Hi there i have my trip all planned there is just one area which is making me nervous.I have to get the TGV to Avignon and have searched for ways of transporting my bike but have come up empty.
I am leaning towards just buying a housse when i arrive in France,and taking it apart and putting it together in Avignon.Do you think it will be big enough to fit a Cannondale T2000 with back rack?Also does the housse have a handle so it can be carried around?as i will have panniers with me also.All the searching i have done give me different answers with trains/bikes this is the only part which is worrying me for now
barn wrote:Hi there i have my trip all planned there is just one area which is making me nervous.I have to get the TGV to Avignon and have searched for ways of transporting my bike but have come up empty.
I am leaning towards just buying a housse when i arrive in France,and taking it apart and putting it together in Avignon.Do you think it will be big enough to fit a Cannondale T2000 with back rack?Also does the housse have a handle so it can be carried around?as i will have panniers with me also.All the searching i have done give me different answers with trains/bikes this is the only part which is worrying me for now
Have you contacted SNCF the Frech rail carrier to find out how to get your bike to Avignon. It just might be that you can get there without using TGV....
If they can't give you a definitive answer, no-one can
Yeah i have emailed them a few times and no reply,as i am in Australia the time differences are a pain.I dont think its going to be a problem but i would prefer to take my bike as is,if i have to dismantle it so be it.
The TGV will take a dismantled and bagged (wrapped) bike without any booking - I have seen bikes wrapped in black plastic accepted! SNCF have a number of trains which allow bikes on board (can find time tables on the web) but beware of all the small notations! Not this day/time/month/etc can catch you out!
dodger wrote:If your bike is not in a carry bag SNCF will carry it as freight, but it might take an extra day to get to you.
Yeah i have heard that they will take it as freight,but i hear it is different over weekends.As i am going on a Sunday i may have to put it on a Friday or something.I may even leave it and book it when i arrive and ask at the counter?as i carnt see all trains booked out at 6am on a Sunday?
If you are travelling from paris , The TGV from paris gare de lyon to avingon will take bikes as in they freight carriage on a weekend at a extra charge. These are usually first thing on a morning around 06.00
As fas as i know you can buy them at any major sports store in France,Decathlon etc i think the size to fit into the TGV is 120-90 cm.I hope so because i will have to buy one as soon as i arrive.Does anyone know if they have handles on them to carry the bike while lugging it around?and do airlines accept them?
i am just going to buy a housse when i arrive in France and hope they take it as is or if not out will come the housse 