I want to leave Paris and go to Bruges than to Bordeaux and finally return to Paris. All within the same month.
What do I buy and how do I make reservations
Answer
What pass to purchase
Best answer by cdwatkins19
It may be cheaper and easier to buy ordinary tickets. Use SNCF connect to get fares for Paris to Bruxelles and Paris to Bordeaux for the exact trains and dates you need. The further in advance you book the cheaper just like booking a plane. Next use SNCB to find the fare from Bruxelles to Bruges.
Compare this to the Eurail Global Pass costs. Remember that using a Eurail means an expensive supplement on the Thalys train to Bruxelles and there are limited Eurail pass places on these trains. The supplement to Bordeaux is 10 or 20 euros. per single journey.
IF you are FRench you cannot do this on a pass.
I see its Canuck: even then I would advize you to simply book normal advance tickets (cheaper as full fare, but tied to that train), and for Par-Bdx there may even be a low-cost Ezy-go train.
Its should be obvious that the trip Br->Bdx (well, i was there last week) goes via or just along Paris-there are a very few through TGV LIlle-Bdx or hourly to/fro P-depends on when and what day and the various whims of SNCF what will be cheapest. IN and to Belgium its for those trains simply a fixed and not overly high rate-but it can be lower IF you happen to be ju- or senior, only for the sector IN BE itself. Lille-change Kortrijk-Brugge is less as half P-LIlle in KM but will take more as 1,5 hrs (the TGV 55 mins)-thats the diff between regional and hi-speed.
If you still want that pass-and as I you write you are in FR or even P now: do the RES via a SNCF machine for long-dist. at any major station/gare. But you need only 3 traveldays-and the MIN on a pass is 4-and its 2 countries, so you need global.
+5It may be cheaper and easier to buy ordinary tickets. Use SNCF connect to get fares for Paris to Bruxelles and Paris to Bordeaux for the exact trains and dates you need. The further in advance you book the cheaper just like booking a plane. Next use SNCB to find the fare from Bruxelles to Bruges.
Compare this to the Eurail Global Pass costs. Remember that using a Eurail means an expensive supplement on the Thalys train to Bruxelles and there are limited Eurail pass places on these trains. The supplement to Bordeaux is 10 or 20 euros. per single journey.
+8If you’re under 26 you have very beneficial travel options in Belgium.
A trip on a train will never cost you more than 6,6 EUR (Youth ticket or youth multi 10 trips for 53 or 55 EUR).
During weekends, weekend tickets are usually beneficial (half priced fares, starting from friday 19h and you can return on the same day, or saturday or sunday.) More info: https://www.belgiantrain.be/fr
I see you’re Canadian. Sure you don’t plan any other trips in the next weeks/months after your outie to Bruges?
Which days you are looking for to travel? If it’s still long in the future, you don’t plan any other trips, don’t buy a pass. Sometimes a pass is more beneficial, if you do last minute trips. Prices are higher closer to your travel date on (international) long distance trajectories.
In general, your cheapest option will be:
Take an ordinary ticket Paris - Lille (maybe even Tourcoing) via: https://www.sncf-connect.com/.
Then a short border crossing ticket Lille/Tourcoing - Mouscron and then an ordinary domestic Belgian ticket (Mouscron - Brugge). Playing a bit with the local tickets can save you a lot of money in comparison to the pass. If you’re not sure about the options, come back to me. I’ll gladly help.
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