Train tickets for. Day trips from paris
 

We will be in paris for about 9 days in early December. Since we have seen quite a bit of paris before, we are considering 4 or 5 day trips this time.
Some of the places in consideration are: Rouen,Provins, Reims, Chartres. If possible , part of loire valley. We would like to know what is the optimum way to buy train tickets for these and also would welcome suggestions on optimum destinations themselves.

Thanks a lot in advance for help.

Optimum destinations depend on what you want to do - but do realaize you should be focusing on indoor activities - since in Dec days are very short and usually gray and dreary - so a lot of outdoor activities would probably be a bust. I would focus on towns and not more outdoor/garden places like the Loire. (You could of course see a couple of chateaux, but make sure to choose ones that have a lot indoors (some are almost empty) rather than those focused on gardens - like Villandry.

At that time of year I would do an overnight to Strasbourg - which has great Christmas markets and is a charming city with tons to see and do (Cathedral, great museums, petite France).

Are you asking a question about getting the best price or going to the places with the most attractive options for visitors?

I use SNCF to book my tickets. I book as far in advance as possible to get the PREMS ( discount) rates. You can of course always book when you get to Paris( trains never sell out normally ) but you will pay full walk up rates.. and savings can be significant.

I agree with poster who noted to be mindful that some daytrips may not be ideal for winter.. it will be dark out by 4.30 or 5, and it could be grey and rainy .. so places where most of the interest would be in walking around outside.. may not be ideal choices.

Trains for the destinations you choose will leave from various stations (e.g. the train to Chartres leaves from Gare Montparnasse). Buy your tickets at the station as you are leaving. You can buy them ahead of time but you will lose flexibility that way. You may want to take day trips on pleasant days and remain in Paris on dark days.

Use Google to find the stations that you will leave from once you have chosen your day trips. I agree that the Loire would net be especially lovely in December but you have some nice destinations in mind.

YOu can't get PREMs or any kind of advance fare discount for some routes, when they are not high-speed trains nor to longer distances. Chartres, for example, you won't get any discounts for that train. And I don't think you can even get an e-ticket when booking online, so even if you buy online, you still have to pick it up at a window at the train station or a machine if you have a credit card with a chip. So there's no purpose to buying that one in advance, any way.

You can't even buy a train ticket to Provins from voyages-Sncf.com, either, it's just a suburban Transilien train route into zone 5. You just use a regular Paris metro/RER system ticket, whatever you may have, as long as it covers zone 5. Or you can buy it from a machine or clerk at the metro/RER station if you don't have a weekly pass or something like that. An all day Mobilis covering zone 5 (which would cover all your travel that day including to/from Provins) is about 16 euro. That train leaves from Paris Est train station.

To Rouen, getting a nonrefundable advanced purchase fare saves you about 10-15 euro each way. For Reims, it would save you the most, about 20 euro each way. Those lock you into a certain date and time. For the other places named, you can't do it.

This is certainly great info to start further research. Looks like in general better to wait for weather info and decide each day on the spur. We would probably forgo tgv travel to get better prices. Any one has opinion on doing Brugges or brussells by way of day trip? As far as possible, we just want to stay in hotel in paris as we would have some luggage with us to move around. By optimum destination, i meant time wise and also from attactiveness od the destination, of course it is subjective, but intersting to know experienced peoples opinion. Thanks