Rail Travel: Tips on Cheap Tickets

[pompeyrich]

Thanks for that!! Not as bad as I thought, really.

Forgot to say to get those prices you will have to book in advance, like as soon as possible, you will also be restricted to travelling on the train you book. If you leave it until the day of travel the fare rises to £98 return from EC but is a fexible fare which allows you to catch any train to or from Newcastle.

Just checked the GNER site and the only £26:45 fares left for the 5th are on the 08:30 and 09:00 from Kings X so dont leave it too long.

[bdmum1]

Hi

Hope someone will be kind enough to help.

I'm trying to book a journey, preferably from Warrington to London Euston(although could at a push leave from Wigan / Liverpool / Manchester).

Leaving 9am onwards on 11/12 returning 4pm onwards 12/12. (If for some reason it makes a big difference to the train fare we could make it a two night stay leaving on 10th).

Two tickets required, best I can come up with on Virgin / Trainline is £119.40 for 2. Can't manage to find any usable discount promotion codes.

Any help getting this price down would be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[tubechallenger]

I'd suggest you hold on - the advance singles haven't yet been released by Virgin for these dates by the looks of things!

Tom

[hogshead]

How far in advance do Virgin release the tickets, does anyone know?

[tubechallenger]

In experience generally about 8 to 12 weeks ahead on weekdays, can be up to 6 weeks at weekends due to engineering works. GNER already have singles available for those days so it'll just be a case of waiting I'm afraid.

[orangeblossom_08]

Hi, I need some help figuring out the best train fares for a London-Manchester same-day return ticket.
I will be in London next month and would like to do a day trip to Manchester [the requisite pilgramage to Old Trafford! :) ]
The best fare I seem to be able to get is from Virgin Trains - £64. I'm not familiar with the English rail system and would really really appreciate if someone can let me know if ths is the best fare I can get? Or is there a better way around it? I'm a student on a budget and coming from where I am, the ticket is going to cost me a whopping $300 (!!!) in my own money after the currency exchange.
Thanks for your help!

[tubechallenger]

It depends which days you are travelling - you'll find that Virgin generally won't have released the cheap fares for before any football game at Old Trafford.

The cheapest fare you can get is £59 - this is a Saver Return ticket and the restrictions are as such (Monday - Friday only, any train at weekend):
DEPART: LONDON EUSTON
Between 0915 and 1514 (inc.) and at or after 1812.

ARRIVE: LONDON EUSTON
At or after 1100

The £59.50 fare is a direct route train on Virgin - however, in order to bring down the cost a bit you have another option, which is changing once or twice and going via Chesterfield on Midland Mainline. The cost of this would be £57.50. These fares are all known as "walk-on" fares.

However, Virgin offer airline-style advance purchase fares on most of their trains but as I said earlier they are unlikely to release any for Old Trafford games. You would be best off booking your ticket on www.virgintrains.co.uk and purchasing a "Saver Half Return" in one direction, and a Virgin Value advance single in the other direction. A Saver Half Return costs £29.75 on this route and the Value singles are as cheap as £12.50 so something to look into.

[p1an0player]

What about split ticketing, especially as it is a day return.
I would suggest looking into the cost of a day return on Chiltern Railways London Marylebone to Birmingham, then a cheap day return Birmingham to Stoke, then a cheap day return from Stoke to Manchester.

However, this would mean changing trains and stations in Birmingham and it would be a long journey.

Otherwise the coach will offer a cheap price!

[blackanchorage]

Hi, I need some help figuring out the best train fares for a London-Manchester same-day return ticket.
I will be in London next month and would like to do a day trip to Manchester [the requisite pilgramage to Old Trafford! :) ]


You can get very cheap tickets from London to Manchester and back on weekdays from http://www.mobitix.thetrainline.com/vt/advancePurchase.aspx

Regards, Roger

[orangeblossom_08]

Hi Roger
Many thanks for the tip/link. Only thing is - i can only make it on a weekend (either Sat or Sun). Any ideas?
*I can't believe the HUGE difference in prices between a weekday and a weekend! It's crazy!

[tubechallenger]

You're best off looking for some advance 'virgin value' singles then...

[CharleneUK]

Forgot to say to get those prices you will have to book in advance, like as soon as possible, you will also be restricted to travelling on the train you book. If you leave it until the day of travel the fare rises to £98 return from EC but is a fexible fare which allows you to catch any train to or from Newcastle.

Just checked the GNER site and the only £26:45 fares left for the 5th are on the 08:30 and 09:00 from Kings X so dont leave it too long.

I've missed out :(

[Poland]

Hi I am looking at going from Liverpool to Newcastle on Sun 7th October but the cheapest fare i can find is 63.10 return. Does anyone know of any way to bring this price down via a number of cheap day return connections etc. Any help would be appreciated

[hogshead]

Are you planning on returning on the same day, what times restraints do you have & do you/are you eligible for any railcards at all:ie, young persons railcard.

Might help others who search for you.

[Poland]

Are you planning on returning on the same day, what times restraints do you have & do you/are you eligible for any railcards at all:ie, young persons railcard.

Might help others who search for you.

Returning the same day. Have to be there by 1.30. Not eligible for railcards

[tubechallenger]

Liverpool Lime Street - Manchester Victoria CDR £8.50
Manchester Victoria - Huddersfield CDR £8.90
Huddersfield - York CDR £13.30
York - Newcastle CDR £20.50

I make that £50.20...

Journey outwards is as follows:

From LIVERPOOL to Newcastle departure at 09:00 on 07 Oct Sunday

departure 9:10 arrival 13:25 traveltime 4:15 with 1 changes. T T
Liverpool Lime Street 9:10 Train 1E69 Trans First Reserv Scarborough
York 11:39
York 12:21 Train 1S11 Great Cold B Trolle First and Standard Class Reservations Essential Newcastle
Newcastle 13:25

[hogshead]

I really hate to ask AGAIN but I need a fare from Liverpool to Gloucester this coming weekend either the 5th departing after 5pm or for the 6th arriving before 6pm.
Single fare. As few changes as possible.
Can purchase a YS card to make some savings ( over the year it'll pay for itself )

Can collect from Stroud, Swindon, Cirencester, ( Tewkesbury or Worcester if they have train stations ) Cheltenham & Stonehouse if the route is any better.

HUGE apologies for pestering, bit last minute & I can't find any cheapo tickets .

Also I only have 4 operators in my faves. Do they all check each others & offer the best fare or only select their own ( hope that makes sense )

Thanks in advance

[tubechallenger]

I won't hold up much hope of you getting any cheap singles - so here are the fares for walk on trains:

Standard Day Single without railcard £35.90
Standard Day Single with railcard £23.70

That's a £13.20 saving, but by purchasing a YP railcard you will pay £6.80 more - however this will last a year but I'm sure you know that. :)

Having a quick look there are two trains on the Saturday, these involve 2 and 3 changes respectively.

Option 1 on Saturday
From Liverpool Lime Street to gloucester departure at 17:00 on 06 Oct Saturday

departure 17:28 arrival 22:26 traveltime 4:58 with 2 changes. T T T
Liverpool Lime Street 17:28 Train 2C25 Arriva First Standa Chester
Chester 18:11
Chester 18:20 Train 1V63 Arriva First Standa Reservations Possible Cardiff Central
Newport (S Wales) 20:59
Newport (S Wales) 21:30 Train 2G72 Arriva First Standa Gloucester
Gloucester 22:26

Option 2 on Saturday
From Liverpool Lime Street to gloucester departure at 17:00 on 06 Oct Saturday

departure 18:28 arrival 0:40+ traveltime 6:12 with 3 changes. T T T T
Liverpool Lime Street 18:28 Train 2C28 Arriva First Standa Chester
Chester 19:11
Chester 19:34 Train 1K14 Arriva Trolle Standa Reservations Possible Crewe
Crewe 19:59
Crewe 20:18 Train 1V89 Arriva Standa Reserv Cardiff Central
Newport (S Wales) 22:37
Newport (S Wales) 23:39 Train 2G74 Arriva First Standa Gloucester
Gloucester 0:40+

On the Sunday, you must get a bus whatever - to arrive before 6pm this is probably your best option:

From Liverpool Lime Street to gloucester departure at 10:00 on 07 Oct Sunday

departure 11:15 arrival 16:10 traveltime 4:55 with 3 changes. T T T B
Liverpool Lime Street 11:15 Train 1A37 Virgin First First Reservations Possible London Euston
Stafford 13:11
Stafford 13:19 Train 1B38 Virgin Cold B First Reservations Possible London Euston
Birmingham New Street 13:56
Birmingham New Street 14:12 Train 1V30 Centra Standa Worces
Worcester Shrub Hill 14:55
Worcester Shrub Hill 15:04 Bus 0B00 Replac Glouce
Gloucester 16:10

[pompeyrich]

Liverpool-Gloucester friday 5th 19:19 arr 21:50, or sat 6th dep 11:05,12:05 or 13:30 for £19:50 or £12:85 with railcard showing as available HERE (http://nationalrail.co.uk/index.html). The Friday one is best as there are replacement busses from Birmingham to Gloucester this saturday. The saturday ones depart from Liv. Central, as opposed to Lime Street, dont leave it much longer to book

[dzug]

Also I only have 4 operators in my faves. Do they all check each others & offer the best fare or only select their own ( hope that makes sense )

Thanks in advance

They all sell each others fares - they all feed off the same national database. The default is to search for the quickest journey time, regardless of operator.

The fares will nearly always be the same regardless of site. The exceptions are:

GNER give a discount for some of their own fares over the national fare

Virgin, on a return journey, will sell you an advance single one way and half a saver the other if advance singles are not available both ways - again on their own trains. (I do find the latest version of their website a bit confusing though)

[hogshead]

Thanks for all you help 'guys' I really do appreciate it. I'm sure I will get the hang of this eventually & don't mean to sound dim ( not hard to do ) but you really are much more competant than me on this subject.

Now who want tips on sewing, crafting, being a taxi etc etc.....I'm your gal.

[hogshead]

Managed to get a £9.50 fare for the sat am ( 6.07 am !!!! ) so all's good,
Via Virgin.
Site is well cool as it saves your fave journeys which is the one I shall be booking on a reg basis ( I'm sure the others do too but as I booked with this Co they are the one I base this upon )

Thanks to all.

[birthdaygirls]

Hello!!!!
Its my birthday in a few weeks and my mates from home want to come up and see me, only problem is none of them can drive. i live in preston and they are all on in southampton and want to take the train up up on the 12 or 13th oct and stay till the afternoon on the 14th. the cheapest i was able to find is £56.60. thing is we are all students so cant afford much. please help, i really want them to b able to come up!!!!
xxx

[tubechallenger]

Hi birthdaygirls,

Try looking up fares splitting your tickets at Birmingham New Street. To Preston on the 12th I can see 2 direct trains, 1515 SOU - PRE 1942 still has some Virgin Value Advance Single B band fares available at £25 each.

[Shelanne]

I'm planning to visit bro in London for birthday next month and would appreciate ticket buying advice from you experts. Thaks in advance.

Leaving Liverpool Lime st on Saturday 17th November around 6.00am (could poss leave Friday pm if it were cheaper!)

Leaving London on Sunday 18th November preferably between 4pm and 7pm so not home too late but again could poss do monday for a big saving!!

Will be travelling with daughter aged 10, don't have a family railcard at the mo but guess would be best to get one?

Any help for an amatuer like me would be great. Thanks.

[cricketmad]

I'm planning to travel to Teddington on Friday the 12th of October. I can leave from either Nottingham or Loughborough but need to be there by 12 midday. I can return anytime after 5pm as well. The cheapest return I'm getting is £46ish. Can anyone help please?

[Bella_b]

Can anyone tell me how to get to Birmingham from Bristol on the 13th October?! It seems that the train system has gone mad.. the national rail website says I have change about 4 times just to get to Birmingham.. or go to Reading and change.. or go to Gloucester and get a bus!!! but all this takes much more time! You used to be able to get a direct train and it would take just 90 minutes.

Is it gonna be like this all the time until the new Arriva service starts in November? This is a damn nuisance!

Bella :mad:

[dzug]

Can anyone tell me how to get to Birmingham from Bristol on the 13th October?! It seems that the train system has gone mad.. the national rail website says I have change about 4 times just to get to Birmingham.. or go to Reading and change.. or go to Gloucester and get a bus!!! but all this takes much more time! You used to be able to get a direct train and it would take just 90 minutes.

Is it gonna be like this all the time until the new Arriva service starts in November? This is a damn nuisance!

Bella :mad:

No - every weekend possibly (engineering work) but not in the week. Would have been the same with Arriva - nothing to do with the operator. It's Railtrack

[dzug]

I'm planning to travel to Teddington on Friday the 12th of October. I can leave from either Nottingham or Loughborough but need to be there by 12 midday. I can return anytime after 5pm as well. The cheapest return I'm getting is £46ish. Can anyone help please?

That fare looks dirt cheap to me - don't know where you got it from but I can't find anything anywhere near that.

However - try splitting at Bedford. From Bedford you will be able to get a one day travel card to London that will include zones 1-6 - ie including Teddington.

[tubechallenger]

It's Railtrack

They're still going?? :D :D

[elisebutt65]

OK - I've tried a couple of combinations to reduce the price but I can't get any lower than £69.05 so far.

Going from Leamington Spa to Newcastle at 10ish am 22/10 - 1 adult and 1 child with Family Railcard

Returning on 24/10 from 11am

I also have a YP railcard but that didn't make much(if any) of a dent.

If I split journey at New St then it adds a tenner onto the cost.

Anyone help me get any lower than this - I know it's not a bad price so far but this is MSE - LOL

[pompeyrich]

OK - I've tried a couple of combinations to reduce the price but I can't get any lower than £69.05 so far.

Going from Leamington Spa to Newcastle at 10ish am 22/10 - 1 adult and 1 child with Family Railcard

Returning on 24/10 from 11am

I also have a YP railcard but that didn't make much(if any) of a dent.

If I split journey at New St then it adds a tenner onto the cost.

