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Eurostar no longer carries bikes on Avignon service
Eurostar has updated their baggage policy so that it is no longer possible to take bikes in bags >85cm and < 120cm to the South of France: http://www.eurostar.com/uk-en/travel-information/travel-planning/luggage...
I was a regular use of this service.
This is the explanation I was given:
"Unfortunately, we had to reduced our bike allowance on our new service to Marseille and the only bikes allowed are the one in the bike bag not longer than 85 cm. This is because we will need more space on the train for catering trolleys and rubbish disposal bins, as the journey is much longer than on our existing trains. We cannot forgo seating space for bikes.
Furthermore, we will have a very short stop in Avignon and this is another reason why we can't allow bikes to be stored for logistics reasons.
We understand your frustration and many other avenues have been studied, however only this one was viable.
I hope this explanation will at least help you understand the commercial decision behind this."
Perhaps if many of us request it they will see a commercial reason to bring it back again.
If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.
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13 comments
lots of nice air routes to that bit of the S of France. Airports at Nimes, Avignon, Marseille, Montpellier, Lyons, with direct flights from the UK.
you can still take your full bike on the Eurostar to Paris, then cycle a few miles to the relevant station and catch a TGV, night train or Intercity train to your onward station. Most, but not all, routes in France have fully assembled bike storage available.
Initially TGVs had no reserved space for bikes but more recently some services can accommodate fully assembled bikes. I travelled on a TGV from Paris to Geneva which had part of the last carriage of an 8-car set dedicated to bicycle storage.
Unlike the Eurostar bikes in bags can be carried on all TGVs as hand-luggage.
(should learn to read websites)
ha, the SNCF site says that the Intercités (classic, non high speed trains) have "only" 20 bike spaces on board. "only". On the equivalent trains in this country (East Coast, Virgin West Coast, FGW, Scotrail Sleeper etc) the best we manage is 6.
how are SNCF (on TGV) for bikes?
Did they have a special place for storing the bikes? I've travelled on the Eurostar from Paris to London with my bike in a bag and just stored it with all the other luggage at the end of the carriage I was seated in. I waited until a few bags had been stored then laid my bike on the top. The bag is bigger than 85cm, but didn't stick out much further than the other bags (perhaps 2 or 3 cm at most).
Did the same thing on the SNCF trains in September between Laval and Paris, Geneva to Nice (via Marseille), Nice to Paris (via Marseille) and back from Paris to Laval.
Fortunately not just Bromptons - several other, more tourable folding bikes will (just!) fit in the 85cm limit. I took my bagged Bike Friday on the Eurostar to Brussels earlier this year and no-one batted an eyelid.
I caught the train down to Avignon this summer for a ventoux trip. I took the Eurostar to lille, had to to put bike bag in their registered luggage service on the same train. Then switched to non Eurostar tgv from lille to avignon with no problem just wheeling bag on train.
Was dirt cheap about 150quid return as booked it well in advance.
Thanks for the insight, we were contemplating South of France for 2015, but that has just flipped it off the list.
On a brighter note, life is short but our planet is big, so we still have a long list. In the 1001 places to cycle before you die, France can wait until next time around!
Put it back on the list soon, its one of the best places in the world that i have cycled, Gorge Du Nesque, Ventoux loops all over the place, the Col de Homme Mort! Fantastci little villages clinging to the hillside, the smell of lavender, the whiff of coffee a cold beer and some crepes .... hey im not even being paid to plug this, I would live there but hey who can afford to live in France?
Put it back on the list soon, its one of the best places in the world that i have cycled, Gorge Du Nesque, Ventoux loops all over the place, the Col de Homme Mort! Fantastci little villages clinging to the hillside, the smell of lavender, the whiff of coffee a cold beer and some crepes .... hey im not even being paid to plug this, I would live there but hey who can afford to live in France?
what a load of rubbish, typical PR speak for 'we do not care'
Sounds like b*llocks to me. What about the baggage room in the middle of the train? Why can't they put in some hooks there? And why doesn't the timetable allow people to get bikes off? Talk about the cart leading the horse!