TGV InOui, Ouigo, Intercités: tickets for French summer train travel open

Tickets for summer journeys on France’s high-speed network are available from today (March 12), with millions of tickets expected to be sold over the busy period. 

It is now possible to purchase tickets for rail journeys on high-speed TGV ‘InOui’ trains as well as ‘Intercités’ services between July 5 and August 31 covering the two months set aside for summer holidays in France. 

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Tickets to major destinations in the south/south-east of France – including Nice, Toulon, Marseielle, and Lyon are also available up to December 13, 2025 on ‘InOui’ trains, national rail operator SNCF states in a press release. 

Tickets for travel on high-speed, low cost ‘OuiGo’ services across the rail network are also open up to this date.

Seats on international SNCF services to Spain, Italy, and Switzerland are likewise available until December 13, with those to Luxembourg, Brussels, and Freiburg (Germany) available up to the end of August. 

Tickets can be purchased online through the SNCF-Connect website, through the official smartphone application, or authorised third-party retailers.

Are tickets cheaper with earlier purchases? 

Announcements of tickets going on sale are greeted with much fanfare in France, and passengers are heartily encouraged to buy their tickets as soon as they become available, or as soon as they know the exact date they will travel. 

Advanced sales are held several times per year, covering major holidays – winter/Christmas, spring/autumn school holidays, May (France has several bank holidays and workers must usually use up all remaining annual leave by the end of the month) and summer..

Travellers are advised to buy their tickets as early as possible to provide maximum flexibility in travel plans, with more seats available on more trains the earlier a person books.

Purchasing tickets on the day sales open does not necessarily mean they will be cheaper, however. 

The SNCF uses a ‘yield-management’ system for ticket sales. 

Generally, once a certain number of seats are sold, prices increase due to the scarcity of tickets. 

This means seats on optimal routes often become more expensive, with those at less busy times remaining cheaper as trains are less busy. 

However, this does not always mean that the first tickets purchased are greatly reduced.

Analysis from independent researchers have shown on recent ticket ‘release dates’ that seats on certain busy routes on popular travel dates are available closer to their maximum price ceiling even if being among the first to book.

Only a handful of tickets are available at discounted rates, and these may not be available on popular travel dates, leaving people paying high prices regardless.

This is repeated across several instances, with tickets averaging €100 one-way for certain routes where tickets are advertised as starting from €39. 

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‘Best price’ not ‘cheapest’ says rail operator

For its part, the SNCF is clear that despite encouraging people to purchase tickets as early as possible, buying them the day they are available does not guarantee a cheaper price. 

“Meilleures offres [best offers, the tagline the SNCF uses when advertising possible deals] means what it means: by anticipating, we have a better chance of getting a low price,” said SNCF executive Alain Krakovitch on FranceTV last month.

Advertising by the rail operator does not explicitly state that tickets are at their cheapest for early buyers. 

It has asked authorised retailers to refrain from announcing ‘special prices’ (i.e the cheapest available) in future advertising, but instead relay that buying early provides better flexibility, and to highlight possible destinations more than lower prices. 

When prices are used, they have an asterisk, with the bottom of the page stating this is the price “starting from, for one person, for a one-way ticket, 2nd class, on a selection of trains and dates and subject to availability.” 

Travellers with certain rail cards can cap the price of their travel at set times, providing the journey lasts a certain of time. 

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