Aix En Provence, France to San Sebastian, Spain by train
Jan 13th, 2012, 01:41 AM
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Aix En Provence, France to San Sebastian, Spain by train
Is there a train that will bring me from Aix en Provence to San Sebastian? Will I have to change trains at the border?
My husband and I are planning a trip to spain and France around Easter. We will be in Barcelona, then Girona, Spain, then from there will go to Aix en Provence, France. Back to Spain and on to San Sebastian. Any ideas on how to get from place to place?
My husband and I are planning a trip to spain and France around Easter. We will be in Barcelona, then Girona, Spain, then from there will go to Aix en Provence, France. Back to Spain and on to San Sebastian. Any ideas on how to get from place to place?
Jan 13th, 2012, 07:54 AM
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A quick search on the sncf.com site indicates that all routing between Aix-en-Provence and San Sebastian will take you back to Paris (or Marne-la-Vallée), with the trip taking about 16 hours. You might want to fly.
Jan 13th, 2012, 09:48 AM
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No need to go to Paris as thursday says - there is even an overnight train I believe from Marseilles to Bordeaux, or used to be (starting from the Nice area) with lots of trains Bordeaux to Hendaye/Irun - French Spanish border stations respectively
- otherwise in day take a TGV from Aix to Avignon-TGV, change there for trains to Toulouse and from there to Hendaye, where you can change to the tiny Tren Eskro that putzes frequently through Basque country to San Sebastian (Donostia (sp?) often in local schedules as that is the preferred local Basque name over the not-so-liked Spanish name of San Sebastian - or from Hendaye take a train over the border to Irun, spain and change there for not so frequent mainline trains to Donostia.
You must change trains at Irun as Spanish tracks here are wider apart then French tracks so physically most trains cannot go thru (except the night Talgo train from Paris to Madrid via Donostia that has wheels that can be cranked farther apart or closer together at the border)
The Tren Eskro goes much more frequently from Hendate, negating the change of trains in Irun where you can IME wait lengthy times between the next train to Donostia.
If traveling Spain to Aix and back you may want to explore the France-Spain Railpass that lets you hop on any train in either country though you must make the requisite seat reservation before boarding and as always I after decades of traveling on trains in both Spain and France highly encourage first class for a much more relaxed journey - if on the trip of a lifetime - lots more room for luggage, bigger seats, fewer seats in same space and IME often lots of empty seats whereas 2nd class can be packed to the gills.
Great sources for info on trains in those countries - www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.seat61.com; www.ricksteves.com - check www.voyages-sncf.com - French Railways site or www.renfe.es - Spanish Railways site for schedules, fares and online discounts that however are sold in limited numbers may well be train specific and non-changeable nor refundable and which must be booked weeks in advance often to get. for full fare have no worries about being able to buy any ticket on spot - especially in first class.
- otherwise in day take a TGV from Aix to Avignon-TGV, change there for trains to Toulouse and from there to Hendaye, where you can change to the tiny Tren Eskro that putzes frequently through Basque country to San Sebastian (Donostia (sp?) often in local schedules as that is the preferred local Basque name over the not-so-liked Spanish name of San Sebastian - or from Hendaye take a train over the border to Irun, spain and change there for not so frequent mainline trains to Donostia.
You must change trains at Irun as Spanish tracks here are wider apart then French tracks so physically most trains cannot go thru (except the night Talgo train from Paris to Madrid via Donostia that has wheels that can be cranked farther apart or closer together at the border)
The Tren Eskro goes much more frequently from Hendate, negating the change of trains in Irun where you can IME wait lengthy times between the next train to Donostia.
If traveling Spain to Aix and back you may want to explore the France-Spain Railpass that lets you hop on any train in either country though you must make the requisite seat reservation before boarding and as always I after decades of traveling on trains in both Spain and France highly encourage first class for a much more relaxed journey - if on the trip of a lifetime - lots more room for luggage, bigger seats, fewer seats in same space and IME often lots of empty seats whereas 2nd class can be packed to the gills.
Great sources for info on trains in those countries - www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.seat61.com; www.ricksteves.com - check www.voyages-sncf.com - French Railways site or www.renfe.es - Spanish Railways site for schedules, fares and online discounts that however are sold in limited numbers may well be train specific and non-changeable nor refundable and which must be booked weeks in advance often to get. for full fare have no worries about being able to buy any ticket on spot - especially in first class.
Jan 14th, 2012, 06:38 AM
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to go in one day by train is a long slog with many changes of train. Consider stopping over en route like say at Carcassonne - famous Carcassonne, one of Europe's primo walled medieval-looking towns, lovingly set high on a hill. Or Lourdes or Toulouse could also be interesting stops.
