Could anyone please tell me if it is possible just to turn up at CDG TGV station and buy a ticket to Avignon for that day.
Our problem is - travelling under staff travel we can't guarantee our flight arrival time. It would be Friday a.m. if all goes as planned.
PS Mid August.

Thanks

I believe it can be done but it's best to book.

Check out http://www.tgv.com/EN/ (in English) - I note on the site that it says you can reserve tickets right up to a few minutes before departure, so if you arrived at the station you could probably do that before you board. Oh for a rail system like that in the UK!

You should be able to do so... but:

1) There may not be that many TGV going to Avignon for a given day, this means you have to wait a while for the next train.

2) when in mid-August ? Since the week-end Aug 14/15 may be pretty busy in terms of train traffic (people leaving for a big week-end or coming back from holidays)....

Hi lynn,

Train schedules are at www.sncf.com.

You can buy tickets as early as 60 days in advance.

Yes, you can just show up and buy a ticket on the next available train, but you might have a wait.

..you will also pay a premium..sometimes if you book in advance you May be able to get a better rate- a "prem".

In my experience, TGVs from Paris to the south of France are usually fully booked. I prefer to be flexible and do not like booking train tickets in advance unless it's really necessary but, in this case, I would book. Trains on any Friday in August will be busy and they will be especially busy if it's the weekend of 15 August (a public holiday for the feast of Assumption). I would book for an afternoon train and, if I arrived on time, try to exchange the ticket for an earlier train, but they'll almost certainly all be full. I wouldn't bother thinking about getting a cheap fare for travelling on a peak weekend. There are many more trains from the Gare de Lyon to Avignon.

Prem's tickets are very cheap, but you can't modify them...

Thank you everyone for your help.
It will be 19 August. I am fustrated with sncf website, but will keep trying and look into an afternoon train or the suggestion of getting to Gare de Lyon. Will also check the website you mentioned Glitterball.