Overview

Here at Macs Adventure we appreciate that our customers have very busy lives.  Planning any adventure takes a lot of time and patience, therefore we have we have put together a travel blog which will hopefully take the hassle off you and help in the initial planning stages of this once in a lifetime journey! Travelling to France is very straight forward with their national airline Air France offering a wide network of flights from across the globe.  Both UK and Europe have an array of low-cost carriers which serves the country. France has one of the most extensive train networks in Western Europe, therefore travelling within France should not pose too much difficulty. The rail network reaches the main towns, and with the TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train") it makes travelling even quicker from the major French cities.  Visit SNCF for timetables and prices. Buses cover rural areas, but services can be fairly limited and generally not the most reliable. Below is some information regarding your travel options to/from the Camino Le Puy. You may also find www.skyscanner.com and www.rome2rio.com useful resources to assist with your travel planning.

How to get to/from Le Puy-en-Velay:

Lyon airport (145km)

If flying from the UK, low-cost carrier, easyJet offers direct flights to Lyon from Edinburgh, Manchester, Bristol, London Stansted, Luton & Gatwick.  Other airlines include Air France, Flybe and BA.  From outside the UK, you can fly to Lyon direct with many European and International airlines.  Check the Lyon airport website to see what airlines suit you best. From the airport there is a fast train link (30mins) to the main train station Gare de Lyon Part-Dieu and from here you can take a TGV train to Le Puy (2H25) via Saint-Etienne-Châteaucreux to downtown Le Puy.  It is also possible to reach Le Puy from Nimes, Clermont Ferrand and Montpellier. For more information on train times and schedules please visit the SNCF website.

How to get to/from Nasbinals:

Rodez airport (65km)

If flying from the UK, low-cost carrier Ryanair offers a direct flight to Rodez from London Stansted. From outside the UK, you can fly to Rodez direct from Dublin with Ryanair or HOP airlines from Paris Orly.  Check the Rodez airport website to see what airlines suit you best. There is no public transport from Rodez to Nasbinals so you would need to take a taxi which will take approximately 1 hour. Alternatively, from Paris take a train to Aumont Aubrec and then a taxi from here to Nasbinals. There are also direct trains from Paris via Clermont Ferrand to Aumont Aubrec. You could also fly into Lyon airport, then take a train from Lyon to Aumont Aubrec, again via Clermont Ferrand. Both options will take approximately 6 hours. For train schedules and fares please visit the SNCF website.

How to get to/from Conques:

Rodez airport (40km)

If flying from the UK, low-cost carrier Ryanair offers a direct flight to Rodez from London Stansted. From outside the UK, you can fly to Rodez direct from Dublin with Ryanair or HOP airlines from Paris Orly. Check the Rodez airport website to see what airlines suit you best. From Rodez airport to Rodez (10 mins) there is no public transport, you would need to take a taxi. From Rodez you can reach Conques by bus (1H). This is not a daily service and timetables vary during the French school holidays. For timetables and fares visit Tourisme Conques.

How to get to/from Cahors:

Toulouse airport (105km)

If flying from the UK, low-cost carrier easyJet offers direct flights to Toulouse from London Gatwick and Bristol. Jet2 also offers a service from Manchester and Edinburgh. Other airlines include BA and Flybe. If you are coming from Europe then please look at the Toulouse airport website to see what airlines suit you best. From Toulouse you can reach Cahors easily by train (1H20) with SNCF. If travelling from overseas the best option is to fly into London or Paris and catch a low-cost flight to Toulouse. Alternatively, take the train from Paris to Cahors (6H).  Train timetables and fares can be viewed at SNCF.

How to get to/from Aire sur l’Adour:

Bordeaux airport (150km)

If flying from the UK, low-cost airlines such as easyJet and Ryanair offer direct flights to Bordeaux from Edinburgh, Bristol, London Stansted, Luton & Gatwick. Flybe also offers a direct service from Birmingham and BA from London Gatwick. If you are coming from Europe then please look at the Bordeaux airport website to see what airlines suit you best. From Bordeaux you can reach Aire sur l’Adour by taking a train to Pau (2H10) or Agen (2H), then taking a bus from Pau (1H10) or Agen(2H). Train and bus timetables are fares can be viewed at SNCF and Car Aquitaine.

Pau airport (50km)

If travelling from overseas an alternative option is to fly into Paris and catch an internal flight with Air France to Pau airport.  From Pau you would take the bus to Aire sur l’Adour as above.

How to get to/from St Jean Pied de Port:

Biarritz airport (55km)

If flying from the UK, low-cost airlines such as easyJet and Ryanair offer direct flights to Biarritz from London Stansted & Gatwick. Flybe also offers a direct service from Birmingham.  If you are coming from Europe then please look at the Biarritz airport website to see what airlines suit you best. From Biarritz airport you can reach St Jean Pied de Port by firstly taking the airport bus (Line C) to Bayonne (30 mins). Timetables and fares can be viewed at Chronoplus. From Bayonne you can catch the mountain railway to St Jean Pied De Port (1H30). Timetables and fares can be viewed at SNCF. If travelling from overseas the best option is to fly into London or Paris and catch a low cost flight to Biarritz. Alternatively, take the TGV from Paris to Bayonne (5H), then take the mountain train to St Jean Pied de Port as above. We hope this is of some help in planning your Camino and for any other details on the various trips, don't hesitate to get in touch with one of our specialists at hello@macsadventure.com.