HI
In contemplating travelling from St Pancras to Nice by train ie Eurostar/TGV and probably via Lille,can anyone put me right or at least reliably tell me if I will be able to purchase Prem Fares.
ALSO if I can get 1ST CLASS Prem Fares (her indoors is%26#39;nt delerious about trains so the ride has to be the most comfortable).
Even if we don%26#39;t do it this year, we would certainly do it next year.
Thanks guys.
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For a random date in October (bookings open 3 months out, I think), there is a direct train from Lille Europe to Nice and it does indeed have first class Prems - 65€ against a standard 94.50€. It leaves at 10.30, arriving Nice 17.55, which looks convenient. The others I found involved changing either in Lyon or Marseille, or a slightly cheaper one travelling via Paris.
First class from London to Nice MUST be the best way to travel - Beanylady will enjoy it!
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We%26#39;ve done this twice now going from Ebbsfleet, which may be a better bet, as to get to Nice at a reasonable time you need a very early start: it avoids an overnight London stay, and means your car is waiting when you return - parking isn%26#39;t cheap (from memory about £85 for 2 weeks), but factor in an overnight hotel, tubes and convenience, and you probably come out on top.
In June this year the train cost £423 return total for two of us first class on Eurostar/TGV: we left Ebbsfleet at 0715, arrived Lille 0924 (the transfer to TGV is much simpler at Lille - you simply cross platforms instead of Paris...), left Lille at 10.30 and arrived in Nice at 17.55. Utterly painless, except for the food on Eurostar first class, which is dire.
We always book the Eurostar plus TGV with Eurostar in the (probably mistaken) belief that if any connections don%26#39;t work due to train delays, we have some comeback, and we book by phone to avoid any misunderstandings.
Happy to answer any questions - this forum has given us so much help, it will be nice to give something back.
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Much thanks to Diz and Norfolk Broad. I appreciate your response very much.
I have a couple of questions however and that is the costs that you both quote seem to be wide apart for the 1st Class fares
Norfolkbroad paying £485 Return for 2 in June and Diz quoting 65 euros presumeably single , so that would be 260 (even if we say pounds)return.
A big difference and I wonder if it is anything to do with the times that you went or if Norfolkbroad did not book in advance.
Whatever it is I would grateful if you could explain a bit.
Also being a dumbo and having done no research (as yet ) on this at all ...what is or where is Ebbsfleet and how does that come in to the equation please.
Thanks again. I really appreciate this help.
BB
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Hi again - I%26#39;d just quoted the cheapest first class fare I could see on the sncf website for the TGV from Lille to Nice, booked well in advance. I think norfolkbroad%26#39;s figure includes the Eurostar fare.
Ebbsfleet is the new station in Essex where some Eurostar trains stop. I think there is plenty of parking, so it%26#39;s convenient if you%26#39;re driving from that side of the country.
Did you know about the English language TGV website (run by sncf, so it%26#39;s official!): http://www.tgv-europe.com/en/home/
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It%26#39;s a pleasure to try and help. We paid £423 for two people, first class all the way from Ebbsfleet (which is the Kent Eurostar Terminal, with car parking) to Nice via Lille. We booked on the first day TGV opened their bookings (at the time they were later opening up bookings than Eurostar, so we may have missed an early booking Eurostar deal, but I don%26#39;t think so). We booked the whole thing through Eurostar by telephone, leaving it up to them to suggest the connections - this way (in theory) the buck stops with them if trains are delayed, and connections missed.
Ebbsfleet only comes into the equation as an alternative Eurostar boarding place which is more convenient if you don%26#39;t live within easy reach of London, or prefer to be able to park your car and walk to the station, and have the car waiting for you when (pretty shattered) you return. As you may have gathered we live in Norfolk, and can get to Ebbsfleet by car for an early start. If we were to go from St Pancras, we would have to get the train to London, stay in London overnight, then get the tube at crack of dawn.
A very useful website for all rail journeys is www.seat61.com.
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Thanks Diz . Good of you to come back again.
You could be right. I appreciate the fact that if we could book early especially perhaps for next year, we may get a more favourable rate and of course I accept that Norfolkbroad may have indeed included the Eurostar price in that total charge.
Perhaps he/she will clarify that if they get a chance.
I would lke a further bit of help if it is%26#39;nt too much to ask, and that is HOW and WHO WITH is it best to book with. That is to travel from
St Pancras to Nice via Lille. I assume Eurostar would be involved to take us as far as Lille and then the TGV from Lille to Nice ?
So is it best tobook all of with one company
either Eurostar, Rail Europe or the new TGV site you gave you just gave me.
Ah hah! Norfolkbroad had just posted a reply (whilst I%26#39;m replying to Diz) Many many thanks for that and I note what you say.
Can I ask Norfolkbroad then, was that First class fare you bought actually a PREM fare?
Both of you are fantastically helpful and I am really very grateful.Pending your response%26#39;s to this,I am sure that there will be something else I may need to know in the future.
Later....
BB
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I%26#39;m afraid you can only book Eurostar/TGV about 3 months in advance - deeply irritating, and you dare not book Eurostar until the TGV timetables are published, in case the timings are wrong.
Sorry, not sure what a premium fare is - we just booked first class. On Eurostar, I think there is one level above this, but others may know more. We book both legs of the journey with Eurostar, who have always worked out marginally cheaper than anyone else, but this may change. I%26#39;m not sure of the advantages of first class on TGV, as you cannot board either 1st or 2nd class without a pre-booked seat reservation, and the seats are nothing special, but again others may know more than I do, as I%26#39;ve never tried second class.
I am a she! Keep asking away, and I%26#39;m sure we%26#39;ll both do what we can to help
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Thank you yet again and thanks for the genda explanation. I thought perhaps that you were either a she or a he who needed to lose weight!
However a Prem Fare is very much cheaper and it is a great pity you did%26#39;nt find that out before you went, as you will probably have saved a chunk of cash.
As Diz points out , you can also get First class Seats on the Prem Fares.And I know know that the Seat 61 guy explains a bit about them on his site.
I am more than surprised to hear that the TGV First Class Seats are nothing special. I was hoping that they would be much more comfortable otherwise there would%26#39;nt seem to be much point in paying the extra dosh, even if we could get them on the Prem Rates.
I am hboping Diz OR SOMEONE ELSE will come back with answers to my other points on the best way to
book.
In the meantime thanks again , you have been most helpful and I am grateful.
BB
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As far as I know, the TGV seat configuration in 1st class is the same as Eurostar - two seats on one side of the aisle and individual seats beside the window on the other, whereas 2nd class has 4 seats across the carriage, so you get more space. Just found a photo: seat61.com/images/France-TGVfirstclass.jpg
I don%26#39;t know which company is best to book with, to be honest - it possibly depends on exchange rates - but I think norfolkbroad%26#39;s reasoning is sound, that any delays on the connecting service means the company should come to the rescue!
I%26#39;ve never done the connection to Nice (I%26#39;m very envious), but we have used the Brussels Eurostar service via Lille after the new line opened from St Pancras. We found the journey time is so much shorter that the meal (lunch) was a bit of a rush as the staff wanted to get the service finished before passengers left in Lille. One trolley came through with the main course, closely followed by the waiter serving coffee! I asked for him to come back when I%26#39;d finished my pudding and he looked decidedly harrassed and said he had no time. Bring back the slow line from Waterloo, I say!
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And we were told by Eurostar that one cannot book a particular seat on TGV (you can on Eurostar), eg a table seat.
I%26#39;d be interested to know if that is correct, as my trust in call centres is absolutely nil.
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