Blocked on SNCF:(

Maybe try a different browser?

I have tried the two browsers on my Mac, the browser on my pretty new iPad and whatever browser type thing my Android phone runs.

Just use Trainline.

If you install a VPN such as TunnelBear and tell it you are somewhere in Europe, it shouldn’t charge you the extra fee.

But even if you don't do that, it's much cheaper (and easier to deal with) Rail Europe. And if SNCF is making it too hard to buy from them, why worry.

(As per your question, when I look up Austerlitz-Amboise tickets on 9/26, without knowing what time you are looking at, I’m seeing €36 for a second-class ticket at times all through the day, which is about $44 with a random current currency conversion.)

Is it wrong to ask what is SNCF?

@Kim - Thank you so much for taking the time to price the route! Since the pricing is similar, I'll just give up and use Trainline for my whole group of tickets.

Are you choosing USA? Because if you do it will force you to go to the Rail Europe website

Edit: Collinsdtc. - Société nationale des chemins de fer français. (Think Amtrak)

I am wondering if SNCF is blocking URL's from USA as they have not updated the opening of France to US tourists on June 9. I guess you don't have a VPN.

It’s much cheaper to book on rail Europe? Well that occasionally is truth but it is not always true and I would not take that is the gospel truth.
In most cases I have found it’s a little more expensive, the only exception has been I have occasionally been able to get a better deal on the Eurail that way but trains within a country are generally more expensive

I just booked tickets yesterday on the SNCF website with no problem.
Try creating an account first. Then go to purchase. I always use the app.

Edit: I just saw that you said fall. Most tickets aren’t even available this far out but you should be able to see a schedule.

Are you able to enter payment information (i.e., credit card) or are you blocked before that?

To update based on questions above: I downloaded the app with no luck. I opened an account and still had no luck.

I am trying to buy a ticket for a travel date this is already for sale.

@Dave - no I never get to see the payment screen. I enter my travel dates, hit their search button and I'm blocked.

I'm going to just go ahead and book on Trainline in the next few weeks.

Thanks:)

I've been having the same problem for several months.

Have you tried it again since you made this post? I have an account with SNCF and usually do not have a problem with SNCF but for the past week, I have been blocked when trying to buy a ticket. I was blocked all day today until around 5 minutes ago when it worked.

@Valerie

Just entered the details of the 26th Sept 2021 as above. Price USD $47.16 with booking fee USD $1.40. Gave option of account creation. Did not take up the offer. Took me to check out and could have paid.

I presume I am in a green country from the French viewpoint. So probably domain control has blocked other locations.

Regards Ron

@Valerie

The above details are for the Trainline site.

When the SNCF site opens up and you select "Book your ticket" it redirects to a new webpage. At the top bar there is on the right hand side "Accessibility" and a small rectangle with blue fill in. Then inverted V. Click on it and select at bottom " Rest of World" and identify your county, language and currency. You will be redirected to Rail Europe by default. You should be able to proceed from there. Ignore my comment on domain controller.

Regards Ron

@CollinsDtc:

SNCF:

https://www.sncf.com/en

If you are seeing prices in dollars, you are in the wrong place.

If you need English, this is the website I recommend and it should work fine from N America.

https://en.oui.sncf/en/

In the 30+ years I have been purchasing tickets from the SNCF, I have only once seen prices slightly cheaper on Raileurope. It was for the Eurostar about 10 years ago. Otherwise, Raileurope is more expensive, shows only some of the available trains, and shows none of the discounted fares.

There was a period a few years ago when the SNCF was blocking many non-EU credit cards making purchases next to impossible. As late as last year, Australians where having problems using their cards to purchase from the SNCF but the problems for those from North America should have stopped sometime around 2019.

Am I correct in assuming the those having problems are mostly using Macs? If that is the case, I would suspect it is a browser concern. I use Firefox which performs very well but should I experience an occasional difficulty with a website, using Chromium tends to resolve issues. Chromium is Google Chrome without Google.

There are also techniques of emptying the browser cache and removing cookies, locations which can be a problem source for those making on line purchases. VPNs sometimes work. Consider Mullvad VPN if you just want to see if electronically locating yourself in France for an SNCF purchase will help. Mullvad is 5€ a month, sold for as many or as few months as you like.

I know how frustrating it can be to be blocked simply because of your location or the type of Visa/MC/AE card you have. Hopefully some of the bits of information can help someone.

I have decided to buy from Trainline and be done with all the time the purchase is taking but to keep the thread updated and try Tocard's suggestion about https://en.oui.sncf/en/ - I tried it and I'm still blocked there.

I cleared all the cookies on my PC (not a Mac) before trying this time. No luck at all with Microsoft Edge. I managed to get to a list of trains one time by using Chrome, but only once. Subsequent efforts yielded the same "You have been blocked" page. I think the one time I was successful I somehow ended up on a webpage with a URL that didn't include "oui". I don't know how that happened. Otherwise, as soon as I attempt to search for trains between an origin and a destination, I get the "blocked" message.

Edited to add: The last time I bought French rail tickets from SNCF was in 2019, and I was in France at the time, using a tablet computer with the Chrome browser. That was fine. I've never tried to buy tickets from the US, though I've often checked schedules and fares to respond to questions on this forum. However, a few months ago someone asked a question about traveling in France, and I went to the en.oui email address to look for rail schedules. That's when I first saw the "blocked" message, and I have continued to see it every time I've tried to access SNCF to respond to an inquiry here ever since.

