The opening of SNCF ticket sales for spring arrives this Wednesday, January 22. While it is essential to anticipate your trips, rushing as soon as they open is not always the best solution. Our advice to benefit from the best prices.
Wednesday January 22 is the opening of train ticket sales for spring. You will be able to book your trips planned between March 31 and May 11, in other words the period which includes the Easter holidays and the May bridges.
But do you really need to set your alarm at 6 a.m. and be the first on the platform to benefit from the most advantageous rates? When is the best time to book train tickets? And if you missed the boat, how can you pay less for your train tickets, even at the last minute? RMC Conso takes stock.
In 2025, the price of train tickets will increase by 1.5%. Another reason to want to benefit from the lowest prices offered by the railway company. There are therefore many people who, on Wednesday, will be connected to the SNCF Connect sales site as soon as possible. According to SNCF, 1.7 million tickets were sold on opening day.
11 weeks before departure
And early risers are not completely wrong: it is essential to anticipate your trips, particularly when you want to reach a popular destination like the South of France. For example, in 2024, for the same period, half of the trains going from Paris to Marseille were already full three days after sales opened, according to a study carried out by the ticket comparator Trainline.
However, according to this study, the ideal time to book train tickets does not systematically correspond to the day of opening. You should book your tickets precisely 11 weeks before your departure to benefit from the best price.
This would save 63% for a Paris-Rennes flight, for example (compared to buying a ticket at the last minute). This saving drops to just 10% if you book eight weeks in advance. Another example: a Brussels-Paris will cost you 53.16 euros 11 weeks before the start of the trip, compared to 112.36 euros one week before.
Beware of dynamic pricing
The reason for these price differences? Dynamic pricing, a business method that involves making prices fluctuate based on demand. The more people are connected at the same time on the reservation platform and the more the trains fill up, the higher the prices.
Hence the need to compare prices, based on your own flexibility: traveling early in the morning or late in the evening, on weekdays rather than on weekends, to pay less.
“By shifting their trip from Friday afternoon to Thursday afternoon, the customer can save between 20 and 30%, depending on the train,” assures the SNCF on this subject.
To optimize this comparison, you can find, on the SNCF website, the minimum and maximum prices for each destination.
-Another tip: watch for flash sales, the sale, within a short period of time, of a certain number of tickets at advantageous prices.
Ticket swap, reduction card…
If you buy a non-exchangeable and non-refundable ticket, be aware that ticket swap platforms exist (Troc des trains, Kelbillet, Passe Ton Billet) if you ultimately realize that you cannot use your ticket on the scheduled date.
However, be careful with nominative e-tickets, which are non-transferable. For Ouigo tickets, there is an official resale platform, Ouigoswap. You will also delight those who have not anticipated their trip and are looking for tickets at advantageous prices.
Promotional offers can also allow you to acquire a discount card at a reduced price. The advantage of the Liberté card, sold at full price 349 euros: benefit from fixed prices and avoid this dynamic pricing, which annoys many travelers. It should be reserved for very regular users to be profitable.
Second option, the Advantages card at 49 euros, which allows you to benefit from a 30% reduction on tickets, but be careful of the restrictions: for a return trip, make sure that one of your journeys takes place on the weekend, otherwise you will not have the preferential rate.
The reduction cards are nevertheless not valid on companies other than SNCF, which can nevertheless sometimes offer advantageous alternatives: take a look at the prices charged by Trenitalia, for a Paris-Lyon for example, or Eurostar, for a Paris- Brussels. And to save time, you can use a comparator such as Trainline, Kombo or Omio.
Carry a package or… look after a child
For the more adventurous, there are tips for paying less for your train tickets, but they are not without constraints. If you have the time (and patience), why not book a slow train, TER, or Ouigo “classic train”, much cheaper than the TGV, if your journey allows it. Allow almost 4 hours for a Paris-Rennes flight, compared to 1h30 by TGV.
The WePost platform also allows travelers to act as a postman, and transport a small package while taking their train, to be delivered to the recipient. The operation can bring in around twenty euros. Reserved for those who travel light and have time to take care of the delivery on arrival.
Finally, the Kidygo platform offers travelers the option of being entrusted with a child during their journey. A form of babysitting on the train. The remuneration is set by the parent and can go as far as full payment of the ticket. Here again, to be reserved for the most patient…
