Regional and intercity trains in France

Reservations for regional trains are not required (except for the TER trains).

TER

• Connects most French cities and towns, with frequent services
• Certain ‘Nomad’ trains in the Normandy region have mandatory reservations
  • €1,70 reservation fee can be made via Rail Europe and at French stations
• Certain ‘TER Grand Est’ trains on the following routes have mandatory reservations:
  • Paris – Troyes – Belfort – Mulhouse
  • Paris – Épernay – St. Dizier/Bar-le-Duc
  • Reservations are free and can only be bought on railways stations
• TER trains from Lille Europe require a supplement of €2,- as they run on high speed lines:
  • Lille Europe – Dunkerque
  • Lille Europe – Calais (– Boulogne Ville – Rang du Fliers Verton)
  • Lille Europe – Arras – Amiens
  • Arras – Lille Europe – Calais
  • Dunkerque – Lille Europe – Amiens
  • Buy this supplement at the station desk, find more information here

Intercités (InterCity)

• Connects major cities and towns in France
• Reservations are not required for most Intercités trains
• See this map (PDF) about which Intercités require reservations (only the green lines do not require reservations)

Paris: suburban RER trains

RER trains connect central Paris with suburban areas of the city. Please note these trains are NOT included in the Pass. Keep this in mind when you're travelling to:

• Orly Airport
• Charles de Gaulle Airport
• Disneyland Paris
• Versailles

Domestic high-speed trains in France

TGV

• Connects popular destinations like Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille and Nice.

• Travels at speeds of 320 km/h (200 mph).

• Features luggage racks, power sockets, and snacks in a restaurant car.

• Reservations are required.

International high-speed trains in France

Eurostar

• High speed trains to Great Britain, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands on the routes:
  • Paris – London
  • Paris – Brussels
  • Paris – Brussels – Antwerp – Rotterdam – Amsterdam
  • Paris – Brussels – Liège – Cologne – Düsseldorf – Dortmund
  • Disneyland Paris – Brussels – Antwerp – Rotterdam – Amsterdam
• Reservations are compulsory for these trains, which can get fully booked. We recommend making your reservation as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
• Read more about special booking conditions on our dedicated Eurostar page.
• Services to Brussels, Amsterdam and Dortmund are operated by red-coloured former Thalys trains.

TGV & ICE to Germany

• Connects French cities to various destinations in Germany, such as:        
  • Paris – Frankfurt, Freiburg, Stuttgart & Munich (Germany)
  • Marseille – Frankfurt (Germany)
  • Bordeaux – Frankfurt (Germany) Running on Saturdays 08 July – 26 August
  • Bordeaux – Freiburg (Germany) Running on Saturdays 01 April – 02 September
  • Reservations are required.

TGV to Barcelona

• Connects Paris with Barcelona (Spain).
• Reservations are required.
• Quickly sells out in summer, travel by Intercités de Nuit to Latour de Carol or Cerbère as an alternative.

RENFE AVE to Spain

• Lyon – Barcelona
• Marseille – Madrid
• Reservations are required

TGV Lyria

• Connects Paris to Geneva and Zurich (Switzerland).
• Reservations are required.

TGV to Brussels

• Connects various cities in France with Brussels (Belgium), such as:
  • Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Rennes & Strasbourg to Brussels.
• Reservations are required.

TGV to Luxembourg

• Connects Paris and Montpellier to Luxembourg City (Luxembourg).
• Reservations are required.

TGV to Italy

• Connects Paris to Turin and Milan (Italy).
• Reservations are required.

Train stations of bordering countries

An Interrail Pass valid in France covers travel to some train stations of bordering countries:

• Basel (Switzerland)

• Geneva (Switzerland)

• Portbou (Spain)

• Ventimiglia (Italy)

Domestic night trains in France

Intercités de Nuit

Connects Paris to various destinations in the east, west and south of France:

The Intercités de Nuit runs on the following routes:

(A map can be found here: Carte IC 2024 version Finale (sncf-connect.com))

• Paris – Toulouse (Daily)
  
• Paris – Foix – Latour de Carol (Daily)
  
• Paris – Nîmes – Montpellier – Perpignan – Cerbere (Only daily in the summer)
• Paris – Bayonne – Pau – Lourdes – Tarbes (Daily)
• Paris – Rodez – Albi (Not daily)
• Paris – Aurillac (Not daily)
  
• Paris – Marseille – Toulon – Cannes – Nice (Daily)
• Paris – Briançon (Not daily)

Use the Intercités de Nuit as an alternative route to Spain

Both the night trains to Latour de Carol and Cerbère are good alternatives for the busy TGV route to Barcelona. The night train to Bayonne is a good alternative to reach San Sebastian and Bilbao via Hendaye.

• Search for Paris to Latour de Carol in our timetable and find the local train to Barcelona on the Rodalies website (‘La Tor de Querol-Enveitg’).
• Search for Paris to Cerbere and Cerbere to Barcelona in separate enquiries in our timetable.  This train only runs daily during summer season.
• Search for Paris to Hendaye in our timetable and find the local trains to San Sebastian and Bilbao on Euskotren* to Spain. RENFE trains to San Sebastian and Madrid depart from Irun, which is a 30 minute walk across the border or a 4 minute train ride by Euskotren.*

*Euskotren is not part of the Interrail network. Buy your tickets locally in Hendaye from vending machines or at the ticket desk.

Reservations are required for these trains. 

International night trains in France

ÖBB Nightjet

• Paris - Munich - Vienna
• Paris – Strasbourg – Mannheim – Halle – Berlin

International ferry connections to and from France

• Great Britain to France
  Get an Interrail discount of 30% off Irish Ferries journeys from Rosslare in Ireland to Cherbourg (19h 30m) or Roscoff (18h 30m) in north-west France.