plambers

Hi. Figured I'd use my ff miles on AA to fly into Toulouse. Unfortuntately this includes a British Air flight that has fuel surcharges and taxes of over $400 for a short one way flight. And there are 4 of us! So how do I get there? I assume there is a train. I have heard there is a train from CDG but it is not direct. thanks for any and all help.

kerouac

It is better to go into Paris and get a train out of Gare de Lyon or Austerlitz.

"Dordogne" is an extremely vague term.

plambers

Sarlat is my ultimate destination (our villa is nearby.) thanks

Which station is closer to the airport?

PalenQ

Are you going to rent a car in the Dordogne? If so take the TGV from Paris to say Lilbourne - rent a car there and drive over to Sarlat - but I'd stay in Paris the day you arrive or else a long train ride and car ride with jet lag may not be a great idea.

From CDG Lilbourne is about 5 hours via TGV either via going into Paris and getting to Montparnasse station - a hassle to me to be avoided if possible - anyway consider staying the night in Paris - maybe close to Montparnasse station (forget Austerlitz IMO because no high-speed trains serve it and those trains to where you're going will take a lot lot longer) - one reason to do that is that you can then book a discounted ticket from Paris to Sarlat (via whatever route is fastest for the time you want to go) - www.voyages-sncf.com and www.capitainetrain.com are sites to book on - same trains just different booking agents - the latter is said to be a lot easier to use.

But with discounted tickets you can save a small fortune over full fare - the point being that arriving by air you never really know what train you can get - planes can be late - Icelandic volcanoes may be exploding - airport personnel could be on strike, etc and as discounted tickets are non-changeable non-refundable if you miss that specific train your ticket is valid on you are out of luck and would have to buy a full-fare ticket then.

So staying in Paris the first night or even two lets you be certain of what train you can easily get to if you have a discounted ticket - anyway for a lot of great info on French trains: www.seat61.com - good info on discounted tickets; www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com.

If you do book a discounted train connection from CDG be sure to put a lot of fudge factor time in for planes to be late!

Michael

<i>forget Austerlitz IMO because no high-speed trains serve it and those trains to where you're going will take a lot lot longer)</i>

Not that much longer to Brive-la-Gaillarde; it's not as if the train from Paris to Toulouse is a milk train.

Those trains also offer PREM tickets, best ordered 3 months in advance. 20€ or 25€ one way for the cheapest.

StuDudley

TGV schedule from CDG to Angouleme to Bordeaux
Lv 10:16, ar Ang 13:32, ar Bord 14:37
Lv 14:09, ar Ang 17:32, ar Bord 18:37
Then it is a 3 hr drive from Ang to Sarlat, and a 2 1/2 hr drive from Bord.

*****************
Paris Austerliz station to Brive la Gaillarde
Lv 7:52 ar 11:59
Lv 8:41 ar 13:00
Lv 9:41 ar 13:54
Lv 13:51 ar 17:57
Then it is a 1 1/4 hr drive to Sarlat

*****************
Paris Montparnasse station to Ang to Bord
Lv 8:19
Lv 8:41
Lv 9:21
Lv 10:19
Lv 10:41

The trip to Bordeaux is from 3 1/2 hrs to 4 hrs. You can look up the time to Angouleme.

These are June 2015 schedules

Obviously, the 10:16 TGV from CDG to Angouleme and then the drive to Sarlat would get you to your gite in time for a "normal" Saturday 4-5PM check-in, with you leaving the US on a Friday.

Stu Dudley

dugi_otok

For getting to Sarlat the same day.

I would fly Air France CDG to Toulouse (or to Bordeaux-second choice), rent a car and drive 2-1/2 hrs to Sarlat.

Or take a taxi from CDG to Paris (Austerlitz), then train Paris (Austerlitz) to Brive-la-Gaillarde, rent a car and drive 1 hr to Sarlat.

plambers

Thanks all. We will also need an automatic car. Will that be a problem in Brive?

Dugi, your suggestion of taxiing to Austerlitz involves the least amount of driving and will allow us to arrive at our destination on Sat. We are already taking 3 weeks so cannot add a night in Paris.

Appreciate the help when the unexpected arises.

Marija

We rented an automatic close to the train station in Brive.

plambers

Marija, who did you rent from? Kemwel? Thanks

Michael

Kemwel or Autoeurope will use the same rental agency in Brive: Europcar. It's right down the street from the train station.

