Buying online tickets in Europe?

Question

Is buying online tickets for rail travel in france, swiss and italy cheaper than buying them at the train stations? I intend to buy point to point tickets and not Eurorail passes

Answer 1

When you buy online in advance you can sometimes get cheaper tickets, especially for the TGV trains in France.  And in Italy buying online saves you the trouble of having to worry about getting a seat in Eurostar trains and sleepers, since that is included in the process.

When booking online check

1) how are you going to pay (Is creditcard accepted or do they ask for an EC debit card or the permission  to withdraw the amount from an account in France/Italy/Switzerland?)

2) how are you going to get your ticket (tickets bought from trenitalia can only be picket up in Italy, similar rules may apply in France and Switzerland)

3) are you paying the regular fare or are you getting a discount

4) is the ticket flexible or are you tied to a certain train

Answer 2

you can usually get tickets online a a discount depending on the site you go to.