We’ve almost missed our train two trips in a row at at Paris-Est and wonder if we are doing something wrong to cause so much stress?
Delayed TGV Trains And The Stress Of Paris-Est Travel
I am not experienced enough in rail travel to opine on the general punctuality of the French rail network, but I do know our last two high-speed TGV trains from Gare de l’Est in Paris to Strasbourg have been late.
That itself is lamentable, but the bigger problem—at least for us—is the way in which the system works.
You often do not know your track number until your train approaches, particularly if your train is running late. All of a sudden, the track is displayed on station monitors and there is a mad dash for the tracks.
In our case, we were sitting at Starbucks (blame Heidi, I don’t touch the stuff…) when our track number finally displayed for our late train. We immediately gathered our belongings and walked over, noting people seemed to be running.
We were traveling in first class and our car was located way down at the end of the train…way, way, way down.
As you might know if you are parents, walking with four bags and two small children is not an easy task. Although we were moving in the right direction, we were moving slowly.
All of a sudden, the whistles started blowing the train was about to take off. We noticed the platform was deserted.
Heidi and I panicked a bit and began to run. She had Claire Marie and I had Augustine. After 30 more seconds, we really feared we would miss the train and Augustine and I hopped in our car (we made it to our assigned carriage) and Claire Marie and Heidi jumped on a few cars behind us.
Sure enough, the train pulled out moments later.
The cars were not connected via doors so we remained separated all the way to Strasbourg, with Heidi and Claire Marie in second class.
Is this sort of thing common?
I understand that when trains arrive late you want to get them out as soon as possible, but when you have a 12-car train are people not even given enough time to board?
This happened to Heidi and me on our date night in Paris the previous summer. Almost the same thing. Do you really have to run to your carriage? And it’s not like we could have just walked from one car to the other as they do not appear to be all connected in the passenger area.
What am I missing here?
Yes, this is common. And no, it doesn’t have to be the way you described. Regardless of how “premium” your seat may be, trains are all basically mass transit. Benefit of the many over the specific needs of a few (you). But if you but down your phone and ask a station agent they’ll often have a decent sense of track and est of arrival time. here’s hoping third time is a charm
You stated the platform was deserted. Should everyone else on the train wait for one family that arrived late?
Reread. We were not late. The train was late. We walked to the platform with the gaggle. And I don’t think you understand the process of boarding or how long the train was.
A TGV train would have hundreds of passengers boarding under these circumstances. Only Americans would look to find fault with the system, when they were the only ones who had an issue, rather than with themselves.
I was traveling with three Germans, but thanks for trolling pal.
Don’t forget your German passport. Four hapless Germans!
Your kids aren’t also American citizens?
They are.
miamiorbust, I don’t know how P&M bloggers manage to tolerate comments such as yours. Your last sentence was almost helpful – aside from the “but down your phone” comment. To each their own I guess.
Matthew – I’ve experienced similar things before and you’re correct. It is very stressful. Your frustration is warranted!
Thanks JB. It’s not like I’m a stranger to trains. Took one very day when I lived in Germany. This was a very different situation.
Spoken like an American with far too much time (and moral righteous). Guess you gotta live up to the ugly American stereotype that nearly all the world has learned loath. Well done.
I never have problems catching the TGV but then, I’m a frequent traveller and travel solo often.
Tracks should be displayed 15 min prior to depature (As a German living in France, I prefer the German model of announcing the platform earlier – if DB doesn’t change it on you last minute!). And they often depart from the same “region” in the train station, so with enough practice, you know where to stand in GdE/GdN.
I agree with @Miamiorbus – ask the station attendants, they can often let you now earlier, if you are in doubt.
For future reference: all TGV cars are connected to one another – provided they are on the same train (Duplex TGVs (two-story TGVs) have their connecting doors upstairs). Sometimes two TGV-trains are connected but are actually going to different places – so do not jump into the wrong one! Your wife and daughter could’ve easily ended up somewhere else in France….(this is common with the Calais-Dunkerque TGV, for example. One part goes to Calais and the other to Dunkerque, so two different trains after Lille). You can spot the two train TGVs by checking if two engine cars connect to one another in the middle of the train.
One thing I will say is that the track was definitely not shown 15 minutes before. Plus, I had the SNCF app open and kept refreshing to see the track, which showed up on the screen first. The train was late, it suddenly appeared on the board, there was a mad dash, and the train left less than 10 minutes later.
