I went directly to tgv.com and in English ordered TWO first class tickets, Avignon-Paris and the total bill appears to be E 78 for the TGV for two. I have bar coded boarding passes with seat assignments printed on my trusty HP office jet in hand. I inquired at their website if I need a ticket to go along with the boarding pass but got a vague, non answer. The price is approximately half of what Fodor's France 06 Guide says and two thirds of what raileurope wants. Am I missing something?

Do you have actual tickets, as in a PREM ticket with your name and birthday, the train number and departure and arrival info, your car and seat number, and the price on it?

Or do you just have a confirmation slip?

If the former, that's a ticket and you don't need anything else except a picture ID to show the conductor if he asks.

If the latter, you have to goto the window in the station, pick up your ticket, then get it stamped before boarding.

Ah, trusty StCirq..

It says "billet, name, birthday, depart, date & time, station, arrivee date and time, train number, class voiture, haut place, and prix" It's bar coded witha really neat background with our names in block letters as the wall paper. Looks like a ticket to me.... but I trust your expertise.

Saint Cirq: someone asked yesterday what PREM meant? if you know please tell me - i guessed Premium but can't understand why they'd call these restricted tickets that? thanks in advance.

travel_buoy, that's your ticket. By the way, you don't need to stamp it before boarding the train. It's only good for the one journey. (We spent ages folding the paper, trying to make it fit in the stamping machine.)

Prem = premier = first = the early bird catches the worm = limited supply advanced purchase

Through www.idtgv.com you can even find tickets for 19 euros for that sector.