PREM tickets - Can you purchase them in person?
 

The title really asks it all for me, but I'm wondering if it's possible to go to an SNCF ticket office to purchase PREM fares when they first are made available, or are they only available online?

(And when exactly do they become available? If I want to take the train from Paris to Aix on June 7, and return on June 14, can I buy the tickets March 1?)

Hi P,

IIRC you can buy Prems 60 (maybe as much as 90) days out.

Yes, you can go to any SNCF boutique or train station to buy them.

((I))

Thanks so much for your quick reply, Ira.

That's one less thing to worry about....

It is 3 months in advance - not 90 days. So, for your June 7 trip, you can purchase them on March 6 at 6:05 PM eastern time in the US. March 7 at 00:05 in the AM in France.

iDTGV tickets can be purchased 5 months in advance.

Stu Dudley

Whoa. What's an iDTGV ticket?
(I thought I had my acronyms down pat.)

OK, I did the sensible thing and searched for the info, both here and on the idtgv site. It looks as though the times of trains aren't great -- either first thing in the morning or arriving later at night than I'd be comfortable with.

Still, it's always nice to have an option, to book far inadvance if you need to, and to pay so little for such a quick trip.

I'll keep idTGV in mind.

Super cheap TGV trains that run from Paris to a few locations. I know that they run to Provence, but I don't know where else. I think they run during off-peak hours.

Stu Dudley

Our return from Strasbourg to Paris in Oct. was an idTGV; the only difference that I noted was that the ticket (PREM, printed at home) looked different!