Trenitalia and Eurostar kicked off bookings for the 2025-2026 Christmas vacations on Monday September 15. This is excellent news for travelers in the Paris region who want to plan ahead for their trips to Italy or Northern Europe over the festive season. The SNCF will open its ticket sales on Wednesday October 1for all TGV INOUI, Intercités and OUIGO trains.
Trenitalia is now offering Frecciarossa tickets for the Paris-Lyon-Milan route and the new Paris-Marseille route, for travel from December 14, 2025 to March 15, 2026. The Italian company is thus enabling Parisians to reach the Peninsula to discover Milan's Christmas markets or spend New Year's Eve on the Côte d'Azur before heading back to Italy.
On theEurostar side, routes to London, Amsterdam or Brussels are already available for booking for the period December 14, 2025 to February 8, 2026. The perfect opportunity to plan a London getaway for the festive season, or to discover the famous Belgian and Dutch Christmas markets. Tickets start from €44 per person per trip, based on a mandatory round trip.
September 17 marks the opening of sales for Lyria, DB-SNCF and INOUI international TGVs to Switzerland, Spain, Italy and Luxembourg, further extending the possibilities for winter escapades. Mountain lovers will be able to book their tickets to reach the Swiss ski resorts or the slopes of the Italian Alps.
SNCF regulars will have to wait until October 1. This date traditionally marks record traffic on the company's website, with over a million simultaneous connections observed in previous years. Tickets will then be available for the period from December 14, 2025 to January 7, 2026, covering the entire Christmas school vacations.
Why book early? Rail travel experts are unanimous: anticipation is the key to relaxed, low-cost travel. By booking as soon as sales open, you'll find available seats, be able to travel in a group and, above all, benefit from the lowest fares. Prices tend to rise rapidly as trains fill up.
As far as the budget is concerned, train travel is generally cheaper than air travel within Europe, except in the case of multiple connections. This is a significant advantage at a time when the end-of-year festivities already represent a major item of expenditure for households in the Paris region.
Travelers also benefit from considerable flexibility: most tickets are refundable and exchangeable free of charge up to 7 days before departure. So book now, even if your plans haven't yet been finalized.
For latecomers who haven't anticipated, remember that TGV Europe and night trains offer interesting alternatives, with sales opening at different times depending on the destination. Lines to Spain with Renfe or to Austria and Germany with Nightjet offer their own booking calendars.
Reminder: Trenitalia and Eurostar tickets are available now on their respective official websites or via online booking platforms. SNCF tickets will be available on SNCF Connect from 6am on October 1. International TGVs will go on sale on September 17.
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