Erin

Hi - I am leaving in June for a trip through France with my younger brother. I looked at the fares on the Raileurope site and then muddled through the SNCF site - where the fares seem far cheaper (if my French can be trusted.) Has anyone used either or both and have input on this price difference? I planned to get the Saverpass (2 ppl traveling together) but the SNCF fares look even better than that cost. Any input on train travel is appreciated - we are going from Paris to Avignon, Avignon to Nice and Nice back to Paris. Thanks!

Louis Parent

In general, the fares quoted directly by the European Railways are much cheaper (50% or more) than RailEurope. I've made reservations directly on the SNCF and TreinItalia websites. No problems at all!

Bob Brown

Over the years several of us have posted good examples of Rail Europe price excesses. RE is higher! <BR><BR>I am curious, however. Why not read the SNCF site in English??<BR>

bobbie

If you go to text search and type in sncf you will get a load of information.<BR>I needed help and asked the question Can Americans Buy from sncf site.<BR>I was guided through the somewhat confussing site by many people. At the present time mine was question 33.<BR>By following the advice I was able to buy my ticket in advance to pick up at the station in July when I need it.<BR>The savings for my husband and I was well worth the effort it took to learn how to use the site

StCirq

Erin:<BR><BR>Definitely eschew the RailEurope people for the SNCF guys. Rail Europe charges an arm and a leg, banking on your reluctance to deal with a "foreign entity," It's easy to get tickets in advance from SNCF, and you'll save a LOT! As you probably know if you've looked at the website, there are all kinds of discounts available, too. Take advantage of them. There is no reason ever to buy from Rail Europe that I know of, at least for tickets in France.

Kathy

I'm a little confused about where Bobbie was able to find out that she could buy tickets directly from SNCF. I went to their FAQ page and they say that it's not possible to buy tickets from N. America. <BR><BR>I'd found some information earlier that seemed to imply that it was possible to buy tickets but had to be picked up at a railway station within 3 days.<BR><BR>Please help. I definitely want to avoid Rail Europe's high prices but also want to make reservations for July.

alison

I also found the same thing as Kathy. If you choose for delivery in France do you pick up your tickets only at the train station that your particular train leaves from? Can they be delivered to your hotel?

StCirq

This is quoted from the SNCF website:<BR><BR>&lt;&lt;...by calling SNCF Direct at [011-33] 8-92-35-35-35 seven days a week from 7 am to 10 pm daily. SNCF Direct provides comprehensive reservation information and ticket sales and can deliver tickets free of charge to clients' homes.......<BR><BR>When ordering tickets, you will be asked to choose one of two options:<BR>*Remote Payment - you may then opt to:<BR> *have tickets sent free of charge to your home, if your order is placed at least five days prior to travel (or seven days if you are resident outside France....&gt;&gt;<BR><BR>

Jos

I've bought SNCF tickets from Canada, on their website. They really are a lot cheaper than the scammers at RailEurope.<BR><BR>In fact, I only made the reservation (you have the option to pay on the web by c/c) and paid the tickets when I picked them at the station. (the web site will give you a confirmation number). <BR><BR>Once my son was in France and traveling with the SNCF. He used to call me from France to ask me to change his reservations from Canada via the website. We never had any problems!

Sue

I ordered and paid for tickets on the SNCF site; then picked them up at an SNCF boutique in Paris after I landed. As long as they are paid for, you can pick them up any time. Ask your hotel for the closest SNCF boutique--quicker and easier than going to the train station.

anon

Is there an SNCF office at CDG? I plan to purchase some overnight train tickets for August via the website. Is it true that I can pick them up anytime as long as they're paid for? I plan to buy them in advance (next month) and pick them up when I arrive in August.

Louis

SNCF Station & Offices located between Terminals 2C and 2D. (follow signs for "Gare TGV"). Pick-up your tickets there.<BR>

elvira

Prior to the commercial use of the internet, RailEurope was the only way that you could buy European rail tickets in the U.S. without a huge hassle - hard to find phone numbers, then figure out the time difference when to call, find somebody who spoke English if you couldn't speak the language, you had to ask a zillion questions because there was no info anywhere. I did a rail trip in '89, and I used RailEurope - there was really no other way. If you want to buy Eurail Passes or other "tourist only" passes, you have to buy them from an agency like Raileurope (they aren't the only ones who sell them, though). <BR><BR>With the advent of the internet, there's no reason to use RailEurope for rail tickets - info is readily available, it's easy to find phone numbers if you want to call, on-line booking....AND you can access all sorts of foreign sites for discounted tickets (sorry, don't remember the name, but an example is a site in the UK where we bought tickets to Bath, York, etc. for a lot less than same-day or even thru BritRail, walked up to the ticket machine at the train station, stuck in my credit card and punched in my reservation number and voila! tickies!).<BR><BR>The SNCF site is like France - everything is there; it's organized, but not in any known recognizable way; form does NOT follow function; it's all worth it in the end.

alison

Thanks for all the advice. I also find Rail Europe to be very overpriced. And their customer service is not that great. I will give SNCF a try.

alison

I tried a sample booking on the SNCF site and cannot believe how cheap the total fare is in comparison to Rail Europe. Of course we're going in October and they haven't posted those yet. However, I chose June as a sample for 2 adults and 1 12 year old and it's only 180.90 Euros roundtrip. Rail Europe is charging at least double that amount.

alison

Note: The 180.90 Euros roundtrip is the total cost not per person fare.

Robert

Has anyone had a problem reserving through SNCF on the internet for pick up on the day of travel? We will have a confirmation number but concerned that when we show up for the train the tickets may not be there for us.

Sue

Hi Robert. The answer depends on whether you prepaid for the tickets. If you did not prepay, then you might have only a certain number of days, from the time of making your order, to the time you can pick up the tickets (I think it's usually only about a week to 8 days but check the SNCF site). If you paid with a credit card over the net as we did, your tickets can be picked up anytime prior to the train's departure. Bon voyage!

Sue

Robert, they send you an email, which you print up and take with you, as well as the credit card you charged it on. No problem. Pick them up either before or day of.

anon

Sue,<BR>How far in advance did you purchase your tickets online? If I purchase tickets for August 2 months in advance, will I be able to pick them up when I arrive at CDG in late July? Thanks for the info.