Official SNCF ticket distributor

With SNCF, you can book your train tickets quickly and easily. SNCF offers you several ways to book your tickets, whether online, by phone, via the mobile app, or in an agency.

We explain in detail below how to book your tickets!

Booking your SNCF ticket online

To travel on board SNCF trains, it's now possible to book your ticket online. This can take different forms, such as booking directly on the SNCF website: SNCF Connect.

But that's not the only option, as many digital travel agencies such as Tictactrip have emerged and offer SNCF ticket booking.

The Tictactrip app is also a great way to find the best option for your journey and book your SNCF ticket.

Booking an SNCF ticket by phone

Prefer talking to a person?

In that case, know that you can book your SNCF ticket by booking with an SNCF agent by phone at this number: 36 35.

This phone number is valid for booking SNCF TGV Inoui tickets or Intercités trains.

Booking an SNCF ticket at a self-service kiosk

More old-school? Then the SNCF self-service kiosks in stations will suit you!

Nowadays, very few station ticket counters are still operating, having largely been replaced by automated SNCF ticket kiosks.

By using these kiosks in SNCF stations, you'll be able to get a ticket for your chosen journey in just a few moments.

The ticket booked at the kiosk will logically be a card SNCF ticket.

Booking an SNCF ticket at an agency

As mentioned above, there are authorised travel agencies that sell SNCF train tickets as well as tickets for all the rail companies affiliated with it.

Simply visit the travel agency of your choice that offers this service to buy your SNCF transport ticket.

What's more, travel agents and advisors will be able to help you make the most of your journey.

SNCF paper ticket

In the past, only one type of SNCF ticket existed: the paper, or card, SNCF ticket.

It was also a ticket that had to be punched at an SNCF station.

But this famous SNCF paper ticket, which required printing and therefore caused paper costs and carbon emissions, is no longer used as much as it once was... We explain below!

SNCF e-ticket

Today, there's a new type of ticket that makes it easier for staff to check, but also makes travel easier for everyone, and especially for younger generations: the SNCF e-ticket.

After buying your SNCF ticket online, you'll receive an email containing your tickets. You can then add them to your phone, to your wallet, or simply keep a photo of the QR code on the ticket.

Of course, before that, you'll need to download the SNCF e-ticket to your smartphone to use it!

It's the question we all ask ourselves before setting off on a train trip... what will the SNCF ticket price be?

And it often feels like a bit of a lottery... sometimes very expensive, sometimes very affordable. It can be hard to make sense of it!

We explain below how to:

• pay less for an SNCF ticket
• what SNCF's advantageous offers are
• how SNCF ticket prices are set!

SNCF Cards & Passes

Want to save money on your SNCF trips throughout the year? There are ways to pay less for your tickets: with SNCF passes and cards.

SNCF advantage cards, for example, give you up to 30% off immediately on all your SNCF tickets. We'll tell you more just below!

Carte Avantage Jeune

This advantage card is for people aged 12 to 27 and offers suitable discounts of up to -30% on your SNCF trips.

Carte Avantage Adulte

The SNCF Carte Avantage Adulte is aimed at people aged 27 to 59 who travel often. The card offers a -30% discount on your journeys on board SNCF trains all year round.

Carte Avantage Senior

As for the SNCF Carte Avantage Senior, this time it's aimed at senior SNCF traveller profiles, aged 60 and over. Once again, the person can get up to 30% off their trips. But there are other subtleties allowing savings of up to 60%!

Carte Liberté

The SNCF Carte Liberté, meanwhile, is another type of SNCF pass. It's much better suited to the needs of a business traveller since it offers discounts on weekday journeys, free cancellation, etc.

Abonnement Forfait

The SNCF Abonnement Forfait pass is suited to business travellers who very often make the same journeys. This way, you can travel unlimited with a maximum price of €1.50 (for choosing your seat on trains where this is mandatory).

If you're looking to pay less for an SNCF ticket, here are a few tips that could help.

First of all, it's recommended to plan and book your trip in advance. Tickets usually go on sale 4 months before the travel date: this is known as SNCF's sales opening.

In particular, there's the SNCF summer sales opening, the SNCF spring sales opening, or the SNCF winter sales opening.

It's also a good idea to keep an eye on the deals and offers we send you every week at Tictactrip, in our newsletter!

Finally, to buy your train ticket, the best approach is above all to compare SNCF ticket offers... we explain it all!

