Two Weeks in France by Train: A Grand Tour

Two weeks is enough to see five French regions by train without hiring a car: Paris and Versailles, the Loire châteaux, Bordeaux and its wine villages, Provence's papal and Roman towns, and Lyon. It is not enough to see them the way many plans try to, with a new town every night and a château squeezed in between two trains. This route uses five bases instead: Paris for four nights, Tours for two, Bordeaux for two, Avignon for three and Lyon for two, thirteen nights in all, with the last morning spent on the train back to Paris.

The order is a loop that follows the fastest lines. TGVs from Paris Montparnasse reach Tours in about 1 hour 15 minutes and continue to Bordeaux in about two more. From Bordeaux a direct Intercités crosses the south via Toulouse and Montpellier to Nîmes, a short regional hop from Avignon. From Avignon the TGV runs up the Rhône to Lyon, and from Lyon back to Paris Gare de Lyon in about two hours. Only one leg, Bordeaux to Avignon, takes most of a day; every other move leaves you a full afternoon at the next base. Each base gets the four to six sights that matter most and one day trip by regional train (TER). The train times quoted below come from SNCF's published timetable for November 2026, for the day of the week each leg falls on with a Tuesday start; engineering works change some dates and summer timetables differ, so check the day you travel.

Start on a Tuesday if you can. The big Paris museums close on different days: the Louvre on Tuesdays, the Musée d'Orsay and the Palace of Versailles on Mondays. A Tuesday start puts your arrival day on the Louvre's closed day and lets the other three Paris days fall on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, when all three are open. It also gets you to Lyon on a weekend, when its museums are open.

Book these before you go

• Palace of Versailles: every visitor needs a timed slot for the Palace, including those who get in free. In the low season (2 November to 31 March) the Passport ticket, covering the Palace, the Trianon estate and the gardens, costs €25 in 2026. Book at chateauversailles.fr.
• Louvre: book a time slot at ticket.louvre.fr. From 14 January 2026 adult tickets cost €22 for visitors from the European Economic Area and €32 for everyone else. The museum sells tickets on site only when attendance is low, and it made booking compulsory for everyone from 17 October to 1 November 2026.
• Musée d'Orsay: €16 online, €14 at the door in 2026. Booking online saves the ticket queue.
• The long train legs: the Tours–Bordeaux, Bordeaux–Nîmes and Lyon–Paris trains. TGV and OUIGO seats are cheaper the earlier you book, and rail-pass holders must reserve a seat on both (see Practical notes).

A TGV INOUI at Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, the station outside Tours where most high-speed trains from Paris and Bordeaux stop. Image: Florian Pépellin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Days 1–4 — Paris: four days, three closing days to work around

Paris gets the most nights because two of France's great museums and Versailles each need most of a day. The plan below assumes a Tuesday arrival.

Day 1 (Tuesday): Île de la Cité. With the Louvre closed, spend the arrival afternoon on the island where Paris began. Notre-Dame de Paris reopened in December 2024 after the 2019 fire. Entry to the cathedral is free; you can reserve a free time slot online, which is not compulsory but shortens the wait. A few minutes' walk away, the Sainte-Chapelle is the reason to come to the island: an upper chapel walled almost entirely in 13th-century stained glass. Admission is €22, or €16 for nationals and residents of the European Economic Area; under-18s and EU nationals and residents aged 18–25 go free. From October to March it opens 9:00–17:00, with last entry at 16:30. Go in the afternoon only if the sky is bright; the glass is the whole visit, and it needs daylight.

Day 2 (Wednesday): the Louvre. The Louvre opens at 9:00 every day except Tuesday and stays open until 21:00 on Wednesdays and Fridays. That late opening is the reason the Louvre goes on a Wednesday here: book a morning slot, break for lunch outside, and come back for the evening when the galleries are quieter. Last entry is an hour before closing. Do not try to see everything. Pick two wings, for example the Denon wing for Italian painting and the Mona Lisa, and the Sully wing for the medieval moat of the original fortress and the Egyptian collections.

