From Brisbane to St Jean

[Arthur Kelly]

I know this question has been asked previously, that is, the best way to travel from Brisbane to St Jean, and the answers I have found all state fly to Paris and then train to St Jean. Just wondering if flying to Barcelona is a better option as the train journey to St Jean from Barcelona appears to be shorter.

 

[whariwharangi]

Take Renfe train from Barcelona Sants to Pamplona. Alternatively take Vibasa bus from Barcelona Sants to Pamplona or ALSA bus from Estacio Nord to Pamplona via Zaragosa.

Take CONDA (ALSA) bus from Pamplona bus station to SJPdP.

Time works out shorter than Paris to SJPdP but bus schedule from Pamplona to SJPdP is seasonal. If you end up staying overnight there is only an AM bus from Pamplona in summer while the AM train from Bayonne is daily all year. So it depends on your travel schedule and time of year when you travel.

Its also possible to go from Barcelona Sants to Toulouse and Toulouse to Bayonne and finally to SJPdP all with SNCF (with the section from Barcelona to Toulouse operated in cooperation with Renfe) . Schedules may be faster than from Paris or via Pamplona ... but that depends on your timings.

Barcelona Sants is reached by Renfe Cercanias/Rodalies trains. Journey time from Airport to Sants is 22 minutes.

One other option is to fly from either of Paris to Biarritz BIQ or Barcelona to San Sebastian EAS. It is easy to get to Gare Bayonne from either of these airports.

Homeward bound it is easier to get from Santiago to Barcelona than Paris.

 

[Arthur Kelly]

Thank you for your prompt reply and advice, much appreciated.
Regards
Arthur

 

[dougfitz]

I know this question has been asked previously, that is, the best way to travel from Brisbane to St Jean, and the answers I have found all state fly to Paris and then train to St Jean. Just wondering if flying to Barcelona is a better option as the train journey to St Jean from Barcelona appears to be shorter.

I have done this from Australia, but it involved an overnight stay in Barcelona because my flight arrived too late to catch a convenient train. I could have caught an evening train, but that just moved the place I needed overnight accommodation.

This was using Emirates. Other airlines might have more convenient arrival times.

 

[Pat Kenny]

I say Arthur, try this: Singapore Air fly Brisbane-Singapore-Paris with a short lay over in Singapore and breakfast at Charles De Gaulle. Then Easyjet 10:00AM-ish will take you to Biarritz for a fist-full of Euros (about 60-ish). From Biarritz, it's an easy 1-hour train ride to SJPDP. I have always found Singapore Air to be an exceptional quality airline for a budget price and with a short stop over in Singapore for a stretch.

cheers
Pat

PS - go the maroons

 

[NicMen]

I'm flying BNE to Barcelona via Dubai (and a 7hr train ride to Lourdes, my starting point, via Narbonne and Toulouse). I'm coming back from Madrid (again via Dubai). That way I can (quickly) see the two main cities in Spain. The train from SdC to Madrid is 5 hrs or so. The problem I'm finding with trains is that (apparently) for high-speed services you must book in advance and (although the Renfe/Rail Europe site tells you that services can be booked 3-4 months in advance, I don't seem to be able to do it until about 1 month before... a pain...

 

[whariwharangi]

I'm flying BNE to Barcelona via Dubai (and a 7hr train ride to Lourdes, my starting point, via Narbonne and Toulouse). I'm coming back from Madrid (again via Dubai). That way I can (quickly) see the two main cities in Spain. The train from SdC to Madrid is 5 hrs or so. The problem I'm finding with trains is that (apparently) for high-speed services you must book in advance and (although the Renfe/Rail Europe site tells you that services can be booked 3-4 months in advance, I don't seem to be able to do it until about 1 month before... a pain...

Rail from Santiago to Madrid is not considered high speed even if parts of the rail are upgraded to that standard.

You do need to book in advance of boarding the train. If you book a month in advance you might get a better price than if you book at the train station a few minutes before boarding. You'll have to weigh off the convenience versus the costs.

 

[NicMen]

Rail from Santiago to Madrid is not considered high speed even if parts of the rail are upgraded to that standard.

You do need to book in advance of boarding the train. If you book a month in advance you might get a better price than if you book at the train station a few minutes before boarding. You'll have to weigh off the convenience versus the costs.

Thank you whariwharangi for the clarification about the speed of the trains in the return leg. The requirement to book in advance is the message I am getting while trying to book the train from Barcelona to Toulouse. And it keeps on telling me it is "too early".

 

[whariwharangi]

Thank you whariwharangi for the clarification about the speed of the trains in the return leg. The requirement to book in advance is the message I am getting while trying to book the train from Barcelona to Toulouse. And it keeps on telling me it is "too early".

Have you tried booking it with SNCF or with Renfe? Using SNCF site I can get schedule for 27 August (or 90 days from today).

 

[NicMen]

Have you tried booking it with SNCF or with Renfe? I think SNCF is the service provider.

Yes, with both. I think the problem might be the TGV component from Narbonne to Toulouse... The last time I tried it said I will be able to book from 27th July which is just a month before the trip... so, I keep my fingers (and toes) crossed...

 

[whariwharangi]

Yes, with both. I think the problem might be the TGV component from Narbonne to Toulouse... The last time I tried it said I will be able to book from 27th July which is just a month before the trip... so, I keep my fingers (and toes) crossed...

There are several trains per day so I wouldn't get worried about it.

 

[NicMen]

There are several trains per day so I wouldn't get worried about it.

Yes, I know (from 6:20am or so from Sants), I guess I just want to get that sorted since it is the last bit before starting my walk (flights and hotels in Barcelona and Lourdes are sorted)... Thank you for your suggestions whariwharangi, much appreciated.

 

[Alison Penfold]

It really

I know this question has been asked previously, that is, the best way to travel from Brisbane to St Jean, and the answers I have found all state fly to Paris and then train to St Jean. Just wondering if flying to Barcelona is a better option as the train journey to St Jean from Barcelona appears to be shorter.

Depends on what is most important to you and how much time you have. The travel time seems to be less but more train/bus interchanges plus you miss out on the French countryside coming down from Paris. I am planning to travel from London to Bordeaux (after flying in from Canberra and a couple of catching up with friends days), do a couple of days wine tasting and then train to SJDP.

 

[nonami]

I say Arthur, try this: Singapore Air fly Brisbane-Singapore-Paris with a short lay over in Singapore and breakfast at Charles De Gaulle. Then Easyjet 10:00AM-ish will take you to Biarritz for a fist-full of Euros (about 60-ish). From Biarritz, it's an easy 1-hour train ride to SJPDP. I have always found Singapore Air to be an exceptional quality airline for a budget price and with a short stop over in Singapore for a stretch.

cheers
Pat

PS - go the maroons

Arthur I agree with Pat on most points. I am going from Sydney to Paris and then EasyJet to Biarritz. Just a word of warning on the EasyJet option: their timetable shows that the 10:50 flights do not operate every day. The other days often have a 7 am (too early to connect directly) and then 19:30 ( very long wait probably).
Only disagreement is the PS which would be cryptic to most forum members. Blue is much better.