Trains in Paris

If you are planning to take a day-trip out of the city center, or even if you are staying further out to keep costs down, it is important to know how the trains work.

There is a choice: suburban destinations are served by the RER whilst other locations farther from the city are served by the SNCF railway.

The TGV high-speed train goes even further afield and has greatly cut down journey times.

They are more expensive, much faster, more comfortable, and require reservations that cost a small fee. Long-distance bus services also exist though they are few and far between. Check out our Bus Travel to Paris page for more information.

Paris has six international rail stations:

• Gare d’Austerlitz: Named after one of Napoleon's famous battles. Address:  55, quai d'Austerlitz (13th "arrt") 85 quai d'Austerlitz 75013. Trains from Paris to South Central France and there are night trains that go to Spain and Portugal.  Trains to Paris from those destinations arrived in the same station.
• Gare de l’Est : Address: Place du 11 novembre 1918 75010 Paris. Trains from Paris: Eastern France, Germany, Austria and parts of Switzerland. Trains to Paris from those destinations arrived in the same station.
• Gare de Lyon: Address: : 20 boulevard Diderot, 75012 Paris. Trains from Paris to South East France, the French Riviera, some parts of Switzerland and Italy (though not directly). Trains to Paris from those destinations arrived in the same station.
• Gare du Nord: Address: 18 Rue Dunkerque. Paris. 75010 112, rue de Maubeuge Paris. 75010. Trains from Paris to Britain (Eurostar), Belgium, the Netherlands and Northern Germany. Trains to Paris from those destinations arrived in the same station.
• Gare Montparnasse: Address: Address: 17, boulevard Vaugirard (15th “arrt”). Trains from Paris to Western and South Western France, Brittany, Pays de la Loire, Aquitaine, Midi-Pyriness and Northern Spain. Trains to Paris from those destinations arrived in the same station.
• Gare St-Lazare (8th): Address: 13, Rue d'Amsterdam 75008 Trains from Paris Normandy, Caen, Rouen. Trains to Paris from those destinations arrived in the same station.

Since 2005 smoking is forbidden on all trains in France.

Tickets

You can buy tickets from any SNCF station, SNCF shops and travel agents. If you reserve online or by phone, you can choose to pick up your tickets from the station of departure or to have them sent to your home in the post.

To use the SNCF automatic machines (billeterie automatique) you’ll need to have a MasterCard or Visa card and know your PIN. SNCF offers many discounted round-trip tickets which go under the name Tarifs Découvertes —you should rarely have to pay full price.

TGV

The creation of the TGV -train à grande vitesse- (high speed trains) has opened up a world of opportunities as lots of places are now all within a few hours of Paris from one of six major train stations. Each station is easily reached on the metro.

Eurostar

For anyone arriving in Paris from London, the Eurostar is without doubt the most convenient and fastest way to cross the Channel. Services to Paris, Gare du Nord, depart from the glittering new terminal at St Pancras International.

Thanks to the high speed track, it takes 35 minutes from Folkestone to Calais, 60 minutes from motorway to motorway, or 2 hours and 15 minutes from London's St. Pancras Station to Paris's Gare du Nord. The Belgian border is just a short drive northeast of Calais.

High-speed Eurostar trains use the same tunnels to connect London's St. Pancras Station directly with Midi Station in Brussels in around 2 hours.

If you plan to put your car inside the train, make a reservation. Without one you are unlikely to get on at all and if you do you will be charged 20% extra. Remember to check in at least half an hour before departure.