Bus Travel in France

Bus travel is generally an inconvenient travel option in France and is only really useful for short trips in areas not served by the rail network such as some destinations in Brittany, Normandy as well as services into Andorra.

International services connect Paris to destinations in Ireland, the UK and continental Europe. Eurolines bus services from Paris operate from the Gare Routière Eurolines in Bagnolet (métro Gallieni).

Busabout has services to Avignon, Bordeaux, Nice, Paris and Tours.

Ze Bus

Ze Bus (website www.ze-bus.com) is a hop-on hop-off backpacker bus that runs through eastern France, taking in Normandy, Britanny, the châteaux of the Loire Valley, the vineyards of the Bordeaux region and the surf beaches of the south east coast.

The full round trip takes six days; although, like other hop-on hop-off buses, you are free to hop-off anywhere along the bus route and rejoin another bus later on as long as you complete the trip by the end of the season.

The trip is divided into six sectors, which each equate to a travel day and have a different theme. For instance the first day out of Paris concentrates on the D-Day beaches, while there are sectors that concentrate on surf spots, the wine country around Bordeaux and the Loire Valley châteaux. Ze Bus only runs during the day with an overnight stop at the end of each sector. Compulsory overnight stops are: Cherbourg, Pontivy, La Rochelle, Biarritz/Anglet and Angoulème.

The full trip costs €390, although you can purchase travel for any of the six sectors: