We are headed to Champagne and plan on taking the TGV from the airport to the Champagne Ardennes station. I am reluctant to get tickets prior arrival in the event that passport control or other delays are longer than expected. Should we be able to purchase tickets upon arrival? Do you recommend not purchasing train tickets even if we build a 2 hour window???
Posted by
Savannah, GA
1382 posts
One of Two things are bound to happen: 1) You'll be way too early for your train and sit waiting forever or 2) You won't have enough time.
It's hard to gage this. I would think in 2 hours you can make it. But it will be tight. If there's a bag issue, then you won't make it.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
334 posts
There are two issues here: securing a seat on a train to your destination and potentially saving money by purchasing in advance. Someone who knows something about that route can hopefully fill you in on whether that route sells out.
We played this guessing game a few years ago on tickets from CDG to Lyon. Maybe we won, maybe we didn’t.
After reading the sage advice on this forum, we erred on the side of caution and bought very inexpensive advance 2nd class tickets 3+ hours after our arrival time (that was the train that was more than 2). We felt very comfortable with our choice. Although we’d waited in hour-long immigration lines at CDG before, we knew the airport well and knew exactly where the train station was. We could make that train.
Our flight from Seattle landed early, we sailed through passport control with our carry-ons and hoofed it over to the train station. And waited. Three hours. We were so early, we watched two other TGV trains leave for Lyon. We struggled to stay awake and debated scrapping our cheap tickets and buying very expensive walk-ups for the next train just to get out of there and have someplace comfortable to sit. We had been so concerned about being late, the one thing that we hadn’t figured into the equation was being early.
So, does your route tend to sell out? How much money would you save with advance tickets vs how much would you lose if you miss your train and need to buy new tickets at the walk up fare?
Posted by
Vacaville, Ca
1441 posts
The end of November 2021 we had purchased our train tickets 4 months out from CDG - Strasbourg for 3 hours post arrival. Our plane was about 15 minutes late upon arrival (08:30), Passport Control was less than an hour & our luggage was waiting for us. We had about a 2 hour wait at the train station. This allowed me a chance to pick up a Navigo Decouverte card for my mom, since I already had one, for our time in Paris after Strasbourg & Colmar.
For the most part folks say 3 hours for a train in CDG & at least 4 hours if catching it from Paris post arrival.
Enjoy your trip.