The Cour Carrée, the square courtyard of the old royal palace at the eastern end of the Louvre. Image: Benh LIEU SONG, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Day 3 (Thursday): Versailles day trip. The Palace of Versailles is closed on Mondays, 1 January, 1 May and 25 December. In the low season the Palace opens 9:00–17:30 (last entry 16:45); from 1 April to 1 November it stays open until 18:30. The Trianon estate, Marie-Antoinette's domain, opens only from 12:00. That gives the day its order: Palace at 9:00, gardens before lunch, Trianon in the afternoon.

The château recommends RER C to Versailles Château–Rive Gauche, about a 10-minute walk from the gates. Trains from Paris Montparnasse to Versailles Chantiers take 11–18 minutes and run about every half hour, but leave you an 18-minute walk. Strike days are common enough in France to check the night before (see Practical notes).

The Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles. Image: Myrabella, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Day 4 (Friday): Orsay and the Left Bank. The Musée d'Orsay opens 9:30–18:00 from Tuesday to Sunday and until 21:45 on Thursdays; it closes on Mondays. Its Impressionist rooms on the top floor fill up first, so start there. Orsay's Thursday late opening (to 21:45; €12 online after 18:00) also lets you add it on the evening of the Versailles day.

The rule for these four days: Louvre never on a Tuesday, Orsay and Versailles never on a Monday. Everything else in Paris can be shuffled around those three.

Days 5–6 — Tours: the Loire châteaux without a car

Train in: Paris Montparnasse → Tours, TGV INOUI, 1 hour 11 to 1 hour 17 minutes direct. On a weekday SNCF runs 26 trips between Paris and Tours. Some TGVs run through to Tours station in the town centre (on weekdays the 7:30, arriving 8:44); others stop only at Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, 5 minutes away by a connecting TER. With a Tuesday start this leg falls on a Saturday, when the 7:30 runs only to Saint-Pierre-des-Corps (arriving 8:34). A slower but cheaper choice is the TER from Paris Austerlitz, about 2 hours with no reservation needed, which stops at Blois and Amboise on the way. OUIGO's low-cost trains to the Loire also leave from Austerlitz and call at Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, not Tours, on their way to Nantes.

Tours is the best base for the Loire by train because three of the most important châteaux are on regional lines out of its station: Chenonceau on the Vierzon line, Amboise and Blois on the Orléans line.

Day 5 (Saturday): Chenonceau. Take the 7:30 TGV and you can be on a TER to Chenonceaux by mid-morning (9:29 from Tours or 9:37 from Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, arriving 9:55; this train runs on Saturdays too). The château says its station is about 400 metres from the ticket office. The Château de Chenonceau is the one built across a river: its long gallery stands on arches over the Cher. It is open every day of the year; from 2 November to 4 December 2026 the hours are 9:30–16:30, and from 4 July to 23 August 9:00–19:00. Tickets cost €19 with a leaflet or €24 with an audioguide in 2026, €15 for ages 7–18 and free under 7.

Allow two to three hours for the rooms, the gallery and the two gardens. Plan your return before you go in: on a November Saturday the trains back to Tours leave at 12:08, 13:06, 13:56 and 16:28 (on weekdays there is nothing between 13:06 and 18:07). Spend the rest of the afternoon in Tours' old quarter around Place Plumereau and the cathedral.

Day 6 (Sunday): day trip to Blois and Chambord. This is the base's day trip, and it is the one that needs the most planning. TERs from Tours reach Blois-Chambord station in 32–49 minutes; on a Sunday the first leaves Tours at 8:01, arriving 8:41. From Blois station, Rémi coach line 2 runs to Chambord, 15 km away, for €3.40 single or €6.80 return. In Rémi's current low-season timetable it leaves Blois station at 9:20 and 12:20 every day, Sundays included, and leaves Chambord at 13:10 and 17:00; it does not run on 25 December or 1 January. Rémi says times can change, so check it before you go. The fallback is a taxi, about 25 minutes. A Rémi combined ticket bundles the train, the coach and admission; with a same-day train ticket, Chambord admission drops from €21 to €18.50.