Ah, yes. The SNCF app – it is utter garbage, much like SNCF IT in general! Always and only trust the announcements at the station or in the train. And always keep your eyes peeled to the screens at the train station in France – the track shows up there first.
Oh, and you can only jump onboard an earlier car (provided it’s part of the correct train!) and then walk through the train to your seats – that way you are onboard.
I don’t understand what was going on in my case. We were way down in car 11 and there was that second engine you mention somewhere between where my wife got on and I did (in our assigned car). But the train made only a stop or two before reaching Strasbourg and the sign indicated it was only stopping at Strasbourg. When a train splits, will it indicate at which station on the sign?
No, they generally do not provide that information on the screen unless you know that the Terminus is actually two different places (e.g., Dunkerque / Rang-du-Fliers-Verton). Sometimes, a two-train TGV traverses the full route together and has the same Terminus (in case of travel peaks).
Always, always make sure you are getting on board the correct part of the train! I’ve seen it happen to many colleagues who jumped on the wrong train and then found themselves somehwere else….that can get very expensive very fast!
And do check train numbers. Sometimes trains depart to the same destination a few minutes apart from opposite sides of the plattform but if you’re in the wrong one, your ticket could be invalid because its only for the other train (that happened to me once, also quite expensive).
Also, check out Seat61 dot com – they have guides to the French TGV, incl. video guides.
Max, I’ve taken hundreds of ICE trains and dozens of TGV trains over the years. I’ve used rail in Africa, Asia, Australia, North America, and South America. I am not new at the train game and insist that we’ve run into this unique issue two trips in a row from Paris Est (late train, woefully insufficient time to board).
Well, I am sure three times will be charm. As someone who passes through GdE almost weekly, I’ve yet to encounter this particular problem (delays on the other hand….) – maybe you just got unlucky. If not, Bienvenue en France! 😉
Sounds completely different from the train system in japan. Caught the shinkasen from Tokyo to Kyoto today and it was seamless.
Unbelievable that a 16 car bullet train leaves on this route like every five minutes?!
It’s very unusual to be unable to walk from one carriage to another.
We took a super fast like train in italy. Two trains were coupled into one at the start of the journey. We got into the wrong portion and our assigned seats seem to be occupied..luckily the on board train personnel pointed out our error. We had enuf time to correct ourselves or else we would have ended up in another part of Italy when the priginating train was bifurcated enroute.
I’m always next to the tracks and can immediately go to the correct platform quickly and not sitting down somewhere further away, especially with a bunch of bags and young kids. Depending on the size of the bags, 4 bags sounds like at least 1 too many unless a couple are backpacks.
The First Class car(s) will generally be toward the front of the train, which is the opposite end of the one you see when you enter the platform. Have travelled extensively on SNCF and have experienced minor delays and punctual departures and arrivals. The SNCF website clearly shows where the carriages are and these are clearly marked, and the trains themselves have digital displays illustrating the car numbers and seat sections. That said, on a very recent Paris-Bordeaux train ride, there was a mad dash to board, but with 15-20 minutes prior to scheduled departure.
It is unfortunate that this was a stressful experience for you and your family, and having to hustle with two small children in tow isn’t fun, but generally European rail travel is a breeze.
Interesting that in France the First Class cars generally are toward the front of the train. In Austria the First/Business Class cars are at the end of the train (Business being a higher class of service than First).
Business also higher than first on French trains, but this train only had first class and second class.
The French rail system is very much a system of tribal knowledge or having a friend employed there to help. I imagine the problems will only compound during summertime with the French ban on some shortfall flights with tourists wanting to see more than Paris.
It only happened to me once but waiting in Starbucks is risky when traveling as a group. You have about 8 to 10 minutes, that’s it. If you wait with the French crowd, someone may help you with translation of the announcement.
You are not alone. I have experienced French trains only a couple of times but it was always a stressful experience. We camped out near one of the monitors that showed the track numbers and we were not alone. Large crowds of people were doing the same thing and as soon as the train showed up on the monitor there would be a mad dash by masses of people to the train. Also having First Class tickets usually meant our car was all the way down the track at the far end and took the longest to get to and they were long trains. By the time we entered our car there was not much extra time before the train departed. So, yeah, I would never risk sitting at a Starbucks waiting to catch a French train. It is very stressful. The journey once onboard, on the other hand, was lovely.