I've just tried using my tablet computer here at home with Chrome. Blocked again.

I wonder whether SNCF is trying to force all Americans onto the RailEurope site.

I wonder whether SNCF is trying to force all Americans onto the RailEurope site.

I´ll agree that this is very likely.

I have made a number of trial booking attempts, all successful. However, I always use oui.sncf in French.

I attempted to book the same seats on a train from Montparnasse to Avignon for 20 July, using the English site, using the same computer, I just switched from Firefox to Chromium, just to avoid cache/cookie conflicts. The result:

You have been blocked.

The conclusion:

Use oui.sncf in French
Use en.oui.sncf/en with a VPN (try an address in Dublin, still in the EU)
Use thetrainline.com (and pay a small commission)
Use raileurope.com ( and pay a lot more).

@Tocard - I used to avoid Rail Europe as their prices were extremely inflated. In my testing for this upcoming trip, Rail Europe and Trainline were about the same, though. I'd have to price a ton of itineraries to see if this is borne out overall and I have not.

Trainline adds a fee that they describe as this:
The booking fee you pay is calculated depending on whether you book on our website or on our app, when you are purchasing your ticket, and the value of your ticket. We are also continually testing changes in our product, which means some customers may have a slightly different experience to others while tests are in place.

Rail Europe add this as a booking fee:
As of 1 January 2021, a flat fee of £5.95 (€6.95, $7.95, CA$9.95 ) applies on all UK, European and international train journeys over the value of £15, $15 or €15, CA$15.
This fee applies to the ‘total basket’ at point of purchase. So if you buy several journeys, only one fee will be applied.

For larger purchases, it makes me wonder if Rail Europe might be the better deal.

I'm not ready to buy yet - only the first week of my France journey has tickets open yet - but I will compare when I buy in a few weeks. I've got a 4 leg journey so that single Rail Europe fee is enticing as long as the price is similar.

You might find this helpful to compare websites when buying tickets for French trains

https://www.seat61.com/train-travel-in-france.htm#Which_website_to_buy_French_train_tickets_online

have any of you tried using a VPN? I'd be interested in the result. I know that some streaming services work out that it is a VPN and disallow the connection.

I'd like to know if the websites in question here do the same thing... or if a decent result is obtained...

Valerie, I am with you. I get the Blocked statement from SNCF on my computer as well. Trainline works for me and I have used them in the past.

If you can handle French, the SNCF site works fine, and there are none of the unnecessary fees that Trainline/RailEurope assesses. Unnecessary as why does one have to pay a fee for the privilege of booking in other than French. I just did a dummy booking on SCNF in French as it comes up in default, and it was working fine. The ticket prices are the same from their Euro to Trainline's $$s, but without any fee.

I just booked TGV-Lyria on the OuiSncf app for October on my iPhone. Basel to Paris. Did not get blocked but had to call my bank to clear my purchase since the original purchase was declined. I also priced the same tickets on Rail Europe and Trainline. Both were roughly $40 more than what I paid on the OuiSncf app. Don't give up hope! It does work but it really tested my patience!

How do I know which one to choose?

All of the Montparnasse trains depart from Montparnasse. Gare Montparnasse 3 Vaugirard refers to departures from the platforms on the west side of the station.

There is also one from Massy, but I don't know where that is offhand.

Massy is a TGV station well to the south of Paris.

If it brings up Austerlitz instead

All of the Amboise trains depart from Gare Austerlitz. If you take a train from Montparnasse, you will be making a connection somewhere such as St Pierre des Corps which will add greatly to your en route time. The slower TER or Corail trains from Austerlitz will often get you to Amobise sooner than will a TGV.

is it possible to exchange those for the earlier one?

This depends entirely upon the kind of tickets you purchase. Exchange rules are typically explained when you buy tickets.

I was able to access the site this morning as well, as long as I left it in French. I was able to buy my first set of tickets, utilizing my non-existent French, Google translate and some solid guesswork.

It's funny - I priced this set of tickets on SNCF and Rail Europe and the price was similar - $86 for two tickets on SNCF and $98 for two on Rail Europe. I didn't price Trainline today. For my next leg, which I can buy tomorrow, SNCF seems to be $15 per ticket vs. $50 at Rail Europe.

Valerie YES!! That is exactly what happened to me on Rail Europe and Trainline. It wasn't just a few dollars difference. It was $40ish! I was just hoping and praying that I would be able to book through the OuiSNCF app. Thank goodness it worked for me this morning.

zach________ link sent for review. Decent post then link out of left field. Be very careful of clicking....

Did you approve cookies and permit pop Ups? I have no trouble on my IPad in Safari. I’ve never used a VPN in my life. Transferred to en.oui.sncf and offered a choice between tgv or oui departures, flawlessly. I avoid Raileurope on general principles.

It's only a guess, but I wonder if it is something to do with your browser reporting your location, or you having GPS turned on and that reporting your location.

I always have location off on my gear unless I am actually using navigation.

Ad blockers will often cause this problem. I always make certain I have at least one browser where there is no ad blocking. I use that one whenever something does not quite work right on others.