kakiebell

We will be staying in Eze in May and want to go to Paris May 8 to return to the United States. What is the website to get train tickets. Since we will be staying in Eze and have a car, what would be the best place to drop off the car and take the train to Paris---Nice, Avignon???
Also, how soon can you purchase your tickets on the French train system? I purchased tickets on the Spanish train system (Renfe) a few years ago and there was a step by step post on Fodors which was very helpful This was a great help to purchase the tickets since I do not speak Spanish or French.
Thank you very much.

PalenQ

www.voyages-sncf.com is the French National Railways web site for online tickets which can be nicely discounted if you book far enough in advance - I think it is 3 months but may be 4 months - just keep trying - Nice-Ville would be a nice station - many Paris TGVs originate there - it is quite a drive to Avignon.

You could return the car the day before too and then take a bus from Eze to Nice-Ville train station.

Plenty of folk here to help you if you need it.

StCirq

If you have trouble navigating the SNCF site (and you probably will unless you use the French site), use www.capitainetrain.com, which has the exact same trains and prices as SNCF. Discounted tickets (PREMs) are available exactly 3 months out from your date of travel. They are nonrefundable and nonexchangeable, though, so make sure you know what you're doing. Travel from Nice.

StuDudley

Return the car at the Nice train station.


Stu Dudley

PalenQ

Many TGVs on this route of double-decker TGVs - TGV Duos I think they are called but can't exactly recall - anyway the view from the upper level IME is far superior to that of the lower level which often has window views blocked by wind guards and walls of trenches often recessed tracks are laid in.

To see a nice part of France en route chose a seat in the upper level IMO.

iris1745

bookmarking

kakiebell

Wow, thank you all so much. I guess if I can navigate Renfe, I can do the same for the French trains. Just a little patience and not do it at the last minute. Do not know how I would travel in Europe without Fodors.

PalenQ

I guess if I can navigate Renfe, I can do the same for the French trains>

If you can make renfe.com work then the French sites will be a piece of cake. Check www.seat61.com for help too if needed.

historytraveler

Just go to www.capitainetrain.com as StCirq suggested. Why even bother with something else?

PalenQ

so www.capitainetrain.com has the exact same offerings as www.voyages-sncf.com and availability - they are clones of each other?

This is what historytraveler seems to be saying and I have no reason to doubt him/her but just want to clarify for my own info - both allow printing of tickets or picking up - everything exactly the same?

thanks

PalenQ

http://www.bernina-hospiz.ch/

Here is one hotel by a station near the summit.

PalenQ

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amitie7/8096603595/

Or how about this one, presumably near the Alp Grum train station near the summit.

Southam

Although the standard advance booking has been about 90 days, tickets are already available from Avignon to Paris on the iDTGV service for the surprisingly low price of 19€.
I haven't taken this service but I understand it uses extra cars attached to a regular TGV train. From Nice the cheapest price at this time appears to be about 39€.
Note that the "TGV" from Nice is still not at tres grande vitesse, in other words very high speed, between Nice and approximately Marseille before it turns north.

Bellarosa70032

We took the tgv from Nice to Paris in early November. We were able to get PREMS for 1st class at only a few Euros more than 2nd class, and we reserved seats on the upper level. The scenery from Nice to Marseilles was so beautiful that we did not mind that the train was not high speed until after Marseilles. The hardest thing about the Nice train station was figuring out where to leave the rental car; the rest was a piece of cake.

kakiebell

Hey, PalenQ, think you can find me a rental car in line with the hotels you are recommending?

kakiebell

I am having trouble finding how you can book an upper level seat. I have gone to capitainetrain.com and voyages-sncf.com and I cannot find an option to book an upper level seat. Can anyone guide me in this quest?

Man_in_seat_61

How can you miss it?

At Capitainetrain.com:

Paris - Nice, date, time, click.
Search results appear.
Select a direct train, click.
'Seating: Indifferent'. Change drop down box to 'Seating: Upstairs', click.
Pay. Print, travel. Job done.

Nice to Paris from €25 if you pre-book, and print-at-home tickets.

Capitainetrain is a private website that has been allowed to distribute SNCF tickets after SNCF lost a court case about anti-competitive behaviour. Capitainetrain sells at the same price as voyages-sncf.com, same lack of any booking fees, same seat options, just quicker, and no Machiavellian redirects to any of their overseas Rail Europe subsidiaries with fees and no seat options.

PalenQ

Hey, PalenQ, think you can find me a rental car in line with the hotels you are recommending?>

No and I mistakingly posted these two hotels on the wrong thread - for Switzerland - sorry about the mistake!

tdk320n

bookmark

DebitNM

A bit off topic, but have you thought of flying home to US from Nice? If you are only going to Paris to fly home, it would be easier to just leave from Nice or Marseille. If you are going to spend time in Paris, this of course wouldn't make sense. Just a thought....