The TGV celebrates its 45th anniversary with a free, immersive exhibition in Paris.

Forty-five years ago, the TGV became part of everyday life in France, gradually reshaping the distances between major cities. To mark this anniversary in 2026, SNCF Voyageurs is presenting in Paris an immersive exhibition devoted to the history of high speed, from its origins to its latest developments. The experience takes place at Espace Commines, in the 3rd arrondissement, with the aim of telling this rail adventure across decades of innovation and travel.

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The commercial story of the TGV begins in 1981, with the mise en service de la première ligne à grande vitesse between Paris and Lyon. Recognizable by their orange livery, the first trains quickly became associated with a new way of traveling across France, with reduced travel times between the major metropolises.

Since then the network has expanded, trains have taken on new shapes and colors, and French high-speed rail has stretched to numerous destinations across France and Europe. The exhibition presented by SNCF Voyageurs aims precisely to revisit this evolution by tracing "l’épopée de la Grande Vitesse" in an immersive format.

The exhibit aims to revisit the key milestones that have shaped the development of the TGV, while also looking ahead as new generations of trains are set to run on the French network. To present this retrospective, SNCF Voyageurs has chosen l’Espace Commines, an event venue housed in a former factory in the Haut-Marais. The exhibition is free and open to everyone, du 25 au 27 septembre 2026!

Vintage trains, historic locomotives and railroad museums in and around Paris
The train, whether toy or life-size, is the object of many passions, among young and old alike. In Paris and the Ile-de-France region, the train is a symbol of the region's development, with historic stations, period railroads and museums dedicated to the history of the train, to discover what makes up our French railway heritage. [Read more]

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