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Most of the times I visited Paris, I came by train from the Netherlands. Since 1996 by Thalys, an international high speed service between Amsterdam and Paris, serving also Schiphol Airport, The Hague, Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels. For schedules and fares, have a look at the website fo Thalys.
In Paris the trains from the Netherlands and Belgium, including the Thalys, arrive in Gare du Nord. For travelling to other parts of France you have not only to change trains, but also stations in Paris. For the Thalys you need a special ticket and reservations. Leave a Comment Theme: TrainWebsite: www.thalys.com
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| | | | Trains: SNCF, TGV, etc.: THALYS network | Tip Rating: | | | | |
THALYS is an integrated, international high speed service which serves Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Koln (Cologne) and other destinations. Just like Eurostar, it brings the railways of several countries into cooperation under one semi-privatized commercial operation.
Thalys began service on June 2, 1996, with ten new red and silver trainsets. Deliveries continued until 1998 when all 27 trainsets, with two different subclasses, were delivered.
Thalys operates mainly over the LGV Nord-Europe, connecting to the newly opened high speed lines to Brussels and the Netherlands.
The Thalys brand was designed by the firm Total Design from Brussels. The name Thalys has no particular meaning, and is a brand name easily pronounced and remembered in all the languages of the countries concerned. According to the design firm, the Thalys livery stresses European red, representing power, while the silver used on the trailers represents high technology (!). More realistically perhaps, the colors are reminiscent of the CC 40100 locomotives formerly used on this relation. The markings of the respective railways (SNCF, SNCB, NS, DBAG) have disappeared in favor of the Thalys logo, a feminine face in profile over a white arrow symbolizing speed.
Thalys trainsets come in two kinds, awkwardly named PBA (for Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam) and PBKA (adding Koln, Germany). The former are second-generation TGV trainsets narrowly derived from the TGV Reseau, while the latter are third-generation trainsets with power units identical to the TGV Duplex and single-level trailers.
Originally 27 third generation trainsets had been ordered, but due to design and production delays the first ten trainsets were instead built as second generation trainsets (on the tail end of the Reseau build) to allow Thalys to begin operating more or less on schedule. Leave a Comment Theme: TrainWebsite: www.thalys.com
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