Anyone help me get any lower than this - I know it's not a bad price so far but this is MSE - LOL

Cheapest I could find was £39:40 but the earliest train at this price is 13:30 from Birmingham, arriving at 16:50, coming back on the 24 th leaving Newc at 11:22 arr Birm at 14:36. The fare breaks down as 2x open singles LS-Birmingham at £9:70 (£4:85 each way) then single Brum- Newc £19:55 then single back £10:20. For these fares you have to travel on the specified train.
The £69 fare allows you to use any train and can be bought at the station on the day, the cheaper singles need to be booked ASAP

[crankie1uk]

Hi, I wondered if anyone could find cheaper return ticket to london from barrow for two adults and two children with a family railcard on the 28th dec to the 30th. I can get £128 on the trainline for all four of us. I've had some trial runs a few weeks ago with a similar weekend splitting the journey up with no success. Single tickets don't seem to be available.
I hope somone can help. Thanks. Crankie.

[dzug]

They're still going?? :D :D

Or whatever they are called in their current incarnation.....

[spurs1812]

I was wondering if anybody might be able to help me in finding cheap adult tickets going from East Croydon to Rye. We are travelling off peak during the week but the cheapest we have been able to find so far is approx. £30-40 per person. If anyone can give me some advice I would be grateful. :confused:

[pompeyrich]

I was wondering if anybody might be able to help me in finding cheap adult tickets going from East Croydon to Rye. We are travelling off peak during the week but the cheapest we have been able to find so far is approx. £30-40 per person. If anyone can give me some advice I would be grateful. :confused:


You can get a "daysave" ticket for £10p.p. or £20 for 4 people from the Southern website HERE (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=359). These allow unlimited off peak travel on Southern services for the day but have to be ordered on-line a week before you want to travel. Alternatively for £12:50 you can get a "Network downloader" for £12:50 p.p. This has to be downloaded 2 days or more before you want to travel.

A "saver" return, valid for 1 month appears to be £20:80 and is valid for return within a month of the outward journey and is available to buy on the day of travel. If there are 3 or 4 of you travelling ask for a group save and you will only pay for 2 tickets and get 1 or 2 more free

[spurs1812]

Thanks, pompeyrich, these tickets are ideal and will save me approximately £40 which we can spend on our week away there - pays for an evening out. Thanks again!

[josie_ann57]

Hi all, I'm trying to find the cheapest fare for 2 people, from Crewe (Cheshire) to Earls Court on 19th October (am), returning on the 20th pm. (I'm going to the Baby Show) Every time I look the fare is different and vastly different. if anybody is able to tell me how to find the cheapest way to get there, I would be very grateful. Thank you. anne

[dzug]

You are probably too late to get a cheap fare for the outward journey. so you will need to go to the Virgin site and book a half saver (a bit over £27 each out - described as semi-flexible) and a cheap single (from £19.50 each depending on train) back. Or just buy a saver on the day - any off peak train - for £54.30 return each, which will give you more flexibility. You have to add bus or underground fares in London to this.

Alternatively for £52.10 each you can get a saver return to Kensington Olympia, changing at Watford Junction - and land up a stone's throw from Earls Court.

[crankie1uk]

Hi, I wondered if anyone could find cheaper return ticket to london from barrow for two adults and two children with a family railcard on the 28th dec to the 30th. I can get £128 on the trainline for all four of us. I've had some trial runs a few weeks ago with a similar weekend splitting the journey up with no success. Single tickets don't seem to be available.
I hope somone can help. Thanks. Crankie.

:confused:
I need to book them this week, as we go away on hols this Friday, anyone available to help?

[dzug]

:confused:
I need to book them this week, as we go away on hols this Friday, anyone available to help?

It's too early to book anything other than standard tickets - the cheap ones haven't been released yet (or hadn't when I last looked a few days ago)

And if you are using standard tickets there's no point in booking them - you can buy on the day for the same price.

[crankie1uk]

It's too early to book anything other than standard tickets - the cheap ones haven't been released yet (or hadn't when I last looked a few days ago)

And if you are using standard tickets there's no point in booking them - you can buy on the day for the same price.
Thanks Dzug. Forgive my ignorance, was the price I got a standard price? and that won't disappear the closer I get to the date and Should I check the trainline nearer the date?
Thanks Crankie

[dzug]

Thanks Dzug. Forgive my ignorance, was the price I got a standard price? and that won't disappear the closer I get to the date and Should I check the trainline nearer the date?
Thanks Crankie

£128.50 is a saver return for you all. You can buy it on the day if you want. There will be some peak hour restrictions - not sure what they are from Barrow, probably fairly minimal.

I'd check the trainline nearer the time - cheap singles in each direction should become available. If you are lucky they could halve the price.

[pingua]

Would anyone be able to help with tickets Shrewsbury to London 16/11 back on 18/11. Would rather early - ish trains if a choice was given.

I can't get to grips with all this.

[dzug]

Would anyone be able to help with tickets Shrewsbury to London 16/11 back on 18/11. Would rather early - ish trains if a choice was given.

I can't get to grips with all this.

The advance purchase tickets look to be sold out (pity - from £10 each way)

A saver at £41 odd is the best bet - any off-peak train via Birmingham. The 0822 is the first train it's valid on - arrives about 1100. You don't have to buy in advance.

[nash0819]

I'm looking at booking a return from London to Manchester, out 29/12 back 31/12 travelling around noon each time.

On the out leg of the journey, there are no routes available except via Marylebone-> Brum Moor St (walk)-> Brum New St-> Stockport -> Manchester. Not even the old favourite of Midland Mainline to Sheffield (and change there) will work. I can go up via GNER to Doncaster and change there but it won't let me book that in one journey, must be an invalid route, I guess.

On the way back, I can go via Sheffield and then Midland Mainline to St Pancras - for a very competitive £9 - but again there is no direct train from Euston. Before the weekend, thetrainline.com was offering this route, albeit at full saver price and no cheap singles.

What's going on? Are there engineering works or have Virgin pulled tickets for these dates? I've been to both the National Rail and Virgin Trains websites to look for details of engineering works but have not seen anything.

[edit] Just before 14.00 today, I got an e-mail circular from Thetrainline.com saying "bookings now open until 9th Jan 08". That may be co-incidence but, now, I cannot book a return to Manchester at all. I think I can still book the seperate single options (up via Brum, back via Sheffield) but not as a return journey. Confused? You will be...

[edit #2] The website is now back to the state it was before my first edit. Still no Euston fares however.

[Lippy]

Hi

Hope this is in right place. i have a family railcard and I know it says you must travel with a child to get discount but can I just buy a child ticket even though not travelling with one and get my 1/3 off my ticket, How do they know if your travelling with a child. cheers

[pompeyrich]

Hi

Hope this is in right place. i have a family railcard and I know it says you must travel with a child to get discount but can I just buy a child ticket even though not travelling with one and get my 1/3 off my ticket, How do they know if your travelling with a child. cheers

Think you need to have a child with you, although I have known people not to take their child with them and get away with it. The ticket will be marked FAM or similar so the guard will know you bought it using a Family Railcard and would probably be able to see if there was a child with you or not !!

[dzug]

Pompeyrich - try putting a VIA of Milton Keynes in the journey planner as a one way journey - you will get a very strange route (Northampton Brum Stockport using 4 TOCs) but a fare of £13.50

I'm pretty certain that engineering work is to blame - ie no through trains, rather than no fares. Else everything is all ****ed up. Or both.

[nash0819]

Pompeyrich - try putting a VIA of Milton Keynes in the journey planner as a one way journey - you will get a very strange route (Northampton Brum Stockport using 4 TOCs) but a fare of £13.50

I'm pretty certain that engineering work is to blame - ie no through trains, rather than no fares. Else everything is all ****ed up. Or both.

I was the one after the info rather than PompeyRich but thank you anyway!

If I do go up on the Saturday 29th, there is an alternative route on GNER via either Retford or Doncaster and then Sheffield. The lowest I can squeeze out a fare on that is £18.35 taking 4.5 hours with 2 changes. Compared to the £13.50 with 3 changes (also roughly 4.5 hours) via the route you proposed. I guess the MK route would be the best.

However I may be going up 2 days beforehand, which would make things much easier. Then I can go via Sheffield both ways and the combined fare is £16 all in and I only have the one change to make. However, planning that last journey, it only offers me the cheap tickets if I do not put "Going Via: Sheffield". If I leave that field blank, I get the cheap ticket, changing at Sheffield! :confused:

I think I will double check with Virgin - to see if there really are engineering works or not - before I book however.

[edit] Just checked the Virgin trains ticket website for the journey from Manchester Picadilly to Stockport & they are all bus replacements from 27 Dec through to 1 Jan. Trains from Manchester Victoria to Stockport still operate.

Also, the National Rail website (http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_bulletins/currentAndFuture.html) now says that London Midland services will start from Harrow & Wealdstone rather than Euston 27-28 Jan (inclusive) so presumably that will take out Virgin as well? Plus Bletchley to Northampton is out on 27th as well.

I have managed to get the £13.50 27 Dec fare starting the journey from Watford Junction to Manchester - and not specifying "via:MKC" - however I don't trust the itinerary to exist!!

[nash0819]

This link from thetrainline.com (http://content.announcements.uk.com/TTLEMAIL/2006_TTL_Emails_ALL/xmastimetables.html) could be useful for many; I got it in a promotional e-mail from the company. It displays which Train Operator Companies (TOCs) have released tickets and until which dates. Everyone is selling tickets through 31st December with most going to about 11th January.

[sparkymark]

Try this new ticket site for ease of use (and the current offer on GNER tickets for £5 single Advance tickets !!) http://tickets.gner.co.uk/gner/en/journeyplanning/GnerWebTISHomePage

[Tuesday]

I bought a Family Railcard when my daughter was born. It did mean I had to buy her a ticket too but the savings made it worth it. The ticket collector did question it once or twice but I was traveling with a child so was sticking to the rules. We went to Cornwall by train and saved a fortune!

[One step forward]

Try this new ticket site for ease of use (and the current offer on GNER tickets for £5 single Advance tickets !!) http://tickets.gner.co.uk/gner/en/journeyplanning/GnerWebTISHomePage

Thanks for this.... have just managed to get three tickets from Peterborough to Inverness and return for a fiver each way...... !!!!! Bargain or what!!!

Direct services as well so no changing trains.... Brilliant!!!!

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

[Christa1]

One step forward, when are you travelling? As it's direct I assume it will go via Newcastle, I am trying to get tickets from Newcastle on Tyne to Peterborough( then local train to Huntingdon) and cheapest I can get is £36.00 and I have been trying for days now?

[One step forward]

One step forward, when are you travelling? As it's direct I assume it will go via Newcastle, I am trying to get tickets from Newcastle on Tyne to Peterborough( then local train to Huntingdon) and cheapest I can get is £36.00 and I have been trying for days now?


Am travelling 5th December and returning 8th December if that helps.... got my tickets in post today!!!

[super_spender]

Hi,
I live in swindon & planning to join work in london monument so i need to take the train from swindon to padingdon which costs 591.76 plus the oyster card to use in london which comes to £ 3.00 per day. Can any 1 tell me is there is any cheaper way to travel pls...

[dzug]

Hi,
I live in swindon & planning to join work in london monument so i need to take the train from swindon to padingdon which costs 591.76 plus the oyster card to use in london which comes to £ 3.00 per day. Can any 1 tell me is there is any cheaper way to travel pls...

You might find that separate tickets Swindon - Didcot and Didcot - London are cheaper. (Depending on what sort of tickets, the train might have to call at Didcot for this to be valid.)

And check if including zone 1 on your rail ticket works out any cheaper than using Oyster.

[theanimallover]

Does anyone know how to advance book train tickets? I remember a couple of years ago, you could do it on the national rail enquiries site, but I can't find it now. I have to pay for 3 adults to travel from Reading to Paddington to Green Park Tube on a Sunday....They are not travelling for a few weeks.
Just looking for the cheapest option...
Any ideas?

[dzug]

Does anyone know how to advance book train tickets? I remember a couple of years ago, you could do it on the national rail enquiries site, but I can't find it now. I have to pay for 3 adults to travel from Reading to Paddington to Green Park Tube on a Sunday....They are not travelling for a few weeks.
Just looking for the cheapest option...
Any ideas?

Travelling from Reading to London there is no point - there are no cheap advance purchase fares so you might as well purchase them on the day and avoid cancellation fees if your plans change.

The national rail enquiries site will give you fares and links to the sites (TOCs, the trainline) that actually sell the tickets.

[p1an0player]

Does anyone know how to advance book train tickets? I remember a couple of years ago, you could do it on the national rail enquiries site, but I can't find it now. I have to pay for 3 adults to travel from Reading to Paddington to Green Park Tube on a Sunday....They are not travelling for a few weeks.
Just looking for the cheapest option...
Any ideas?

Consider the coach from Calcot to Victoria. You can get a bus from Victoria coach station to Green Park in a few minutes.

[Wildsurf]

I need to get from Leeds to Bournemouth arriving before 18:00 on 17/11 and returning at any time on 18/11. I'm struggling to find anything other than saver returns. Any tips on how to get a cheaper fare?

[dzug]

I need to get from Leeds to Bournemouth arriving before 18:00 on 17/11 and returning at any time on 18/11. I'm struggling to find anything other than saver returns. Any tips on how to get a cheaper fare?

Various options are worth trying but you'll need to do the looking up yourself.

1 Try megatrain for a trip via London - megatrain to London, then GNER or MML (both of whom I think have changed names.....)

2. Try the split ticket trick - either with savers or to get advance tickets for part of the journey. Birmingham is the obvious choice on the direct route, but just about anywhere is worth a look if you've got the time and patience to try. Main 'problem' is that you will land up with different reserved seats for different legs of the journey.

[Wildsurf]

Various options are worth trying but you'll need to do the looking up yourself.

1 Try megatrain for a trip via London - megatrain to London, then GNER or MML (both of whom I think have changed names.....)

2. Try the split ticket trick - either with savers or to get advance tickets for part of the journey. Birmingham is the obvious choice on the direct route, but just about anywhere is worth a look if you've got the time and patience to try. Main 'problem' is that you will land up with different reserved seats for different legs of the journey.

Thanks for reply. There is a problem with Cross Country which means that I can't book on line, I think it due to engineering works meaning you can't reserve seats.

In the end I settled for MML to London form Leeds, split ticketing wasn't worthwhile. Then a separate saver return to Bournemouth. Total cost £75 including Underground. As opposed to a saver return of £94.

[stikiuk]

hey guys i need your expert help.

