Cost and travel times comparison between different city pairs in France

Travelling in France – Costs and Times

Since there are several forms of transportation in France (High Speed Train –TGV, Intercites train, TER train, Intercity bus, air, car pool), each with associated costs and travel times, it can be difficult to select one. Below you’ll find tables with different types of transportation and their costs and travel times.

I’ve tried booking 1 1/2 month in advance, on the 4th of September I booked for the 31st of October – (which is not really possible with car pooling – blablacar), trying to get the cheapest ticket possible. Obviously when you try yourself you’ll probably find totally different prices, but it’s the principle that is shown here.

NOTE: Remember to add at least 2 hours to air travel times due to security requirements. Often the 2 ours will stretch to 3 if you have bags that require check-in.

A comparison of cost in € and times in hours, traveling between two French cities using various means of transportation.

All schedules and costs were looked at 1 month in advance except BlaBlaCar. All reservation were made for a Wednesday.
(1) Paris - NiceHoursNotes
Bus46.528:452 changes, with IsiLines
Car599:30Blablacar, 1 week in advance
Airplane751:30Direct, EasyJet
Train825:45Direct
(2) Bordeaux - Lyon
Bus258:10Direct, Ouibus
Airplane361:10Direct, EasyJet
Car435:30Blablacar, 1 week in advance
Train705:221 change
(3) Lille - Strasbourg
Bus22111 change
Car355:15Blablacar, 1 week in advance
Train503:521 change (direct possible)
Air511Direct, Hop!
(4) Clermont Ferrand - Biarritz
Bus28.9810:25Flixbus, change at Bordeaux
Car585:45Blablacar, 1 week in advance
Train107112 changes
Air1696:401 change, Air France

Conclusion

As you can see, going by bus wins hands down, followed by private (pooled) car. Then it’s a toss up between air and rail. However, going by bus or car will take you a lot longer.

Related Posts

  • 10000
    Railroads - TGV: The French High Speed TrainMoving around France is easy. First of all, you have a great motorway network, called the "Autoroutes". Although most of them are toll roads (=Peages), they are well maintained and offer many service areas along the way. But if driving a car, or riding a motorcycle, is not your preferred…
  • 10000
    Railroads - TER - Regional TrainsThe TER is the French railroad's regional train service, bringing people to and from the main regional hubs.
  • 10000
    Railroads - IntercitesA look at the French railroad's (SNCF) intercity train service called Intercites.
  • 10000
    Buses - IntercityA few years back (2015), when the current President of France, Emmanuel Macron, was the Minister of Economy, he made it possible for scheduled bus services between cities in France at low cost. The idea was to make intercity travel affordable to the masses. Until that date, it was illegal…
  • 10000
    Airways - Airline Travel in FranceAlthough France is reasonably big (for European standards), air-travel is not very popular. Prices are often high, and with the competition of the High Speed Train (TGV), it makes little sense to take an airplane. Add to that the requirement to be at the airport several hours in advance, which…
Scroll to Top