How to buy a train ticket in French
Un aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
“A return ticket to Lyon, please.”
When: At the ticket window, after saying bonjour
The moment
You are at the ticket window in a busy Paris station and you need to get to Lyon today. You want the right kind of ticket, the departure time, and the platform number.
A1 · Unit 3 · Getting around
The lines
Asking for the ticket you want
Say the ticket type, then "pour" plus the destination, then the magic words: "Un aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît." Swap in any city or station and the sentence still works.
Un aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
“A return ticket to Lyon, please.”
When to use it: At the ticket window, after saying bonjour
What you’ll hear back: Ça fait quarante-six euros. (That comes to forty-six euros.)
Asking when the next one leaves
Tack "à quelle heure" onto the end to ask about time: "Le prochain train part à quelle heure ?" Say "le prochain métro" or "le prochain bus" exactly the same way.
Le prochain train part à quelle heure ?
“What time does the next train leave?”
When to use it: Checking the next departure
What you’ll hear back: Dans dix minutes, à quatorze heures vingt. (In ten minutes, at 2:20 p.m.)
Words for this scene
| French | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| un aller simple | uhn nah-lay SAMPL | a one-way ticket |
Un aller simple pour Marseille, s'il vous plaît. A one-way ticket to Marseille, please. Tip: Ask for un aller-retour instead if you are coming back. | ||
| C'est quel quai ? | say kel KAY | Which platform is it? |
Pardon, le train pour Bordeaux, c'est quel quai ? Excuse me, the train to Bordeaux, which platform is it? Tip: Station screens say voie instead of quai — same thing. | ||
| Il faut changer ? | eel foh shahn-ZHAY | Do I have to change? |
Pour aller à Dijon, il faut changer ? To get to Dijon, do I have to change? Tip: If they answer "c'est direct", stay on board the whole way. | ||
Your objective
Buy a return ticket to where you’re going and ask what time the next train leaves.
- a return ticket
- where to
- the time of the next train
Lines that get it done
- Un aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
- Le prochain train part à quelle heure ?
In the live scene the objective stays on screen, and the Replay afterwards says whether you got it done.
Check yourself
1. You are going to Lyon and coming back the same day. What do you ask for?
- Un aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
- Un aller simple pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
- Un billet double pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
- Deux allers pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
Show the answer
Un aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît.
Aller-retour is there and back; aller simple is one way only.
2. How do you ask which platform your train leaves from?
- C'est quel quai ?
- C'est quelle heure ?
- C'est quel billet ?
- C'est quel prix ?
Show the answer
C'est quel quai ?
Quai is the platform, so "C'est quel quai ?" asks where to wait.
3. You want to know when the next train leaves. What do you say?
- Le prochain train part à quelle heure ?
- Le prochain train est où, s'il vous plaît ?
- Le train prochain fait quelle heure ?
- Quelle heure il est, le train ?
Show the answer
Le prochain train part à quelle heure ?
Putting "à quelle heure" at the end is how you ask what time something happens.