Topic Title

At the risk of sounding like a jet-setter, I'm taking my bike with me on a couple of trips this year that involve flying. Having paid about 60 quid + per flight in the past to have the privilage of my bike being counted as one of two pieces of checked-in luggage, I was quite shocked to see that BA are dropping charges from Feb 17th.
http://www.britishairways.com/travel/ba ... blic/en_gb

In an age of high and scarce fuel prices I can't quite fathom why they've done this, other than to be competitive in the niche transporting cyclists market, but hey, nice not to be marginalised for once (i.e. golf clubs have always gone for free...).

Anyway, the end of one of the trips likely involves getting a French train. Anyone have experience of this? on the SNCF website some of the trains have bicycle signs on them and some of them don't. The journey I want to do involves a change onto a non-bicycled train. What does this mean in practical terms? Are they going to say 'non' if the bike is in a clam-shell? I can always say I'm a bad packer and it's a big suitcase...

You can recount travel with bike nightmares here too - I'll start by recalling glancing out of the window in the airport during a transfer to see the guy driving the luggage trolley scream round the corner, pop a handbrake turn and watch my bike (in a clam-shell box) fly off the top shelf and shoot down the taxiway way past the plane, unnoticed by anyone (except me)

After about 10 minutes someone noticed it (it was blocking the plane after all) and chucked it in the hold, after which time all of my fellow passengers had quietly moved away from the lunatic gesticulating out the window. Moral: don't put your bike in a bag or a cardboard box!

SNCF - bikes are fine (as bikes) on local trains, but are not allowed on the TGV. You can take bikes in a bag/box as luggage on the TGV. Not sure what the maximum size of luggage you are allowed is mind, so be careful is the box is big.

I took a bike with be in a soft bike by train all the way from York to Valence via Eurostar and it was much the least stress way of traveling I've tried yet.

As Arthur says, bike in bag/box on TGV is very easy - I seem to recall max size stated somewhere as 1200x900mm.

On ornery trains I've heard all sorts of stories - petty French officialdom is very much on a par with ours, though they do at least generally like cyclists. A quick google yielded http://www.fubicy.org/train/bike.html which looks like it gives chapter and verse.

You jet-setter you!