Paris to Biarritz by train

How to take a train journey from Paris to Biarritz

Taking the train from Paris to Biarritz is straightforward, and thanks to a recently extended high speed line, it's also likely to be faster than you may have presumed.

Though the lengthy distance from the French capital means that the trains are not particularly frequent.

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Routes

From Paris Montparnasse to Biarritz

Journey Summary

Travel Time
4hr 8 min - 4hr 12min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Information

Note that these trains to Biarritz depart from the Gare-Montparnasse in Paris.

Final Destination: Hendaye or Irun

All Trains Also Call At: Bordeaux and Bayonne

This journey is an opportunity to experience the best of French high speed rail travel; you'll be travelling on the latest version of the TGV train on the newest high speed line in France.

These trains comprise the fastest ever Paris - Biarritz service because they use the full length of the new LGV Sud Europe Atlantique high speed line so are non-stop between Paris and Bordeaux.

Mon-Thurs = 4 x trains
Friday = 6 x trains
Saturday = 4 x trains
Sunday = 5 x trains

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings usually open: 4 months ahead of the travel date - but bookings can open sooner when SNCF is running a promotion.

If tickets aren't on sale yet for your travel date, you can sign up to the ticket availability notification service on Oui.SNCF.

When looking for tickets on Oui.SNCF tick the 'direct trains' box, on Trainline tick the 'fastest journeys' box.

Expect to pay more for this journey between the beginning of June and mid-September, particularly if you will be travelling on a Friday or Saturday.

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 have to pay a reservation fee prior to boarding -more info is available on our guide to using rail passes in France.

The €10 rail pass reservations tend to sell out particularly quickly for this journey on Fridays-Sundays in the summer months.
However, there are no viable alternatives for avoiding these TGV trains on this route.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
Oui.SNCF from €40

Oui.SNCF 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.

Though a legacy of when SNCF sold international tickets under the Rail Europe branding is that OuiSNCF is available in multiple translations with the offerings on the site then tailored to international visitors to France.
However, some of the site's features, including the integration of mobility assistance into the booking path, are only available on the French language version.

Something else to look out for is that simplest way of travelling with tickets is to use the SNCF 'My Travel' phone app, so it's therefore often a good idea to book on the OuiSNCF mobile service.

Trainline from €40

Trainline Guide

Download the Oui.SNCF app from €40
SaveATrain from €40

SaveATrain Guide

Happyrail from €40

Happyrail 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.

RailEurope from €40

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - NoHigh Speed (partial)

Good to Know

Two TGV  trains will usually be joined together for the part of the journey between Paris and Bordeaux, the coach number on your ticket will for a coach in the part of the train heading to Biarritz.

So don't be surprised to see a train, heading to a destination other than Hendaye/Irun and calling at Biarritz, departing at the same time AND from the same voie/platform/track as your train.

This will be the destination of the other TGV train that will be attached to the train heading to Hendaye/Irun, for the journey between Paris and Bordeaux.

This is a journey of two distinct parts.
Between Paris and Bordeaux the train will spend around 2hr 15mins travelling at more than 280 km/h on the extended high speed line
There isn't a high speed line between Bordeaux and Biarritz so the train will be on conventional tracks for the remainder of the journey.

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