Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
11-16 hours; 1 night train, 14 hours, may transfer in Milan, operated by private company
Thello—which doesn't accept railpasses, important to reserve ahead at
www.thello.com
),
Interlaken
(7/day, 5-6.5 hours, 1-3 changes, 2 more from Gare de l'Est), and
Barcelona
(2/
day, 7.5 hours, change in Figueres; night train possible from Gare d'Austerlitz).
Gare de l'Est
Key Destinations Served by Gare de l'Est: Interlaken
(2/day, 6.5 hours, 2-3 changes, 7
more from Gare de Lyon),
Frankfurt
(5 direct/day, 4 hours; 4 more/day with change in
Karlsruhe, 4.5 hours),
Vienna
(7/day, 12-17 hours, 1-3 changes, night train via Munich or
Frankfurt),
Prague
(5/day, 12-18 hours, night train via Mannheim or Berlin),
Munich
(6/
day, 6 hours, most with 1 change, 1 direct night train), and
Berlin
(5/day, 8.5 hours, 1-2
changes; 1 direct night train, 12.5 hours).
Gare St. Lazare
Key Destinations Served by Gare St. Lazare: Bayeux
(9/day, 2.5 hours, some change
in Caen),
Caen
(14/day, 2 hours), and
Pontorson/Mont St-Michel
(2/day, 4-5.5 hours, via
Caen; more trains from Gare Montparnasse).
Gare d'Austerlitz
Key Destinations Served by Gare d'Austerlitz: Versailles
(via RER line C, 4/hour, 35
minutes),
Barcelona
(1/night, 12.5 hours, make mandatory reservation at least 2 weeks
ahead; day trains from Gare de Lyon), and
Madrid
(1 direct night train, 13-14 hours, make
mandatoryreservationatleast2weeksahead,16hoursviaIrun;daytrainsfromGareMont-
parnasse).
Gare de Bercy
This smaller station handles southbound non-TGV trains (Mo: Bercy, one stop east of Gare
de Lyon on line 14, exit the Métro station and it's across the street). Facilities are lim-
ited—just a WC and a sandwich-fare take-out café.
Every king's dream, Versailles (vehr-“sigh”) was the residence of French monarchs and the
cultural heartbeat of Europe for about 100 years—until the Revolution of 1789 changed all
that. The Sun King (Louis XIV) created Versailles, spending freely from the public treas-
ury to turn his dad's hunting lodge into a palace fit for the gods (among whom he coun-
ted himself). Louis XV and Louis XVI spent much of the 18th century gilding Louis XIV's
