Thalys trains are high speed trains that serve select international routes
between France, Belgium, Netherlands, and Germany. Thalys trains appear with
a "THA" in schedules.
Railpass holders may ride Thalys trains, provided that their railpass covers
the entire ride. Eurail, Europass, and Eurail Select passes (covering the entire
ride) are valid. Belgian, Holland, France, and Germany Single-Country Passes
are not valid.
Pass holders must pay a 15 Euro railpass-holder reservation fee to ride Thalys
trains. Several travelers have reported difficulty making this special type
of reservation, as seats in this catagory often sell out. Make your Thalys reservations
early in your trip to avoid this problem. You can specify that you accept "Standby
Seating" - which gets you on train, but does not guarentee you a seat.
If you cannot get a reservation, or your railpass does not cover Thalys trains,
or you wish to avoid the Thalys reservation fee, use the following table to
find an alternative to each Thalys route.
Note:Many of the listed alternatives include TGV trains.
While TGV trains also require reservations, the quantity of "railpass holder
seats" on TGV trains is not capacity-controlled. You can purchase a TGV reservation
without telling the ticket agent that you are using a railpass instead of a
regular ticket, although showing the agent your railpass helps agents understand
why you do not want to purchase a ticket with your TGV reservation.
Thalys Route
Alternative
Route
Mandatory
Reservation Fees
on Alternative Route
Between Paris and Brussels
Thalys has a monopoly
on direct service between Paris and Brussels.
Alternative #1 (cheapest & easiest): Transfer at Lille-Flandres (France);
and transfer again at Gent-Sint-Pieters (Belgium) or Tournai (Belgium).
TGV trains run between Paris and Lille-Flandres. Regional (no reservation
required) trains connect Lille-Flandres to Brussels, though you will need
to change trains in either Gent-Sint-Pieters or Tournai. This connection
operates every 1 or 2 hours, total travel time is 2:30 - 3:00. To find these
connections is the online schedules, enter "Lille"
as the VIA city.
Alternative #2: Transfer at Lille, France between TGV trains. TGV trains
run between Paris and Lille-Europe, between Paris and Lille-Flandres, and
between Lille-Europe and Brussels. You can walk from Lille-Flandres to Lille-Europe
in 10 minutes. This connection operates 6x per day, total travel time varies
between 1:49 and 2:40 (depending on length of layover in Lille). To find
these connections is the online schedules, enter
"Lille" as the VIA city.
Alternative #3: Transfer at Paris CDG Airport. TGV Trains run between Paris
CDG Airport and Brussels, RER trains (free with railpass) run between CDG
Airport and downtown Paris. This connection operates 5x per day, total travel
time is 2:40. These connections do not appear in the online schedules.
4 Euros per domestic (Paris
- Lille) TGV train; 10 Euros per International (Lille or CDG to Brussels)
TGV Train
Between Paris and Amsterdam (via Brussels)
See above for info between
Paris and Brussels.
Hourly direct IC trains connect Brussels and Amsterdam.
None between Brussels
and Amsterdam
Between Paris and Cologne (via Brussels)
See above for info between
Paris and Brussels.
Regular fast trains (marked with a "D" in schedules) connect Brussels and
Cologne every 2 hours.
None between Brussels
and Cologne
Between Brussels and Amsterdam
Hourly direct IC trains
connect Brussels and Amsterdam.
None
Between Brussels and Cologne
Regular fast trains (marked
with a "D" in schedules) connect Brussels and Cologne every 2 hours.
None
Between Brussels and Geneva (via Paris)
See above for info between
Paris and Brussels.
TGV trains connect Paris and Geneva approximately every 2 hours.
10 Euros per International
(Paris to Geneva) TGV Train
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