Annecy to Chamonix train trip

It's not that short a trip at a little over 2 hours but in any event, the trains between the two are Ter trains on which there are no seat reservations and no discount if you buy your tickets in advance of your travel date.

No, there are no seat reservations available on the trains. Very scenic route though. I wouldn't do it on a rainy day - you might find that the cloud is so low that you can't see much of the scenery, maybe even find that the train is running through the cloud itself and you can't see a thing.

Thanks JHK and Philip. If there are no reservations, what do you think our chances will be of finding 2 seats from Annecy to Chamonix (and back) in midweek in mid-August? I would think since both Annecy and Chamonix are touristy, the train could be very full.

I thought about the rain/clouds obscuring the scenery on the train ride but rain will also rule out the boat ride. Guess I'd better hope for no rain for those two days.

I am sorry but I don't know how crowded the trains are in the summer. I used to work in Lausanne but was only in that area of France during the late fall.

Looking at the current schedule (it could change after the June 12 European schedule adjustment), the 7:32 train to St Gervais les Bains originates in Annecy, so if you get there 15 minutes early, you'll be the first to board and find a seat. At St Gervais, everyone will switch trains to the narrow gauge line to Chamonix.

Your responses show me how little I know about the rail system in France.

What's a Ter train? And how could I have known that the Annecy - Chamonix train was one? Which trains have reservations and which ones don't? If European train schedules change in June, what happens to the arrangements I would have already made for August? Where did you see that the 7:32 train to St Gervais les Bains originates in Annecy? What happens when everyone de-trains in St Gervais and switches to the narrow gauge line? (There's the possibility of new passengers boarding at St Gervais who weren't on the train from Annecy. I don't want to have to stand on what was supposed to be a sight-seeing excursion.)

I would imagine some of this is knowledge you've gained over several years but is there a website or two that can speed up my education? I've done a little searching already but none of it addressed questions like these.

Bob,
The website for the French train system is www.sncf.com/en. Some Americans have problems getting their purchases processed on that site. There is an alternative site for purchasing tickets that generally has the same prices and it is easier to use: captaintrain.com. For a primer on the French train system you can look at http://www.seat61.com/France-trains.htm#.VrLRVVMrIY0. A TER train is a local train that makes frequent stops and does not take reservations as compared to a TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse) which is a high speed train that requires reservations and makes relatively infrequent stops. Prices on TER are constant but prices on TGV fluctuate or rise as the travel date approaches or more specifically, the cheaper seats sell out sooner. There are also Intercités trains. As it says on the SNCF site, these are "the classic French rail service, linking major towns and cities across the country, with 340 Intercité trains serving medium and long-distance routes." Some Intercités trains require reservations and some do not. Usually, trains on short-distance routes do not and ones on long-distance routes do. You would find out when you go to buy the ticket. You could theoretically have a trip in which more than one type of trains run on the routes -- for example you can take a TGV to Dijon from Paris and get there in about 1.75 hours or less or take a TER and get there in 3 hours.

"If European train schedules change in June, what happens to the arrangements I would have already made for August?" Have you already bought train tickets? Although generally speaking tickets go on sale 90 days before the travel date, there are often tickets on sale more than 90 days before travel date for some summer travel. If by arrangements, you mean travel plans, generally speaking, absent track work or something similar or seasonal trains, the schedules do not change that much from season to season.

I just looked it up at www.bahn.com. It's the German train website, but gives a ton of information not available on the national rail sites. Click on the train number, and you get where the train starts and ends. Yes, past experience tells me that the rail tracks go from standard gauge to narrow gauge at St Gervais les Bains.

Wow. Thanks a lot Sam and JHK for giving me such thorough answers. I've been to the sncf and seat 61 sites but didn't discover all that information. I'll look a little harder.

I anticipated that I would have bought my tickets in mid-May (90 days in advance), which would mean they could be impacted by any schedule changes in June. If it's only minor tinkering with the schedules, that shouldn't be a problem, right?

But, JHK, as you also say "there are often tickets on sale more than 90 days before travel date for some summer travel." How would I know if the tickets I want are in the "more than 90 days" category? Does that require daily checking for availability?

Fairly recently I was informed, by Captaintrain (www.captaintrain.com) I think, that summer sale tickets on some routes were available. I probably signed up for notifications when I bought tickets from them a little while ago. But I don't think you have to buy tickets to sign up for notifications.

I would look into renting a car out of Annecy for the day trip. It is a quick drive over and the parking in Chamonix is easy.

"How would I know if the tickets I want are in the "more than 90 days" category? Does that require daily checking for availability?" For some reason, I do not have problems using my US credit card at the SNCF website. Once when I purchased there, I signed up for SNCF e-mail updates and that is how I learn when tickets go on sale earlier than usual.