Issues booking SNCF from Paris to Lyon
 

Want to book online a fast train from Paris CDG airport to Lyon St Exepury but having issues booking online (statement saying not available online)?

Whats the easiest fastest way to do this otherwise from the USA?

It sounds like you're mixing travel providers, the national rail service and the public transit for Lyon and Paris. Whenever you do this you can't buy a direct ticket. You have to buy the pieces.

I checked a random weekday and do not see any direct trains from CDG to St Exupery. It looks like they don't exist. There is one routing that has two train changes with one of them being a switch from Valence TGV to Valence Ville. That would be ugly.

A couple of options.

1. Take the TGV from CDG airport to Lyon Part-Dieu train station. This is on SNCF the French national rail.

www.voyages-sncf.com

From Part-Dieu train station to Lyon St Exupery airport you'll need to take a cab or a shuttle bus. Satobus runs every 20 minutes from 5:00am to 9:00pm 7 days a week. The schedule is on the airport web site.

www.lyon.aeroport.fr (English section down, French only)


2. Take the Air France bus from CDG into Paris and the Gare de Lyon train station. Take a TGV from there to St Exupery. The Air France bus picks you up at Terminal 1 or 3 locations at Terminal 2. It costs 12euro one way.


I'd take Option 2 unless the timing worked out beautifully for Option 1 because there are more trains from Gare de Lyon then CDG so you can get better times. There are more advance purchase Prems deals from Gare de Lyon too.

morganB is the guru on SNCF .....check out his/her advice on this forum before you do anything that you might regret!

Hi Ferros, its a he :). Indy is spot on. There are no direct trains. You might wasnt to consider flying. If you do book train tickets just look for a guide I typed up in the forum as Ferros suggested. It walks you through the process.

Hi io,

As Indy says, you have to leave from Gare de Lyon.

More details on the bus to Gare de lyon are at http://tinyurl.com/6amek

You can also get there on the RER, but this requires changing trains.

At www.ratp.fr enter <Aeroport Charles de Gaulle 2 TGV> as the departure station and <Gare de Lyon> as the arrival station.

((I))