SNCF deals

SNCF deals are announcements of cheaper tickets, for no particular reason, simply to let you travel better, for less!

All SNCF rail companies and subsidiaries offer them: TER, Intercités, Ouigo...

To make sure you don't miss out, subscribe to our Newsletter, and we'll let you know about these SNCF deals to pay less for your tickets, every Wednesday.

For example, the festive season, school holidays or Black Friday are periods with discounts!

But watch out, because conversely, periods of strikes can lead to increases in SNCF ticket prices...

SNCF sales opening

The SNCF sales opening is information that's far too underrated, yet far too useful for travellers!

Each year there are two SNCF ticket sales opening periods: summer and winter.

SNCF usually plans train ticket sales opening periods for the Christmas and summer holidays. These special sales openings on set dates are announced on the SNCF Connect page but also in our Tictactrip newsletter and provide all the useful information by train type.

Most sales opening periods take place 3 to 5 months before the travel period. For summer, for example, the sales opening often happens in March.

If you're looking for where to find SNCF ticket timetables, you can visit several sites, including:

• The SNCF Connect website or app, where you can check a train's timetable using the search tool or by accessing your customer account.
• The official SNCF website, where you can access train timetables, traffic information, services offered, etc.
• The Tictactrip website, which also lets you get all SNCF and other companies' ticket timetables to compare when searching for a journey.

There are also other sites or apps that offer information on SNCF timetables, such as online ticket booking sites or travel apps. By using these various sources of information, you should be able to easily find the SNCF train timetables you're looking for.

As we mentioned earlier, comparing SNCF tickets is a very good idea, especially if you want to travel more cheaply on board SNCF trains.

To find the best SNCF price, there are several ways to go about it. First of all, it's worth noting that SNCF tickets usually go on sale 4 months in advance, and up to 8 months in advance for OUIGO tickets.

What's more, tickets for the most in-demand periods, such as the summer holidays or Christmas holidays, are often put on sale on a specific date announced on the SNCF website or, once again, in our newsletter and on our social media.

On Tictactrip, you can search for a journey, compare all SNCF tickets, but also those of other transport companies. This way, you can always choose the best price for your journey.

But beyond tickets from different companies, there's also, within SNCF itself, a wide range of different tickets. To make life easier for you, we've listed them below.

SNCF Seconde ticket

The SNCF Seconde ticket corresponds to a second-class train ticket. It's the most common fare offered by SNCF for train travel in France. By booking this ticket in advance, it's possible to get up to 35% off the price of your train ticket, but prices increase as departure approaches.

The SNCF Seconde ticket is the affordably priced ticket, combining the minimum level of comfort required for your journey to go smoothly.

SNCF Prem's ticket

The SNCF Prem's ticket is also the cheapest ticket across all ranges. For travellers, it's exchangeable and refundable under certain conditions. This SNCF ticket is the French rail company's entry-level ticket.

SNCF Première ticket

This is the first-class SNCF train ticket. In other words, the comfort you'll enjoy during your journey is improved: WiFi, seats, catering, etc.

SNCF Business Première

The SNCF Business Première ticket is reserved for a class of business travellers.

This ticket is also only available for TGV Inoui trains. It gives you more flexibility, particularly for booking SNCF trains at the last minute.

In addition to the different SNCF ticket classes, there are also different contexts in which tickets differ... These are the cases we reveal below.

SNCF pet ticket

If you want to travel with your pet on board an SNCF train, you'll have obligations towards SNCF: such as booking a second ticket with a specific fare depending on your pet.

SNCF ticket by rail company

Note that SNCF tickets can differ depending on the transport companies you wish to travel with: Ouigo, TGV Inoui, Intercités train, TER...

For example, on some trains you'll be able to choose your seat. On others, seating is unassigned once you're on board.

Tarif Pro Seconde

The SNCF Tarif Pro Seconde is the equivalent of the Business Première ticket but in second class. It's the opportunity for cheaper business trips!

The SNCF Tarif Pro Seconde ticket is designed to be more flexible than other tickets. It's also exchangeable and refundable under certain conditions.

Note, however, that this fare isn't available to everyone. Your company will need a direct contract with SNCF to access it.

Tarif Loisir SNCF

The SNCF Tarif Loisir is a former SNCF ticket. Today, it no longer exists, having been replaced by Prem's, Seconde and Business Première tickets.

Depending on the SNCF trains you take and the SNCF tickets you book, the on-board services will obviously not be the same.

Whether it's WiFi, seat comfort, choice of your seat on the train, or power sockets, everything can change from one train and ticket to another!

Want to cancel your trip? Did it go badly? Did your train never arrive, or was it cancelled?

Whatever the reason, if you're here, it's because you want to get a refund for your SNCF ticket... we understand!

However, the context behind your refund request will have a big impact on your ability to get a refund from SNCF, as they have very specific refund conditions.

Similarly, SNCF refund conditions depend on the type of ticket you booked. Conditions differ from one ticket to another.

Fortunately, our customer service team is also here to help you with your requests, refund you if you booked your French train ticket with us, or advise you and put you in touch with the right SNCF contacts.

Happy to help!

Not travelling anymore? In that case, be sure to cancel your SNCF train ticket!

Although not all tickets are cancellable or refundable, you've got nothing to lose by trying.

Of course, the best way to find out is to check the SNCF cancellation and refund terms when you buy your SNCF ticket.

All the more so as these cancellation terms can vary depending on the ticket type, the company or the cancellation date.

How to cancel an SNCF train ticket

Cancelling an SNCF ticket couldn't be simpler! Here are the steps to follow:

• Contact Tictactrip customer service.
• Submit your cancellation request with all the necessary information.
• We'll let you know whether or not your ticket can be cancelled and the terms.
• Then, we'll take care of it for you!

How to exchange an SNCF train ticket

Sometimes, rather than cancelling an SNCF ticket and getting a refund for the journey, it's more worthwhile for a traveller to exchange the ticket.

Exchanging means moving the travel date rather than losing your ticket booking or getting a smaller refund. So you avoid losing money!

SNCF, which stands for "Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français", is the company in charge of the rail network and rail transport in France.

SNCF, then, is the rail transport company, whereas the SNCF Connect website and app are the subsidiary that sells SNCF tickets to all travellers.

In the past, and along with the existence of card SNCF tickets, these tickets had to be punched to prove they'd been used and were valid/

Today, with the use of SNCF e-tickets and the SNCF e-ticket, it's no longer necessary to punch and therefore validate your SNCF ticket.

When you book your SNCF ticket on Tictactrip, you'll get an e-ticket that you can print out as a paper copy, or simply keep on your phone to use the ticket's SNCF QR Code.

Nowadays, with electronic tickets becoming standard, it can be hard to know exactly what to do before boarding. Do you need to punch your train ticket? It's not always obvious, especially since the procedure can vary depending on the ticket type or booking method. If you have a standard paper ticket, like those you can get from an SNCF self-service kiosk, the answer is generally yes: you need to punch it before boarding the train. But what about electronic tickets or SNCF e-tickets?

With an SNCF e-ticket or an electronic train ticket, the process is slightly different. Here, there's no need to punch it in the traditional sense, i.e. passing your ticket through a machine to validate it. In fact, your e-ticket's QR code acts as validation. When you present your ticket on your phone, it's simply scanned by the ticket inspector or at an automatic boarding kiosk, if available. This new method removes the need for physical punching and simplifies the travel experience, especially for those taking the train for the first time or wondering how to punch an electronic train ticket.

For paper tickets, however, the process remains important. Before boarding the train, you need to go to an SNCF self-service kiosk, insert your ticket into the designated slot, and wait for the machine to stamp a visible mark. This is what's known as punching a train ticket. This step is essential to avoid any validity issues during the on-board check. This also applies to standard TGV tickets, where punching your TGV train ticket before boarding is still common practice.

As for travellers who use Tictactrip or other platforms to book their tickets, the principle is the same: if you have an electronic ticket, there's no need for traditional punching. On the other hand, if you've printed a PDF ticket or received a paper ticket by post, remember to punch it at the station before boarding the train. If in doubt, a quick check of the SNCF self-service kiosk instructions can help.

With these changes, the question of punching comes up less often. For example, there's no longer any need to punch SNCF e-tickets or scan a QR code for validation if the ticket is directly recognised via the app or presented on a smartphone. These modernised processes make using trains more accessible and simpler, particularly for those wondering how to take the train for the first time or how to validate their ticket before boarding.

Finally, for travellers who run into difficulties, such as not having received their SNCF ticket by email or not knowing where to find it, SNCF Connect and other tools such as Tictactrip offer practical solutions for retrieving a ticket or validating it in time. These advances help make train journeys smoother and reduce CO2 emissions by limiting the printing of paper tickets, while making the user experience easier. Thanks to these technologies, taking the train has never been simpler or more environmentally friendly.