We are taking our children to see santa @ harrods this weekend, we have hotel and train tickets out booked. But am really struggling to get the return tickets on sunday under £100 !
This is 2ad an 2 chd with a family railcard.
£99.80 is the cheapest i can find :( Ive tried trainline, virgin, national rail and GNER. We are prepared to change, so am looking if there is a way to split the tickets to get them cheaper.
plz plz plz help. Thnx in advance xx

[KeithP]

From National Rail Enquiries website -

All fares are for 2 adults and two children.

You can travel from euston to Lime Street First Class for £91.50 for all four of you - Virgin Value Advance First Single C, only valid on 17:35 dep from EUS (arr Lime St 22:36). These will go very quickly!!

Or -
Marylebone to Birmingham New St - £44.70 Cheap Day Single
New St to Lime St - £34.50 Cheap Day Single
These are regular walk up fares, valid on any train, can be bought on the day if nothing better turns up = £79.20

Not looked at Manchester. Try splitting that at New St too.

[al_green]

How about these (from the trainline):

10:30 East Midlands Trains St Pancras - Sheffield arr 13:41, EMT Advance F ticket £48 (not using F/Railcard), then 14:37 Sheffield - Liverpool arr 16:30, Standard day single with F/Railcard £29.10

Total = £77.10

Don't forget that you may be better searching without the Family Railcard option, as the system won't allow further discount off already discounted (ie advance purchase) tickets

Have a good trip
Al.

[lightning15uk]

hi all could someone please help we are going away for new year 30/12 - 2/1 from coventry to rye as cheap as possible 4 adults and 2 children we have a family rail card do not mind which route we take as long as the journey doesnt really go above five hours please help

[stikiuk]

Thnx Al-green and kiethp. I managed to split the tickets and got: Euston to Stafford, Stafford to Manchester, Manchester to Liverpool, total for 4 of us £40.90. :j

[hebangsthedrums]

Didn't think this warranted its own thread and this looks like the best place...

I have just been offered my first job post uni (subject to references) and it is in Wandsworth. I live near Bedford and my intention is to move somewhere closer at some point perhaps around Feb/March. However in the meantime I will need to commute to and from work.

When I went for my interview the ticket cost £33(!), but I was looking to make this as cost effective as possible. I anticipate my working hours would be 9-5 and if buying a few weeks together makes it more cost effective I would look to do that. I am 22 and do not have a YPR but would get one if the saving applied and was worthwhile. Also I don't know about season tickets but I may be flexi working so wondered so you buy tickets for set dates or a set number of journeys?

Any help from any rail savvy MSE'rs would be much appreciated, any more info needed just ask

[dzug]

Season tickets cover you for unlimited journeys for a set period of time - one week, one month or one year are the usual ones.

A YP railcard would save you 1/3rd off daily fares, but not off a season. Say £21 or £22 a day Bedford/Wandsworth return. It will pay for itself in two days.

A weekly season from Bedford is £95 - so is worth it for 5 days travel, but not for 4.

On some lines you can also buy packs of say 10 tickets - but AFAIK yours is not one of them.

[hebangsthedrums]

Thanks dzug, do you know how far in advance you need to buy the season ticket? Also is it for travel any time, and are there further discounts ofr buying several weeks at a time?

[p1an0player]

Season tickets cover you for unlimited journeys for a set period of time - one week, one month or one year are the usual ones.

A YP railcard would save you 1/3rd off daily fares, but not off a season. Say £21 or £22 a day Bedford/Wandsworth return. It will pay for itself in two days.

A weekly season from Bedford is £95 - so is worth it for 5 days travel, but not for 4.

On some lines you can also buy packs of say 10 tickets - but AFAIK yours is not one of them.

On some routes you didn't used to be able to travel before 9:30 with a YPR

[dzug]

Thanks dzug, do you know how far in advance you need to buy the season ticket? Also is it for travel any time, and are there further discounts ofr buying several weeks at a time?

Yes it's for travel any time. You can buy on the day but a busy booking clerk won't thank you for it. You also need a photocard - free when you buy your first season. You need to supply one passport photo.

The only discount for buying several weeks at a time is if you buy a monthly ticket. £364.80 from Bedford to anywhere in London

There are no time restrictions on YP cards - though there is a minimum fare in the peak hours. I believe SWT did (incorrectly) apply restrictions for a while.

[penniesforme]

can someone please help me find the cheapest fare from Liverpool to Reading on the 28th December ? I am looking to travel after 1600 and I have a network railcard. I dont mind travelling by bus if its cheap.

I the cheapest i am able to find is 59 pounds for train.

thank you in advance. :)

[dzug]

can someone please help me find the cheapest fare from Liverpool to Reading on the 28th December ? I am looking to travel after 1600 and I have a network railcard. I dont mind travelling by bus if its cheap.

I the cheapest i am able to find is 59 pounds for train.

thank you in advance. :)


£49 on the train - standard open single. Buy on the day or even on the train.

All the cheap fares have gone - but where the #### did you find £59? I've listed ALL the single fares on that route (22 of them....) and it just doesn't exist.

Your network railcard is of no use at Liverpool - you are outside its area.

However:

standard day single no railcard Liverpool to Banbury £32.50
cheap day single with railcard Banbury to Reading £10.15

There is the odd advance purchase fare at £20.50 if you leave Liverpool earlier or later - still one on the 1840 train for example. Just press on the button for earlier or later trains.

[penniesforme]

was a typo. I meant to type £49 instead of 5.

I saw the odd fare too...but am not sure if I will be able to make it on time. will be flying with Ryanair with a scheduled arrival of 1810, but past experience tells me the plane is 50% likely to be delayed.


i think i'll go for the Liverpool to Reading via Banbury option. Cheers.

[teedy23]

I am left holding two first open returns from Newcastle to Edinburgh. One expires 17th Dec the other 23rd Dec. Only the return portion mind. Any ideas what to do with them, cant get them refunded cant sell them on ebay(against railway regulations)

[lightning15uk]

hi all could anyone help we have 4 adults and 3 children travelling on 30th december returning 2nd january, we have a family rail card we are starting in coventry and ending up in rye (sussex) we have been quoted £169 can we get this cheaper we do not mind what route we take just the cheapest please help as we are running out of time many thanks xx

[portchieboy]

I hav booked E/Star tickets, out from St Pancras 29th Feb., 10.00, back at around 1900 Sunday 2nd March.

Got those tickets free, Tesco vouchers, but I am shcked by train ticket prices!....£100 or so.

Any suggestions chaps....maybe even cheap parking nearer and train in on the day.

thanks

[lightning15uk]

I hav booked E/Star tickets, out from St Pancras 29th Feb., 10.00, back at around 1900 Sunday 2nd March.

Got those tickets free, Tesco vouchers, but I am shcked by train ticket prices!....£100 or so.

Any suggestions chaps....maybe even cheap parking nearer and train in on the day.

thanks sorry if i sound stupid but will look for you portchester-st pancras on 29th feb arriving before 10am then returning, leaving st pancras at 19.00hrs there abouts let me know i will have a look

[wh1tehouse]

can someone please help me find the cheapest fare from Liverpool to Reading on the 28th December ? I am looking to travel after 1600 and I have a network railcard. I dont mind travelling by bus if its cheap.

I the cheapest i am able to find is 59 pounds for train.

thank you in advance. :)
I'm a bit confused as to when you can travel as you say you want to travel after 1600 but in a subsequent post you say your plane isn't due to arrive til 1810.

Liverpool Lime Street 17:37 Wolverhampton £8.00
Wolverhampton 19:13 Banbury £14.90
Banbury 20:19 Reading £5.00

Total £27.90

If this is not suitable let me know when you can travel and I'll look again.

d@ve

[portchieboy]

sorry if i sound stupid but will look for you portchester-st pancras on 29th feb arriving before 10am then returning, leaving st pancras at 19.00hrs there abouts let me know i will have a look


Thanks...it was leaving on 29th feb, to get to St pancras by say 0930., back on 2nd March, leaving St P around 19.00.

[royeee]

The article suggests buying tickets on split journey basis that is a number of singles instead of A to D, get A to B, B to C and C to D. It doesn't say if you can do this on the day at station A buy 3 singles or you have to do this in advance via the train operator's web site. If the latter how many days to reach you via unreliable Royal Mail?

[KeithP]

royeee, you can buy all your tickets at your starting station on the day of travel. This assumes that there are staff at that station to sell you the tickets. You cannot walk up to a machine and buy them. You may like to allow a little extra time for your purchase and avoid busy times. I have found that it helps to write a list of exactly what you want and pass this to the clerk.
You do have to specify exactly what you want... the ticket seller cannot be expected to work out the cheapest splits for you (I don't think they are allowed to anyway).

[dzug]

royeee, you can buy all your tickets at your starting station on the day of travel. This assumes that there are staff at that station to sell you the tickets. You cannot walk up to a machine and buy them. You may like to allow a little extra time for your purchase and avoid busy times. I have found that it helps to write a list of exactly what you want and pass this to the clerk.
You do have to specify exactly what you want... the ticket seller cannot be expected to work out the cheapest splits for you (I don't think they are allowed to anyway).


That's correct but oversimplified. If you are splitting the journey with a series of advance purchase fares then obviously you must get them in advance. If you are paying walk up fares - then fine.

[Muffin_the_Mule]

Hello all,

I'm due to start a new job in Bishopsgate, London in January and I'm struggling to find out the cheapest way of train travel.

I live in Hemel Hempstead, so my journey will be Hemel Hempstead to Euston, then Tube from Euston Square to Liverpool Street.

I know that Oyster is the best way forward for the tube travel, but as Hemel has no "touch in/touch out" things, I need an actual travelcard to cover the first part of my journey.

I can put a monthly railcard onto my oyster and have a photocard to cover getting on and off at Hemel for £324 per month which sounds like quite a price to pay for what is in effect only 9 miles by train.

If I were to add that amount to my mortgage, I could probably afford to move into East London and walk to work!

any ideas would be gratefully accepted!

[Muffin_the_Mule]

ok, so I've just been on the national rail website and used their own season ticket calculator to work out a price for a monthly railcard, and it came out with £263.90, BUT when I call them, I get quoted £324. surely they've all gone mad?

[KeithP]

From National Rail Enquires Season Ticket Calculator -
A monthly season ticket starting today costs £252.00
A monthly season ticket starting 01Jan08 costs £252.00
A monthly season ticket starting 02Jan08 costs £263.90

Do not know where the £324 came from... you'll have to ask them.

[isasmurf]

The National Rail website quotes only station to station season tickets. As far as I can tell there isn't a way to get it to quote season tickets including travelcards.

The £263.90 is for Hemel Hempstead to London Euston only. The £324 is most likely Hemel Hempstead to All Zones travelcard.

[KeithP]

The National Rail website quotes only station to station season tickets. As far as I can tell there isn't a way to get it to quote season tickets including travelcards.

The £263.90 is for Hemel Hempstead to London Euston only. The £324 is most likely Hemel Hempstead to All Zones travelcard.
But when presenting the information, the Season Ticket Calculator states -

Available Standard Class Adult Season Tickets
Between: Hemel Hempstead (HML)
And: London Liverpool Street (LST)
Route Code: Travel is allowed by any route option shown by the Online Journey Planner

As the Online Journey Planner shows the route between Hemel Hempstead and London Liverpool Street including the Underground bit, it would be reasonable to assume that that part of the journey would be included in the price wouldn't it?

[smithcvs]

The current price for a Senior Railcard is £20. However, for local residents my Local Authority (Staffordshire Moorlands District Council) issues them for £9, with a proviso that you do not have a Bus Pass from them. It might be worth searching your local authority website to see if they do the same.:T

[rosebyanyothername]

hi I was just going to book tickets to birmingham for sunday 23rd dec when i thought i would ask if this is the cheapest i can get. We are going shopping and would like to save money for pressies!! I am single mum with railcard but will be traveling with two older sons both adult and two children under 15. It says 89.00 unless one of the older boys who is sixteen goes as a child! {and then it goes down to 71.00}
we are traveling from bristol temple meads and returning same day.
Should I try and split it? Any ideas gladly welcome.
thanks

[pompeyrich]

hi I was just going to book tickets to birmingham for sunday 23rd dec when i thought i would ask if this is the cheapest i can get. We are going shopping and would like to save money for pressies!! I am single mum with railcard but will be traveling with two older sons both adult and two children under 15. It says 89.00 unless one of the older boys who is sixteen goes as a child! {and then it goes down to 71.00}
we are traveling from bristol temple meads and returning same day.
Should I try and split it? Any ideas gladly welcome.
thanks


If the 16 year old has turned 16 since you bought the railcard, assuming it is a family railcard, then he can travel legally as a child. Try splitting at Cheltenham Spa for Bristol-CS at £13:25 return total, for 2 ads +3 children. Then CS-Birmingham at £28:35 total for you all £41:60.

[rosebyanyothername]

If the 16 year old has turned 16 since you bought the railcard, assuming it is a family railcard, then he can travel legally as a child. Try splitting at Cheltenham Spa for Bristol-CS at £13:25 return total, for 2 ads +3 children. Then CS-Birmingham at £28:35 total for you all £41:60.

oh thanks so i can purchase these all online?
thanks so much that means extra thirty quid for shopping!
merry xmas:j

[pompeyrich]

oh thanks so i can purchase these all online?
thanks so much that means extra thirty quid for shopping!
merry xmas:j

Yes on-line, HERE (http://www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk/Default.aspx) and select pick up from the fast ticket machine at Bristol TM, you will have to book both bits seperately but can pick them all up at Bristol, or just buy them at the station on the day if you prefer. They are standard day returns so no price difference if you buy them in advance.

Most trains from Bristol-Brum stop at CS so you can stay on the same train right through.

[Altarf]

The National Rail website quotes only station to station season tickets. As far as I can tell there isn't a way to get it to quote season tickets including travelcards.

You can use the renew ticket option at Southwest Trains to get train and travel card prices - http://www.trainsfares.co.uk/season/st_redirect.asp?sitecode=SWT

Even though it is Southwest Trains it has prices for the whole country.

It requires you to register (but does not send you a validation email so you can put in anything) and needs a photocard number, but again there is no validation so anything will do.

