TGV Tickets Paris-Lyon 15 September

Old May 21st, 2011, 02:50 PM
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TGV Tickets Paris-Lyon 15 September

I keep checking the iDTGV and Voyages SNCF sites, and to date they show no trains available for this date. The iDTGV site has availability for dates up through the 14 September, and the SNCF site just says "aucun train ne correspond a vos souhaits de voyage...."

Any thoughts on when I might expect to see these trains in the system to get PREMS or a good iDTGV fare?

Just curious... Is PREMS an acronym for something? iDTGV?
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Old May 21st, 2011, 03:11 PM
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When I purchased Prems tickets in March, they were available exactly three months in advance. However, I just read on another forum that someone just saw Prems tickets for September 4. So just keep checking -- Prems for September 15 will become available for purchase sometime between now and June 15.

You can sign up on the SNCF site for an "alert resa" and receive an e-mail or text when Prems become available.
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Old May 21st, 2011, 03:15 PM
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I think you can buy a ticket 2 months in advance. When ticketing begins, you will be offered the rates avaialable on a particular train as you step through the booking process. PREMS is one type of cheap fare.

You can't pick up tickets in the US (assuming you are an American). Since I don't want to hassle with picking them up, I use Rail Europe. For tickets costing more than $300 or $400, there is no fee. Also, check their web site to see if they sell tickets further in advance than SNCF.
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Old May 21st, 2011, 04:48 PM
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When I purchased Prems tickets on the SNCF site three months prior to travel, I was able to print them at home (even though I live in the US). My Prems tickets were about one-quarter of the price of the tickets that were available on the Rail Europe site.
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Old May 21st, 2011, 05:05 PM
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Completely avoid raileurope. They never display discount prices and they only list partial train schedules. Book only from one of these sites:

www.voyages-sncf.com (in French only)
www.tgv-europe.com (do not indicate you want tickets sent to the USA, pick them up in France).
www.idtgv.com (ticket prices start at 19€ and are available 4-6 months in advance)

PREM stands for Premiers or tickets sold first. The start price is usually around 25€ and rise as tickets are sold. Tickets are available 3 months before any given travel date. ardithl´s point about the Alerte Résa is well taken. It notifies you when PREMs are available and is found here:

http://www.voyages-sncf.com/weblogic...0R%25C3%25A9sa
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Old May 21st, 2011, 05:49 PM
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Thanks ardithl and Sarastro for the information about the Alerte Résa. I have signed up for it.
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Old May 25th, 2011, 12:25 PM
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Still waiting to get an alert from iDTGV or SNCF, but I did find on the iDTGV site that bookings are only available up through September 14. I need September 15. The iDTGV fares for Paris-Lyon are certainly attractive currently - €19 for second and €26 for first class. I hope they aren't going up! I did a test booking for September 8, and saw that when choosing your seat, you do not get to indicate that you prefer to face forward ("voyager dans le sens de la marche"), which you can do when booking TGV tickets on the SNCF site. Does anyone know if there's a way to know which way you would be facing when choosing a seat in an iDTGV car?
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Old May 25th, 2011, 12:49 PM
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You can book now for travel from Paris to Lyon Part Dieu departing on 15 September:

www.idtgv.com

Fares are 19€.
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Old May 25th, 2011, 01:24 PM
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When I try to book the 15th, it only shows availability through September 14. On the "Je choisis mon train" page, only September 12/13/14 are showing. No September 15. On the iDTGV site, they still say "les réservations sont actuellement ouvertes jusqu'au 14 septembre 2011 pour iDTGV (sauf Brest, qui sera ouvert plus tard), et jusqu'au 26 juin 2011 pour iDNiGHT."
I hope I'm not missing something.
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Old May 25th, 2011, 03:59 PM
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Sorry, you are correct. It is not now possible to purchase tickets for the 15th.

Selecting the 15th does display prices but they are applicable only up until the 14th. Unlike the regular trains which have a 3 month rolling availability window, iDTGV train tickets are open for sale in groups of days hence the 4-6 month availability window.

The only option open seems to continually checking the site for the next group of days to appear available for sale.
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Old May 25th, 2011, 04:00 PM
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You may be falling victim to caching... if Sarastro is seeing the 15th but you're not this is the most likely cause. Clear your browser's cache and history or better yet open the site with a different browser.
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Old Jun 3rd, 2011, 02:11 PM
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Bookmarking
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Old Jun 3rd, 2011, 02:45 PM
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And I'm still waiting and checking every day. Has anyone here had experience with signing up for alerts with iDTGV and SNCF? Hope to be notified as soon as the tickets go on sale for September 15.
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Old Jun 8th, 2011, 02:47 PM
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Today I was again checking the iDTGV site and found a link to their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/iDTGV#

On the wall, I found this information:

"Attention, fin du suspense...
Les réservations d'automne ouvriront le 22 JUIN !
Pour fêter le début de l'été, on vous proposera des billets iDTGV de mi-septembre à début décembre à partir de 19€ "

(Attention, the suspense is over... Reservations for fall will open June 22nd! To celebrate the beginning of summer, we will propose for you iDTGV tickets from mid-September to the beginning of December starting at 19€.)

At last, something definite.

GG
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Old Jun 15th, 2011, 12:14 PM
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The AlerteRésa worked, and I received an email on June 14 that I would be able to book tickets on June 15. Lots of PREMS available, but I'm going to wait for the iDTGV reservations to be open on June 22 and hope to get first class on that train for only a few euro more than 2nd with PREMS. Wish me luck!
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Old Jun 15th, 2011, 12:46 PM
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I presume you know that iDTGV are available only on a few departures per day.
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Old Jun 15th, 2011, 01:27 PM
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Yes, there has been only one per day up through Sept 14, and that's the one I want. Hoping to get it! I will continue to watch the schedule every day, and if the PREMS start getting sold out on some trains, I'll probably just go ahead and book something.
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Old Jun 21st, 2011, 02:53 PM
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This morning I had the email alert from iDTGV that the tickets would be on sale tomorrow, June 22. At a few minutes after 6 p.m. EDT (a few minutes after midnight in France), I went on the iDTGV site and got the 1st class tickets for €26 each. Had I booked PREMS on the Voyages-SNCF site last week when they came up for sale, 2nd class tickets would have been €22 each, with 1st class at €34.

Now it will be interesting to see how the iDTGV train differs from the TGV.

I heartily recommend signing up for the alerts on both sites, and remembering, if you're in the US, the six hour or more time difference when booking.
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