If you’re planning a trip to France for your summer holiday, now’s the time to book. SNCF, the French national train operator, releases cheap tickets for the season ahead on all INOUI TGV and Intercités trains. These tickets are available soon and due to high demand, are likely to sell out fast.
Here’s all the info you need about these SNCF and OUIGO tickets and how to travel by train at the best price…
Cheap SNCF summer tickets
Cheap tickets for SNCF (the French national railway operator) are released on set dates for the whole season ahead. From Tuesday 10th March, tickets for SNCF's TGV INOUI and Intercités trains are available for travel from 4th July until 30th August 2020. Grab them before they're gone!
TGV and Intercités trains
SNCF normally release cheap tickets for TGV INOUI and Intercités trains around France around four months in advance. So if you wanted to travel on the 20th July for example, you can book your tickets from the 20th March.
The cheapest tickets, and Premiere (First Class) tickets in particular, are likely to sell out quickly.
OUIGO trains
You can book tickets for SNCF's low-cost high-speed OUIGO trains up to eight months in advance. So, even if you’re booking a late summer or early autumn holiday, you can still travel for less.
When have SNCF previously released summer tickets?
Although SNCF release cheap summer train tickets every year, the date often changes. We've done the research for you and listed all the SNCF summer tickets sale dates over the last three years.
| SNCF tickets | On sale dates | Regions |
|---|---|---|
| Summer 2017 | 15/03/2017 30/03/2017 |
Mediterranean, Atlantic |
| Summer 2018 | 01/02/2018 29/03/2018 |
Mediterranean |
| Summer 2019 | 26/03/2019 |
All regions |
| Summer 2020 | 10/03/2020 |
All regions |
In need of some inspiration?
Our map below shows some of our most popular French rail routes and journey durations from Paris.
With SNCF, it's easy to travel by TGV, Intercités or OUIGO trains to some of the must-see destinations in France. Here's a simple explanation of the different services...
- TGV – these high-speed trains travel at over 300 km/h to connect the major cities in France like Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon and Marseille.
- Intercités – although these trains aren't high-speed, they provide rail connections to cities not served by the TGV network.
- OUIGO – these low-cost, high-speed trains are popular for long distance journeys within France. Ideal for those wanting to keep travel costs low.
France is also well connected to Europe by rail via a number of different train companies – we're here to help make understanding it easy. We’ll get you across the Channel from the UK, via Eurostar, and around France for less. Plus, with our free app in your hand, all your tickets and timetables are in one place. Bon voyage!