[loopylass81]

Does anyone know what the cheapest tickets I can get for going from Chesterfield to Clacton leaving 16th Feb and coming back 23rd Febish... I would prefer to avoid London but dont have to if tickets are cheaper. Its me and my 6 year old going and we have a family railcard. Many Thanks

[dzug]

Does anyone know what the cheapest tickets I can get for going from Chesterfield to Clacton leaving 16th Feb and coming back 23rd Febish... I would prefer to avoid London but dont have to if tickets are cheaper. Its me and my 6 year old going and we have a family railcard. Many Thanks

The cheapest way is probably (if you book early enough and get the right fares) Megatrain to St Pancras, bus to Liverpool Street and a Saver thence to Clacton.

Not much more expensive is the cheapest EMT advance singles ticket - which would include the underground transfer.

Avoiding London you would need advance singles, splitting the tickets at Ely (ie book two tickets, Chesterfield to Ely and Ely to Clacton). At its cheapest this would be slightly less than via London. You would need to change at Peterborough and/or Ely and Colchester on most trains.

If you don't want to commit to booking too much in advance the first option mentioned is probably the best bet - the saver bit is a walk on ticket

[EmmaH]

Hi all,

My daily commute is from Cuffley (outside Zone 6) to Victoria (Zone 1) - Monday to Friday.

I paid £2200 last year for a standard annual ticket to cover all Zones plus Cuffley, which has this year rocketed to £2320 which I am loathe to pay!

I have found that I can buy an annual ticket from Cuffley to Winchmore Hill for £740, then an annual tube travelcard for Zones 1-4 for £1328 - a total of £2068 saving £252. :T

I am still looking into every combination to ensure I'm not missing a trick - would be great to find anyone making the same journey so we can compare notes!

Or if anyone else has any ideas on how I can slash the price further I would be appreciative.

[brightontraveller]

You might be right if you only travel during off-peak hours, i.e. with the outward journey on a train scheduled to depart after 9.30am when you will be able to get a Cheap Day Return instead of a Standard Day Return ticket.

A 7-Day season ticket is usually priced at 4 times the price of a Standard Day Return ticket, so you will still save money even if you only travel Monday to Friday.

A one-month season ticket is priced at 3.84 times the price of a 7-Day season ticket with an annual (12-Month) season ticket priced at 40 times the 7-Day ticket which give even bigger discounts.

As long as the duration of the season ticket is at least one month, you can actually have it for 1 Month and 1 Day, 1 Month and 2 Days, ... , or even 1 Month and 9 Days, etc., with each additional day calculated at 1/29.5 of the price of the one-month season ticket. I always make use of these extra days on top of my one-month season ticket so that it finishes on a Friday and I don't have to start another one until the Monday after.

For long distance journeys or where a journey crosses the boundary of two counties, consider buying the tickets separately for the journey of each county. The cost of the tickets together may add up to less than the price of one through ticket. You are allowed to travel on through trains which does not stop at the station where you change from one ticket to another as long as one of the tickets is a season ticket and the other is not. This is specifically permitted under Condition 17(c) of the National Rail Conditions of Carriage.

Thanks been travelling 6 mth as was so surprised its saving me 14 a month now :beer:

[brightontraveller]

I live in Hastings and have a job in Brighton my employer is ok for me to start work up until nine thirty and is two minutes from the main Brighton railway station I at get a £184.40 monthly ticket which goes up to £193.20 I cannot afford to buy the yearly season ticket just wondering if anyone knows of any offers, discount’s, split journeys gold card combination journeys or any thing it eats up a large chunk of my wages I’m over twenty five and under 60 any ideas would be gratefully accepted many thanks and happy new year to all :beer:

[ticketcollector]

Hi all,

My daily commute is from Cuffley (outside Zone 6) to Victoria (Zone 1) - Monday to Friday.

I paid £2200 last year for a standard annual ticket to cover all Zones plus Cuffley, which has this year rocketed to £2320 which I am loathe to pay!

I have found that I can buy an annual ticket from Cuffley to Winchmore Hill for £740, then an annual tube travelcard for Zones 1-4 for £1328 - a total of £2068 saving £252. :T

I am still looking into every combination to ensure I'm not missing a trick - would be great to find anyone making the same journey so we can compare notes!

Or if anyone else has any ideas on how I can slash the price further I would be appreciative.

Emma I would be carefull over what your doing, its is known about and if FCC wanted to get picky they could actually prosucute you for breaking the NCoC.
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/system/galleries/download/misc/NRCOC.pdf I have pasted the relevent section for you and 19(c) applies here, in that you have two season tickets.
However If the train stops at Winchmore Hill then you are fine to do this combination of tickets as 19(b) applies.

19. Using a combination of tickets
You may use two or more tickets for one journey as long as together they cover
the entire journey and one of the following applies:
(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);
(b) the train you are in calls at the station where you change from one ticket to
another; or
(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.

[EmmaH]

Emma I would be carefull over what your doing, its is known about and if FCC wanted to get picky they could actually prosucute you for breaking the NCoC.
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/system/galleries/download/misc/NRCOC.pdf I have pasted the relevent section for you and 19(c) applies here, in that you have two season tickets.
However If the train stops at Winchmore Hill then you are fine to do this combination of tickets as 19(b) applies.

19. Using a combination of tickets
You may use two or more tickets for one journey as long as together they cover
the entire journey and one of the following applies:
(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);
(b) the train you are in calls at the station where you change from one ticket to
another; or
(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.

Thanks for the advice ticketcollector - my train does stop at Winchmore Hill and my Tube travelcard covers from Winchmore Hill into Zone 1 so I think I am safe. I have however asked First Capital Connect themselves as I don't want to get into trouble and end up paying more than the original season ticket!!!

[ticketcollector]

Some trains on the Hertford branch do werid stopping patterns.
I think your fine on your combination as stated above, as long as it stops at the station where your first ticket ends and the new one starts (and vice versa)

Plus im new on here.

[laird]

Emma if you use a service that calls at the station where your two tickets are valid there is no problem.

Reading paragraph 19c it would also be acceptable in your case to use a train that does not call at the intermediate station as:
Your ticket from Cuffley to Winchmore Hill is a season ticket using the definition given.
The Underground Inclusive ticket is not a season ticket under the description given in paragraph 19c since it is issued on behalf of a Passenger Transport Executive or Local Authority.

[Altarf]

Rule 19 only requires one of the conditions to be satisfied, and although stopping at a station is one condition - 19.(b), holding a season ticket plus a ticket that is not a season ticket - 19.(c) is also a valid condition and does not require the train to stop at the 'splitting' station.

However... as has already been demonstrated, some of the rail company staff don't understand this and specifically don't believe that an an annual TFL travelcard is not a season ticket. One of my colleagues uses this method to save money, but to avoid arguments with the on train staff he wrote to First Capital Connect and asked for written confirmation that what he is doing is OK (which of course it is). He now carries their reply letter to show to any ticket inspector that doesn't understand the rules.

[mutley74]

BEWARE anyone travelling over the next week North & South bound between Newcastle and Darlington - various track works means theres a replacement bus service in operation.

[ticketcollector]

I have just had a reply back from our Revenue Protection guys at FCC and they have said that Rule 19c will be enforced and that the Zone 1-4 is still counted as a Season ticket and therefore you would be traveling on two season tickets.

I am more likley to follow what Ive been told by Revenue Protection then I am from Customer Relations.
If the letter is from the MD or from Revenue Protection then I would belive it otherwise I would not. Even a letter from ATOC (who set the NCoC) is better then Cust Rela
Customer Relations do not know what the rules are and have even in the past demanded me refund a ticket for a person I sold who was traveling without a ticket, Obviously this prooves to be honest they havent got a fogiest idea.

But in all cases there we all have discretion, and it would be used.

[Roland]

I have just had a reply back from our Revenue Protection guys at FCC and they have said that Rule 19c will be enforced and that the Zone 1-4 is still counted as a Season ticket and therefore you would be traveling on two season tickets.

I am more likley to follow what Ive been told by Revenue Protection then I am from Customer Relations.
If the letter is from the MD or from Revenue Protection then I would belive it otherwise I would not. Even a letter from ATOC (who set the NCoC) is better then Cust Rela
Customer Relations do not know what the rules are and have even in the past demanded me refund a ticket for a person I sold who was traveling without a ticket, Obviously this prooves to be honest they havent got a fogiest idea.

But in all cases there we all have discretion, and it would be used.


19(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);


19(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.

Reading both rules together, FCC could be right but I think it should be more 19a than 19c that prevents Emma from using 2 tickets. A Travelcard is a Zonal ticket but to benefit wouldn't she require 2 Zonal tickets? I don't think that combination is possible between Hertfordshire and London. For example, it is possible to take advantage of 19a for travel between South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire.

[dzug]

19(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);


19(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.


Reading both rules together, FCC could be right but I think it should be more 19a than 19c that prevents Emma from using 2 tickets. A Travelcard is a Zonal ticket but to benefit wouldn't she require 2 Zonal tickets? I don't think that combination is possible between Hertfordshire and London. For example, it is possible to take advantage of 19a for travel between South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire.


But rule 19b (train stops at the station where the tickets 'join') allows it regardless of season tickets, zonal tickets, ordinary tickets, or whatever)

and given that there are next to no trains from Cuffley that don't call at Winchmore Hill it sounds a reasonable bet for OP as long as she remembers that rule.

[Roland]

But rule 19b (train stops at the station where the tickets 'join') allows it regardless of season tickets, zonal tickets, ordinary tickets, or whatever)

and given that there are next to no trains from Cuffley that don't call at Winchmore Hill it sounds a reasonable bet for OP as long as she remembers that rule.

I think that you might be right. Rule 19b does not exclude Season or Zonal tickets. As in many other cases, you have to be able to unravel the knot of strings attached just to be able to save some cash.

This is rule 19 in full.

19. Using a combination of tickets
You may use two or more tickets for one journey as long as together they cover
the entire journey and one of the following applies:
(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);
(b) the train you are in calls at the station where you change from one ticket to
another; or
(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season
Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or
local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.
You must comply with any restriction shown on the tickets relating to travel in the
trains of a particular Train Company or Train Companies (see Condition 10).
If you do not comply with this Condition, you will be treated as having joined the
train without a ticket and the relevant parts of Condition 2 or 4 will apply, either
to the entire journey, or from the last station where the train stopped at which at
least one of the tickets was valid.
For the purposes of this Condition, a “leisure travel pass” means any multi-journey
ticket (excluding Season Tickets) valid for:
(i) at least 7 consecutive days; or
(ii) at least 3 days in a period of at least 7 consecutive days
and includes rover tickets, travel passes, flexipass tickets and BritRail passes.

[ticketcollector]

As I said in post 855 above rule 19b would apply!

I am yet to find a train from Cuffley which doesnt stop at winchmore hill (obviously in that direction before someone gets smart!!!!!! :-) )


Roland
Not having been trained in PTE cards, we dont have any PTEs down here (the only similar would be Transport for London) I would guess you could use a Travel South Yorkshire pass and a Metro card (West Yorks PTE) on the same train.

[rosebyanyothername]

hi thanks to your help I saved pounds at christmas on trip to Brum. Can I also ask your advice on a trip I do to visit my dad. I usually go via birmingham but if there is a cheaper option am willing to do it. I usually change birmingham and milton keynes. I will be going with out kids so cannot use family railcard. How many splits should I do to get cheapest ticket from bristol temple meads to leighton? I will be staying two days. Thanks

[max_l]

SVR Bristol TM - Cheltenham Spa £13.50
SVR Cheltenham Spa - Birmingham NS £17.50
SVR Birmingham NS - Leighton Buzzard LONDON MIDLAND ONLY £14.30

TOTAL = £45.30

A £10 saving over the normal saver price! However, you MUST travel on London Midland between Birmingham New Street and Leighton Buzzard. Otherwise the ticket is void. It's barely any slower though, and there are in fact some direct services from Birmingham on London Midland.

Alternatively, depending on when you want to travel, there are a range of advance purchase tickets available, starting at £11 via Birmingham or £13 via London. See www.nxeastcoast.com and use the booking engine on the left (much clearer than thetrainline's booking system and no booking fee!).

[terryw]

The booking call centre for the National Express East Line (previously Gner) is in Newcastle upon Tyne. Staff are entitled to a massive 40% discount on "family and friends" tickets. If you live in the NE, ask around and make a new friend!

terryw

[Taffyscot]

HI all, Can anyone tell me the cheapest way to get from Largs to Edinburgh on this Thursday? My son and his wife are over from Canada so there would be 4 of us. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks Taffy

[newfoundglory]

Emma I would be carefull over what your doing, its is known about and if FCC wanted to get picky they could actually prosucute you for breaking the NCoC.

Hmmm, prosecution over a civil contract is not very likely IMHO...

That would be a bit like a threat of prosecution for not paying a civil debt such as a penalty fare (ie. demanding money with menaces, which let me think actually IS a criminal offence unlike everything else mentioned here)

I should also point out that, on the subject of contracts - the regulations say that a consumer is not bound by a standard term in a contact with a seller or supplier if the term is unfair (such that it tips the contract in favor of the business). Also, a term can be considered unfair if it takes away the basic Sale of Goods Act rights. What is unreasonable is however for a court to decide. Section 5 of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 is also very interesting:

5. Unfair Terms

(1) A contractual term which has not been individually negotiated shall be regarded as unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations arising under the contract, to the detriment of the consumer.

(2) A term shall always be regarded as not having been individually negotiated where it has been drafted in advance and the consumer has therefore not been able to influence the substance of the term.

(3) Notwithstanding that a specific term or certain aspects of it in a contract has been individually negotiated, these Regulations shall apply to the rest of a contract if an overall assessment of it indicates that it is a pre-formulated standard contract.

(4) It shall be for any seller or supplier who claims that a term was individually negotiated to show that it was.

[ticketcollector]

Hmmm, prosecution over a civil contract is not very likely IMHO...

That would be a bit like a threat of prosecution for not paying a civil debt such as a penalty fare (ie. demanding money with menaces, which let me think actually IS a criminal offence unlike everything else mentioned here)

They do prosucute over unpaid Penalty Fares. I belive they use The Regulation of the Railways Act 1889.

[newfoundglory]

If someone is prosecuted under the 1889 Act i would think its probably because they didn't have a ticket or were a fare evader. I do not condone fare evasion, and of course fare evaders should be prosecuted and fined. My point before was that the issuing of a penalty fare doesn't have to imply that an offence has been comitted.

For example, i'm aware that Penalty fares are often issued for not following ticketing rules (breaching Conditions of Carriage for example). I'm not going to comment on whether thats right or wrong, or enforceable.

AFAIK, under the 1889 act, the prosecution has to show that the defendant had intended to avoid payment of the fare in order to secure a conviction.

I think it would be near impossible to show that there was avoidance of payment under Regulation of Railways Act 1889 where the customer had and produced two valid season tickets, joining at a station on-route, and covering their entire journey.

Lets assume that I have therefore purchased two of these season tickets, to save some money, and some hot revenue inspector catches me. He/she issues me with a penalty fare, even though I have a valid ticket(s) covering my entire journey. Whilst the liability of the penalty fare is debatable, I would suggest that no criminal offence has been commited. Therefore if prosecution is threatened in order to recover the penalty fare I think it would in fact be the revenue inspector and/or train operating company who commits the offence under Theft Act 1968.

Of course the train operating company could decide to sue their customer in the county court for breach of contract and have damages awarded if they managed to win.

If you are in contact with the revenue protection people i'd be very interested to know exactly how they intend to "enforce" that part of the conditions of carriage, unless i have clearly missed some very important part of the law.

[ticketcollector]

I would guess they have a way for everything otherwise what is the point in the NCoC if its not enforcable at law?
I am thinking contract law as you enter into a contract when you buy a ticket, same as you can 'do' the TOC for failing to get you to place B as they have a contract to get you there.

Maybe they would do you under Transport Act 1962 which gives them powers to set byelaws.

However I am not a lawyer.

FYI theRegulation of Railways Act 1889
5.
— (1) Every passenger by a railway shall, on request by an officer or servant of a railway company, either produce, and if so requested deliver up, a ticket showing that his fare is paid, or pay his fare from the place whence he started, or give the officer or servant his name and address; and in case of default shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding [level 1 on the standard scale] [level 2 on the standard scale]].
(2) If a passenger having failed either to produce, or if requested to deliver up, a ticket showing that his fare is paid, or to pay his fare, refuses [or fails] on request by an officer or servant of a railway company, to give his name and address, any officer of the company may detain him until he can be conveniently brought before some justice or otherwise discharged by due course of law.
(3) If any person—
(a)
Travels or attempts to travel on a railway without having previously paid his fare, and with intent to avoid payment thereof; or
(b)
Having paid his fare for a certain distance, knowingly and wilfully proceeds by train beyond that distance without previously paying the additional fare for the additional distance, and with intent to avoid payment thereof; or
(c)
Having failed to pay his fare, gives in reply to a request by an officer of a railway company a false name or address, he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding [level 2 on the standard scale] [level 3 on the standard scale]], or, in the case of a second or subsequent offence, either to a fine not exceeding [level 2 on the standard scale] [level 3 on the standard scale]], or in the discretion of the court to imprisonment for a term not exceeding [51 weeks].
(4) The liability of an offender to punishment under this section shall not prejudice the recovery of any fare payable by him.
[(5) In this section—
(a)
“railway company” includes an operator of a train, and
(b)
“operator”, in relation to a train, means the person having the management of that train for the time being.]

[EmmaH]

Hi all,

Thought you might be interested in the response from First Capital Connect:

Dear Ms Henry

Thank you for your email of 28 December 2007, regarding the cost of season tickets for your commute from Cuffley to London Victoria. I can confirm that if you purchase your ticket to Winchmore Hill a Travelcard valid for zones 1-4 would be valid.

Jackie Hampton
Customer Relations Advisor
:j

[witchypoo]

Hi
Will be booking advance rail tickets for March shortly, currently looking at getting a good deal. However I seem to remember in December seeing on Pigsback that they had a link to first great western website for pigsback points or something. I can't seem to find it now, wondering if I dreamt it?
Can anyone shed any light?

[audi32]

Hi

Can you tell me how to find discount train tickets from Leeds to London
and
from London to Cambridge

[dzug]

Hi

Can you tell me how to find discount train tickets from Leeds to London
and
from London to Cambridge

Leeds to London - http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com/ Book in advance for cheaper fares

London to Cambridge - buy at the station. There are no discounts unless you count cheap day returns and the like.

If you actually want to go from Leeds to Cambridge and have no reason to visit London on the way - don't. Use National Express East Coast to get to Peterborough (or even Stevenage) and change there for Cambridge. They will offer through fares, probably cheaper than splitting but it's worth a check.

[Mushy61]

I'm thinking of going for a three day break in London in the next couple of weeks or so without it costing a fortune, travelling by rail from Blackpool North. Could anyone give me some tips on cheapest tickets and best days to travel.

Cheers.

[Altarf]

London to Cambridge - buy at the station. There are no discounts unless you count cheap day returns and the like.

Not quite correct. There are two train companies that run services from London to Cambridge, First Capital Connect from Kings Cross and One from Liverpool Street.

Although they are the same price for peak fares (£24.10), for off peak fares One is cheaper than FCC as their services are slower (One is £14, FCC £18.50). However One also do advance purchase online digital tickets.at £6 each way - http://www.mobitix.thetrainline.com/ONE/advancePurchase.aspx

[dzug]

Not quite correct. There are two train companies that run services from London to Cambridge, First Capital Connect from Kings Cross and One from Liverpool Street.

Although they are the same price for peak fares (£24.10), for off peak fares One is cheaper than FCC as their services are slower (One is £14, FCC £18.50). However One also do advance purchase online digital tickets.at £6 each way - http://www.mobitix.thetrainline.com/ONE/advancePurchase.aspx


News to me but good news. Thanks for the tip.

[Altarf]

I'm thinking of going for a three day break in London in the next couple of weeks or so without it costing a fortune, travelling by rail from Blackpool North. Could anyone give me some tips on cheapest tickets and best days to travel..

The majority of the journey will be using Virgin. The route will be Blackpool to Preston and then to Euston. Have a look at Virgin's website for advance purchase tickets from Preston to London, currently they are available for as little as £16.50 each way (or £36 first class) and then buy a Blackpool to Preston ticket at £6 each way separately. So you could do it for a total of £45 return.

Alternatively Virgin as selling some online tickets from Manchester to London for as little as £1 - http://www.mobitix.thetrainline.com/VT/advancepurchase.aspx
Add on a Blackpool to Manchester ticket at £14.10 return and you could actually do it for as little as £16.10 return if you were lucky.

[Mushy61]

Much obliged Altarf, Thank You.

:beer:

[dzug]

Curiously there seems to be a £34 advance purchase single from Blackpool through to London changing at Preston - but no standard class ones. Very odd.

[booshruth]

Hello
My husband and I are planning on visiting friends on the Isle of Wiht on Easter Weekend 21/3 - 24/3.
Can anyone recommend the best way to do this - splitting the journey, mega train etc.
We won't fly as we're trying to keep our carbon footprint to a minimum this year.
Any help or pointers would be greatly appreciated.
Many thanks in advance.
Best regards
Ruth

[booshruth]

Sorry, on previous post typo - it should read Isle of Wight.
Thanks
Ruth

[dzug]

Sorry, on previous post typo - it should read Isle of Wight.
Thanks
Ruth

Where you are starting FROM will have a major impact on the answer.

[pompeyrich]

Where you are starting FROM will have a major impact on the answer.

LOL Dzug, I posted that too the read the subject line and quickly deleted !! Manchester seems to be a clue !!

[dzug]

LOL Dzug, I posted that too the read the subject line and quickly deleted !! Manchester seems to be a clue !!

oops - only properly read the second post which had a different title!!! Never mind.

Train (some with no changes) from Manchester to Southampton using advance purchase singles would my first guess, then ferry. Or change at Southampton for a train to Portsmouth and ferry from there. Or stay on the train to Brockenhurst where you change for Lymington and yet another ferry. Depends on where in the Isle you want to be.

Advance singles to Lymington Pier or Portsmouth start at £16 - to Southampton £15. As that's Easter weekend availability (when released - not yet) could be poor, and engineering work disrupt the services......

Megatrain isn't much help - unless you travel via London

[Chalky87]

I'm trying to book a month in advance for some tickets from Nottingham to Sheffield, for some reason there are no cheap advance tickets...? Can anyone shed some light, I don't understand, before I used to get tickets for around £6 if booked in advance...

[kindalen]

hi,have to get 3 people from glasgow to liverpool on feb 13th.am from ireland so not really sure how to book tickets cheapest online,have set up an account on thetrainline, so can use this.
any tips on routes?
any promo codes?
are we best to split our journey or book straight through?
cheers.

[kindalen]

found a fare,some type of mistake...it is on feb 13,but it takes -4.21?????

any help?

[KeithP]

First tip is...
do not use trainline
they charge extra for credit card and extra to post, and probably other extras too.

Glasgow to Liverpool can be done on that date for £15.50 each using Value Advance C single tickets. Maybe you can get it cheaper by splitting, so give it a try.

See also this post ===>>>
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=7820533&postcount=549
but maybe no use for Liverpool.

[dzug]

I'm trying to book a month in advance for some tickets from Nottingham to Sheffield, for some reason there are no cheap advance tickets...? Can anyone shed some light, I don't understand, before I used to get tickets for around £6 if booked in advance...

They would appear to be none any more - they are not in the list of possible fares, let alone available

[the.weekender]

chalky
Derby and Loughborough seem to offer cheap singles to Sheffield, could you use those stations?

[MrSingh]

Hi

I'm a new poster so apologies if this has been said before.

If you are traveling on the rail network and have a letter from a registered chairty saying you are travelling on their behalf, you get really cheap tickets, i paid £32 return from bham to london

hope this helps

[dzug]

Hi

I'm a new poster so apologies if this has been said before.

If you are traveling on the rail network and have a letter from a registered chairty saying you are travelling on their behalf, you get really cheap tickets, i paid £32 return from bham to london

hope this helps

It doesn't help, not without more details - eg what discount, what tickets it can be used on, etc. £32 return from Birmingham to London is not 'really cheap' - it can be done for far less (and far more admittedly).

As Treasurer of a small registered charity I could quite easily knock one up for myself and the other committee members.....

[mjon3105]

One such scheme is : Virgin Trains Charity Line" with all normal restrictions removed for REGISTERED USERS of Charities . There is an annual fee of approx £50 as I understand payable by the Charity. Fuller details can be found on the National Rail website,under heading : SPECIAL OFFERS - Charity Line. It says "valid on all lines" but one imagines this is restricted to 'all lines' where Virgin operate.Seemingly scheme was introduced in 2004.

[clareski]

I need some help with train prices if anyone could help me out please.

I have just booked a holiday, and the cheapest flights were going from Manchester and coming back to Bristol. I will be travelling to and from Shrewsbury railway station.

I will need to book in at Manchester Airport at 11:00 on Friday 8th February, and I have found a train leaving Shrewsbury at 08:45, arriving at 10:11, costing £14.40 for a standard day single.

Coming back is not as straight forward. I am due to land at Bristol at 20:40 on Friday 15th February, and there is not a railway station at the airport. I dont know how long to leave myself to collect bags etc, there is a train from Bristol Parkway at 21:40, but not sure how far away this is. Otherwise I am looking at not getting home until about 03:00 and having to spend about £60 plus on a ticket, as I cannot guarantee times.

Is there an easy way of doing this?

Thanks

[Altarf]

Bristol Airport is on the Southwest side of the city and Bristol Parkway is on the Northeast side of the city, so it's about 15 miles and you have to cross Bristol. There is no chance that you will get there by 21:42 if your plane lands at 21:40.

Bristol does have another railway station, Temple Meads which is in the centre of the city and is only 8 miles away.

There is a airport bus service that connects the airport to Bristol Temple Meads that operates up to 23:45 and takes about 30 minutes between the airport and the station. It is possible to buy a combined bus / train ticket but as that will cost you £60.50 minimum, it is cheaper to buy a bus ticket at £5 single and an advance rail ticket.

From Temple Meads there is a 22:54, change at Newport (with quite a wait) and then on to Shrewsbury arriving 02:49, with advance tickets available for £15. Possibly a bit tight timewise, but you might be lucky.

If you don't get the 22:54 then you only other sensible alternative that night is the 00:17 from Parkway, which connects to the same Newport train so you still get back at 02:49. There don't seem to be any advance tickets from Parkway to Shrewsbury (or Newport to Shrewsbury), but you could buy a Parkway to Newport advance at £3 to go with the Temple Meads to Shrewsbury ticket (making sure your story was correct for any ticket inspectors).

To get to Parkway, you would either need to get a taxi from the airport (not cheap) or the airport bus into Bristol, but taking it as far as Clifton (£6) and a taxi the last 8 miles, or the airport bus into the centre of Bristol and then a bus to Parkway.

Have you considered a one-way car hire from Bristol Airport home?

[clareski]

Altarf - thank you so much for your reply. I did not consider car hire but it is worth a thought. Where would be the best places to start looking for prices?

Otherwise, the advance train ticket and a single on the bus is sounding good.

I have also got a quote for a taxi back home, which is £90. Could save a lot of hassle but its a bit pricey.

[Altarf]

I did not consider car hire but it is worth a thought. Where would be the best places to start looking for prices?

Have a look back through the forums on here, but I would have thought the usual suspects such as Holiday Autos. They seem to be doing a Ford Ka or similar for less than £40 with CDW on a one-way hire from Bristol Airport. And you might get back before 3am.

[Stuperman]

HELP: I have organized a trip to Cardiff from Coventry starting on the 25/04 and ending on the 27/04 (Go and Leave About 12:30PM). We have been let down by our coach company and now i have 24 people who cant get to their hotel for their weekend in Cardiff. I have a small budget left and am struggling to find anything.

Does anyone know a way i can get there on the train for a cheap rate? can we get group discounts? as i understand there are two or three train company's involved?

Please help me if you can i don't want to let people down.

An upset saver - Stu

[GLKing]

Is there any cheap deals on for Newcastle - Blackpool? 2 of us are going feb 15th - 17th

Thanks

[KeithP]

GLKing, what's your best price so far?

Have you seen this article (http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-train-tickets)?

What time of day would you be travelling?

[GLKing]

We want to arrive at Blackpool at about 2pm on the 15th and leave to come home on the 17th at about the same time, would it be cheaper to fly? Could I fly Newcastle to Blackpool and back with no passport, just provisional driving licence?

[KeithP]

Could I fly Newcastle to Blackpool and back with no passport...
Are the Newcastle and Blackpool you are thinking of both in England? If so, you dont need a passport.


