Paris to Annecy by train

How to travel from Paris to Annecy by train

It's a straightforward journey by train from the French capital to this beautiful lakeside resort city, thanks to the direct service of TGV trains.

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Routes

From Paris Gare de Lyon/Paris Lyon to Annecy

Journey Summary

Travel Time
3hr 40min - 3hr 48 min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Information

Note that these trains depart from the Gare De Lyon in Paris.

Final Destination: Annecy

All trains also call at: Chambery and Aix-Les-Bains

Mon - Thursday = 5 x trains per day
Friday =6 x trains
Saturday = 5 x trains
Sunday = 4 x trains

Tickets

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.

When booking 2nd class tickets only one type of ticket will be available per departure, discounted 'Prems' tickets or 'Seconde' tickets; though the price of Seconde tickets are also typically cheaper when they are first placed on sale.
When booking 1st class tickets there will be a choice of Premiere tickets and Business Premiere tickets.

The two key T&Cs of booking Prems, Seconde, or Premiere tickets are:

  1. Up until two days prior to departure, these types of tickets can be refunded for no additional charge (big tick), but a €15 fee will be payable for making a refund in the two days prior to departure.
  2. It's also possible to exchange tickets to an alternative departure on the same journey, but you will have to pay any difference in price between the cost you paid and the cost at the time of the exchange.

Though if you book Business Premiere tickets, the key T&Cs are that tickets can be exchanged and refunded free of charge up to 30 minutes after departure, so if you get to the station just too late to miss the train you were originally booked on to, you won't lose out financially.

Trains departing at different times can be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so you may need to look through the day's departures to find the cheapest fares.

Seats will automatically be assigned when booking tickets for this journey.

Rail Pass Users:

If you will be travelling with an InterRail or Eurail pass, you will need to be pay a reservation fee prior to boarding these TGV trains -more info is available on our guide to using rail passes in France.

If you're absolutely determined to avoid the rail pass reservation the only remotely viable alternative is

(1) Take the first TER train of the day from Paris to Lyon
(2) 'Connect' in Lyon for another TER train on to Annecy

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
SNCF Connect from €38

SNCF Connect Guide

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 on Google Play

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

Download the SNCF Connect App from €38
Save A Train from €38

Save A Train Guide

Happy rail from €38

Happy rail Guide

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.

Trainline from €38

Trainline Guide

Rail Europe from €38

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - YesHigh Speed (partial journey)Landscape (Hills / Mountains)Lake views

Good to Know

These trains between Paris and Annecy are often joined to other trains for much of the journey.
The trains are than separated at Aix-Les-Bains, Chambery or Bellegarde.

Don't worry about boarding the right part of the train, your reserved seat will be in the part of the train heading to Annecy.

The part of the train heading to Annecy will have its own train number, which will be printed on your ticket(s) along with the coach and seat numbers.

However, you MAY not see Annecy listed on some departure screens.
If you do see a TGV train service, that is departing at exactly the same time as the train to Annecy; then it' almost certain that is information will ALSO be for your departure..

Check at the Accueil (Information desk) if you're not sure.

This is a journey of two halves.

The first part of the journey is on the high speed line between Paris and near Lyon.

The second part of the journey is more scenic, particularly when trains run along the shore of the spectacular Lac du Bourget north of Aix-Les-Bains.

The trains take two different routes between the high speed line and Annecy:
(1) via Bourg-en-Bresse
(2) via Chambery
though it makes little difference to the journey times and the Lac Du Bourget can also be seen on either route.

The best of the views are on the left of trains that travel via Chambery and on the right on the trains which travel via Bourg-en-Bresse.

The trains which travel via Bourg-en-Bresse also reverse direction on departure from Aix-les-Bains.

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