CDG to Sarlat--Insane to Take This Train?
 

My son is meeting us in Sarlat on Tuesday, June 11. His plane arrives at CDG Terminal 2 at 11:25 am. There is a train to Libourne, leaving from Montparnasse at 14:46. If he is able to make this train, he can get to Sarlat himself. Otherwise, we have to pick him up in Brive, which we would prefer not to do.

I know he has to figure an hour to get through immigration and an hour to get to the Montparnasse station. I am trying to talk him into bringing only a carry-on, so there is no wait for luggage. Do magnetic swipe credit cards work at CDG to buy tickets for the train into Paris, or will he have to wait in line to buy a ticket? Would a cab be faster into the city mid-day on a Tuesday?

My other thought is to just have him buy a ticket to Libourne or Brive when he gets to Paris, based on the timing. I know that will be more expensive, but is there a possibility the train could be sold out?

Thanks for your help!

It is possible to go directly from CDG to Bordeaux and on from there without going into Paris. TGV to Bordeaux and I think slower trains thereafter. It probably won't save any time on the whole trip to Sarlat but might be easier to not have to deal with going into Paris. Have a look on http://www.sncf.com/fr/

MmePerdu--thanks for your quick reply. Unfortunately, it looks like there are no trains that will get him from Bordeaux to Sarlat once his train arrives in Bordeaux.

I think the problem may be the date is too far out to have all the trains in the system now. I tried a Tuesday in May and it shows a train that leaves Bordeaux to Sarlat, same station.

Well, he could easily get to Périgueux from Bordeaux. Could you pick him up there? Trains to Sarlat are a pain right now, anyway, as they actually stop in Souillac and then you have to take a bus. That will eventually end, but it's the case now and may be in June.

Where are you even seeing that train schedule? The timetables and fares aren't even up on the SNCF site until 3 months out, and June 11 is more than that.

MmePerdu--I do see a later train from Bordeaux in early May. However, that gets him into Sarlat so late, I would rather drive to Brive and pick him up, since he will have been traveling for so long, having flown in from D.C.

StCirq--I was looking at the schedule for Tuesday, June 4. I was assuming the schedule for the following Tuesday would be similar. Maybe not?

We could pick him up in Perigueux, but we would still have an hour drive each way, and he would finally reach Sarlat an hour later than if we pick him up in Brive.

Is the 14:46 train to Libourne just cutting it too close?

I think it is cutting it too close. He has to get from the plane into the airport, which can take some time, and if there are any delays at all, he wont make it.

You can indeed see schedules for 11 June on http://www.voyages-sncf.com/ I found a train from Gare d'Austerlitz to Souillac, (the station after Brive) which is very close to Sarlat, but your son would have to wait till about 5.30, and get in quite late. There is a Brive train that leaves Paris at 15h45 and arrives at Brive at 20h

Driving to Brive is not difficult from Sarlat, and shouldnt take more than about 40 minutes. Much easier we find than Perigueux, where we always get lost in the traffic. Also worth knowing is that in June the days are VERY long here, and it won't be dark until after 10. So you will be driving in the daylight.

(And there will NEVER be a train from Souillac to Sarlat, as it is now a bicycle path, I don't know whether St Cirq meant that Bordeaux trains are going to Souillac before getting into Sarlat, but that's not what the SNCF schedule shows for next week.)

Thanks so much Carlux! I think we will pick him up in Brive. Glad to hear it is an easy drive.