Could I fly Newcastle to Blackpool and back with no passport, just provisional driving licence?
If you are not the pilot I dont think you need any licence - provisional or otherwise. :D

If you are the pilot, take some strong tape to stick your 'L' plates on. :D

[dzug]

Are the Newcastle and Blackpool you are thinking of both in England? If so, you dont need a passport.



If you are not the pilot I dont think you need any licence - provisional or otherwise. :D

If you are the pilot, take some strong tape to stick your 'L' plates on. :D

'Fraid you've totally missed the point, keithp

Most airlines (on security grounds) insist you have a photo id - normally passport or driving licence, but other forms are soemtimes accepted. Doesn't normally matter if it's provisional or not.

Ask your airline what they will accept. They are all different.

[exil]

We want to arrive at Blackpool at about 2pm on the 15th and leave to come home on the 17th at about the same time, would it be cheaper to fly? Could I fly Newcastle to Blackpool and back with no passport, just provisional driving licence?

There are no direct flights from Newcastle to Blackpool. In fact you'd probably have to go via Dublin or the Isle of Man. It would be both slower and more expensive than the train.

Saver return on train, £64.50 (cheaper if you have a railcard)

You could go by coach - £39 each. The bad news - it takes 8 hours with a change in Manchester and you can't get to Blackpool before 2pm.

[Adrian h]

I travel at least once a week ,sometimes more, from Chester to the south east and always thru Euston. Try as I may,no matter how far ahead I book Ive never been able to obtain anything better than a saver fare on this route,typically £46 single with my railcard. I use the Train line site exclusively as they are distinctly cheaper than national rail enquiries, why is this? What bugs me is that the £13 fares advertised simply arnt there. Why?

[KeithP]

Adrian, welcome to the forums.

You don't say where in the SouthEast you go to, but I have found return ticket from Chester to Euston at £17.85.
A few qualifications -
Its two Value Advance Singles
This is for an outward journey on 27 March dep Chester at 11:00.
Return on 03 April dep Euston 11:28
Using a Senior Railcard.
These fares found using National Rail Enquiries website.
Other dates and times are available.

Could it be that you are not booking far enough ahead?

NRE do not sell tickets, so they cannot be more expensive than anyone.

The TrainLine are more expensive than most other ticket vendors because they charge for credit card bookings and posting tickets.

[dzug]

Could also be trying too far ahead - if the cheap fares haven't been released all you will get offered are normal and saver tickets.

It could also be worth trying from Crewe - there may be a bigger allocation of tickets from there.

[marcbeth]

Anyone know of any good deals travelling from glasgow to york on 14th apriltill 17th april leaving about 11 both days??." adults and 2 kids.
thanks..

[toolslinger]

me and my family 2 adults 2 children 16/8 years old . on the 11th of october goin to see england match at wembley can anyone advise us the cheepest way to get to london by train . many thanks in advance peter.:beer:

[dzug]

me and my family 2 adults 2 children 16/8 years old . on the 11th of october goin to see england match at wembley can anyone advise us the cheepest way to get to london by train . many thanks in advance peter.:beer:

National Express East Coast advance purchase tickets will probably be the cheapest. It will be mid July at the earliest before they go on sale.

If you can drive to say Sheffield EMT will have similar, maybe even cheaper deals

Depending on what the fares turn out to be a Family Railcard (£24) could save more than its cost.

[kgall]

Afternoon all,

I have just come back off a tour and am looking to get down to Birmingham from Thornaby this weekend. I can't seem to find any tickets cheaper than the standard return with a YP card for £46.85 (bar tickets with overnight 6 hour waits!).

Any ideas on how this could be reduced? I am free to travel down from Thursday 21st afternoon onwards, aiming to arrive by Friday night. I can get back to Thornaby any time up to Monday night.

I know it's a long shot but any help would be much appreciated.

K.

[Altarf]

Afternoon all,

I have just come back off a tour and am looking to get down to Birmingham from Thornaby this weekend. I can't seem to find any tickets cheaper than the standard return with a YP card for £46.85 (bar tickets with overnight 6 hour waits!).

£29.40 - Advance ticket on the 20:15 from Thornaby on the 21st for £13.55 and Advance ticket to return at 19:30 on the 25th for £15.85. Obviously as these are Advance tickets they are not changeable.

A good option for checking ticket prices is now the National Express East Coast website at www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com (http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com) even if you are not travelling their services, as it allows you to filter the trains by price.

[Crabman]

We're going from Worcester (Shrub Hill) to London Paddington on Wednesday (First Great Western) - cheapest I can find for three adults, one with young persons railcard is £86.20

I've tried almost every station for split ticketing but no luck, in fact, Oxford to London is more expensive than a standard Cheap Day Return! :rotfl:

If anyone can help it'd be great :beer:

[sandy2]

Hope I'm in the right place as I'm easily confused
In March we need train from Southampton to Cosham and then the following day Havant to Gatwick

Last time we did this we had a single fare from Soton to Cosham (as it was cheaper than a daysaver ...just), then a day saver for Gatwick

I've just been onto Southern site and don't seem to be able to book ordinary single fares. (https://www.southernrailway.com/buytickets/daysave/DaySave.php (https://www.southernrailway.com/buytickets/daysave/DaySave.php))

There also seem to be a range of other fares
Standard Tickets (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=191)
Southern Value Advance (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=499)
Savers (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=192)
Cheap Day Tickets (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=193)
Off-Peak First Class Fares (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=413)
Travelcards (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=187)
GroupSave (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=194)
DaySave (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=189)
PriceBuster (http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=188)
But I don't know how to find out how much they will cost

Help please. We live in Spain so I don't want to phone up UK

[pompeyrich]

There is no advantage in booking the southampton-Cosham bit, it will cost you £6:90 each, Im assuming there are 2 of you, if there are 3 or 4 of you ask for a "Group Save ticket" and you will pay for 2 and the other 1 or 2 will go free, just pay at the station. The Daysave ticket is £20 and valid for up to 4 people, so as you say better for the trip to Gatwick. As you have used this before you will know of the need to book a week in advance and peak time restrictions on weekdays.

For single fares you are better off looking at the National rail enquiry site HERE (http://nationalrail.co.uk/)

[dzug]

We're going from Worcester (Shrub Hill) to London Paddington on Wednesday (First Great Western) - cheapest I can find for three adults, one with young persons railcard is £86.20

I've tried almost every station for split ticketing but no luck, in fact, Oxford to London is more expensive than a standard Cheap Day Return! :rotfl:

If anyone can help it'd be great :beer:

I've not found any way of reducing fares on that particular line - there are no advance purchase tickets. The normal fares, whilst not exactly cheap, are not quite as sky high as on some other lines.

You might consider driving to Warwick Parkway (M5 - M42 - M40) but I doubt if you would save enough to cover the cost of petrol. The service is rather more frequent (and reliable) though.

[rosielx]

Looking for cheap train travel from Norwich to Cambridge. Leaving on the 7.49am train and returning on the 5.12pm. Can't use days returns or the anglia plus as I have to work 9am till 4:30pm. Also its for odd days only as I suffer from Crohns and am not always well enough to drive. Need to keep costs down due to childcare too :eek: . Normal day return is about £24 + 1.50 parking + £3.00 bus

[dzug]

Looking for cheap train travel from Norwich to Cambridge. Leaving on the 7.49am train and returning on the 5.12pm. Can't use days returns or the anglia plus as I have to work 9am till 4:30pm. Also its for odd days only as I suffer from Crohns and am not always well enough to drive. Need to keep costs down due to childcare too :eek: . Normal day return is about £24 + 1.50 parking + £3.00 bus

Can't see any way of doing it cheaper unless you are young enough for a young person's railcard or disabled enough for a disabled railcard or old enough for a senior railcard- when the rail element would be £15 or £16 a day.

[ravenk]

Lost for words.
My current journey is from
Whitchurch Hants to London Waterloo
1 Hr 3 Mins - includes London all zones
Season ticket fair = £3900 approx

Called and inquired about a season ticket from
Chesterfield
to London all zones .. Journey time 1 hour 53 mins
Nearly fell off my chair .....
£11,418 !!!!!!!! Standard Class
Also asked abot cost of 1st class ...just for a giggle ..quoted £18,900 ...eeekkk

Why is it so much more then my current ticket from whitchurch ?

[dzug]

Lost for words.
My current journey is from
Whitchurch Hants to London Waterloo
1 Hr 3 Mins - includes London all zones
Season ticket fair = £3900 approx

Called and inquired about a season ticket from
Chesterfield
to London all zones .. Journey time 1 hour 53 mins
Nearly fell off my chair .....
£11,418 !!!!!!!! Standard Class
Also asked abot cost of 1st class ...just for a giggle ..quoted £18,900 ...eeekkk

Why is it so much more then my current ticket from whitchurch ?

Your train from Whitchurch is a suburban train with few facilities and goes a max of 90(?)mph

The train from Chesterfield is an intercity train with many facilities and goes a max of 125mpg

that's the theory anyway. I don't have the exact figures, but I would guess Chesterfield is rather further in distance than a comparison of the times would suggest.

[ravenk]

Your train from Whitchurch is a suburban train with few facilities and goes a max of 90(?)mph

The train from Chesterfield is an intercity train with many facilities and goes a max of 125mpg

that's the theory anyway. I don't have the exact figures, but I would guess Chesterfield is rather further in distance than a comparison of the times would suggest.

Yes the train from Whitchurch does a max of 90mph. Thats a fact ...
sad I know but I took my SAT nav on my commute once and it did a max of 90mph.

I guess you have answered my question.
So unless you earn more than £17k more in London than Chesterfield and don't mind a 4 hour commute per day ...then a London commute from chesterfield is out of the question ...
Thanks for the reply.

[lamplady]

Any help much appreciated.
We are going to Paris on Eurostar, and need to book train tickets between Manchester and London on 26th May (arrive by 12.00) and returning 1st June (after 2pm).

There are 2 adults and 4 paying children.

The tickets for 26 may have been released today but we are being quoted £127 to London, whereas when I've mirrored the journey for the same day and time in April we've been able to do it for £30 ish - do they release the cheaper fares closer to the actual date of travel than 12 weeks?

Also, the return is a complicated trip in that there doesn't seem to be a weekend service from London to Manchester:mad:. Playing around I found London-Birmingham-Manchester seemed to offer some good deals, but again on much closer dates than 12 weeks away.

Any tips would be much appreciated. We don't mind changing trains, but with 4 children and a baby as well as our luggage, the simpler the better :)

[isasmurf]

I'm not sure where you got tickets have been released for 26th May from.:confused:

12 weeks in advance is not necessarily the date that tickets get released. The 12 week figure that often gets quoted is simply a requirement for Network Rail to notify train operators and upload any changes to the timetable. This is Condition 9 of Network Rail's operating license. Train Operators then have further time - I seem to remember up to 3 weeks from a Parliamentary report a few years ago - to release the booking system to passengers.

[KeithP]

Lamplady, have you considered going via Sheffield for a simpler lourney?
The London transfer then becomes a short walk within St Pancras station.

[dzug]

The tickets for 26 may have been released today



No they haven't - so far they have been released up to 1 May

The 12 weeks, as another poster has said, is a myth.

Just be patient

[lamplady]

OKI'm confused. I';ve been going on Thetrainline.com website every day for the past few weeks, and yesterday was the first day I was able to access the booking page for 26th May - hence why I said the tickets had just been released. My question was that there were very few tickets available - mainly very expensive ones and I was wondering if the cheaper tickets were released/made availabe closer to the travel date :confused:-

I will look at Sheffield as on option too :)

[Christa1]

My daughter has an interview at Manchester Uni on 5 March and needs to get from Newcastle to Manchester and back.It's £21.00 to get her there but unless she waits till 19.45 ( £14.00) the other tickets are all £48.50 to get back? Any suggestions?
I didn't want her to drive as it's a long way there and back on her own.

[dzug]

OKI'm confused. I';ve been going on Thetrainline.com website every day for the past few weeks, and yesterday was the first day I was able to access the booking page for 26th May - hence why I said the tickets had just been released. My question was that there were very few tickets available - mainly very expensive ones and I was wondering if the cheaper tickets were released/made availabe closer to the travel date :confused:-

I will look at Sheffield as on option too :)

See what you mean now - yes the trains have been released for reservation - it means you can buy full price tickets AND reserve seats; in theory the cheaper tickets come out at the same time but very rarely do in practice. Keep checking until you see some - they rarely all sell out at once. As it's a bank holiday there may not be all that many though so jump when you see them.

[dzug]

My daughter has an interview at Manchester Uni on 5 March and needs to get from Newcastle to Manchester and back.It's £21.00 to get her there but unless she waits till 19.45 ( £14.00) the other tickets are all £48.50 to get back? Any suggestions?
I didn't want her to drive as it's a long way there and back on her own.

Try split ticketing at York - it may or may not help but it's worth a try

[Edinburghlass]

Ticket splitting question please, are they likely to check the tickets and ask questions as my daughter is travelling from Edinburgh to Warrington 28 March returning 2 April on her own with a Young Person's Railcard but I wouldn't want her questioned by the ticket collector.

Straight through using Trainline I have two single tickets totaling £26.30 but I'm wondering if I can do better?

Thanks!

[dzug]

You could do better by not using the trainline - the train company sites offer the same prices and don't charge booking/card fees.

That looks a good fare - don't think you will better it by splitting. That works with full fares, not advance singles, as a general rule - though there can be exceptions

You could try Carlisle and/or Preston just in case.

[adiwood]

Well after lots of searching and looking around, I managed to get a train from Exeter to London Waterloo on Saturday 15th March and returning Sunday 16th March for £21. Initially it was looking like £35 return (a massive £70 for me and my gf return) however we found that by leaving an hour earlier (the 5.10am train) the price comes right down! :j :j :j


Only thing is I forgot to get my quidco cashback... although it isnt much! :rotfl:

[Edinburghlass]

You could do better by not using the trainline - the train company sites offer the same prices and don't charge booking/card fees.

That looks a good fare - don't think you will better it by splitting. That works with full fares, not advance singles, as a general rule - though there can be exceptions

You could try Carlisle and/or Preston just in case.

I hadn't realised that Trainline now charge £1 for postage so I booked via Virgin yesterday morning and the tickets arrived today, so thanks for that, now just need to work out how to upload a "regulation" photo for the Young Person's Rail Card.