The Château de Chambord, begun for François I in 1519, is the largest of the Loire châteaux and stands in a walled forest park rather than a town. Its double-spiral staircase, on which two people can climb without meeting, is the centre of the visit. It is open 9:00–17:00 from 26 October to 18 December 2026 and 9:00–18:00 in the main season, with last entry 30 minutes before closing; it closes on 25 December. Give it three hours, then take the 13:10 coach back to Blois and walk up to the royal château in the town centre; the only later coach is at 17:00. TERs back to Tours run through the evening.

The Château de Chambord from its southeast avenue. Image: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The alternative: Amboise. If the Chambord coach does not fit your day, or you would rather not spend three hours on transport, take a TER to Amboise instead (19–25 minutes, about 16 a day on Sundays). The Château d'Amboise sits above the Loire, and the tomb of Leonardo da Vinci is in its chapel; Clos Lucé, the manor where he spent his last three years, is a few hundred metres away. In November 2026 the château opens 9:00–12:30 and 14:00–17:00 and charges €17.30 for adults.

Days 7–8 — Bordeaux: an 18th-century port and the Saint-Émilion hills

Train in: Tours → Bordeaux Saint-Jean, about 2 hours. There are 15 trips a day; most combine a short TER from Tours to Saint-Pierre-des-Corps with a TGV INOUI onwards. With a Tuesday start this is a Monday, when the morning trains from Saint-Pierre-des-Corps are a TGV INOUI at 7:07 (arriving 9:03) and OUIGO at 9:07 (arriving 11:09). Take a morning train so the first afternoon is free.

Bordeaux gets two nights, which covers the city on the first afternoon and the second day split between the city and Saint-Émilion.

Day 7 afternoon: the riverfront. Take the tram from Saint-Jean station to the centre and walk the quays north to the Place de la Bourse, the royal square built in the 18th century to open the medieval town onto the Garonne. From there walk inland to the Grand Théâtre and through the old streets to the Cathédrale Saint-André. All three are within a 20-minute walk of each other. In the evening, the quays north of the Bourse lead to the Bacalan district and the Cité du Vin wine museum, if you want to book a visit for the next afternoon.

The Place de la Bourse seen across the Garonne. Image: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Day 8: Saint-Émilion morning, Bordeaux afternoon. TERs to Saint-Émilion take about 30 minutes and run roughly hourly (8:40, arriving 9:12; 9:41, arriving 10:12). The village tourist office warns that the station is 1.5 km below the village, a 20–30 minute walk uphill, partly without a pavement, and that there are no services at the station. Plan for it.

The village's main sight is underground. The Monolithic Church was carved out of the limestone hill beneath the bell tower, and it can be visited only with a guide on a tour booked at the tourist office, which lasts about an hour. Book it as soon as you arrive, then walk the lanes and the ramparts while you wait. The vineyards around the village are a UNESCO World Heritage landscape. Trains back to Bordeaux leave at 12:46, 13:47 and 14:48 on a weekday, then not until 17:11.

Saint-Émilion's roofs and the bell tower above the Monolithic Church. Image: Nataloche, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Days 9–11 — Avignon: the popes' palace, the broken bridge and Arles

Train in: Bordeaux → Nîmes by Intercités, then TER to Avignon, about 6¼ hours. This is the long day, and there is no faster way by rail. There is no direct train from Bordeaux to Avignon. The direct option is the Intercités that runs across the south from Bordeaux to Marseille via Agen, Toulouse, Carcassonne, Narbonne and Montpellier. Take the 8:07 from Bordeaux, which reaches Nîmes at 13:22 (and Arles at 13:50), then a TER from Nîmes Centre to Avignon Centre: 34–41 minutes, 17 a day, for example 13:49, arriving 14:23. TGV alternatives exist but go back through Paris and take 6½ to 7½ hours. Book a seat on the Intercités; it is a long journey to stand. Engineering works cancel it on some dates (there is no direct train from 21 to 26 November 2026), so check your date before you fix the rest of the trip.

