Paris to Lille by train

How to take a train journey from Paris to Lille

The second most frequent TGV service in France means that taking the train from Paris to Lille is as simple as can be.

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Routes

From Paris Gare Du Nord/Paris Nord to Lille Flandres

Travel Information

Note that these trains depart from the Gare Du Nord in Paris.

Final Destination: Lille

Fewer trains operate at weekends.
AND there is not quite 1 x train per hour - there is a 90 min gap between departures in the early afternoon.

Arriving in Lille

The overwhelming majority of the TGVs between Paris and Lille arrive at Lille Flandres station, which has a a great location, only a 5 -10 min walk from the city centre - but note not all of the TGVs from Paris arrive in Lille at that particular station.

A few trains per day still arrive at Lille Europe station, which is a 5-10 min walk from Lille Flandres - so it is further away from the city centre.

But the timetable has been altered, the trains to Lille Europe tend to depart Paris less than 10 minutes after a train will be departing for Lille Flandres.

If your final destination is located by a station on the Lille Metro, then it doesn't matter which of the two stations in the city, the train from Paris will be arriving at, as they're both served by the city's two metro lines.

1 - 2 x trains per hour

Tickets

The majority of the TGVs between Paris and Lille arrive at Lille Flandres station, but a few train arrive at Lille Europe.

However it's worth targeting the trains which arrive at Lille Flandres station, not only is it closer to the city centre, the trains to Lille Europe are now typically slower, because they travel via Arras.

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.

The price is dictated by demand per departure, so book ahead and try and be flexible re: your departure and arrival times, as trains leaving earlier or later may be cheaper.

The Oui.SNCF (French national railways website) will indicate the cheapest price per day, click on this and you will be shown the departures on which this price is available.

Seats will automatically be assigned when booking tickets for this journey, but rail pass users will need to be pay a reservation fee prior to boarding.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
SNCF Connect from €18

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 €18
Save A Train from €18

Save A Train Guide

Happy rail from €18

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.

Rail Europe from €18
Trainline from €18

Trainline Guide

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