Does your employer invite you to move in a professional setting to another city in France? Although your manager has the right to choose how you move, you can always try to change his mind.
Are you traveling to France for business and you hesitate between taking the plane and the train? Here are the advantages and disadvantages of traveling by train and plane.
In order to help you choose between the train and the plane, it is important to analyze the journey you have to make such as the distance between your home and the station or the airport as well as between the destination station and the place destination. This may be decisive in your choice to take the plane or the train as part of your business trip
Business travel by train
The benefits of business travel by train
The rail network in France is one of the best in the world. Indeed, the country has more than 3,000 stations and more than 30,000 km of active lines. France is also known for its TGV – High Speed Train – which allows you to go from Lille to Marseille (1,000 km away) in less than 5 hours compared to more than 10 hours by car.
Also, the stations being located in the city centers, it becomes very practical and easy to get there according to the place of departure and the final destination link, in particular thanks to public transport nice places to live in Spain .
The main lines provide travelers with high-performance WiFi. This is a non-negligible advantage since it allows you to work calmly during the journey.
It is important to emphasize that train travel has a very low carbon impact. It is estimated to be up to 150 times more environmentally friendly than an equivalent plane trip. This is an important argument to which companies are paying increasing attention for more information visit our travel blog .
The disadvantages of business travel by train
Although the rail network is substantial, it is unevenly distributed throughout France. Rather, we are talking about a star-shaped network of which the majority of journeys have Paris as their starting point or destination. For example, a train journey between Bordeaux and Marseille takes 6 hours, almost the equivalent of a car trip.
TGV journeys can sometimes be relatively expensive – over a hundred euros. It is important to prepare your business trip in advance in order to reduce the cost of purchasing train tickets.
Business travel by plane
The benefits of business travel by plane
The plane is by far the fastest mode of transport in the world to go from a city A to a city B. For example, the Lille-Marseille plane trip lasts 1h35 precisely against 6 hours by train as mentioned previously.
Airline ticket prices have fallen drastically for more than a decade. These new offers on the market are explained in particular by the arrival of low cost companies such as Ryanair, Easyjet or Transavia. Some air travel can therefore be up to three times cheaper than the train.
The disadvantages of business travel by air
A plane ticket can certainly be cheaper than a train ticket. However, when budgeting for a business trip by plane, it is important to take into consideration the side trips which can easily increase the overall score. For example, to reach Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport from the city center, it costs €10.50 per RER B journey or even €50 by taxi.
A plane trip lasts much longer than a simple flight. In fact, when traveling on national territory, travelers are asked to arrive at least one hour before take-off and up to 2 hours before take-off if you have hold baggage to check in. This period allows in particular to pass the various controls (identity, health pass or cabin baggage). Boarding a plane can also take up to 30 minutes.
It goes without saying that unlike the train, the plane has a considerable carbon impact. Employees are making more and more effort to reduce their carbon impact. Air travel is therefore less and less popular with employees who wish to reduce their carbon impact during their business trips.