The window views make up for it: the Garonne valley, Toulouse, the walls of Carcassonne seen from the train, and the Mediterranean lagoons near Narbonne and Sète. Bring lunch.

Avignon gets three nights because it has the richest day trips on the route. Stay inside the walls; Avignon Centre station is just outside the southern gate.

Day 9 afternoon: the walls and the Rocher des Doms. Walk up rue de la République to the Place de l'Horloge and on to the Place du Palais. Climb the garden of the Rocher des Doms above the palace for the view over the Rhône and the bridge, and save the interiors for the next day.

Day 10: the Palais des Papes and the bridge. Seven popes lived in Avignon in the 14th century, and the Palais des Papes they built is the largest Gothic palace in Europe. Admission is €16, or €19.50 with the gardens and the bridge; children under 10 go free. The palace is open every day of the year; from 2 November to 18 December 2026 it opens 10:00–17:00, with last entry an hour before closing. Work on the monument continues until spring 2027, and a new visitor route with rooms never shown before opened on 1 May 2026. Booking online through Avignon Tourisme is recommended. Allow two to three hours.

The towers of the Palais des Papes. Image: Acediscovery, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The same combined ticket covers the Pont Saint-Bénezet, the bridge of the song "Sur le pont d'Avignon". Only four of its arches still stand, and it ends in the middle of the Rhône. Go in the afternoon, after the palace.

The four surviving arches of the Pont Saint-Bénezet, seen from the Île de la Barthelasse. Image: John Samuel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Day 11: day trip to Arles. TERs from Avignon Centre reach Arles in 16–22 minutes, 18 times a day, with trains back until about 22:00. Arles is a Roman town on the Rhône where Van Gogh painted more than 300 works. The Arles Amphitheatre seated about 20,000 people and still holds bullfights and summer shows; the Roman theatre is a few minutes' walk away. Add the Romanesque portal and cloister of Saint-Trophime and, if you have time, the Musée Départemental Arles Antique on the Rhône, which is a 15-minute walk from the centre. Winter hours in Arles are short, so start early.

The Roman amphitheatre at Arles. Image: PierreSelim, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The alternative: Nîmes. If you have seen enough of Arles on the train in, go to Nîmes instead: 34–41 minutes by TER. Its amphitheatre and the Maison Carrée, a Roman temple that still has its roof, are a 10-minute walk from the station.

Days 12–13 — Lyon: Roman hill, Renaissance quarter, two rivers

Train in: Avignon → Lyon Part-Dieu, about 1 hour 35 minutes by TGV, or 2 hours 25 minutes by TER. Avignon has two stations. TGVs leave from Avignon TGV, outside the walls; a TER shuttle from Avignon Centre gets you there in 5–6 minutes, and the whole trip to Lyon Part-Dieu takes 1 hour 34 to 1 hour 44 minutes. The direct TER from Avignon Centre to Lyon Part-Dieu (on a Saturday, for example 8:10 or 12:17, about 2½ hours) needs no reservation and runs up the Rhône valley. OUIGO's 51-minute trains run from Avignon TGV to Lyon Saint-Exupéry, which is the airport station and not in the city.

Lyon sits where the Saône meets the Rhône. Two days covers the old town, the hill and one museum.

Day 12 afternoon: Vieux Lyon and Fourvière. Cross the Saône to Vieux Lyon, the Renaissance quarter of merchant houses below the hill, and walk its traboules, the covered passageways that run through buildings from one street to the next. Then take the funicular from the Vieux Lyon station up the hill to the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, built in the late 19th century, with the city spread out below the terrace.

