ParisByTrain.com

[RabbitBlue]

Hello,

We are two people traveling with bikes from Paris (Gare De Lyon) to Montaigut-le-Blanc (Auvergne).

We understand that we will have to take to train to Issoire and then we will bike to Montaigut. We have also been told that sometimes you can ask the train to let you off at Coudes, which will be closer. (You must jump off quickly!)

My questions are: How & where do we buy tickets at the Gare de Lyon when we have our bikes with us? Where do I find the schedule of times when the train leaves? How much does it cost? Is there a special train car for bikes? Generally...how do we get to Coudes or Issoire on the train?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

RB

[ben]

Hi RB,

1) Buying tickets at Gare de Lyon is done within the Galerie des Fresques. This is where all tickets to cities outside the Ile-de-France region are purchased. Look specifically for a ticket seller that speaks English (the article explains how to determine which languages are spoken by a given ticket seller), if you have any concerns about explaining your bike situation.

TGV trains do allow bikes on board, but only a limited number, depending on the length of the train. 4 is the average number of bikes permitted per train. Where the bikes are actually stored during the trip, I'm not sure of.

For train schedules you can use Intinerary Builder tool provided by Gares-en-Mouvement, an official SNCF site. (When using the tool, choose Ile-de-France first on the left, then Paris Gare de Lyon on the right). See this example search I did for Gare de Lyon to Issoire. This Itinerary Builder won't provide ticket prices though. To find tickets and prices online, see the Buying TGV Tickets article.

Hope this helps. Get back to me if you have any further questions.

Ben