ssander

Refresh my memory...can I buy TGV tickets 90 days in advance or 120 days in advance...or sooner...or later? (Going to France in the spring and want to get the best prices.)

Thanks.
ssander

StuDudley

Three months in advance - normally, So if you fly Aug 10, purchase tickets at 18:05 (US East Coast time) on May 9 (which is May 10, 00:05 in France). I think this is 92 days in advance.


Many times, the have special early booking sales.


Stu Dudley

Sarastro

Fill out this form and the SNCF will alert you when tickets go on sale for the trains of your choice.

Christina

People obsess about this way too much. I don't even by airfare 4 months in advance, let alone a train ticket.

PalenQ

www.seat61.com has lots on this. To get discounts book as early as possible as they are limited in number but full fare usually available right up to train, especially in first class.

PalenQ

And yes first class at times may not be much more than cheapest available 2nd class tickets and if not much difference go first class which is a bit more relaxed - fewer seats in same-size train car - more room for luggage, etc. 2nd class is perfectly fine but 1st class even finer. For lots on what to expect on trains like 1st v 2nd check www.ricksteves.com and BETS-European Rail Experts. And many TGV trains are duplex or doubledeckers - better views from upper deck than from a sunken lower deck.

kerouac

I also rarely buy tickets more than two months in advance, sometimes less than one month. I will admit that I can vary my travel dates according to the cheapest fares, though. I know that a lot of tourists do not have this possibility.

StCirq

92 days in advance is the time to start looking for PREMs, but they are nonexchangeable and nonrefundable, so make sure you have definite travel plans ; if you don't, buy Loisir tickets.

It's not obsessive IMO to get the best fares. We do it all the time, and save lots of money.

There are, very occasionally, last-minute fare reductions, but that's a gamble.

We never, ever buy 1st class tickets, as we can barely tell any difference from the 2nd class ones. We were given free 1st class tickets on a trip from Toulouse a few months ago when a TGV train broke down and caused us to miss the train we had tickets for. It wasn't any more comfortable in 1st class than what we are used to in 2nd.

PalenQ

Wonder why so many French are so dumb to spend more for 1st class that ain't no better than 2nd class. Or are they?

kerouac

Actually, quite regularly, the SNCF site proposes 1st class fares that are cheaper than the 2nd class fares for a train 30 minutes before or after the train that interested you. And sometimes they have a fare difference of only 5 euros for the same train. So, yes, I travel in 1st class quite regularly but never if the price difference is more than 10 euros.

MaineGG

ssander - On the Alerte Résa form Sarastro linked to, there is information about when certain tickets will be offered for sale. Since you mentioned you would be traveling in the spring, you might note this:

Quand puis-je réserver mes billets de train pour les vacances de printemps ?

À partir du 15 janvier, vous pourrez réserver vos voyages pour les vacances de printemps : du 1er avril 2019 au 12 mai 2019, avec TGV et INTERCITÉS.

PalenQ

What would you say is the difference between 1st and 2nd class ? do they give out anything? Merci - and on duplex trains you prefer upper or lower and why?

kerouac

No, they give nothing except on special TGV services like the Thalys, Eurostar or Lyria. There is just slightly more room with a 2-1 configuration rather than a 2-2 configuration.

I don't really care whether I am on the upper or lower level although I have noticed that when choosing seats, there is a lot more choice on the upper level because the vast majority prefer the lower level.

PalenQ

merci bien kerouac! I suppose many habitual travelers who don't care for seeing scenery they've seen a zillion times. Seems the key benefit to me at least would be those solo seats on one side of train - I love that - a again thanks for you insights. One more minor thing - is there a big difference in being able to see the scenery on bottom or top or about the same? Why would vast majority like lower level? Cheers!

kerouac

They just don't want to climb the steps. I myself prefer the upper level also on the off chance that there might be more to see, but really there isn't.

StuDudley

We take 1st class if the fare is good. There is usually more space for baggage on 1st class.


Stu Dudley

PalenQ

thanks - so message for OP is to also look at first class fares and compare.

Macross

We got a good deal on 1st class from Brussels to Paris and did like being only one seat across from each other, where the people across from us were four crowded around a table. Not much difference on price so worth it. We travel light so suitcase fit overhead. Lille to Brussels was second class and very tight fit. We waited last Feb to buy tickets to Reims and it was cheaper to rent a car for a week. The tickets were crazy expensive. We bought about 2 months for last weeks trip.

PalenQ

You can also book TGV tickets at www.trainline.eu - several Fodorfolk have said that that site matches prices on www.oui.sncf (official site of French National Railways) and said were easier to book four foreigners than www.oui.sncf to get to work.

ssander

I've used both the SNCF site and Captain Train, now Trainline. Trainline is, indeed usually easier for Americans. I've also booked a combo Bruges-Amsterdam Thalys tickets on the Belgian website, which was really tricky when I did it, and Eurostar London-Paris tickets, whose site is a breeze. Now, my credit card company texts me when an unfamiliar charge comes in. I can confirm it with a reply text, which wasn't possible years ago, so everything is a little easier now.

I agree that 1st class on TGV isn't worth a lot...but for an extra 5€, I'll strongly consider it for a 2+ hr trip. My only experience with TGV is Nice-Avignon (both directions; only partially high-speed) and Avignon-Marseille (TGV one way and Ouigo the other).

I love riding trains between cities. In the US we have a so-called high-speed train on the east coast. The train itself is capable of high speeds, but the tracks and road bed are so old, it can't ever travel anywhere near it's maximum speed...plus the cost is higher here.

Thanks, all. I have put a reminder on my Outlook for 6 pm January 14 (midnight January 15 in France). Hopefully I can buy my tickets that evening.

ssander