 Poster: A snowHead
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Check out this guide to booking trains in Europe.http://www.seat61.com/France-trains.htm#in%20French
Cheaper fares are often available if you book through SNCF in France rather than with Rail europe.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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buckers, what? all the trains in France cancelled?!?!?!?!?!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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No, I think Eurostar are still running, but I think they are the only ones, so they will no doubt raise their prices a bit and the train will definitely be busy.
http://tiny.cc/UyMBd
Had to shorten the url as SH's didn't like the original.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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buckers, forgive my sarcasm. you are overlooking any number of ways of getting to the alps by train eg Eurostar to Paris, the Paris to Lyon, Chambery, St Gervais, Grenoble, Briancon etc. TGV tickets booked through SNCF directly are often considerably cheaper than through Raileurope. The latter doesn't seem to offer special offer fares available on the SNCF site
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i went by train the season before last st pancras, change at Paris then the sncf high speed down to geneva. A really enjoyable experience and would recommend to all to try. Worked out cheaper than flying at that time and proved to be a better option as we got royally drunk both outbound and inbound. Remember to reserve seats on the sncf as can get busy especially at weekends.
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My parents have just booked the direct Waterloo to Bourg train - so I'm assuming that is still running
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I thought it was only the ghastly tour operator one with disco carriage which wasn't running any more?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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buckers,what Pam said. I can get a sleeper from Paris to Briancon 365 days a year. No need to catch a snow train to get to the Alps. There are dozens of others, TGV to Grenoble, OUlx, Lyon , etc etc
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| Quote: |
There are dozens of others
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mostly a lot more civilised, from my admittedly limited experience.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Oh Pam...was it rally ghastly?
I did it a couple of times back in the day and it was rather fun...
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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buckers, trains run every day to the resorts and if you want a super cheap but not too comfortable way to get to Paris, taκe the Friday overnight bus from London, you can catch the 07:00 train to Grenoble or BSM and be on the hill before lunch . . . probably not a family option (logistical nightmare) but it's a convenient trip and about £100 return and the only baggage limit is what you can carry.
Keep an eye out for the new services to Austria from Lille, in theory they should start this winter.
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rungsp, sorry, call me old and boring, but I quite like to sleep on a sleeper train. One SH recently reported a night spent listening to a couple who had just met in the disco carriage shagging in the bunk above. Not my idea of fun - but then neither is paying a premium price to sit up in a seat all night long.
When I went on an ordinary SNCF overnight service I had a reasonable and quiet night in a carriage which we shared with four young Italians - we all wanted to get some rest. On the return trip had a complete 6 berth compartment to myself. 2 extra days skiing, cost a few francs to get from the station up to La Plagne. Excellent experience.
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You know it makes sense.
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Wow, I totally seem to have hijacked this thread, but I'm sure Helen Beaumont will be pleased with all the answers.
I'm a plane guy myself, but I'll remember this info just in case.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Price is not everything, much more long term considerations 
Always the train , why do it any other way?
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Poster: A snowHead
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| dlawless wrote: |
| i went by train the season before last st pancras, change at Paris then the sncf high speed down to geneva. A really enjoyable experience and would recommend to all to try. Worked out cheaper than flying at that time and proved to be a better option as we got royally drunk both outbound and inbound. Remember to reserve seats on the sncf as can get busy especially at weekends. |
dlawless, What did it cost you to get to Geneva from London on the train? How manay changes were there and did you have to take the Metro across Paris?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Quote: |
did you have to take the Metro across Paris?
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metro across Paris really isn't a problem unless you have ridiculous amounts of luggage - in which case you'd struggle anyway as there is little space available for luggage in a full 6 berth sleeper compartment.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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1556garyt,
yes we had to get metro, only a couple of stops, no issue at all really.
it cost £145 return which included all the baggage we could take plus our snowboards ski's etc. although i got mine for FREE as paid with my airmiles.
at the time the cheapest flight we could get was around £250 so it made sense, i would do it again as we had such a laugh.
although already booked by £70 geneva flights for Jan 
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Once again I am researching the options too, but of course pricing for the trains won't be available until 90 days before the return trip and just now that seems such a long time away! Last year I got hooked into buying a flight long before rail tickets went on sale - paid £125 or so incl ski carriage too with Ruinair  .
I am going to be going with my sister (and probably a few others) to Grenoble. She's near Bristol, I'm in north Lincs so we could meet up in St Pancras. One option is to book from Doncaster & Bristol right through to Paris and then book with SNCF onwards from Paris. The other is to book fares from our local stations to London and then from London to Grenoble in one. My sister has a disabled railcard (she's profoundly Deaf, but has no mobility issues) so that might affect her choice, as it isn't valid on Eurostar & I assume there is no reciprocal scheme in France. Anyone know which is likely to be cheaper or know of other issues to be aware of such as what happens with missed connections for reasons well beyond your control?
