There are two options for train tickets from Nice to Antibes. The TER train I am pretty sure you don't need reservations or to buy tickets ahead of time. Is that correct? Validate? But some options are also the TGV INOUI train. For such a short distance do you still need to validate and pre-purchase a ticket and seat reservation?
The TGV train from Antibes to Avignon - is it best to purchase ahead of time? Validate as well?
TER tickets bought locally (from a ticket machine and I assume also from a ticket counter) are not specific to one train and don't include a seat reservation (those aren't even optional). They do need to be validated. If you figure out a way to buy a TER ticket online and print it out (not something I've ever tried to do), you wouldn't have to validate it. In fact, you really couldn't, because you wouldn't be able to get a regular piece of paper into the validating machine. The same would be true, of course, if you had an e-ticket stored on a smartphone--though I don't know that e-tickets are possible on TERs.
TGV tickets are always train-specific and include a seat reservation. Since you can only use the ticket on one train, there's no risk of your using it more than once, so it doesn't have to be validated.
On the Nice-to-Antibes run, you'll probably save some money by sticking with the TER, and the travel time may not be very different; it's worth at least checking that.
One reason you might want to buy a TGV ticket well ahead of time is to save money. There can be quite a difference between the way-up-front cost and the last-minute cost. I don't think it's even possible to buy TER tickets very far ahead, and there would be no advantage to doing so, because TER fares don't change as the travel date approaches.
There's another reason you might want to buy a TGV ticket at least a bit ahead of time: Because everyone gets an assigned seat on those trains, they can sell out. I have no idea whether that is at all likely between Antibes and Avignon. TERs cannot sell out. If the train is over-full, you just stand until someone gets off and frees up a seat.
The only reason you might not want to wait and just buy a TER ticket 10 minutes before departure is that you might run into lines at all the ticket-vending machines at the Nice-Ville station (or any other busy station). That happened to me a couple of times in May 2017, so I started buying my tickets the night before my trip if I knew for sure where I'd be going the next day.
Acraven, thanks so much. As many times as we have been on French trains, just can't ever seem to remember which trains/country validate, etc. Will purchase our TGV tickets today. Thanks so much for the advice, again!
Here's another question! Some trains on Friday show available on one says Engineering Works. Does that mean that only that train won't be running and the others will? Do they schedule the track work around certain times? Just seems weird. The train from Nice to Antibes has several options with one saying Engineering Works on the 22 of April.
