Reserve your seats Simply board with your rail pass and choose any open seat. Reservations are required on most high speed, overnight, scenic, and international trains. With the Eurail or Interrail France Pass you may travel on TGV and French trains: Intercités which require additional seat reservations.

Using a Eurail Pass in France in 2026 requires a bit more planning than in other European countries because of the mandatory seat reservation system on high-speed TGV and Intercités trains. While your pass covers the "base fare," you must purchase a separate reservation for almost all long-distance travel. These reservations cost between €10 and €20 and can sell out quickly, especially during the summer. You can book them through the "Eurail Rail Planner" app, the SNCF website, or at a self-service kiosk in any French station. For local regional trains (TER), no reservation is needed; you simply "Add Journey" to your digital pass in the app and hop on. Before boarding any train, you must ensure your journey is logged in the app to generate your QR code (Daily Pass), which ticket inspectors will scan. A "travel hack" for 2026 is to look for "TER" alternatives for shorter hops (like Nice to Cannes) to avoid the TGV reservation fees. Always remember that your Eurail Pass is not valid on the Paris Metro or RER lines within the city center (Zone 1), as these are operated by RATP, not the national rail company SNCF.