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REVIEW | SNCF TGV inOui from Paris-Gare-de-Lyon to Barcelona-Sants

Posted by Timothy on

Six days. Five overnight stays in five cities in Spain. Lunch in Paris. Stopover in Barcelona. Then Córdoba, Seville, Granada and Málaga. An Andalusia Whirlwind Tour where we visit the Mezquita and the Alhambra. We’re touring Andalusia in October 2023 to follow the trend of travelling to hot spots outside summer, as we did with Italy in 2022. 

SNCF TGV 2N2 3UH or Avelia Euroduplex by Alstom.

The Société nationale des chemins de fer français or SNCF operates a TGV inOui service from Paris-Gare-de-Lyon to Barcelona-Sants twice a day. At least when we travelled in October 2023. A TGV 2N2 3UH also known as as Avelia Euroduplex by Alstom brings travellers in 6 hours and 40 minutes to the capital of Catalonia. 

This is possible because the train bypasses Lyon with a first stop in Valence TGV Rhône-Alpes Sud, where it becomes a ‘local train’ with stops at Nîmes-Pont-du-Gard, Montpellier-Sud-de-France, Sète, Agde, Béziers, Narbonne and Perpignan, adter which it speeds up again to Figueres-Vilafant (Figueras-Vilafan in Castillian), Girona (Gerona) and Barcelona-Sants. 

First class

Being us, we booked first class seat. And no, we don’t get railway personnel discount in first class. But for a six-hour-plus journey, it’s a no-brainer treat. The seats are nicer, although second class seats are okay as well. But 1st class is as a rule of thumb quieter. 

Catering is not included in a first class ticket with SNCF, but the Le Bar is, or at least was during our journey, well stocked. 

First class.

Life on board

First class is predictably divided in a 2+1 configuration. Some seats are set up in the direction of travel, others not. And the switch is provided with seats facing each others. These have tables. 

The seats are old school. French train design focuses or focused on comfort rather than on efficiency for work to be done. Nowadays ‘efficiency’ and ‘work’ are the keywords. 

Le Bar.

Traditionally, we choose one of those. It provides less leg room, bit is more cosy. 

There is a power outlet and WiFi. I couldn’t log on, but Danny could. Via WiFi and the SNCF Portal or www.lebar.sncf.com you can order and pay your food, which you can then pick-up at Le Bar. Easy and practical.

By the way, the portal offers a lot of in-train entertainment such as manga. Such a French thing to do.

The menu is quite elaborate, with predictable snacks but also healthy / less unhealthy options designed by chef Thierry Marx. 

Danny had the burger and I had the chicken salad with rice. The ‘menu’ deal offers a drink and a dessert. All this makes a very decent train mail. 

Dinner time.

So?

First class and a decent meal made this 6h40 journey pleasant. In this way, it’s very relaxing. You talk, you eat, you sleep, you read, you talk, you eat, you sleep, you eat, you arrive. 

It is often said 1,000 km is a maximum distance to lure people from the plane to a train. And indeed, if the the train continued to let’s say Madrid, that would be perhaps too long for quite a few travellers. 

PS: Do not forget!

When travelling by high speed train in France, do not forget 

  1. To present yourself at least two minutes before departure. In those two minutes, you will not be allowed on the platform. We saw someone in tears missing his train to Lausanne like this.
  2. To label all your bags. That is mandatory in France. Unlabelled and unattended luggage will be destroyed. 

More on night trains and transcontinental train travel

2023 Andalusia Whirlwind Tour

  1. Visiting Gibraltar in 2013.
  2. REVIEW | Eurostar Amsterdam – Antwerp – Brussels – Paris in 2023.
  3. PARIS | Restaurant Le Train Bleu at the Gare de Lyon.