Is the cheapest way to get prem tickets to book exactly 3 months before your preferred date? and is it on raileurope.com.au - prices seem to be "all over the place" !

It's better to use the country's own rail site...
France = www.sncf.com
Netherlands = www.ns.nl
Italy = www.trenitalia.com
and so on....

Also www.thalys.com

Since you mention PREM'S specifically, I assume you will be traveling in France. SNCF recently revised its Web site and there are now some special tricks to booking in English without being bumped to the RailEurope site where PREM'S are NOT sold. If you can handle French, it's much easier. if you want help with the English tricks--or with booking in French--just ask.

TimS, further to my triumphant ravings in another thread the other day - I have since been unable to access the site in English at all from Australia. I still don't understand how it came and went??

I think plandelatour is also from Australia (?) so I will be following this thread with interest.
Good luck!

Do a search for MorganB's "tutorial". Awesome.

djkbooks, I have used this in the past but it now requires a little "tweaking" I think since the changes TimS referred to on the sncf site.

Hi All,

I just tried this out.

I went to www.voyages-sncf.com.

Went to the lower left corner and clicked the British flag.

I was transferred to TGV Europe.

I clicked the British flag.

I entered Paris to Dijon, one way, for 04/04/08.

I was transferred back to SNCF.
IN FRENCH.

I was offered a 17E PREMS fare.

The rest of the transaction was in French.

Went back to TGV Europe.

Clicked German.

Ordered a ticket from Stuttgart to Munich.

Stayed at TGV Europe. 45E.

Went to www.bahn.de. Clicked English.

They offer a 29E discount ticket.

plandelatour, ozgirl, and other interested persons:

Yes, with the changes on the SNCF site, morganB's tutorial is out of date--unless you can get to the booking page in English as I will explain.

I take no credit for discovering the "trick." A poster on the Helpline at ricksteves.com played around on the SNCF site until he was successful.

Here are the steps:

1. Clear your cookies on your Web browser so the SNCF site won't recognize what country you're in.

2. Click on this link: http://tinyurl.com/2shmfn. You'll get a page on the SNCF site with the heading "Document non trouve."

3. Click on the British flag icon. It will look like nothing has happened--the page won't change in appearance.

4. Wait a few moments and click on the link for "consulter le plan du site."

5. You'll get a new page. Under the Train heading click on "Reservation billet train."

6.If everything works, you'll get a booking page in English. Book your tickets leaving France as the default country. If you get a PREM'S fare, do NOT choose cancellation insurance. Print your ticket. If you get a standard fare, choose the option of picking up your ticket at a station or SNCF boutique.

Hi Tim,

You can now print your PREMS ticket even if you buy the insurance.

ira,

It's been my understanding that if you choose the cancellation insurance--which has conditions that most tourists won't be able to meet anyway--you have to give a mailing address. And if that address is in North America, you'll be bumped to the Rail Europe site where PREM'S are not sold.

Has this changed?

bookmarking for later this month! I just got so I could jump through all the hoops to get these fares and now they have changed it!? AAARRRGGGHH! Hopefully I will be able to book reasonable tickets for Paris to Amsterdam in May. But if I encounter problems it's good to have my Fodor friends!

Since SNCF revised their website recently it is very user unfriendly.

Hi Tim,

If you go online and book a ticket, you are given the option to print your ticket even if you choose the insurance.

It's been this way for a few months.

Thank you Ira for choosing Dijon as a destination! ;-)

suec1,

Thalys has just introduced a new single (one-way) fare of 25€ for Paris-Amsterdam (and some other points) called Mini. Book up to 90 days in advance at www.thalys.com. Book as soon as the 90-day window opens to have any chance of getting this fare.

I don't know what I'm missing, but I don't seem to have any trouble booking prems from the SNCF site. Admittedly I am taken to the Voyages-SNCF site for the booking, but no bumping to RailEurope at all. I plan on booking 4 tix for travel from Paris to Avignon on Feb 24 (3 months before our trip on May 24), and the price I'm seeing for prems for that trip is 67 euros/person. I haven't gone to the point of seeing about printing out my ticket since I'm not ready to buy yet.

Am I missing something?

Thanks,

Sam

For round-trip Basel-Paris-Basel, will I be able to purchase tickets at the PREM price if I order on-line throuh SBB? That is, if I order three months ahead of travel dates?

Thanks.

Can you book from the U.S. with no problem if you understand French?

kmbp,

Yes, you can book and print your own tickets on the English vrsion of the SBB site.

images2,

Yes, if you understand French you will have no trouble booking on the SNCF site--so long as you leave France as the default country for retrieving your tickets (either print PREM'S or choose to pick up a standard ticket at a station).

Thanks Tim. In the past we put France in the box, so we've been able to print the tickets at home. I'm glad to hear I don't have to clear cookies, because I'd be lost!