Toulouse or Bordeaux

[Terrri]

Which town provides the best options for departing from by train to eventually get to STJPdP? They both cost about the same to fly into. On google maps Toulouse is a little farther to St Jean but not much. Would we have to get to Bayonne first to get to St Jean? If we do than it might appear the Bordeaux is the better option.

Also I just checked out Biarritz for a potential place to fly into and it is about $80 more but it takes 6 hours longer because of the layover in Lyon. Would it still be faster in the long if the times all worked out for catching a departing train from Bayonne?

It doesn't appear that the prices are going to go any lower so I want to purchase tickets soon before they go back up.

 

[julie]

You will have to go via Bayonne so Bordeaux would be the better option. You can check out the timetables on this site:

http://plannerint.b-rail.be/bin/query.exe/en?L=profi&

I don't know where you're flying from but Pau also has an airport so that might be worth considering.

 

[oursonpolaire]

If memory serves me well the Toulouse-Bayonne train took about 4 or 5 hours, and the Bourdeaux-Bayonne about an hour or so-- if time is your consideration, go to Bourdeaux.

 

[Terrri]

Thanks for your help. I am going to be flying out of Calgary, after driving 4 hours from BC. I will be returning thru Madrid.

As of this morning the times and prices are:
Bordeaux $1094 14 hours 5 min
Toulouse $1094 11 hours 45 min
Biarritz $1262 17 hours 10 min
Pau $1165 22 hours 35 min

Am I correct in assuming it is easier to fly into France rather than Spain to get to SJPdP? I am not in a big rush but would prefer to spend any extra time on a train or in a town rather than in an airport.

 

[julie]

In light of the flight times you've given and a quick look on the internet, I've changed my advice and would recommend flying into either Toulouse or Biarritz.

This is my reasoning:

The train is faster from Bordeaux by about an hour and a half. However, the plane trip to Toulouse is faster by more than that.

Neither airport has train transfer to the city and the transfer bus from Toulouse leaves the airport every 20 minutes

http://www.frenchairportguide.com/tls/t ... trains.htm

whereas the one from Bordeaux Airport has a 45 minute schedule so you could be hanging around waiting for a while

http://www.frenchairportguide.com/bod/b ... trains.htm

No matter where you fly into, you are heading to Bayonne to catch the train to SJPdP. The air time to Biarritz is quite a bit longer than the other destinations and it is more expensive but there is a bus from the airport to the station in Bayonne so it's a lot less mucking around with transfers.

 

[Terrri]

Thanks for the help. Those links are great Julie.

I will probably go with our original plan and fly into Toulouse. The idea of flying to Biarritz is also enticing but the extra 5 hours is spent in airports and we are carrying on our luggage so wouldn't feel too comfortable dozing off in an airport.

With the help of Margaret I have learned that if you fly into Charles de Gaul in Paris your only option for getting to Bayonne is to detour thru Bordeaux or take a bus into Paris to Gare Montaparnesse or Gare Austerlitz to get to Bayonne with no stops on the way.

Now to figure out times in order to make the proper connections with out being rushed.

 

[Larazet]

Have you thought about hiring a car and driving from Toulouse to Biarritz, where you could leave it at the airport and bus to Bayonne? (I presume most of the major hire companies allow this?) It is a very beautiful drive and you could take your time. May not cost much more than train fares. Sorry not to have researched this for you as I live not far from there, but it will give you something to think about.

Maybe see you on the Way. Buen Camino, Karin

 

[Terrri]

Thanks for the idea Karin, but with the time difference I will be arriving at what would be 3am for me. Too dangerous for me to be driving. We drove all over France a couple of years ago and loved seeing the differences in the scenery depending on what part of the country we were in. If you are leaving around the middle of May we might run into you.

The price to fly into Biarritz has all of a sudden jumped so that won't be an option anymore unless the price drops again soon.