I'm trying to decide if we should have lunch in Bordeaux and take a late afternoon train back to Paris..or..take a 11:00AM train and have lunch on the train.<BR>We will be traveling first class. Is lunch included in the fares.<BR>Is the dining car offerings nice or shortorder travel food?<BR>French Kiss made the dining car look pretty nice.<BR>I hope to callorder tickets tomorrow but I need to know our departure time based on the answers I get from you good people.<BR>Merci en advance!<BR>

Emily:<BR><BR>I take the tgv to and from Bordeaux with some frequency, and I've never seen anything resembling a &quot;dining car&quot; on it. There's a smallish caf&eacute; car with overpriced sandwiches and salads, coffee and bottled water and soft drinks, and candy bars. I always pack my own lunch when I'm taking a train in France - or at least buy a nice sandwich at the train station before departure.

Depending on time of day, there may be a dining car StCirq. That's different than the snack wagon. If there is, then it's &quot;nice&quot; not &quot;short order&quot;. Maybe not a lot of choices, but pretty good. And not real cheap.<BR><BR>Pass on the sandwhiches and the like from the trolly that make the rounds up and down the train, but the real &quot;dining car&quot; is just fine. If you're on a budget, bring your own food.

We took the TGV night train from Bern to Paris. It's exactly as how StCirq describes it. If you're thinking of a formal dining car like a cafe/restaurant, it's not like that at all. The most you get to eat are sandwiches and salads.

Hi Emily,<BR> I realize that you are excited about your trip, but please think. <BR> You are wondering if you should forego lunch in Bordeaux, home of some of the best wines in the world, to have lunch on a train?

Thanks, Ira,for putting in in perspective. You've said it all.<BR>