We are going to Paris in May, 2011 and plan about 4 days trips involving use of TGV's. We are planning on getting a France Railpass like in the pass, but saw this posting on the Graffitti Wall: "The France rail passes have real problems. They are sold at hefty prices but the French drastically limit the number of seats that pass holders can use. We were unable to go where we wanted to because pass holder seats were not available and an officer of French Railways said this was always a problem. So it might be best not to buy a railpass and pay the fares, reserving flexibility " Should we be rethinking our strategy? I usually make reservations when I hit town as I have a better idea as to what day I plan to go where. Is that a better strategy?
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
I've read similar reports. If you need flexibility, it may be best to buy standard fare tickets as you go. If you can commit well in advance to specific departure dates and times, your cheapest option would be to book discount fare tickets online (up to three months in advance) at www.tgv-europe.com. To keep the site in English and to avoid being bumped to the Rail Europe site which doesn't offer discount fares, choose Great Britain as your country of residence. However, those tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable.