SNCF fip reservations no longer available in the UK

[pendodave]

Greetings..
Tried to book a TGV seat reservation through the myrst site today and they said that these are no longer available in the UK and to try an SNCF bookings line... This seems a bit poor :
- hard to imagine how long one would have to sit on the phone burning euros at the moment, given it's likely to be a fraught few days even if the strike gradually eases off
- if I turn up on spec at G d Lyon and there is no seat available, it's a little tricky to manage hotel bookings at the far end of the country.
Has anyone any experience of :
- using the sncf number
- short notice TGV seat reservation at GdL
- any other 'backdoor' solutions???

I had a quick look at the ouigo fares, but at €70 each way, I'm quite keen to keep using the FIP facility...
Many thanks,
D.

 

[calopez]

Greetings..
Tried to book a TGV seat reservation through the myrst site today and they said that these are no longer available in the UK and to try an SNCF bookings line... This seems a bit poor :
- hard to imagine how long one would have to sit on the phone burning euros at the moment, given it's likely to be a fraught few days even if the strike gradually eases off
- if I turn up on spec at G d Lyon and there is no seat available, it's a little tricky to manage hotel bookings at the far end of the country.
Has anyone any experience of :
- using the sncf number
- short notice TGV seat reservation at GdL
- any other 'backdoor' solutions???

I had a quick look at the ouigo fares, but at €70 each way, I'm quite keen to keep using the FIP facility...
Many thanks,
D.

Not tried the SNCF number myself (yet) but the matter came up a few weeks ago on the Eurorailstaff Yahoo group, and someone who had used it said it worked well, and he had pdf tickets in his inbox before the call had finished. And calling France isn't expensive if you use a service like 18185.

There are probably advantages to booking with SNCF as they presumably don't charge commission, and will be able to issue 75% discount FIP tickets (if you are entitled to them), which not all UK agencies - myrst among them, I believe - could do.

I wouldn't expect there to be a problem booking seats at any main station in Paris - even small stations usually manage it - but that does depend on availability. If the train's full, it's full, and you won't get on it!

 

[pendodave]

Not tried the SNCF number myself (yet) but the matter came up a few weeks ago on the Eurorailstaff Yahoo group, and someone who had used it said it worked well, and he had pdf tickets in his inbox before the call had finished. And calling France isn't expensive if you use a service like 18185.

There are probably advantages to booking with SNCF as they presumably don't charge commission, and will be able to issue 75% discount FIP tickets (if you are entitled to them), which not all UK agencies - myrst among them, I believe - could do.

I wouldn't expect there to be a problem booking seats at any main station in Paris - even small stations usually manage it - but that does depend on availability. If the train's full, it's full, and you won't get on it!

Thanks for the info (especially the 18185 tip).
Given that the strikes in France still seem to be rumbling on, I'm going to hold fire.
For information, myrst can't offer any FIP fares in france, not even 50% discount ones.
I'll update the thread if I decide to make the trip. It'll have to be pre-booked outward at least, as I'm heading down to the Alps and there just aren't enough trains to run the risk of it being full and not being able to get on one.

 

[Welby]

It is SNCF's decision to withdraw the facility to all countries outside of France to be able to book FIP tickets and reservations.

This was announced on the Rail Delivery Group site back in October

 

[pendodave]

A quick update...
Decided to give it a go. Used the 18185 service (I'm sure others are available, it was @2p/min). The initial phase is a series of options which even my best O level French found impossible to follow. No need to worry though, just bit the #85 option and you drop through to another place where my call was answered pretty much straight away by an English speaking assistant. Was entirely au fait with the FIP world and rattled off a couple of seat reservations which were emailed straight to my phone while we were still talking for a very small fee and no commission.
Despite my reservations (!) It's a very straightforward process.
Luckily (?) I work out of London so was able to pick up the Eurostar ticket sans commission as well, so job's a good 'un.

 

[calopez]

A quick update...
Decided to give it a go. Used the 18185 service (I'm sure others are available, it was @2p/min). The initial phase is a series of options which even my best O level French found impossible to follow. No need to worry though, just bit the #85 option and you drop through to another place where my call was answered pretty much straight away by an English speaking assistant. Was entirely au fait with the FIP world and rattled off a couple of seat reservations which were emailed straight to my phone while we were still talking for a very small fee and no commission.
Despite my reservations (!) It's a very straightforward process.
Luckily (?) I work out of London so was able to pick up the Eurostar ticket sans commission as well, so job's a good 'un.

Good to hear - most reassuring.

SNCF came in for a lot of stick when this was first announced, but, in fact, it looks as though they have made the whole process easier and cheaper!

 

[158801]

I contacted the SNCF call centre a few days ago - speaking to a very helpful lady who spoke good English.

The only problem I encountered was when paying for the tickets by card. She put me through to an automated system to input my card details. The automated system only spoke French. She asked me how I wanted to pay. I assumed there was only a card option. What other options could there be ?

No booking fee. Tickets/coupons/reservations emailed within a few minutes.

However, one name was spelt wrong. I tweeted SNCF to be told that the ticket was invalid and would not be accepted for travel.

Another phone call to Paris. The man said it would not be a problem and that it would be accepted by on train staff.

So, imagine the scenario in a few weeks time travelling from Lille to Bordeaux "Monsieur, votre billet est invalide". But the person on the phone said it would be ok...........

On a further note, Rail Canterbury are closing their property in Canterbury today. From next week you can't visit them in person - only by email and telephone.

 

[calopez]

I think it extremely unlikely that a misspelt name would cause any problems; SNCF isn't an airline. Recent experience on TGVs from/to Paris suggests that ticket inspections are very rare in any case. The on-board staff only appear to be there to check that passengers acn connect to the train's wifi! This is probably because most major stations now have gates with barcode readers at the platform entrances, so you'll only get on if you have a ticket valid for that particular train. And that's all SNCF are interested in.