Yes, with most One Country passes, including France, you can’t cross the border at all.
Your second idea is correct - you need to buy a ticket to the border point, then use your pass from there.
If taking the TGV, you could buy a ticket to Lille, then a TGV reservation to your destination in France.
If you use a regular IC to Lille, then you only need a ticket to the actual border, not all the way to Lille. You can get that from the ticket office. You can also use a Rail Pass/Go Pass until the last station in Belgium and a ticket for the remaining part until the border. The One Country Pass is valid from the border.
If you use a regular IC to Lille, then you only need a ticket to the actual border, not all the way to Lille. You can get that from the ticket office. You can also use a Rail Pass/Go Pass until the last station in Belgium and a ticket for the remaining part until the border. The One Country Pass is valid from the border.
Thank you! I hadn’t thought about these options because my idea was to get on the same TGV that leaves from Brussels and stops in Lille as this would be faster than taking an IC and then changing the train.
Thank you! I hadn’t thought about these options because my idea was to get on the same TGV that leaves from Brussels and stops in Lille as this would be faster than taking an IC and then changing the train.
Yes, the TGV is much faster, but the slower option taking the IC can save money. In this case, I’d probably pay the extra and stick with the TGV, but it’s your choice.
TGV tickets to Lille are often 19€ so I hope you're lucky. Then you'll get a 10-20€ reservation -> if not in the same unit you have enough time to change.
You can make sure you stay in the same unit if you use https://travel.b-europe.com/Eurail-GE/en/booking-tgv#TravelWish (pay close attention to the TGV number from Brussels)