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Train to Paris
Hi folks, we are taking a back to back trip in 2024. We end the first one in Edinburgh, Scotland and the second one begins in Paris,France. We would like to take the train. Has anyone done this before? What happens to our luggage? I know Tauck will drop us off and pick us up, but we were wondering about the luggage. Thank you for,your help.
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I took the Chunnel train from London to Paris a number of years ago. We were traveling on our own so we shelped our own luggage. It's been a long time, but I'm fairly sure there were places on the train car to put your luggage.
As I remember, you get a reserved seat in a train car.
I don't know if there are trains to Paris from Edinburgh - you might have to change trains in London.
I would want to fly that route.
Concur with British unless you just really like riding trains. I believe the only train route is a 4+ hour ride from Edinburgh Waverly Stn to London Kings Cross. Then get a taxi to St Pancras for the Eurostar to Paris which is another couple of hours. We've done each of those of completely different tours.
And yes you'll have to handle your own luggage from the time the driver drops you off at the station in Edinburgh and a the driver picks you up in Paris. The trains have large racks in most every car to hold large bags and overhead racks that are deep enough for most carryon luggage. The space is first come first served. You may or may not be sitting close to the larger rack. Some trains have space between seats set back to back for larger cases to slide into but that's a hard one to predict. Some trains I've found have fairly low steps to get into the car and lift your bags up and others higher and more difficult.
Agree with British and Claudia. You could take the tube between the stations, but only if you travel light. The only way this makes any sense is if you overnight in London and do some sightseeing there. The plane is probably much cheaper and certainly easier.
Think we will fly! Thank you everyone.
Next question is, which airline would be the best to fly from Edinburgh to Paris? All are SO expensive.
Yes, all flying is expensive, unless you choose the budget airlines that he Brits use, even carry on might be extra. So beware
This is what I came up with when I put in a pretend date for the cheapest available:
If I were making the decision, I'd choose the non-stop.
Though SherriB no longer needs train info, for the record Kings Cross & St. Pancras are right next to each other, though technically two different stations. Here's an excerpt from thetrainline.com: However, despite the fact that they are two separate railway stations serving very different destinations, they happen to be right next to each other. As such, they are both served by one London Underground station: "King's Cross St Pancras".
https://www.thetrainline.com/en-us/via/europe/uk/england/london/everything-you-need-to-know-about-st-pancras-international-london-railway-to-paris-and-beyond
A different train: We are doing the “Savoring France” Southbound in September, and doing our return to SFO from Lyon is a problem … BA, LHR, long connect time, and outrageous taxes and fees for a trip using miles … so we are going to return to CDG on the TGV train which I’ve read stops right under terminal two at CDG. Has anyone done this trip? It is a two hour train ride versus a one hour twenty minute flight, but you don’t have to be at the train station three hours early. It looks easy except for having to schlep the luggage. I’ll jump through a lot of hoops to avoid BA and LHR. Doing the entire trip on AA costs a lot less than any combination with a ‘partner’ for those of us with the company.
I just transited through LHR easily and quickly last week (Budapest to London and then London to JFK) And British Airlines business class was fantastic. My only complaint were the taxes (over $300) and the cost of securing a seat assignment in advance (over $100).
I've done that TGV to CDG. No problems but make sure you get on the right train. Not all of the TGVs go to CDG - some only go to Paris and finish there. It can be difficult because the trains are announced in French. I took the TGV from Aix-en-Provence which is a very small train station - just one track. The train zooms in and zooms out. You better be ready
I also took the train all by myself from Aix en Provence to CDG. It was a little intimating because it was my first time but all went well. First all the trains are numbered, and you’ll quickly walk to that specific train, and then to your assigned seat. It is a leisure train ride. I don’t know how much your luggage will weigh. I learned from a very recent train ride to book my 1st class train seat on the lower level of the train instead of the upper one. It’s easier to stash your luggage on the lower level where you can keep an eye on it instead of carrying it up yet another flight of narrow stairs. I thought I would be able to see more on the second level of the train. It made no difference. Bring a phone charger on the train with an adapter. That’s the one thing I didn’t do. I also returned to SFO, hopped on BART and my husband picked me up in Walnut Creek. Easy peasy.
We did the Savouring France tour in May 2021 and had train tickets set to go from Lyon back to Paris for a post stay. When we realized we would need to shlep the luggage on and off ourselves, and through the train stations we decided to fly one way.