Trains from Marseille St-Charles to Nice Ville

If you’re making your way on foot to Marseille Saint-Charles station, don’t take the big stairs outside. A Marseille local once gave me this precious advice (especially handy if you have heavy suitcases with you) – turn to your left, at the foot of the stairs there’s a subway entrance. Enter there and look for the escalators going up – they’ll take you directly to the heart of Marseille St-Charles station. I can’t thank this person enough for helping me avoid a painful climb!

Departing Marseille Saint-Charles

Having arrived a few minutes before boarding time for the TGV Lyria towards Nice, I sat in the waiting area near the entrance. There’s also the opportunity to do some shopping here – there’s an Air de Provence perfume shop, a Micro Mania and a Relay inside the station. The toilets are located along platform A, but you’ll have to pay a fee for access. (€ 0.80). If you’re hungry, the station also has a McDonald's, but the Relay also sells snacks and sandwiches.

You’re advised to validate your ticket at one of the yellow machines located on the platforms before boarding the TGV Lyria. However, as I had an eticket I printed before going to the station, I was able to board without any issues or having to worry about validating.

On board the TGV Lyria

As you reserve a seat when you book the ticket, I had no difficulty finding mine on the train (each ticket will feature your carriage and seat number). The carriages of the TGV Lyria are numbered at each door, and you can see which carriage is where on the train by looking at the order on the screens located on the platform. As for your seat, you’ll find the number on the headrest of each seat inside the carriage. 

You can leave your luggage in the dedicated areas at each end of the carriage. If you have smaller luggage or your suitcase isn’t too heavy, you can also store it on the shelf above your seat.

Speaking of seats, whether you’re travelling in First or Second class, they are very comfortable. I was in First Class on this trip, on a single seat near the window. In addition to the very quiet atmosphere in the carriage, each seat has a removable table, a footrest and an individual power socket, although there was no WiFi on this journey. The seats also recline, great for if you want to take a nap.

If you travel by day, make sure you don’t miss the amazing landscape through the window! You won’t be disappointed by the breath-taking mountains and glistening seas that roll by. The TGV Lyria journey from Marseille to Nice stops at Toulon, St-Raphael, Cannes and Antibes on its way to Nice Ville.

There was a bit of a delay during my journey, the train stopped near Toulon because of... goats on the track! The attendants told us the news with a touch of humour – not a problem at all!

I was very happy to eat at the TGV bar during the trip, located in the middle of the train, serving snacks and drinks. This bar offers menus by chef Mathieu Castex, but prices are rather high – € 4.80 for a cappuccino, €3 for a Coca-Cola or €7.50 for a croque monsieur.

Arriving in Nice

We end our trip at Nice Ville station, located north of the city and about 20-minutes from the sea. If you need to take a connection from here, the station is served by TGV, Intercity and TER trains to other French cities, TGV Lyria trains to Switzerland and Thello trains to Italy.

About Estelle

Estelle is one of our trusted, hand-picked travel writers. The information for this article was recorded first-hand, based on her own genuine experience of the journey.