TGV question
 

I plan to purchase a TGV ticket for us to take the TGV from CDG to Aix en Provence for the day we arrive. Our flight is scheduled to arrive at 10:45 am, and the TGV from CDG to Aix leaves at 1:13 pm, I think. My concern is what if our flight is really delayed - any recourse on the ticket? Also, how easy is it to use the SNCF ticket purchased online at the TGV station? Thanks.

What terminal does your plane arrive in? If it's Terminal 2, you might be ok. If it's Terminal 1, you might not. It's incredible how much time those planes spend taxiing after landing at CDG before you can actually get off the plane.

If you purchase a ticket online (and I am assuming here that you're NOT going to purchase a PREM or other nonexchangeable, nonrefundable ticket), you have to go to the counter with your confirmation number and the same credit card you used online to buy the ticket, and they'll give you the actual ticket and then you must punch it in the composteur before boarding. Sometimes the lines at the counters are fairly long, though they tend tomove fast - I always allow a minimum of a half-hour at the train station to get a ticket and board.

If you buy a regular ticket and miss the train, you can go to the window and get a replacement ticket for a different train. At least that's what I've done once or twice.

On July 14th, we were to arrive at CDG at 8:45. We arrived on time, but the ground crew was not ready for us. It took us 40 minutes to get off of our flight and make it to the terminal (2F). Our luggage took another 30 minutes. We still made our 10:10 train to Avignon.

Last Sep at CDG TGV station i had to make a reservation for a TGV with my railpass and the lines were extremely long - i waited nearly an hour to get to the guichet. Many business-types in line were fuming - only a few of the many windows were open. So i think you may consider just buying a TGV ticket and reservation from the machines and aborting the potentially long line - that is if you have to retrieve them from the ticket window as St Cirq says as he's seemingly infallible in these matters. Good luck. the only reason i can see for buying online, if you have to go to ticket window anyway, is to save money - if not use the automatic machines that take charge cards.

Thanks, St Cirq - our flight is on Continental, so I'm not sure which terminal but I will check it. And most definitely will not buy a nonrefundable ticket. Thanks again for the valuable info.

PalQ - I had thought I definitely needed to prepurchase my ticket - but perhaps there is not any danger of it being unavailable? We would be arriving on Wednesday, September 21.

continental arrives at terminal 2

Trevia - i guess there is a chance of it being unavailable in 2nd class - then try first class - i've made many TGV reservations right before the train. But this is a popular route - you could always go into Paris and get hourly TGVs from Gare de Lyon to Aix if couldn't get on airport train. On second though guess i'd reserve in advance and consider taking a later train like the 14:03 service from the airport, giving yourself nearly an hour more to negotiate the lines - which may not be so bad when you get there. Funny about SNCF - when i got back to my local sleepy station after taking the TGV from airport there were three ticket windows staffed and open with no one in line at that station whereas at the mobbed airport station just a few hours earlier there were only a few windows in operation out of many and long lines! No way to run a railway!

Thanks all for your information - this has been great.

You can try various things, but you might as well purchase online a refundable ticket for the time you want, and if your plane is really delayed, you can change it. You cannot buy tickets from the SNCF automatic machines with American credit cards, they won't accept them, so you might as well do it online. YOu will have to wait in line to get the ticket, though, but at least you'll have a reservation.

Of course, the alternative idea is to buy a nonrefundable really cheap PREM ticket for the time you think you can make and then you can print it yourself and won't have to wait in line. It's a gamble, because if your plane is really late, you will have lost that money and have to pay full fare, anyway, and wait in line. However, that's what I just did, actually, figuring the convenience of having the PREM in-hand was worth the 25-30 euro gamble of missing that train. In fact, my plane wasn't late so I had no trouble.

I probably wouldn't worry about getting a seat on that train on a Wednesday in Sept, although I might for a weekend.

I would worry about getting a seat on a train on a Wed in Sep - i did get one in first class last Sep CDG-St-Pierre-des-Corps but the train was jammed full in both classes when i got on it - no empty seats for a weekday in Sep. I think Christina's cheap PREM ticket makes sense - take the later train - won't be out much if don't use it.
christina - i've used American charge cards in SNCF machines but not in the past few years - must have made a change i guess.

For future reference:

American Airlines - SNCF Railway Codeshare Service
American Airlines codeshares on SNCF Railway high-speed rail service between Paris, Charles de Gaulle Airport and Aix en Provence, Angers, Avignon, Bordeaux, Le Mans, Lille, Lyon Part-Dieu, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Nimes, Poitiers, Rennes, St. Pierre des Corps/Tours, and Valence.

So if you buy your train ticket and airline ticket all together on one record locator number, in the event that your plane arrives late your train ticket will be changed automatically.