Yes, it is a common phenomenon when the train is running late. It is how they get back “on track” when it comes to reaching the next destination on time. If they waited, then they would be late for the next destination, and so on and so forth.
Next time, if the track is not assigned yet, wait right next to the display board (rather than inside Starbucks) and as soon the track is assigned, high tail it over there.
I have a connection on AF using SNCF, I hope I don’t see too many issues. I generally don’t have issues with trains in Europe in general (except Spain’s, their whole system is garbage)
“You often do not know your track number until your train approaches, ” Welcome to the UK. Same thing happens there and it is annoying. BTW, France and UK has been chaotic this summer. Protests, strikes, lazy workers, etc… If you want a place where things work and are on time, go to Switzerland.
You are lucky…multiple strikes concerning Macron raising the retirement age.
SNCF employees have participated.
And don’t get me started with the UK rail system.
Best to consult the National Rail web page for your daily dose of railroad labor strife!!
I’ve experienced that before in the UK!
Doesn’t sound any worse than the boarding scrum to get to the right escalator at New York’s Penn Station.
Do Frence Railroad Stations have the equivalent of Red Caps, people you tip who will help carry your luggage to the train, and make sure you get on the right train car. That’s what I would use to board a train with young children at a major station in the US or Canada, in some stations like Chicago and Los Angeles you get to ride an electric cart down the platform to your train car?
Reading through the comments, it seems like the summary verdict is– if you’re doing this journey and the train is late, you should wait near the board, in a crowd of people who appear to speak French. Then put on some track spikes and assume a runners starting position. You need to have an app on your phone that doesn’t work, and you should not be holding your phone in your hand, have it in a backpack. You’ll have plenty of time to wait in line to speak to an agent at the station, but under no circumstances should you attempt to get a coffee.
When the platform is announced, you’d better come out of the blocks like Usain Bolt if you’re in first class, second class can be a bit more like Carl Lewis, but you still need to run to your train.
Now all the TGV trains are all the same, except for their differences. One of those differences is that sometimes a series of linked cars is one train and sometimes it’s more than one train. You can always walk from one car to another of course, unless you can’t. If you can’t, it may be that one train is actually two trains put together– you can tell if there is an engine somewhere in the middle, but you have to be able to run that far enough to see the engine to determine this. Make sure you get on the correct train, it will not be marked.
If you make it to your first class seat you can enjoy the ride knowing that you are a selfish person. If you end up on the wrong train, you can confirm this using the app on your phone, or just wait until you arrive at your unintended destination. You can then share the story on the internet, where it will be reviewed in a blameless manner.
Phenomenal recap!!
Quite common. We were running more than once for fast trains in Italy last year.
You’re not missing a thing my wife and I have had the exact same experience while traveling by train in Europe.
We caught one of the train people up on a platform on one of the excursions and asked why in the world they had to leave so fast, and he said it was so that the trains would run on time.
My wife immediately pointed out the fact that the reason everybody was rushing to get on the train was because it was late getting in in the first place.
He just walked .
European trains are an engineering marvel but I treat them as mass transit and expect as much out of them as a Spirit flight. When Trenitalia was over an hour late arriving in Rome I stayed on the platform to make sure I could board immediately. Unlike flying, the signage was inconsistently updated as the arrival time and platform kept changing.
I had better luck checking in with an agent every 20 minutes. I kept my restroom visits brief and got coffee within direct view of the platforms.
Additionally, the train that finally arrived was missing a first class car. I emailed seeking compensation but got a lot of runaround and gave up. Once aboard, my second-class seat was fast, friendly, and comfortable. Sorry this happened to you. We Americans tend to mistakenly idealize European train travel and the experience doesn’t match expectations.
Wondering how is the US train standards compared to French ones (oops no they don’t have TGV yet or do they ?). But you CAN move from one car to another, just go on the 2nd floor (but yes not between two trains connected, as everywhere).
Just if you see people running there’s a reason: RUN. But I did see once in Lyon Part-Dieu, the TGV closing doors starting to move… and slowing down and reopening doors to let a family of 5 with luggage board in.
Good, you didn’t experiment a strike 🙂 yet, but it’s a to do experiment that will make you appreciate the train is late, because a least, he’s there (the train)