Need Help Booking TGV
 

I just posted this on an old thread but I was advised that it would be better to start a new post. I've looked through the various threads on booking French train travel but I haven't seen my problem addressed. When I look at the schedule I see the trains I want but then when I click the button to purchase the tickets, it only shows me much later trains at much cheaper prices. I know my earlier more expensive choices can't be sold out because my travel is 90 days from now. It seems like it is automatically defaulting to the cheapest tickets on the days I wish to travel but yet I don't see any place where that default was selected. Any suggestions?
I'm going from Paris to Avignon on May 12 returning May 21 but put in the date of May 11 since it's 90 days out just to see what's available. Thanks for any advice you might have.

Hi, Louisa

I think that in order to see the schedules and prices today, you'll have to input your date as May 10, not May 11. They don't actually count 90 days but rather the same date as today 3 mos from now, thus May 10.
The reason you're only getting the later trains for May 11 is that they are IDTGV trains which can be booked further ahead, I think 6 mos.

Hi LouisaH-

Could the problem be that May 11 is 91 days out? I looked at the schedule for May 10, and I see:
07:16 direct, 22 euro PREMs
07:46 direct, 22 euro PREMs

there are 2 later iDTGV and they are around 62 euros

Thanks Betty and yk. I don't think that's the problem because I also tried May 8 and that didn't work either. Also, I noticed the other day someone was trying to book a train for May 1st, a holiday and popular travel day, and they were told they should have booked on April 31 because PREM fares were already gone.

You may even, Heavens Forbid, check out www.raileurope.com as they, owned largely by the SNCF, are supposedly introducing fares similar to the PREM fares sometime in the near future and indeed have some surprisingly good fares in very limited numbers.

Like yk, I put in May 10 and found the earlier trains. Try that. May 8 is , I believe, a holiday so may have fewer trains running or more demand.

PalenQ, that's good to know about Rail Europe. I'll check it out.
Betty, good point about the 8th, thanks.

I just tried for 11 May and the site is now showing 07:46 idTGV Paris Gare de Lyon to Avignon for purchase for €38.90 (1st cls 49.90). Before this screen, it was showing other choices such as 15:16 for €38.90(1st 44.90) and 20:16 for €34.90 (1st 39 !). All trains with remarks "last seats" on both classes. For me it seems the site is working.

I just looked and I concur with what kappa saw.

Yes, they have apparently added another IDTGV for May 11. But those are showing now because they are all IDTGV. There are cheaper tickets (Prem's 22€) showing for May 10 for the same departure time. So I would expect those to be available for May 12. But you'll have to wait until Feb 12 to see them (actually Feb 11 after 6:00 pm EST, assuming you are in the US - midnight in France).

kappa, yk, and Betty, thanks for your help. I'll try again after 6:00 PM on the 11th and see if PREM fares are available.

Hi LouisaH-

When I looked again this AM, all the TGV trains have been loaded for May 11, with the lowest price at 22 euros.

For May 12, there's still only just the 3 iDTGV showing right now. But I assume the rest of the TGV trains should be loaded later this evening. You should plan on buying the tickets when they become available to get the cheapest rate.

LouisaH- Have you got your ticket yet? Not that many PREMS available for the AM trains. 25 euros for the 0916 train; 34,90 euros for the 0746 iDTGV.

yk, thank you so much for following up on this for me. I was in DC all day today meeting with a client, which is why I was trying to get this all figured out ahead of time. I'm on the SNCF site now and there are still great PREM's on both the 9:16 and the 11:16. I will definitely book tonight or in the morning.

yk, I was able to get PREM's fare of 22 E for the train I wanted so I'm pleased! Again, thank you.

That's a fantastic deal. Sometimes a little advance planning saves lots of money! Enjoy your trip.

Good to know you got the best deal!

Congratulations, Louisa! I'm happy you got the tickets you wanted. I was afraid you had not jumped quickly enough.

I am perplexed, though. I checked last night and earlier this morning and never saw those Prem's fares for 9:16 and 11:16 for Paris to Avignon on May 12.

I just checked again and see no trains at all between 7:46 (for 34.90€ or 64 €)and 15:16. Am I missing something?

Did you use the voyages-sncf site or the tgv site? I have to buy tickets in a couple of weeks so I want to make sure there's not some "trick" I'm unaware of.

Betty, that is strange. I purchased them about 11:00 PM EST last night. I was on the sncf site and that is who my confirmation and tickets are with but from there I clicked on the tgv-europe site. I had a choice of the 9:16 or the 11:16 and both were 22 E for 2e classe. I received confirmation and have actually printed my tickets. I just clicked on the site now and I got a message that said "null" when I tried to search for those fares. These are the kinds of problems I had the other day when I started this thread. Good luck and keep us posted.

I didn't see any tickets available at those times either when I just tried. I only use voyages-sncf.com

I don't get any message saying null, though, I just put in Paris and Avignon for that date, starting at 7 am, and it shows you everything that day.

Betty, I just pulled this from the Rail Europe site so it shows those trains but, of course, with much higher fares.
TGV Duplex 6107 9:16AM
Paris Gare Lyon,
France
12 May 11:56AM
Avignon Tgv,
France
12 May 2hr 40min 0 $102.00 $162.00 $141.00 $268.00

TGV Duplex 6111 11:16AM
Paris Gare Lyon,
France
12 May 1:56PM
Avignon Tgv,
France
12 May 2hr 40min 0 $128.00 $134.00 $219.00 $268.00

Christina, it's strange, isn't it? That's what happened to me earlier this week; I knew those trains existed because I saw them last week but they didn't appear when I was looking the other day, just much earlier and much later trains.

It seems you just never know what the sncf site is going to do, do you?

I'm looking for 12 tickets Paris to Brive on May 23 and 10 tickets from Avignon to Paris on June 6. Needing that many complicates things even more. I asked for a group quote from RE ... $65pp for the first leg (17-29€ on sncf) and $95pp for the second (35-64€ on sncf) + $5pp service fee + $18 shipping. How's that for a group "discount"?

For that kind of difference I'll take my chances on voyages-sncf!

Betty - I hope you are charging (?your friends or family whom you're buying tickets for) a HEFTY commission!

Hooray! Bought my 12 tickets to Brive - Prem's at 17€ each. Hope I can do as well for the 10 Avignon to Paris. Sometimes the SNCF site does work!

And no, yk, no commission - I even pay for my own ticket.

Congratulations, Betty1. I hope the people whom you're buying tickets for, appreciate all the hoops you had to jump through!!!

Betty, that's great!
I just booked my Avignon-Paris return portion of the trip for 22 E each so hopefully you'll be successful as well. I booked after 6:00 PM on February 20, i.e. the 21st in France, for my ticket for May 21.

Thank God for folks like yk who take time to help on these for some reason nearly impossible for novice users transactions - saving folks tons of money.

And I just got my PREMS for my Dad and me, for 75.60E

Yay!

Question - I did get the confirmation email, I printed it out.. however it is telling me to pick up the tickets at the train station. I am not sure if I did something wrong, I expected to be able to print them directly from the internet.

Any advice, especially since I will be doing this again for my trip with Mom?

Great thread Louisa...