France Train Strikes

Johnps

I am seeing information about periodic train strikes in France this spring.
France Train Strikes
My wife and I are on the May 16 departure and the itinerary lists May 18th as Paris to Lyon via TGV. May 18th is also listed as one of the strike days for French Rail. I am sure Tauck has some contingencies for these types of events but wanted to let others know there may be some changes to the itinerary. If other Tauck travelers have encountered these issues in the past please chime in to this thread.
John

Claudia Sails

Tauck used to take all the passengers down to Lyon on one of their tour buses. The folks at cruisereport.com have a review of their 2012 French Escapade cruise on the Swiss Emerald that shows/talks about this. When we did French Waterways in 2014 they had switched to using the high speed train. The bus takes longer so you get less time on your own that morning.

FYI, even when the trains aren't on strike there's no guarantee you won't have problems. Our tour had about half the group in Paris and the rest started the tour in Lyon (Paris was an optional add on). When we got to the train station in Paris only about 10 got to take the expected train and the rest of us waited another hour - all due to a screwup by the rail company. We didn't even have enough seats for everyone. Some had to hang out in the bar or where ever they could find to perch.

Best of luck on your tour. French Waterways was our first and still favorite river cruise.

tomh

Last year on another river boat cruise (not Tauck) from Lyon to Arles, we changed at Arles for what was suppose to be a high-speed French train ride from Arles, France to Barcelona, Spain. However we were stuck on the train for several hours at Arles due to someone committing suicide on the tracks between Arles and Barcelona. That train trip took more than 5 hours. Yep, even if the trains are suppose to run on time, there is always a chance that they may not do so.

gregdude

We are on this tour, but start on May 23 with train to Lyon on May 25. So far it looks like our train will not be affected, but knowing how things can change we are planning on a bus ride. If the train works out that would be great. I would like to know if the underground is being impacted since two of the days we are in Paris are strike days? I guess based on the location of the hotel walking may be the best option to get around the city center.

rosepetal

June 2014 we were on the French Waterways tour. There was a rail strike. Our train was delayed as it was the only one leaving Paris. We all had seats but others boarded the train and there was people in the aisles and stairs. One young woman in our compartment carried her wedding dress. At first the train would not go as it was overcrowded and no one wanted to get off. However, after an hour or so the train was allowed to leave but would go slower than normal. We made it to Lyon a bit late but had a fantastic tour the rest of the time. Our Seine River tour with Tauck in 2016 there was a taxi strike in Paris! This is France, one has to expect there could be some type of strike.

British

I have literally just had an email from a friend who is on a train on her way back from Paris to London right now