French
trains are fast, efficient and frequent.
The French network is also excellent reaching
all major cities in the country. Places
not served by train are generally lined
by bus. SNCF
has a nationwide phone number for all rail
inquiries and reservations (there is a cost
per minute). Tel. 08 3635 3535 (French),
or tel. 08 3635 3539 (English).
TGV trains are the most convenient trains
with speeds up to 300 km/ hr.
TGVs
There are three TGV lines:
TGV Sud-Est - Paris' Gare de Lyon to Lyon,
Valence and Marseille
TGV Atlantique - Paris' Gare Montparnasse
to Loire Valley, Bordeaux and the south
west
TGV Nord Europe - Paris' Gare du Nord to
Calais and London.
The cost is the same for travelling on the
TGV, you just need to pay a reservation
fee. Couchette's and reclining seats are
additional fees.
Reservations are particularly adviseable
for weekend or holiday travel or common
routes.
TICKETS
Tickets can be bought from the counters
or guichets (can be long queues) or at ticket
vending machines. All tickets must be validated
(and your reservation card) at the orange
date-stamping machines. Any rail passes
must also be time stamped. Journeys requiring
a change of trains in big cities also need
to be re-validated at the connecting station.
Return tickets must be validated on the
outward and return journey. Regular tickets
are valid until midnight on the day after
you have validated your ticket. You may
make a stop-over of less than 24 hours during
your journey as long as you reach your destination
before your ticket expires.
RAIL PASSES Carte 12-25
The Carte 12-25 entitles you to reduced
prices on tickets, with discounts ranging
from 25% to 50%. This discount card costs
€43 and is available to young people
aged between 12 and 25 years. They are available
from the ticket counter and you will need
to bring an ID photo with you when you buy
this card.
France Rail Pass
The France Rail Pass is a flexi-pass that
entitles the holder to four to 10 days of
unlimited rail travel in France within a
one month period. This pass can be purchased
at main train stations but is cheaper purchased
abroad.
The France Youth Pass
This is for people who have not reached
their 26th birthday on the first day of
travel. Contact Rail Europe for more details.
France Rail Pass Youth
This pass is similar to the France Rail
Pass but it offers cheaper fares, although
it is restricted to travellers aged 25 or
younger. It entitles the holder to four
to 10 days of unlimited rail travel in France
within a one month period.
The Eurail pass
This is considered by many as the best option
for travelling through Europe, and France
is one of the 17 countries where you can
use it. It is especially good for those
with limited time. There are 15, 21, 30
and 60 day passes available and prices vary
depending on the countries chosen for travel.
Discounts are available for those under
26 years.
Europrail
Europrail (www.europrail.net)
offers Euro and other European passes. Click
on the blue icon above to get a pass or
more information. Rail connection provides
passes for all over Europe including the
Eurail pass. To get more information or
buy a pass click on the yellow icon.
Make sure you buy your pass before you leave
for Europe. Also remember that rail passes
do not guarantee seats on trains. You still
need to book the seats ahead of time as
trains are often crowded.
BackpackFrance sells train passes to locations
in Europe. We encourage you to buy your
passes through us as any revenue raised
goes directly back into improving the site.
SNCF
has periods where tickets are cheaper. The
largest discounts are blue (blueue) periods.
In white (blanche) there are fewer bargains.
For those under 26 on the date of travel
25% discounts are available. Ask for a Dècouverte
12/25 fare. Any two people travelling together
can get a Dècouverte Deux fare (25%
reduction on return fares in 1st or 2nd
class).
People aged 12 to 25 can get 50% off the
full fare on Thalys trains to Belgium, Holland
and Cologne.
Dècouverte Sèjour excursion
fares give a 25% deduction for return travel
within France. To qualify for this your
trip must be 200 kilometres or more, and
you must spend a Saturday night at your
destination.
SAFETY
Travelling by night is inexpensive, but
never leave your belongings unattended and
make sure the door of your compartment is
well locked. Train stations are not the
best places to spend the night although
they are generally well attended by police.
Rail Europe (226-230 Westchester Ave., White
Plains, NY 10604, tel. 914/682-5172 or 800/438-7245,
www.raileurope.com;
2087 Dundas E., Suite 105, Mississauga,
Ontario L4X 1M2, tel. 416/602-4195).
YOUR ADVICE
It's not worth falsifying dates on your
Eurail pass or even writing it in pencil.
Ours were confiscated! Fortunately we got
them back in the morning but it was a close
shave. (Martha, Australia)
Some of the overnight travel through the
southern regions of France and into Italy
and Spain on trains can be a little unsettling.
Keep watch of your things very carefully.
I had been warned by a friend that these
trains are often robbed so I slept on top
of my bag so no one would be able to get
into it unless they woke me up. People were
wandering the train all night long and hippies
were smoking joints in the carriage joining
sections. At one point the train was delayed
for an hour while police with night sticks
and sniffing dogs searched the entire train.
I was glad to get off. (Jo, Australia).