Christina

I don't understand why it's a hassle to get to Montparnasse from CDG, it's very easy as the Air France bus goes right there. I go there all the time from both airports on the Air France bus as I tend to stay in MOntparnasse. Now if you are on a tight schedule, that's another matter, but it is easy to do. You just never know about the traffic, and it does stop first at Gare de Lyon.

plambers

One more question on customs-if we fly from US and land in Heathrow and then continue to Toulouse, do we only go through customs once (in London) or again in Toulouse?

StuDudley

>>I don't understand why it's a hassle to get to Montparnasse from CDG<<

It's not a hassle. Just one problem - her train to Brive leaves from Austerlitz.

Stu Dudley

plambers

Hi-question again. I checked the fees again and it is $200 pp in taxes to fly to Toulouse with a 5:30 pm arrival in Toulouse vs $80 for a direct flight to Paris where we would arrive at 8 am.

Would you fly to Toulouse and then drive 2.5 hrs to Sarlat or take the train and then drive?

Michael

Do the times of arrival in Paris and Toulouse represent the same day? If so, I would go to Paris and take the train to Brive, although you probably have to take the 13:51 train which means that you would have to check to see if the car rental agency would be open at the time of your arrival in Brive.

But if you do not get early purchase non-refundable non-exchangeable tickets for the train, it might be that the difference between the Paris price and the Toulouse price is minimal. The current differential is $120 per person. The price of a train ticket is about $80 if purchased at the last minute. You would then save $40 per person by going via Paris instead of Toulouse.

StuDudley

Most gite owners like to see guests arrive around 4PM - so your Toulouse flight landing at 5:30pm would not work. You would arrive around 8:30-9:00PM (earlier if you only have carry-on luggage). However, due to an AF change in arrival time for OUR flight to Montpellier in 4 1/2 weeks from today, we'll get to our gite at about 7:00-7:30PM. Our gite owner lives adjacent to the gite, so we'll contact her to determine if a 7:30 arrival is OK. If not - we'll check into a hotel close by & get to the gite on Sunday (we've done that before).

We haven't transferred at Heathrow in a few decades - I try to avoid it. But I'm guessing that you won't have to go through immigration in Paris, and you should be able to catch the 10:16 TGV to Angouleme, which should get you to the gite at 5:30 or so.

Taking a taxi from CDG to the Austerlitz station and catching the 1:51PM train to Brive would get you to the gite by 8PM.

A train from Paris Montparnasse leaves at 12:23 & arrives in Bordeaux at 3:42 - which gets you to the gite at 7:00.

Both flight & train schedules change. Our flight was re-scheduled to arrive 3 hrs later - and we just found out about it 2 weeks ago. About the time you need to book your flight, check with the proprietor of your gite & find out how late he/she can meet you - and then make plans.

Stu Dudley

StuDudley

>>13:51 train which means that you would have to check to see if the car rental agency would be open at the time of your arrival in Brive.<<

Good catch, Michael. The Brive rental offices close at 5PM on Saturdays, and the 1:51pm train arrives at 5:57pm.

So, Brive is out.

Best plan may be to purchase 2 sets of cheap PREM fares to Bordeaux (& reserve a car in Bordeaux):

CDG to Bordeaux leaving at 10:16
Paris to Bordeaux leaving at 12:23 (doesn't stop in Angouleme)

Try to make the 10:16 departure, and if you don't - take a taxi to Montparnasse & catch the 12:26.

Stu Dudley

dugi_otok

>> if we fly from US and land in Heathrow and then continue to Toulouse, do we only go through customs once (in London) or again in Toulouse? <<

There is no immigration/customs required in Toulouse for your flight.If you have frequent flyer tickets you will get priority passenger perks at Heathrow to speed up the connection process.

>>Would you fly to Toulouse and then drive 2.5 hrs to Sarlat or take the train and then drive? <<

Two years ago we took that same flight connection to Toulouse that you are considering. So my answer is yes, fly.

We rented an automatic transmission car, Costco travel- (Avis). It was waiting in Toulouse for our pickup.

If you rent the gite I suggested the owner will accommodate your late arrival. But some others will not. Some even would not accept Sunday arrival. Better verify.

Mimar

If you are arriving in Paris after a long, overnight flight, you will probably be jet lagged and sleepy by the end of the day. Not in good condition to drive a strange car on strange roads. Consider giving up one night at the villa and getting some rest -- if your villa host can meet you on that next day.

Also you don't always get the rental car you ordered. Automatics are rare in Europe. Your best chance of getting one is at a bigger depot, like an airport. The hours run longer there also.