TGV Ticket pickup process and locations

Since I don't have a credit card with chip and pin, the automated machine is not an option. That leaves picking up at a station. The problem with that is that I have tight timing between my flight into Paris to my train from CDG to Rennes and my bus to Mont Saint Michel from Rennes and from MSM to Rennes for my train to Tours. I don't know if we'll have time to search through stations trying to pick them up so I want to understand the process. On this page: http://help.tgv-europe.com/en/retrieval-methods/in-sncf-station The instructions are not consistent. It says: "For outward travel from France, you can collect your tickets from a station or SNCF shop in France. You must present the bank card and the confidential code you used for making the payment." But just below that, it says: "Bank card must be shown. To retrieve your tickets you must present the bank card used to purchase the tickets." Will I be able to show my US credit card (Chase bank) without chip and pin and pick up the tickets? Anybody know what type of service counter I should look for and which station (Paris CDG, Rennes) would be easiest? Thanks!

Getting the tickets without the credit card is a snap. Just take your confirmation number to the ticket desk at the train station. They will happily give you your tickets. Allow about 30 minutes for the very worst case scenario for standing in line. You may need ID but we were not asked to produce the credit card. It wouldn't hurt to have it though. Make sure it's the SNCF ticket office as the train station will also have a ticket office for RER trains. If you have tickets for more than one trip on SNFC you can pick all of the tickets up a once and you can collect the tickets the day you arrive rather than waiting for the day of your trip.

Collin, you can pick your tickets up from the ticket counter at the CDG train station. You said your turn around time is tight, so a lot will depend on the time of day you can get to the station and how much time you have. If you are landing early, like seven am, the line won't be too long. By nine, the line can start being long. Good luck.

so what of the instructions that say I must have the credit card vs credit card with PIN? I will definitely bring a print out of my confirmation but don't want to get hung up on a technicality with the credit card.

Collin: Bring the credit card. Even if it's not chip & pin. Even if it expires. It's not a technicality, it's a requirement.

to clarify: the question was never about whether or not to bring the credit card. the question is whether there were going to be any problems picking up using a credit card without the chip and pin or without a PIN number at all. we are definitely bringing the credit card, but when we called Chase, they said cards without the chip (which includes the card used to pay for this ticket) don't use PINs. I just don't want to get stuck at the location arguing about this point when I have a train to catch. as I pointed out, the online help on the SNCF website is inconsistent on this point, so I wanted to gather hands-on experiences here on the board.

We picked up our tickets last year at Gare du Nord. We were not even asked for ID or credit card...I just handed my email confirmation over to the person manning the ticket booth.

You will not need a pin and chip card to collect tickets from the desk. You may need one if you try the machines. Leave time to use the ticket office.

Collin, you don't have to worry about your credit card. The agents use it to identify you. And, by common practice, they want to see the same credit card that you used to make the purchase. They want to make sure that you are the same person that purchased the ticket. Some agents will just give you the tickets. Others will require the identification. I believe that you will need to get your tickets from a SNCF train agent. I believe that the machines will only accept the chip and pin cards. Also, you don't need a PIN number with your credit cards. We've never had one for any of our credit cards.

I'll go just fine. Thousands and thousands of people without pin and chip cards pick their SNCF tickets up in France every year. ;) It's like picking up will call tickets at a theater or picking up plane tickets at the desk if the automated machine refuses your card. The only hassle involved in not having a pin and chip card is the ticket desk line.

Adam and Jenny get to the heart of it: bring your (non-chip) card; since you're going to a human in the train station and not a machine, it will work just fine.

ok, thanks for sharing folks. will bring the credit card and hope it goes well.