The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière above the Saône. Image: Imbolcus, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Day 13: the Presqu'île, the Croix-Rousse and Confluences. Spend the morning on the Presqu'île, the peninsula between the two rivers, and climb to the Croix-Rousse, the old silk-weavers' quarter. In the afternoon go to the south tip of the peninsula and the Musée des Confluences, a natural-history and anthropology museum. It opens 10:30–18:30 from Tuesday to Sunday and closes on Mondays.

The alternative: Vienne. If you would rather see more Roman ruins, TERs from Lyon reach Vienne in 16–29 minutes, about every half hour on weekdays but much less often on Sundays. Its Roman temple and its theatre on the hillside are both a short walk from the station. It makes a half day.

Day 14 — Back to Paris

Train: Lyon Part-Dieu → Paris Gare de Lyon, TGV INOUI, about 2 hours. On a weekday there are 36 trips between Lyon and Paris, with INOUI trains about every hour from Part-Dieu to Paris Gare de Lyon in 1 hour 56 minutes to 2 hours 10 minutes. OUIGO also runs to Paris, from Part-Dieu, Perrache or Saint-Exupéry, to Paris Gare de Lyon or to Marne-la-Vallée–Chessy, the Disneyland station east of Paris. Check which Paris station your ticket ends at, especially if you have a flight to catch.

The two weeks at a glance

Practical notes

Rail pass or point-to-point tickets? Interrail and Eurail passes are valid on French trains, but holders must also reserve, and pay for, a seat on TGV INOUI and OUIGO trains. Most Intercités and TER trains need no reservation. Pass seats on high-speed trains are limited, and Interrail warns that popular trains sell out. On this route only four legs are long-distance trains (Paris–Tours, Tours–Bordeaux, Bordeaux–Nîmes and Lyon–Paris; Avignon–Lyon can be done by TER), and the day trips are cheap TER rides that you pay at the station. Price those four fares a few weeks ahead and compare the total with the pass plus its reservation fees before you buy either.

OUIGO or INOUI? Both are SNCF high-speed trains. OUIGO is the low-cost brand: OUIGO high-speed fares start at €10, OUIGO Train Classique fares run from €10 to €49, and children under 12 pay €8 (high speed) or €5 (classique). The catches are luggage and stations. Each passenger may bring two small bags (40 × 30 × 15 cm) or one small bag and one cabin bag (55 × 35 × 25 cm); an extra bag costs €5 on high-speed trains. OUIGO often uses outer stations: Paris Austerlitz, Massy, Marne-la-Vallée, Lyon Saint-Exupéry, Avignon TGV. INOUI fares rise as trains fill but include normal luggage and use the central stations: Montparnasse, Gare de Lyon, Lyon Part-Dieu. With two weeks of luggage, INOUI is usually the simpler choice.

Strikes. Rail strikes are common in France and are announced in advance. SNCF publishes its reduced timetable for a strike day by law, in practice usually the evening before at around 17:00. If a strike is called during your trip, check your train on the SNCF Connect app that evening, and keep the Bordeaux–Nîmes day flexible, since it has the fewest alternatives.

Museum closing days. Louvre: Tuesday. Musée d'Orsay: Monday. Palace of Versailles and the Trianon: Monday. Musée des Confluences in Lyon: Monday. Chenonceau and the Palais des Papes are open every day of the year. The Louvre, Orsay and Versailles also close on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December, and Chambord on 25 December.

Seasons. From November to March, château and museum hours are shorter (Chenonceau closes at 16:30, Chambord at 17:00, the Palais des Papes at 17:00), and the day trips need early starts. Trains are no slower. In July and August hours are longest, but Versailles, the Louvre and Chenonceau are at their busiest and timed tickets sell out further ahead. April–June and September–October have long opening hours without the August crowds.

Luggage between bases. Every base on this route is a station within walking distance or a short tram ride of the old town, so book rooms near the station or inside the old centre.

Opening hours, prices and train times are as published in November 2026; summer timetables and engineering-works days differ.