–Gstaad–Zweisimmen–Spiez–Interlaken line. Trains will automatically switch from 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) at Zweisimmen. A trial bogie has been built and tested. It has no axles which allow the bogie half frames holding the wheels on both sides to slide sideways to each other.
The first direct Montreux - Gstaad - Interlaken Ost train will most probably run in summer 2018.
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