This train station in Aix-en-Provence is where we arrived from Paris during our stay in Aix-en-Provence. Having the need to use the restroom (they call it a "Toilet") upon arriving, I sought them out and it turned out the only available were on the other side of the tracks. I took the stairs over there only to learn that I needed to pay 1 Euro to use it and I didn't have any coins with me - frustrating! They really need to end this practice, especially in facilities like this with so many tourists from other countries where you don't pay to use the restroom. Otherwise, it's just a train station - nothing more to stay about the place. read more

WARNING: the "Aix" TGV station is not situated in Aix-en-Provence. In fact, it's literally in the middle of nowhere. To get there, you have to walk for three hours through the blistering countryside: past the city limits, past the airport, down a busy highway, and into the desolate no man's land where the station is located. The station is so far from the city that it is closer to Vitrolles or the outer limits of Marseille than it is to Aix. There is a bus; but it's a racket: €6 for a route upon which they have a monopoly. A taxi will cost you €50. Worst of all, you have to pay to use the toilets. I wish the urban planner who designed this station a long and miserable life. read more

OK... So I think it's GONNA be great, but at the moment the Aix-en-Provence Gare Routiere is a big mess, with billboards all over the place sporting an artist's rendering of what it's supposed to look like by the END OF DECEMBER. We've been passing through there everyday for the past month. Not sure they'll get the job done before the bus carrying Pére Noël arrives from the north, but they ARE making visible progress with the new boarding area, and I think it will be efficient and user-friendly when it's done. A couple facts a traveler would want to know, whether arriving in the construction war-zone that exists today, or later when the facility is up and running... - The entire facility is about a 10 minute walk from the center of town. Very doable, but not especially convenient. - There are two or three youth hostel/apart-hotels that I've noticed in the area, but they aren't particularly close either. - Connections between city buses and the local train station are also a couple blocks away, and the train station is just plain hard to find unless you know where you're going. But that doesn't really matter since the REAL train station (where the TGV arrives) is 18 km away, and you have to take a bus from the TGV station to... you guessed it... ... the new Gare Routière. Confusing? Oui. Je pense! read more

Lovely lounge that take the worry out of your travels here. Make sure you gave a printed ticket if that's what your electronic ticket states. And.. make sure you stamp it in one of those little yellow boxes before boarding. It's only important if they ask for your ticket which only happens once in a while. read more

The Gare Aix en Provence TGV is located a bit out side of Aix itself but it's very easy to get from the stattion to Aix and vice versa - buses run from the station to the Gare routiere in Aix roughly every 15 minutes for a short trip. The cost was about 3.60 euro the last time I took it. Buses also go to Marignane airport. For those with cars, there's plenty of parking. There are newspapers and postcards at the station. Also, it's possible to get something to eat or drink. A very clean pleasant place! read more