[carlyhi]

Hi-Can anyone please help me-I'm currently pulling my hair out about trying to book this journey! Basically I need to book a train from London to Carlisle on the 4th April after 2pm-I've tried splitting the journey going via rugby, warrington etc but the cheapest i've found is £88! I got quoted £33 but it then turned out there was no seats left-typical!

[dzug]

The £33 is showing as OK for me. Haven't gone beyond the first page though.

Otherwise if you are prepared for an indirect journey try splitting at Leeds or Newcastle

[aless02]

Hi-Can anyone please help me-I'm currently pulling my hair out about trying to book this journey! Basically I need to book a train from London to Carlisle on the 4th April after 2pm-I've tried splitting the journey going via rugby, warrington etc but the cheapest i've found is £88! I got quoted £33 but it then turned out there was no seats left-typical!

I've been trying splitting at Preston with decent results...What train line are you looking at?

[louise3965]

Hi there, I really want to go see my friend's new baby in Brighton on saturday 10 May coming back the next day. I live in Scarborough, the cheapest I can see is by getting a saver return to doncaster at £31.20, then Don - Brighton 15.04 at £23 and Brighton - Doncaster 11.16 £30.50.

Its still a whacking ££84.70 though.

First time I've looked at this lark though so may be doing it completely wrong. Can anyone help?

[pompeyrich]

Hi there, I really want to go see my friend's new baby in Brighton on saturday 10 May coming back the next day. I live in Scarborough, the cheapest I can see is by getting a saver return to doncaster at £31.20, then Don - Brighton 15.04 at £23 and Brighton - Doncaster 11.16 £30.50.

Its still a whacking ££84.70 though.

First time I've looked at this lark though so may be doing it completely wrong. Can anyone help?


Try singles, Scarborough dep 12:47, arr Brighton 17:58 is £28:50, and the 11:16 back is £38, £66:50 total. just keep trying various splits and check those single fares !!

[mrs lds]

Try singles, Scarborough dep 12:47, arr Brighton 17:58 is £28:50, and the 11:16 back is £38, £66:50 total. just keep trying various splits and check those single fares !!
I need to get to manchester to watford return around the 31st march 2nd april what is the cheapest option

thank you

[dzug]

I need to get to manchester to watford return around the 31st march 2nd april what is the cheapest option

thank you

The cheapest option will be advance singles from Virgin. If they have gone, a saver return.

You might find something cheaper on their e-tickets - but you will HAVE to travel into Euston and get a local train out again (Oyster will be cheapest) or risk having to pay the full open fare if you try to get on or off at Watford Junction:

http://www.mobitix.thetrainline.com/vt/advancePurchase.aspx

[moonrakerz]

South West Trains - Apex tickets - do they exist ???

I have spent ages grubbing around on the SWT and Nation Rail websites trying to find Apex tickets.
According to the SWT site they do exist, there is even a wonderful map:

http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/262513E6-8437-4279-8A77-B66469D2CD16/0/Apex_map_Dec_07.pdf

showing which routes these tickets are available on - but can I find any ? - can I **** !
Is this a case of one Apex ticket per route, per year, per haps ? just so they can claim they exist.

I have found Mega train tickets on the route I am interested in (Warminster to Bristol segment of W'Loo to Bristol service), but they are not available to/from every station which the Apex purport to be.

Any ideas ? - I've run out.

[dzug]

South West Trains - Apex tickets - do they exist ???

I have spent ages grubbing around on the SWT and Nation Rail websites trying to find Apex tickets.
According to the SWT site they do exist, there is even a wonderful map:

http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/262513E6-8437-4279-8A77-B66469D2CD16/0/Apex_map_Dec_07.pdf

showing which routes these tickets are available on - but can I find any ? - can I **** !
Is this a case of one Apex ticket per route, per year, per haps ? just so they can claim they exist.

I have found Mega train tickets on the route I am interested in (Warminster to Bristol segment of W'Loo to Bristol service), but they are not available to/from every station which the Apex purport to be.

Any ideas ? - I've run out.

Well I've had absolutely no difficulty in finding them from London to several stations on the route on random dates in a couple of weeks time. Where are you actually travelling from/to?

If they don't show up on the first search, there is a link to something like 'other slower services'

[moonrakerz]

Well I've had absolutely no difficulty in finding them from London to several stations on the route on random dates in a couple of weeks time.


Strange !

I have just put in 4 random trips and have got 3 Apex fares, at £18.60 ret. Earlier today I tried about 6 different dates and the cheapest fare I got was a Saver Ret at £47.
One of the dates I just got an Apex on was definitely one I tried before ! Two weeks today and ret on the next Monday.

Are all these booking sites driven from the same engine (sorry!), just wondering if they were doing something when I was trying earlier ?

[dzug]

Strange !

I have just put in 4 random trips and have got 3 Apex fares, at £18.60 ret. Earlier today I tried about 6 different dates and the cheapest fare I got was a Saver Ret at £47.
One of the dates I just got an Apex on was definitely one I tried before ! Two weeks today and ret on the next Monday.

Are all these booking sites driven from the same engine (sorry!), just wondering if they were doing something when I was trying earlier ?

They all use the same database of times and fares and availability - but may search it in different ways. It is a puzzle that sometimes you get anomalous results.

[Secret Lady]

The cheapest train tickets from London Kings Cross to Bradford (West Yorkshire), that I can find is £67.20 return. I cannot get to Kings Cross before 17:30, the Sunday is more flexible.

This price includes a 10% online discount, as it's Easter I doubt I can do better, can anyone advise?

Kings Cross Thursday March 20th 19:30 (arrive Bradford 22:49)
Bradford Sunday March 23rd 17.23 (arrive Kings Cross 19:51)

Many thanks (fingers crossed)

[Spikey]

The cheapest train tickets from London Kings Cross to Bradford (West Yorkshire), that I can find is £67.20 return. I cannot get to Kings Cross before 17:30, the Sunday is more flexible.

This price includes a 10% online discount, as it's Easter I doubt I can do better, can anyone advise?

Kings Cross Thursday March 20th 19:30 (arrive Bradford 22:49)
Bradford Sunday March 23rd 17.23 (arrive Kings Cross 19:51)

Many thanks (fingers crossed)

have you tried www.virgintrainsfares.co.uk (http://www.virgintrainsfares.co.uk) ? and maybe cheaper to leeds ?

[dzug]

Try St Pancras via Sheffield rather than Kings Cross

[Alun]

Hi folks,
I am having difficulty in getting some Saturday single tickets for my return journey - here are my travel details

Depart Chesterfield 15/5/08
Return London 17/5/08 [Saturday].

I can easily get singles for £7 each but on the Saturday there are no cheap singles and there never has been [as far as I can tell as I've been checking for weeks].

Any idea? Have they not been released? If not, when should I expect them?

Thanks

Alun

[username]

I travel from Portsmouth to Canterbury West about once per month and with a student railcard, I am paying £34.95 for a saver return that enables me to return within 1 calendar month.

I was wondering, is there any way to cut this price further?

[dzug]

Hi folks,
I am having difficulty in getting some Saturday single tickets for my return journey - here are my travel details

Depart Chesterfield 15/5/08
Return London 17/5/08 [Saturday].

I can easily get singles for £7 each but on the Saturday there are no cheap singles and there never has been [as far as I can tell as I've been checking for weeks].

Any idea? Have they not been released? If not, when should I expect them?

Thanks

Alun

http://www.atoctravelagents.org/clientfiles/File/TOC_BOOKING_HORIZONS_07_Mar_08.htm

is a little old (updated 6 March) but suggests that tickets for that Saturday are not released yet.

As to when - no idea.

[dzug]

I travel from Portsmouth to Canterbury West about once per month and with a student railcard, I am paying £34.95 for a saver return that enables me to return within 1 calendar month.

I was wondering, is there any way to cut this price further?

Not a big saving, and maybe a slow route - but if you travel off peak a Southern daysave (buy online a week in advance) will take you on Southern trains via Brighton to Ashford International for £10 each way. A single with a railcard on to Canterbury is £3.65 each way

[beepeevee]

Has anyone got any experience of booking through "Railsaver" or "Raileasy"? They are offering discount prices for my trip, but .....? Are they known to be reliable?

[dzug]

Has anyone got any experience of booking through "Railsaver" or "Raileasy"? They are offering discount prices for my trip, but .....? Are they known to be reliable?

I believe they charge a (small) booking fee which other sites other than trainline don't.

Unless they are specifically offering you an extra discount for some reason, they just offer the same discount fares as available anywhere else. It's possible that they may be a bit better at finding them, but they have never shown me anything not available elsewhere.

[broooce2229]

Anyone advise on cheapest rates for Wrexham to Cardiff going on 14th June and returning 15th June?

Its about £100 each on trainline and there are buses involved!

[dzug]

Anyone advise on cheapest rates for Wrexham to Cardiff going on 14th June and returning 15th June?

Its about £100 each on trainline and there are buses involved!

Wait for the cheap rail tickets to be released - they are only out until mid May at the moment. Should be £10 each way if you get in early - assuming that they offer them. They don't always when buses are involved.

And don't use thetrainline - they charge a booking fee, etc. Any of the TOC sites will do it for free, as it were.

[iamconfused]

Hi folks,
I am having difficulty in getting some Saturday single tickets for my return journey - here are my travel details

Depart Chesterfield 15/5/08
Return London 17/5/08 [Saturday].

I can easily get singles for £7 each but on the Saturday there are no cheap singles and there never has been [as far as I can tell as I've been checking for weeks].

Any idea? Have they not been released? If not, when should I expect them?

Thanks

Alun

Hi Alun, I need to go London to Chesterfield one way in 2 to 3 weeks time, not sure which date yet, where can you get the tickets for £7 please.
Thanks very much

[dzug]

Hi Alun, I need to go London to Chesterfield one way in 2 to 3 weeks time, not sure which date yet, where can you get the tickets for £7 please.
Thanks very much

On any rail booking site. They all sell the same tickets

Megatrain is also worth a try as an alternative.

[Alun]

Has anyone had any experience on Megatrain - how does it work?

Also, still struggling for my return tickets for 17 May from London-Chesterfield, and the outward portion of the trip is beginning to get full...

I did notice that there is one listed 1130 change at Nottingham - what has happened to the direct ones that normally run?

Is it worth waiting... because I would prefer an earlier train...

[Alun]

Hi Alun, I need to go London to Chesterfield one way in 2 to 3 weeks time, not sure which date yet, where can you get the tickets for £7 please.
Thanks very much

Hi,
I beleive that the £7 single fares can only be bought with an accompanying return portion. So you may have to pay £14 but you don't have to use the return portion [if that makes sense].

[iamconfused]

Oh, OK thanks. Have found a single for £9 now, trouble is I dont know which date I have to go yet so cant book anything yet.
Thanks again

[dzug]

[quote=Alun;9669109]Has anyone had any experience on Megatrain - how does it work?

quote]

You book your ticket on the megatrain site (up to 6 ?? weeks ahead - not sure exactly how long)

You get an e-mail confirmation

You print it off and it acts as your ticket.

It's no longer worth waiting for East Midlands trains - tickets for that date are released. As it's a weekend there may be engineering work that is restricting availability.

[cyberem78]

Hi, I make a journey from Newcastle Upon Tyne to sunny Milton Keynes at least once a year.
I usually get a return ticket, needing to change at Birmingham New Street - but now the cost has gone up from £60 to over £90!:eek:

I have tried looking at single tickets, or going to London and then back up to Milton Keynes but it seems to work out at about the same price.
Is there anyone who can suggest another way to find a cheaper fare on the trains (have tried taking the bus and nearly suffocated to death!!) - any help would be greatly appreciated.

[pompeyrich]

Newcastle-Brum at £19:50 each way = £39, then a maximum of £23 Brum-MK return, £15 if you use Midland trains. You will have to book these in advance and travel on the train you book to/from Newcatle, so probably not suitable for short notice travel but good if you can plan ahead.

[dzug]

There is in theory a £15 single ticket but I haven't found any availability on several dates well ahead.

Birmingham (from £12 single) and rebooking looks easier to come by.

[meinnit]

Can someone tell me what is the cheapest way to get from Reading to any London station?

Also is it possible for "Saver/Cheap Day" tickets to include return on different days? I understand that the return portion of a Cheap Day ticket must be used on the same day but can Saver tickets be used on other days?

What are the restrictions on a Saver? Are they usually restricted to a certain time?

[dzug]

Can someone tell me what is the cheapest way to get from Reading to any London station?

Also is it possible for "Saver/Cheap Day" tickets to include return on different days? I understand that the return portion of a Cheap Day ticket must be used on the same day but can Saver tickets be used on other days?

What are the restrictions on a Saver? Are they usually restricted to a certain time?


Saver tickets are available for return within one month with off-peak travel only. From Reading they are only available to Waterloo. To Paddington there is a network away break - same price, but only valid for 5 days. If you want to come back from Waterloo within those 5 days, that's OK. £20.90 return.

I beleive the Waterloo peak restrictions are less onerous - you'd need to check though.

[ChocolateButterfly]

Hi, could anyone possibly tell me the cheapest way to buy an open return from Battle to Newport, Gwent? I've tried looking at buying two single tickets but there really isnt much of a saving. Thanks!

[dzug]

Hi, could anyone possibly tell me the cheapest way to buy an open return from Battle to Newport, Gwent? I've tried looking at buying two single tickets but there really isnt much of a saving. Thanks!

An open return is £200. A saver return (ie off-peak open return) is £68

Singles are from £14 each way and don't look too hard to come by if you book ahead.

Not much of a saving?????

[ChocolateButterfly]

An open return is £200. A saver return (ie off-peak open return) is £68

Singles are from £14 each way and don't look too hard to come by if you book ahead.

Not much of a saving?????

Oops sorry I forgot to mention I'm also using a young persons rail card. Could you show me where you have found a £14 single? Thats a great price!

[dzug]

Oops sorry I forgot to mention I'm also using a young persons rail card. Could you show me where you have found a £14 single? Thats a great price!

Then take one third off the prices I've given you - £9.25 single

You should be able to find it on any rail website - it's not exclusive to any one of them.

I used http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/ with random dates in about a month's time.

[russellelly]

Hi,

Can anyone advise how many days in advance Virgin Value tickets can be booked? thetrainline has tickets on sale for when I want to travel (7 June) but only standard fares. I can find the latest you can buy a value ticket, but not the earliest. Obviously I want to get in as early as possible when the cheapest tickets are available. The Virgin part of the journey is from Glasgow Central to Preston (overall from Bishopton to Blackpool North/Central).