Our other thought is whether we should do an overnight stop somewhere, in a London Travelodge for example, though the journey (based on train times quoted for travel this week on DB Bahn) is around 9-10 hours total from Doncaster or Bristol to Grenoble so it's do-able in a day.
Another benefit I see of doing the train is the airport is miles out to the west of Grenoble and that adds time and cost to the transfer - there is what seems like a perfectly good VFD service bus from the rail station.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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We are hoping to travel to Montgenevre by train in March with our 2 children. The three options we are considering are:
1. Train to Grenoble, hire car and drive the rest
2. Train to Oulx
3. Sleeper to Briancon
Has anyone been to Montgenevre by train and which way did you go? Any tips/feedback much appreciated.
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snowymum, I'm thinking of doing similar to Oulx and then to Serre Chevalier this winter.
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Hi Helen,
Perhaps with your knowledge of travelling down to Serre Chevalier on the train you could answer a couple of questions for me? Six of us are booked and going to serre chevalier in early March and are currently looking at our options on how to get there. The train is one of these options. Practically speaking, how is the sleeper from Paris D'Austerlitz-> Briancon for storing all the baggage that one would bring on a ski trip (including all the skis and boots)? If these wouldn't fit into the couchette (given that there are 6 of us and would fill an entire couchette) are there alternative places to store the luggage on the train?
We would be keen to take the overnight sleeper for the sheer fact that it would give two full days of extra skiing over taking flights out to Turin.
Thanks!
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I can never understand it whem people say taking the train gives you an extra day on the slope. You only get an extra day as you depart a day earlier! If I caught a flight on a Friday night I would get Saturday on the slopes too.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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russ_e, you would also have to find and pay for somewhere to stay on at least one extra night
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| russ_e wrote: |
| I can never understand it whem people say taking the train gives you an extra day on the slope. You only get an extra day as you depart a day earlier! If I caught a flight on a Friday night I would get Saturday on the slopes too. |
In the case of getting to Serre Chevalier the latest flight to Turin from London is 5pm. The train leaves St Pancreas at 6pm. Given I can leave my office at circa 5pm and be on the train with plenty of time to spare I am not needing to take a half day off work just to be at the airport in time for an early flight!
As has been pointed out, there is also no need to pay for extra hotel nights as it's covered in the train fare.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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russ_e, to add to what MorganW has written, it's possible to leave St. Pancras as late as 7PM and arrive in Moutiers (For 3V) at 7AM, having spent the night on the sleeper from Paris. (Or leave at 6PM to give yourself an extra hour for dinner in Paris)
Bearing in mind that 30 mins is more than ample to get through St.Pancras station and check-in, this means no time off work on Friday if you're within an hour or two of London and you can make the first lift in most resorts in the Tarantaise on Saturday morning.
Similarly, ski to the end of the day the following Saturday, have dinner in the Valley and sleep your way back up to Paris overnight to be in London about 10AM, leaving Sunday free to do your washing 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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i booked myself first class on the Eurostar quite late in the day last season for late feb and even that was considerably cheaper than flying on the friday, hiring a car, finding somewhere to stay on the friday night and flying home on the following saturday evening
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| MorganW wrote: |
Hi Helen,
Perhaps with your knowledge of travelling down to Serre Chevalier on the train you could answer a couple of questions for me? Six of us are booked and going to serre chevalier in early March and are currently looking at our options on how to get there. The train is one of these options. Practically speaking, how is the sleeper from Paris D'Austerlitz-> Briancon for storing all the baggage that one would bring on a ski trip (including all the skis and boots)? If these wouldn't fit into the couchette (given that there are 6 of us and would fill an entire couchette) are there alternative places to store the luggage on the train?
We would be keen to take the overnight sleeper for the sheer fact that it would give two full days of extra skiing over taking flights out to Turin.
Thanks! |
I haven't used the sleeper myself, but my kids have, apparently there is not much luggage space, but you can store things under the seats Not sure if there are racks overhead or not. At least if you are taking up a whole couchette, you won;t be disturbing anyone else with your baggage. You could store them on the tops bunk until you go to bed, then put them in the middle of the floor I suppose.
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You know it makes sense.
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Not sure what it would be like with six people. We booked a four berth sleeping compartment for 2 adults, 2 children, 3 large suitcases, bootbags and a maclaren buggy and fitted everything in without a problem. There is a large luggage rack at the top and then other cases can be stored under the bottom bunk on each side. Any thing else can be piled up on the floor between the bottom beds. I think the only thing that would be tricky to fit would be skis if they are very long. I think you would have to ask for the couchette dimensions from SNCF.
