Is there a requirement that TGV passengers stamp their tickets in those little machines before boarding?

I recall "composting" my tickets to and from Vernon in a little orange machine, but I cannot remember if I had to do that for the TVG to Bern.

Yes, you must "composter."

If it's a TGV PREM ticket you bought online and printed off yourself, no, there's no need to composte it. If it's a ticket picked up or purchased at an SNCF ticket office or boutique, yes, it must be composted.

Thanks. My memory is not as reliable as in earlier years. A friend of mine is going to Paris and then riding trains about the country. I was trying to give advice to ease concerns. I could remember doing the stamping bit at Gare St. Lazare going to Vernon, and again in Vernon coming back to Gare St. Lazare.

And of course I did the same when I went to Fontainebleau Avon. But for some reason I could not recall what I did before boarding the TGV to Lausanne.

I guess I was too worried with shoving my luggage onto the train to recall what I did. At any rate, thanks a bunch for the responses. I will pass them on to my friend.

Yes you are supposed to stamp your ticket. However my experience is that if one., as a foreigner, forgets then all you are met with is a slightly exasperated sigh. That’s what’s happened to me anyway.

If you do forget to stamp it, find a controlleur as soon as you board the train and he/she will stamp it then and there, usually with that exasperated sigh.

It's surely best to get in the habit of always stamping tickets in both France and Italy. If you're not used to it, it's so easy to forget, especially if you're in a hurry to catch a train. If you stamp a ticket when it's not necessary, then it doesn't matter.

Rick Steves' updates for 2006 say that you no longer need to compost your tickets. Check his website at wwww.ricksteves.com

TTT

Out of feart and paranoia I stamp and stamp and stamp everything. So that gets me the exasperated sigh too.

I wouldn't take advice from Rick Steves, he doesn't know what he's talking about sometimes. His web site (which I just read) claims that updates for 2005 (not even 2006), include the information that you don't have to compost any SNCF rail ticket.

This is not true. I was there last summer and some of the tickets I bought said right on them that they had to be composted. I know that because I have a copy of one right in front of me. Which is the issue -- you don't have to guess because the ticket says right on it if you do or not. I remember in one rail station, I remembered I needed to compost after I was out on the quai and there wasn't a machine nearby, so I found a conductor who did it for me because I didn't think I had the time to go all the way back out. He did it and didn't say anything whatsoever about how you don't have to do that. Anyway, the tickets say so.

Even if you weren't sure (and perhaps some types don't require it, if they are nonrefundable and I don't think Thalys do), why wouldn't you compost one just to be sure, if you didn't know? It isn't going to have any negative consequences.

Just compost it if you aren't certain and be done with it..it's fun..you stick it in and a little bell rings..better than that thing where you stick it in and a voice says, "Please hurry up..."

I rode French trains lots of times in December 2005 and on each train as soon as the train departed they made an announcement in French to make sure you had composted (cancelled) your tickets and if you hadn't to be sure to find the conductor/controller right away as if he finds you without your ticket being cancelled you are considered to be riding without a valid ticket. The reason for cancelling your tickets before boarding the train is that sometimes conductors don't check tickets and thus an uncancelled ticket could be refunded or used again.
In addition to the old orange self-cancelling (composteurs) in stations there are now many more brand new yellow composteur machines.
Now as a foreigner you might get a pass from a conductor but, except for tickets issued outside of France like thru RailEurope, tickets bought in France must be cancelled.

The folowing is copied directly from the SNCF website "passenger guide"...

"All tickets, with or without reserved seating, including cross-border tickets issued in France, must be stamped at the departure station. This does not apply to changes of trains made in the course of the same, ticketed journey and within the required validity period."

The compost machines are changing from orange to yellow in color. Last March Paris, Nancy & Metz had the new sleeker yellow machines. Little Pont-a-Mousson still had the squarish orange ones.

StCirq is 100 percent right and Rick Steves is 100 percent wrong. You MUST validate any ticket printed for you by the SNCF. You dont validate those that you have printed yourself nor could you because the machine would not stamp them. The machine reads the magnetic strip on the back of the tickets which is not present on self printed tickets.

As others have mentioned, the machines are moving from orange to yellow.

Gee, Morgan..did I forget to include sometbing....????

No no intrepid one, not all. I thought the quote from the SNCF website was a bit misleading because it says "all tickets" which isnt the case so just wanted to clairify the difference between home printed and sncf printed ticket. Didnt meant to be repeating, just trying to summarize .

Good to know the nuances. I don't have any active plans to travel at the moment because of my traveling companions degenerative disk problems. But I will pass along the information to my friend who is headed for Paris in just a few days.

The family is also going to Lauterbrunnen and Wengen. That I can talk about with some confidence.