I reserved nonrefundable ticketless seats through Thalys. When I clicked to Confirm, I did not receive a Confirmation page. 72 hours later, I have not received an email confirmation. My credit card has not been charged. However, when I'm on the Thalys website, it IDs me as a ticketless customer, presumably through cookies. A significant sum of nonrefundable money is at stake, so I need to know whether or not I genuinely have a reservation. Two emails to customer service have gone unanswered and 72 hours have elapsed. My credit card company says that I can't prevent Thalys from charging me, if they at some point attempt to. Any suggestions? The credit card company told me to call one of the European customer service numbers. However, posters on other threads here say that Thalys is just a middle man and that reservations are directed to other providers. I'm desperate. At this point I want Thalys out of my life, I'll book directly with a provider that provides customer service.
Posted by
New Paltz, NY
9109 posts
The ticketless option is for people who have European smartphones; the conductor uses the barcode on the phone's screen. When purchasing tickets, you need to s el ect "book paper tickets", this is the option which allows you to print out your tickets at home. If your credit card hasn't been charged, the reservation didn't go through. I've booked lots of tickets via Thalys.com, and the charge has always appeared immediately. Also it doesn't matter if you purchase tickets via Thalys.com or go to direct to the train operators website directly. Thalys.com simply redirects you operator's site anyways. For example if you book tickets from Amsterdam to Paris, Thalys.com redirects you to the NS Highspeed)(Dutch Rail site). Conversely if your purchase tickets for Paris to Amsterdam, you are directed to the French SNCF site.
Posted by
OP
Houston, TX
3 posts
Thanks for your quick response. I wish there was something on the website that indicated that the option was for European smartphones only, it would have saved me a lot of aggravation. Sigh.
Posted by
Texan in CA
4412 posts
Lisa, you should be OK (IF the confirmation email ever shows up - since it hasn't, that's not a good sign). Here's an example of what you should've received by email: https://www.thalys.com/fr/en/booking-a-ticket/mail-tkl The Thalys website allows me to make a "Ticketless" purchase as a USA citizen...it says all you need to show to the conductor on the train is EITHER: "1)email confirmation of your Thalys ticketless booking, or 2) your Ticketless, Thalys TheCard, or Navigo Pass card" (me here - none of which I'm sure you have). The fact that you haven't been charged AND you haven't received an email from them looks like the booking didn't go through. It wouldn't be the first time that the system hiccuped at the confirmation page. In my experiences, I've received an email confirmation immediately; is there any chance that your address/name/credit card info might have included an error? That would stop your transaction from going through. Where exactly, and when, are you trying to go?
Posted by
OP
Houston, TX
3 posts
Thanks for your help. I think I'm okay, there must have been a problem on the re-direct to RailEurope and I don't believe that the reservation was placed. I've since booked the trip directly with RailEurope. I know that a lot of people do well with Thalys, but I think I prefer booking directly with the rail carrier and knowing that I can access customer service via an 800 number. Even though I'm highly computer literate, there are things about the Thalys site that are confusing.
Posted by
Bangkok, Thailand
1 posts
I'm having the same problem with Lisa. And I would like to know how the story end
so without the confirmation email and reference number that makes the reservation completely fail isn't it? Thanks