I've looked at the Thalys website and think I have this down. I'd just like to get verification that I'm correct on what I think I see.

My wife and I will be taking the train from Paris to Brussels in April. This will be several days after our arrival in Paris so I am fine buying the train tickets now as opposed to waiting until I get there.

It looks like I can buy the tickets online via Thalys.com.

I can then print my tickets out before we leave for Paris so I don't have to hassle with the machines or ticket windows once we get there.

They have a new fare called Mini that costs only 25 euro for this one way trip per person.

Does all of this sound legit? I had read in some guidebooks that train tickets between the two cities were very expensive...this doesn't seem like it.

If my dates and times are definite, is there any reason why I wouldn't want to buy very soon?

Everything is legit, but beaware of the restrictions on the "mini" fare.
* One way ;
* In Comfort 2 only ;
* On sale in limited quantities only to certain destinations ;
* On sale up until 14 days before departure.

Thanks MrNuke. Those restrictions don't concern me too much at all. The only thing we really want is an assigned seat for the journey and it looks like that is part of the ticket.

All seats on these trains are reserved. They do not sell tickets without a seat reservation. The cheapest are most likely to be available at quietest times of the day - late morning or early afternoon. Business passengers are most likely to be using the train in the morning and late afternoon/early evening, so you won't expect to get cheap fares then. The trains run every half hour so you have plenty to choose from.

On the Thalys.com website I see two Brussels stations:
1. Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid
2. Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid ABS

What is the difference here? They sure seem to be the exact same stations, save for that ABS thing.

They are the same station. ABS stands for Any Belgian Station. But your Thalys will still arrive at the Brussels Midi/Zuid station. The ABS designation on your ticket means you can then change to any train (except Thalys or ICE trains) and head out for free to any other train station in Belgium, in the class corresponding to your Thalys ticket (that is, if you had a first class Thalys ticket, you could ride first class on the Belgian trains, with second class Thalys, you'd have to go second class).

Thank you for your help folks. I booked and printed my 25 euro tickets online and it could not have been easier!