When travelling between most cities by train there is only one logical option, though on other journeys there is a choice between different trains or alternative routes. If different options are available you can use the info to decide which is best for you.
3hr - (approx)
Daily
Mon to Sat: 6 x trains per day
Sunday: 5 x trains
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for: Comparing different train services; Booking international journeys with connections; Travelling between the UK to destinations beyond Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris - and for international travellers who don't reside in western Europe.
SNCF is the national rail operator in France and not so long ago it recently simplified both the range of tickets and the term and conditions of using them.
Therefore the cheapest tickets also become more flexible too.
Other improvements included a simple integration of travelling with bicycles and rail pass users being able to book reservations for national journeys, without paying booking fees.
And it also recently launched SNCF Connect as replacement for its Oui.SNCF booking service.
You can set up a low price alert to let you know when the cheapest price is available for a future journey.
Something else to look out for is that simplest way of travelling with tickets is to use the SNCF Connect App, as booked tickets can therefore be stored on your mobile device, which can then be shown to the train conductors as proof of purchase.
SNCF Connect in the App (Apple) store
SNCF also operates RailEurope, which is in effect a dedicated online booking service for making bookings from outside of Europe.
If you reside outside of Europe you may discover that SNCF Connect rejects phone numbers or card numbers, but RailEurope won't do so.
Though RailEurope will add booking fees when making a purchase
Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.
HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.
You can avoid having to cross Paris from the Gare De Lyon to the Gare Du Nord by taking these direct trains from Lyon to Lille.
Final Destination: Bruxelles or Lille
All trains also call at: Marne La Vallée - Chessy for Disneyland Paris and Aeroport-CDG
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings usually open: up to 6 months ahead of the travel date - but bookings can open sooner when SNCF is running a promotion
The train service between Lyon and Lille is split between these TGV-InOui services and Ouigo services.
Both services can be compared and booked SNCF Connect
Booking these TGV InOui services:
Seat reservations are complimentary on these TGV InOui services; you can choose a type of seat, and in what part of the train you want to travel by; including opting for the lower or upper decks.
Booking the alternative Ouigo services:
What is particularly worth being aware of when booking tickets for journeys by Ouigo train services, is that:
Though these factors, and more, are why you can make big savings by opting to travel by these Ouigo trains and not on the standard TGV InOui trains.
Eurail and InterRail Pass users:
In theory, if you will be travelling with a valid Eurail or InterRail pass, you can book reservations for these direct TGV-InOui trains on Oui-SNCF - as explained here.
However, whenever we have tried to book rail pass reservations for these InOui services to Lille, we have instead been given the option to travel via Paris; though if that occurs, you will only have to pay one fee.
Rail passes cannot be used on the Ouigo trains, but if you will be travelling with a 2nd class pass, our guide to using rail passes in France, explains why taking a Ouigo train can be worth considering.
3hr - 3hr 45min (approx)
Daily
TGV InOui services:
Monday: 2 x trains
Tues to Thurs: 1 x train per day
Monday: 2 x trains
Saturday: 0 trains
Sunday: 1 x train
Ouigo services:
Daily
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for: Comparing different train services; Booking international journeys with connections; Travelling between the UK to destinations beyond Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris - and for international travellers who don't reside in western Europe.
SNCF is the national rail operator in France and not so long ago it recently simplified both the range of tickets and the term and conditions of using them.
Therefore the cheapest tickets also become more flexible too.
Other improvements included a simple integration of travelling with bicycles and rail pass users being able to book reservations for national journeys, without paying booking fees.
And it also recently launched SNCF Connect as replacement for its Oui.SNCF booking service.
You can set up a low price alert to let you know when the cheapest price is available for a future journey.
Something else to look out for is that simplest way of travelling with tickets is to use the SNCF Connect App, as booked tickets can therefore be stored on your mobile device, which can then be shown to the train conductors as proof of purchase.
SNCF Connect in the App (Apple) store
SNCF also operates RailEurope, which is in effect a dedicated online booking service for making bookings from outside of Europe.
If you reside outside of Europe you may discover that SNCF Connect rejects phone numbers or card numbers, but RailEurope won't do so.
Though RailEurope will add booking fees when making a purchase
Final Destination: Lille Flandres
All trains also call at: Marne La Vallée; Aeroport-CDG
The alternative Ouigo service:
When taking a train from Lyon to Lille-Flandres station, you can now choose between taking these TGV InOui services, or the more basic and low-cost Ouigo services.
There is a daily Ouigo morning service, which is usually scheduled to depart from Lyon Perrache station at 09:04.
Three other Ouigo services per day depart from St Exupery station at Lyon Airport station, but in order to travel to that station from Part-Dieu, you'll need to take the Rhone-Express tram.
if possible avoid this train that departs at 16:00 - when travelling from Lyon to Lille by train.
It is much slower than the other TGVs because it diverts off the high speed line between Paris and Lille, to call at other cities including Arras and Douai.
But this is the only train from Lyon that arrives at Lille Flandres - and not Lille Europe station.
But as it only takes 5 - 10mins to walk between the two stations, this much slower train journey time negates virtually any advantage of arriving at a station that is marginally closer to Lille city centre.
Final Destination: Lille Flandres
All trains also call at: Marne La Vallée; Aeroport-CDG, Arras, Douai.
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: up to 9 months ahead of the travel date
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