French Trains
 

Hi,

Im going solo to France (Paris) this year Via. st. Malo i will be getting the direct train.

Is there anything i need to be aware of for my first time on french trains.

(i have limited experince on trains in England, but thats about it)

Thanks
AW

Are you arriving in St. Malo by ferry?

yes, then staying overnight in a hotel near the station, for my ticket (with seat) on the fast train to Paris.

i read i need to validate the tickets as well b4 i get on, is there anything else i need to be aware of?

Before you go onto the train platform there is a small machine that you will see other people validate their tickets at. Sometimes seats are reserved on trains and they will be marked where seat numbers are. French trains have a first and second class. Rush hour is of course very busy.

Ive alerady been told which coach / seat i'm in.

i take it like in the UK there are big screens telling me which platform i need, and for the train i can get on any coach, and walk through onto the right one.

i should be departing around 12:15. arrivig sometime after 15:15

(just want to be ready for their train system)

(as you can tell i dont travel by train often, as we dont have them over here)

St-Malo has a brand new station which opened when the line was electrified and TGVs started running there a year or so back. The new station is a few hundred yards from the old station where your hotel is probably situated.
It's the end of the line so you'll probably have 15 minutes or more when you can board the train before it leaves. You must stamp your ticket in the yellow machines by the station platforms. The TGVs usually have ten coaches and your ticket will have the coach and seat number. All seats on TGVs are reserved, so there are no labels on the reserved seats.
From the ferry terminal at St-Malo, you'll need to take a bus or taxi to the station area. The ferry terminal is near the old town, but it's at least a ten-minute walk from the old town to the station.

In Paris at least, they don't usually indicate which platform your train will be on until about 25 minutes before the train leaves. Be careful to take note of the number of your train, because the listing on the notice board might specify a different destination than the one you're going to (i.e. one further away than your destination). Match the number (e.g. 8654 on track 3). I suspect that the train bound for Paris terminates in Paris, but you never know.

There's not much point in arriving more than 25 minutes before your train leaves. If the train is coming from somewhere else, you likely won't be able to board it until 5 minutes before its scheduled departure (because it won't be there). If the train originates in St Malo, though, you might be able to board it up to 20 minutes in advance.

Yes, there are indicators to tell you which platform, but it'll be obvious because there'll only be one TGV in the station (local trains are much shorter).
To find your coach, it'll be easier to walk along the platform, rather than through the train.
TGVs have a bar which does drinks and snacks (like a croque monsieur) but they don't have a restaurant car.

Thanks for all the adcvice to far, ive been to St. Malo and other areas near bu such as renns (spelling)loads of times. but previously with friends/family and not on the trains.

when you say match the number would that be on the ticket i.e "tgv 8084"?

many thanks again for the feedback so far.

You've gotten very good information here! Just make a note of which train station you will be arriving at in Paris, and where that is in relation to where you're headed. (There are multiple stations, each serving a different direction. Trains from the west arrive at Montparnasse, which is located in the south of Paris.)

Bon voyage!

the Paris station is about 1.5 miles from my hotel, i know which metro stations i need, just need to work out which metro trains i need.

its Paris Mont 1 Et 2 station

The train number will be 8084, as on your ticket, but St-Malo is a small station at the end of the line. There will be no confusion over which platform: there will be one TGV in the station and it will be going to Paris Montparnasse.

>there'll only be one TGV in the station (local trains are much shorter).<

Was sitting in the station at Libourne waiting for the TGV to Paris.

With only 5 minutes until departure, the only train in the station was a 2 car jobbie that looked like the local commuter train - both ends were engines.

That was the TGV.

((I))

Ira, there are no two-car TGVs. They have nine or ten cars, and are often coupled in pairs to make an 18- or 20-car train.
You need to allow time to walk along the platform to get to your carriage. At most stations, there are diagrams to indicate the layout of the train so that you can position yourself where your carriage will stop. St-Malo is the terminus and the train starts its journey there, so you can board well before the train leaves.