ParisByTrain.com

[dmjohnson330]

I have been advised by my travel agent here in the US that first class premier tickets allow access to a special lounge area at the train stations. Is this accurate or does the access provision apply only to the actual train or train lounge areas? Thank you in advance.

[ben]

Hi DMJohnson,

There are some "special lounges", known as Salon Grand Voyageur, at various large train stations around France, but a simple first class ticket does not give you access to these lounges. You need to be a "member" of Grand Voyageur, which is 30€ to join and membership is good for 3 years. You need to show both your card and your train ticket (not necessarily 1st class either) for travel that day if you want access to the lounge, as noted on this page at the official Grand Voyageur website.

So, basically the travel agent is misinforming you. The only first class lounge that I know of that is accessible by having only a first class ticket, is that of Eurostar, the Paris-London high speed train.

Best regards,

Ben

[ben]

Hi DMJohnson,

I have to take back what I said about the First Class Lounges requiring a subscription to the Grand Voyageur program.

If you have a TGV ticket that is both first class and Pro (TGV Pro 1ère), you have the right to enter the first class lounges, Salons Grands Voyageurs, on your day of travel, without need to be a part of the Grand Voyageur program.

In Paris the stations include: Gare de Lyon, Gare de l'Est, Gare du Nord, Gare Montparnasse.

Train stations outside of Paris with first class lounges: Bordeaux, Lyon (Part-Dieu), Lille (Flandres), Marseille (Saint-Charles), Nantes, Strasbourg.

These Salons Grands Voyageurs are generally open from 7am till 8pm.

You may have to pay for services inside, such as drinks, papers, Wi-Fi, etc. SNCF print materials don't specify which services are free and which are pay. Perhaps this is different, station to station.

Sorry for my mistake earlier saying that access to these salons always requires a membership card to Grand Voyageur.

Ben