I don't remember any seperate storage for skis when we went but lots of people use that sleeper service for skiing hols so I expect the skis do fit across the luggage rack or under the bottom bunk.
We travelled on the briancon line but got off one stop before at Argentiere les ecrins (for puy st vincent).
If you sleep easily I would recommend this means of travel. My children and husband slept very well. I found it hard to sleep this time.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I thought the sleeper to Briancon was normally quite pricey. Of course as it has already been pointed out, your not paying for a hotel and getting an extra day of skiing.
That has put me off using it this year. Instead I'm using the TGV in the day, which if booked as early as possible (3 months in advanced) you can get some bargains (in the words of Paul Whitehouse).
Looking forward to seeing the pros and cons of train travel compared to flying.
How long do you ideally need to be at St.Pancras? Is being at Marble Arch for 7.15 and then having to get the tube to get the 8:00 train from St.Pancras pushing it too much?
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Poster: A snowHead
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Christopher, my kids got thier tickets for about 32€ I think, Prems tickets on the day of release.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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For anyone even remotely considering taking the sleeper here's my advice: DON'T DO IT!!!
Take heed. You'll be glad you did. 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Christopher - allow more time than that. I would get to St Pancras by 7:15 at the latest as you might have to queue for security at St Pancras. Also what if there is a delay on the tube? If you have inflexible tickets you don't want to miss the train or even worse miss your connection in Paris.
Are you going to Oulx on the TGV? I've been looking at the fares in Jan Feb and they are only showing the 3:45 train (paris - oulx). No sign of the early morning Paris/Oulx one which we want to get. My stress levels are rising!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Yeah I thought that might be the case. I'll need a lift to Oxford Park and Ride which is about 20 miles away. I'm use to waking up at 5.45 for early starts twice a week at work but I'm not use to 4.45 and it'll be a pain in the back bottom for my parents.
The Oxford Tube (coach) can take between an hour to 1 hour 30mins from the edge of Oxford to London. I imagine early on a saturday morning it won't take longer than an hour and its 15mins on the underground.The bus times are 5:10 and 5:40 from the centre, so they'll take 20mins from the centre and I'll get them at 5.30 or 6:00. If I get the 5.30 bus I'll be at St.Pancras potentially leaving an hour and a half. Catching the TGV shouldn't be a problem, I have a good 1 hour 30 to get across Paris.
Is security really going to take approx 20mins, which is just as bad as I've experienced at Gatwick on peak mornings. Altenatively find somewhere in London to stay the night. Unfortunatly I have no friends at uni in London or that'd be perfect.
I know I should probably play it safe and get the early bus.
Sorry for the hijacking the thread slightly.
snowymum, I have bad news for you. I believe they now only run one TGV a day. They have kept the afternoon/evening service. I'm taking the TGV to Bourg St.Maurice and then getting the train onwards to Oulx after 2 weeks in the Tarentaise. Sorry to be the barer of bad news.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Christopher, you sure? I have some guests arriving by train in the morning. I thought they were arriving at Oulx. Perhaps I am mistaken.
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Christopher, they must be arriving in Briancon on a train from somewhere else then, as they are definitley arriving in the morning.
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I'm not sure this is the case Christopher. Somebody at a company based in the UK called Rail Italy / Italian rail or similar said the Italian timetable changes on 12th December and they haven't loaded the early train on yet for dates in Jan Feb. I'm hoping this is the case as the 3:30 train gets in so late to Oulx (have young children). I will just feel happier when/if the train appears. If it has been cancelled will have to get the later one..at least I don't have to book the french side till late December. I am cross raileurope don't have proper information on this.
Helen if the above train runs to Oulx the earliest train leaves Paris at 7:50 and takes 4 1/2 hrs. If your guests are arriving in the morning either they are staying in Oulx overnight or getting the sleeper to briancon I'd have thought.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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snowymum, I think and hope I'm wrong. On the Artesia's (the name of the service) website it states "All times are approximate, for the period from December 13, 2009.
We regret to advise that the trains 9241 and 9248 are temporary unavailable for booking pending the official announcement of the new time schedule. We are sorry for inconvenience"
http://www.artesia.eu/english/train-travel/train-schedules.php
So your probably right in that when the new timetable comes in they will publicise the morning/afternoon service. Hopefully it'll be at a similar time aswell. Just have to wait till the 12th December.
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snowymum, they are arriving around 11am,and will be at the apartment by 12 noon, which is why I thought it was Oulx they were arriving at. They are coming from Paris I think , but 11am is very late for the sleeper.
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FAQ
