In purchasing train tickets thru www.voyages-sncf.com , I have selected the print yourself option. In the terms the following is stated: •

"printed ticket" must be printed in accordance with Specific Conditions accepted prior to any Order. Travel sncf.com not responsible for non-compliance with specific conditions.
• "printed ticket" is only valid if printed on white A4 paper, blank on both sides without changing the print size, in portrait (vertical) with a laser or inkjet minimum resolution of 300 dpi.

I went today to Staples office supply in search of "A4" paper. It is apparently somewhat wider and longer than our standard copy paper, and they do not carry it. Have any of you had any problems when printing these tickets on our 8 1/2 x 11 paper. I did a test print and it seems to fit the page properly but I am a worrier and am concerned about the size issue. What has been the experience of those of you who have used the print it yourself option?

Nothing to worry about. 8 1/2 x 11 is good enough.

I agree with Kerouac. We took six train journeys and all our tickets were printed on 8 1/2 x 11.

Use 8.5 x 11.5 all the time for printing tickets and the like when A4 is called for. Have never had any problem.

However, if it would set your mind at ease, what I do with all my tickets on a trip is I do print them out at home but I also bring a flash drive with the PDF files on it and if absolutely necessary, you can ask your hotel to print the PDF files on their printers or step into an internet cafe and accomplish the same thing. It's a good backup to bring with you anyway, takes up absolutely no space and is there if you need it (along with PDF files of your hotel reservations, passport and whatever else you might feel comfortable with).

The only thing the SNCF ticket checker does is to scan the code on the ticket. He does not measure the paper.

A4 is just the standard size used in Europe and other places around the world. It's comparable to 8.5x11 in the US. You won't have any problem using your regular letter size paper.

A4 is standard European-size paper, but the SNCF controlleurs on the train don't care what size paper your ticket is printed on as long as they can see your name and the date and the destination. Just print it on 8.5 X 11. I've been doing this for many, many years.

Thank you all for your reassurances. I thought it would probably be ok but then started to wonder if it had to fit some specific gadget. I won't worry anymore, but like the idea of a flash drive to back up all my confirmations, etc.

Travel has become so much more user friendly with great tools like this board. Again, thank you all!

I have used 8 1/2 x 11 paper to print SNCF tickets. The Aztec 2D code, I think the kind used on SNCF tickets, has enough magnification latitude to tolerate the ~6% dimension differences between the A4 and the 8 1/2 x 11. It would be very difficult to read the code in practice especially on a moving train, if the size spec is so tight that one has to hold the scanner, for example, exactly 10 inches from the paper and not 9.4 or 10.6 inches.

Thank you Greg, that's the kind of detail I love about the people who populate this forum.