Train tickets for Paris daytrips.....buy now or wait until I get there?
 

I'd like to know if it make sense to purchase train tickets for a couple of planned daytrips during my early March 2003 stay in Paris now or would it be cheaper to buy them there? I plan to visit the Loire Valley and Chartres....I'm there for only 8 eight days, so I figured I'd better narrow my choices down considerably....my hotel rooms are fully paid via my package tour with go-today.com. I suppose I'm on information overload, but I'm really confused at this point. From my research it makes sense to buy a flexipass for 4 days of travel within a month...am I on the right track? Pun intended!<BR><BR>There will be two of us traveling. If we get the four day ticket...we'd like to travel to Chartres on the first day, come back to Paris, then leave for the Loire Valley on the 3rd day. If it does make sense to buy them now...where should I purchase them? I've heard that the ricksteves.com website may be a good bet..Any and all ideas welcomed!<BR><BR>Renee

check railsaver.com. They will calculate the costs of your trip point-to-point and compare it to a rail pass.

It makes no sense to buy train tickets now. I doubt that they will still be valid next year. Not sure if you can reserve seats on a short trip like Paris to Chartres.

Those are both relatively short, inexpensive trips (Chartres in particular) so I do not think a railpass would be the way to go. You should have no trouble buying tickets after your arrival in Paris. When I went to Chartres via train, I simply bought my ticket at the station that morning, for the next train stopping there, with an open return for later that day.

Renee,<BR><BR>Forget about the pass - I bet it makes no sense at all, especially if you snag a discount "J30" fare for your trip to the Loire. Seats on the high speed TGV trains go on sale 60 days ahead, so at that point log on to:<BR>www.sncf.com<BR>book your tickets, PREPAY and choose to pick them up in FRANCE (they don't mail them to the US). Once you arrive in France, you can pick them up at any train station or "boutique SNCF" (they're all over Paris). You can price a J30 fare on the SNCF site now for a trip in say November to give you an idea of the price.<BR><BR>Another useful site for travel in the Paris area is:<BR>http://idf.sncf.fr/GB/default.htm<BR><BR>BTW, IMO the Loire is worth a lot more than a day trip.<BR><BR>Hope this helps,<BR>Andre

Railpasses are extremely expensive, you should only buy them if you plan long-distance travel or several TGV runs of 2-3 hrs each. If you only plan two short daytrips from Paris, forget railpasses.

Don't buy the tickets in advance first of all. Any saving will be eaten up in commissions on some sites.<BR>I would also suggest very softly that with only 8 days 2 day trips are a lot. There is more to see in Paris. If you want to see a chateau go to the Paris Chateau Vincennes or Vaux leComte. <BR>I would decide on one day trip and really hit Paris hard. One other possibility if you are wedded to the Loire trip is a bus tour.

Renee,<BR><BR>Just checked the SNCF site myself out of curiosity - the J30 round trip fare from Paris to St Pierre des Corps (the TGV station close to Tours) is EUR 42.<BR><BR>That would be your most expensive journey by far - Paris to Chartres return costs EUR 23.20 (no advance reservations, you can purchase your ticket anytime).<BR><BR>Hope this helps,<BR>Andre

For many short trips, like Paris to Fontainebleau, you cannot buy the tickets via the SNCF web site anyhow.<BR>You buy them at the station.<BR><BR>And, a suggestion to all of you, from some of those small stations like Melun (Vaux le Vicomte), the ticket agents go home early. The ticket machines do not take euro banknotes, just coins, and none of my Visa or MasterCard instruments would work.<BR><BR>That includes credit cards and debit cards about 4 strong between the two of us.<BR>

Don't buy ahead. You may change your minds. We had plans to do Chartres or some other site outside Paris, but the city and the weather was so wonderful, we never left town.

Renee-<BR> I am not suggesting getting your tickets before you go to France but I would suggest you get them before you go to the train station that morning. We took a day trip to Reims the last time we were in Paris. We bought our tickets the day before at a local travel agency recommended by our hotel. I felt we were wise to do so when I saw the confusion at the train station at 7AM. Just a thought.

You guys are absolutely the very best!! Thanks for your insight and suggestions....and for saving me quite a bit of money...money that I can now use to splurge on a night at the Moulin Rouge or some other equally entertaining nightclub!! lol!<BR><BR>Renee