Lyon to Montpellier by train

Every train between Lyon and Montpellier runs direct, with journeys as short as 1 hour 40 minutes. The real decision on this corridor is not whether to change trains, but which station you use at each end, because the cheapest OUIGO fare does not always land where you expect.

Lyon to Montpellier at a glance

These are indicative figures from the current published timetable. Prices and exact departure times vary by date and demand, so treat the table as orientation and check your specific train when you book.

Which Montpellier station your ticket actually uses

For most travellers, book a train that arrives at Montpellier Saint-Roch. It sits in the city centre on Place Auguste Gibert, with four tram lines stopping right outside. Choose Montpellier Sud-de-France only if your onward plans are near Odysseum or the eastern edge of the city, because getting into the centre from there means a real transfer, not a walk.

On OUIGO, the arrival station depends on where you board in Lyon. Trains from Lyon Perrache and Lyon Saint-Exupéry arrive at the central Montpellier Saint-Roch station. Trains from Lyon Part-Dieu, Lyon's main hub and often the easiest station to reach, instead arrive at Montpellier Sud-de-France. That is the catch on this corridor: the cheapest OUIGO fare from Part-Dieu can be the one that leaves you furthest from where you actually want to be.

Montpellier Sud-de-France is not within walking distance of the centre. A TAM shuttle bus covers the short hop to the Place de France tram stop in about 15 minutes, and tram line 1 then takes a further 20 to 25 minutes into town, for a combined transfer of roughly 50 minutes each way. Build that into your plans if your ticket lands you there, especially if you are catching a connection.

Full-service TGV INOUI trains from Lyon Part-Dieu are not exempt from this either. Some serve Montpellier Saint-Roch and others serve Sud-de-France, depending on the specific departure. Whichever brand you book, open the train details before you pay and confirm the arrival station by name, not just the city.

OUIGO or TGV INOUI: choosing your operator

SNCF Voyageurs runs this corridor under two brands, plus a slower regional option. OUIGO is the low-cost choice: fares start from EUR 10 in 2nd class for a seat with one carry-on and one piece of hand luggage. The OUIGO PLUS option costs EUR 9 more and adds seat choice, an extra bag, and Wi-Fi through OUIFI or OUIFUN.

TGV INOUI is the full-service brand on the same tracks. Standard seats come with a power socket, tray table, reading light, and Wi-Fi throughout the journey, and a bar car serves food and drinks. First class adds wider, ergonomic seats with a choice of layout. SNCF publishes no fixed starting price for TGV INOUI the way it does for OUIGO's EUR 10 fare, because TGV INOUI pricing is fully dynamic with no published floor, so compare live fares for your date rather than assume a fixed premium over OUIGO.

Regional TER services also appear on the operator list for this corridor, alongside long-distance TGV INOUI trains continuing to Brussels or into Spain that happen to call here too. For a straightforward Lyon to Montpellier trip, compare OUIGO and TGV INOUI first. TER suits a slower, more local journey rather than the fastest way through.

Booking and fares

Book as early as you can if price matters more than flexibility. OUIGO's cheapest EUR 10 fares appear on a limited number of departures and sell out first, with prices for the same route climbing well past EUR 50 on higher-demand dates. Tickets typically go on sale several months ahead, opening for summer travel in spring and for winter travel in autumn, so booking as soon as your date opens gives you the best chance at the lowest fare.

If you are making this trip more than once, a Carte Avantage discount card costs a fixed EUR 49 and can bring down TGV INOUI fares across a year of travel. That is worth it for frequent journeys, not for a single one-off trip.

Travelling with extras adds a predictable cost on OUIGO rather than a surprise at the station. Children aged 4 to 11 travel for a fixed EUR 8 fare, and under-4s ride free on an adult's lap. A pet costs a flat EUR 10, and a folded, bagged bike costs EUR 5. None of this changes which station you arrive at, only the total price of the trip.

Using an Interrail or Eurail Pass on this route

An Interrail or Eurail Pass covers both TGV INOUI and OUIGO trains on this corridor. Pass validity on OUIGO is a recent change: before July 2026, OUIGO was excluded entirely, but OUIGO Grande Vitesse services, which is what runs between Lyon and Montpellier, are now covered under standard pass rules.

A seat reservation is still compulsory either way, and it is a separate paid purchase from the pass itself. On TGV INOUI, that reservation follows the same tiered fee as OUIGO: EUR 10, rising to EUR 20 once a limited discounted quota sells out. On OUIGO, the passholder reservation fee starts at EUR 10 and rises to EUR 20 once a limited discounted quota sells out. These OUIGO passholder reservations can currently only be booked through the official Eurail or Interrail reservation service, not through ouigo.com, the OUIGO app, or SNCF Connect, so book that leg through your pass provider rather than expecting to add it at an ordinary OUIGO checkout.