Two days of discount Ouigo train tickets in France
Cap of €19 on 300,000 spring tickets
Discounted tickets to 60 destinations are available
EQRoy/Shutterstock
A two-day flash sale from French rail operator SNCF is set to begin this week, offering 300,000 tickets at discount rates.
The sale will feature tickets to 60 destinations on the network capped at a maximum of €19 one-way for trains running between January 13 and March 31.
The discounts only apply to tickets on ‘Ouigo’ trains – the low-cost alternative also offered by the SNCF – and not on traditional InOui TGV, Intercités or regional TER trains.
Children’s tickets are capped at €5 if purchased with an adult ticket for a journey where the sale applies.
Tickets can be purchased online between January 7 and 8 through the SNCFConnect website, or Ouigo website or smartphone application.
One feature of the sale is that the ‘Ouigoflex’ option – which allows users to change their ticket to another date free of charge where applicable – can be added for free when purchasing tickets.
However, other rules limiting ticket exchange and reimbursement apply.
What are OuiGo trains?
These trains – where tickets are already cheaper than the InOui alternative even prior to the sale – are a low-cost way to travel and usually serve the same destinations as other high-speed routes. They are often as fast as the traditional service.
However Ouigo offers a more basic, ‘no frills’, service – there is no bar carriage and any extras such as WiFi and / or a seat with a plug socket are only available at an additional cost.
Different rules on luggage capacity also apply.
Read more: Remember: New TGV luggage limits now apply in France
In addition to the normal high-speed Ouigo trains, the expanding ‘Ouigo Classique’ service offers low-speed travel between major French cities – stopping at many smaller stations en route which the high-speed trains do not serve – for even cheaper rates.
The sale this week applies to some of these services, but note that tickets are often cheaper than €10 on Ouigo Classique services.
Ouigo trains also recently expanded to offer a service between Paris and Brussels.
Read more: Cheaper but slower… €10 train fare for Paris to Brussels route