I have searched this site and Googled to no avail. Any help much appreciated!

[ChocolateButterfly]

Then take one third off the prices I've given you - £9.25 single

You should be able to find it on any rail website - it's not exclusive to any one of them.

I used http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/ with random dates in about a month's time.

Thank you for your help, the cheapest I've found is about £20 each way but I'm only able to book about 5 days in advance when I travel and therefore can't always make the most savings. Thanks again.

[dzug]

Hi,

Can anyone advise how many days in advance Virgin Value tickets can be booked? thetrainline has tickets on sale for when I want to travel (7 June) but only standard fares. I can find the latest you can buy a value ticket, but not the earliest. Obviously I want to get in as early as possible when the cheapest tickets are available. The Virgin part of the journey is from Glasgow Central to Preston (overall from Bishopton to Blackpool North/Central).

I have searched this site and Googled to no avail. Any help much appreciated!

There is no set date for the cheap tickets to become available. You will sometimes see 12 weeks (or even 'exactly 12 weeks') quoted but that's a myth - 12 weeks is the absolute earliest. Normally it's a bit and often a lot less.

http://www.atoctravelagents.org/ - follow the booking horizons link - normally has information that is fairly up to date

Your date is a weekend - I wouldn't bank on much being available and reckon on part of the journey being by bus.

[russellelly]

There is no set date for the cheap tickets to become available. You will sometimes see 12 weeks (or even 'exactly 12 weeks') quoted but that's a myth - 12 weeks is the absolute earliest. Normally it's a bit and often a lot less.

http://www.atoctravelagents.org/ - follow the booking horizons link - normally has information that is fairly up to date

Your date is a weekend - I wouldn't bank on much being available and reckon on part of the journey being by bus.

Thanks. Will start checking daily after the 12 week deadline hits. Can change to the Friday if an extra B&B night is cheaper than the difference in train fare!

[meinnit]

Saver tickets are available for return within one month with off-peak travel only. From Reading they are only available to Waterloo. To Paddington there is a network away break - same price, but only valid for 5 days. If you want to come back from Waterloo within those 5 days, that's OK. £20.90 return.

I beleive the Waterloo peak restrictions are less onerous - you'd need to check though.


Thanks for that! Network Away Break is perfect. Brings the price down slightly from 2 singles! And it can be purchased at the station.

[tallhoward]

For online rail tickets with no booking charge and no credit card charge go to www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com (http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com)

[scotsgolfpro]

i need an open return ticket from edinburgh to london travelling tomorrow (thurs) anybody any ideas???????????

[dzug]

You really do not want an open return - £252

A saver return is £102.40 - you can travel on any off peak train leaving tomorrow and returning within one month. Just buy it tomorrow at the station, you don't have to book or commit to specific trains.

Providing you can book by 6pm tonight there are plenty of trains with a £32.95 single tomorrow.

Then when you've decided when to come back book another cheap single in advance - they start at £14.

[gner_ex]

The cheapest option will be advance singles from Virgin. If they have gone, a saver return.

You might find something cheaper on their e-tickets - but you will HAVE to travel into Euston and get a local train out again (Oyster will be cheapest) or risk having to pay the full open fare if you try to get on or off at Watford Junction:

http://www.mobitix.thetrainline.com/vt/advancePurchase.aspx

Hi, please can I ask why you are advising going to Euston and then back again? Some Virgin trains stop at Watford Jct, and one can either purchase an advance ticket to Watford specifically, or (depending what ticket one has) exit at Watfor subject to break-of-journey rules.

Is your concern that a Virgin Value ticket to Euston won't let the person out at Watford Jct barriers? If so, far cheaper than an Oyster journey to Watford would be a paper ticket from Watford North to Watford Jct at £1.90 (discounted further with a railcard).

Also be aware that Euston-Watford is sometimes cheaper on paper than Oyster (depends on times etc).

[gner_ex]

Can someone tell me what is the cheapest way to get from Reading to any London station?

Also is it possible for "Saver/Cheap Day" tickets to include return on different days? I understand that the return portion of a Cheap Day ticket must be used on the same day but can Saver tickets be used on other days?

What are the restrictions on a Saver? Are they usually restricted to a certain time?
What is your ultimate destination in London? It can often be cheaper to purchase a "Reading Travelcard" than a ticket to "London Terminals" and then pay for beyond on oyster or paper.

A seven day ticket Reading to Paddington and/or Waterloo is £83.10 which may be useful if you are going four times in a week.

[gner_ex]

Dangers of Using cheap train tickets:

-You miss your train. This happens to us all from time to time. Unless you are the sort of person who can be so flexible as to never miss a train, contrast your saving against the cost of having to buy an extra ticket on the day. I personally nearly always buy saver tickets for this very reason.

-beware rebooking. This is fine when things go to plan, but if you're travelling from Derby to York and then York to Edinburgh with completely seperate tickets and there is a delay in Sheffield which causes you to miss your connection, then the only obligation the operator has to you is to refund your first ticket (either 50% or 100% depending on length of delay) and if you board a later train from York you will be counted as having missed your train and excessed.

Rebooking with savers can often work well, however (and still give some sort of guarantee that you'll not have to buy a fresh ticket).

[dzug]

Hi, please can I ask why you are advising going to Euston and then back again? Some Virgin trains stop at Watford Jct, and one can either purchase an advance ticket to Watford specifically, or (depending what ticket one has) exit at Watfor subject to break-of-journey rules.

Is your concern that a Virgin Value ticket to Euston won't let the person out at Watford Jct barriers? If so, far cheaper than an Oyster journey to Watford would be a paper ticket from Watford North to Watford Jct at £1.90 (discounted further with a railcard).

Also be aware that Euston-Watford is sometimes cheaper on paper than Oyster (depends on times etc).


I wasn't talking about Virgin Value tickets but specifically about e-tickets, which are issued for the through journey Manchester to London only and have T&C prohibiting intermediate travel.

[gner_ex]

I wasn't talking about Virgin Value tickets but specifically about e-tickets, which are issued for the through journey Manchester to London only and have T&C prohibiting intermediate travel.
Ah I see, thank you for that. Do you have the link to these T&Cs at all?

[gner_ex]

Emma if you use a service that calls at the station where your two tickets are valid there is no problem.

Reading paragraph 19c it would also be acceptable in your case to use a train that does not call at the intermediate station as:
Your ticket from Cuffley to Winchmore Hill is a season ticket using the definition given.
The Underground Inclusive ticket is not a season ticket under the description given in paragraph 19c since it is issued on behalf of a Passenger Transport Executive or Local Authority.
This refers to the authorities outside London (i.e. West Midlands PTE, etc).

However, there is only one train (on a morning) that goes non-stop from Enfield Chase to Bowes Park, all others stop at Winchmore Hill.

[gner_ex]

But when presenting the information, the Season Ticket Calculator states -

Available Standard Class Adult Season Tickets
Between: Hemel Hempstead (HML)
And: London Liverpool Street (LST)
Route Code: Travel is allowed by any route option shown by the Online Journey Planner

As the Online Journey Planner shows the route between Hemel Hempstead and London Liverpool Street including the Underground bit, it would be reasonable to assume that that part of the journey would be included in the price wouldn't it?
This is a glitch with the season ticket calculator. essentially, you have to choose the 'right' London terminal station, what it is giving you is the fare to "London Terminals" (which in the case of Hemel is of course Euston) not to Liverpool Street.

If you choose a station on the 'other' side on London that is inside the zones, you'll notice that there are no seasons available (something like Hemel to Vauxhall) - its for this very reason.

However (and I don't know the answer without looking up) I wonder whether Hemel to Liverpool Street would constitute a valid route, by changing at Watford, Willesden Jct and Hackney Central. Trains used to go that route (into Broad Street until 1986 and then into Liverpool St itself I believe).

[gner_ex]

East Coast Mainline tickets to "London Terminals". A piece of advice I uncovered recently. If you have a saver or open type ticket from any ECML destination (Edinburgh, Leeds, Peterborough, Potters Bar, Herford North, Alexandra Palace) to London Terminals, it is valid on any of the following:

-a train that goes from Finsbury Park into London Kings Cross
-a train that goes from Finsbury Park into London Moorgate (you may alight at Moorgate or Old Street, all three count as a Terminal, plus alight/board at the other stations subject to normal break of journey regulations)
-a London Underground train from Kings Cross to Moorgate or vice versa (can be via Farringdon or via Angel) but you cannot alight at intermediate underground stations apart from Old Street.

This is a long-standing concession dating from the late 1970s (when trains from Finsbury Park stopped going down the widened lines to Farringdon and Moorgate and instead started going via Highbury/Old Street on the Northern City Line) note that you cannot use the National Rail (First Capital Connect) trains from St. Panc low-level to Moorgate, though these are due to cease at the end of this year anyway.

If you want to check this before you travel, then the ticket office staff should have access to the fares manual where this is stated and should show to you upon request.



Wanting a paper ticket for travel on national rail services from Finsbury Park to Kings Cross or Moorgate? Because oyster is valid on this route, you'll get charged £4 single and £7 return if you dare to purchase a cash ticket. Unless of course you know a little trick:

AT FINSBURY PARK ticket machines or ticket office
Instead of pressing "London Terminals" or "Kings Cross", type in Farringdon. Some Farringdon fares allow use on the tube, these are more expensive. What you are looking for is a button labelled Farringdon Rail Only which is £2.30 single or £4.00 return (peak or off-peak, railcard makes it even cheaper). This ticket is valid either via Kings Cross (go out the exit by platforms 9, 10 and 11 and turn right, then into St. Pancras and down to the Thameslink platforms) or via Moorgate BUT on National Rail trains ONLY and NOT the Underground. The only possible flaw with this is that National Rail trains from Moorgate to Farringdon only run Mon-Fri peaks, however this ticket _should_ let you out of the barriers at Moorgate no problem (reports please?).

AT KINGS CROSS ticket machines/office or MOORGATE ticket office
Instead of pressing "Finsbury Park" press Harringay. Ticket is £2.90 single (peak or off-peak) return is £3.80 (off-peak after 09:30, no evening restriction) or £5.00 (peak before 09:29).

The Oyster single fare from Finsbury Park to Moorgate or Kings Cross is £2.00 (touch in from 07:00 to 19:00 Mon-Fri) or £1.50 (touch-in before 06:59 or after 19:01 Mon-Fri, or on Sat and Sun), therefore if you are going both ways between 09:30 and 19:00 Mon-Fri then paper is actually cheaper!

[dzug]

Ah I see, thank you for that. Do you have the link to these T&Cs at all?

Not off hand bit there is a thread about them somewhere 'London-Manchester for £1.

Also linked from Virgin's site

[mikaelf]

Hi I am travelling from Liverpool to London on May 31st (sat) and coming back on the following day.. the cheapest I have been able to find is £62

Is that about right? :)

[headpin]

Hi I am travelling from Liverpool to London on May 31st (sat) and coming back on the following day.. the cheapest I have been able to find is £62

Is that about right? :)

At what times of the day are the outbound and inbound travel. It makes a huges difference to cost, but weekends are often less flexible than weekdays and £62 is probably about right.

You may also want to explore other options as there are engineering works (http://www.virgintrains.co.uk/engineering/default.aspx) between Rugby and Stafford on those two days and the journey time will increase to an average of 4 hours (normally is about 2 hours) as services will be reduced and those that do run will be going via the West Midlands.

[longbaygirl]

Looking for cheap return tickets for Swansea going on 24 June and coming back 3 days later, 2 adults and two 3 year olds.

PS. Have family railcard but not sure if we need it for toddlers?

[longbaygirl]

Ops - should have said from London

[dzug]

Looking for cheap return tickets for Swansea going on 24 June and coming back 3 days later, 2 adults and two 3 year olds.

PS. Have family railcard but not sure if we need it for toddlers?


You don't want cheap returns - you want cheap singles in each direction. You should be able to book them now. (FGW say up to 2 July)

The toddlers travel free. However, using the family railcard and buying a ticket for one of them might work out cheaper than two normal adult tickets.

Not sure how legitimate this is.

[KeithP]

<snip>
However, using the family railcard and buying a ticket for one of them might work out cheaper than two normal adult tickets.

Not sure how legitimate this is.
Not only is it legitimate, it is even suggested (almost) on the Family Railcard website. (http://www.family-railcard.co.uk/faqs/eligibility)
2. My child is under 5, can I still use a Family Railcard?
If the only child in the Family Railcard group is aged less than 5 years of age, the Railcard holder may purchase a discounted ticket in order for that accompanying adult(s) to qualify for the discount on their ticket(s).

[sm1]

I need toc commute daily from ilford, Essex to basingstoke. That means LU from zone -4 = £135 and waterloo to basingstoke = £325.Is there a way to cut on fare as due to some personal reason, i cant move out of ilford.

[sm1]

I need to commute daily from ilford, Essex to basingstoke. That means LU from zone 1-4 = £135 and waterloo to basingstoke = £325 .Is there a way to cut on fare as due to some personal reason, i cant move out of ilford.

[dzug]

I need to commute daily from ilford, Essex to basingstoke. That means LU from zone 1-4 = £135 and waterloo to basingstoke = £325 .Is there a way to cut on fare as due to some personal reason, i cant move out of ilford.

I would guess (but can't get a price online) that a through ticket might be cheaper than two separate ones.

[jacqs27]

Hi everyone first time ive used this and not a very frequent rail traveller so any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

I may be starting a job in Milton Keynes on Monday, I live in Liverpool by the way. I am probably looking at staying there monday to thursday and comming home on friday. It is reasonably flexible the start and finish times (as long as i hit my weekly targets), but based around 9-5. So for example i could get there 10ish on monday and leave 4ish on Friday.

Have been looking at Virgin to try and price it as cheap as possible (at least till i've worked my month in hand) but the prices fluctuate a lot. Obviously more expensive the closer to peak time.

I wouldnt mind taking a night train going down there but would like the friday one to be as quick as possible. So any suggestions would be appreciated. (Sorry for the long post though i'd give as much info as possible).

One more thing it comes up with £58 for an open return ticket with a specified train down there. Does that mean i have to take that one and can get any train to return even the fast ones.

Cheers in advance

[sm1]

Many thanks dzug but i cudnt get any thro/season tickets information at nationalrail.co.uk for Ilford - Basingstoke. I have moved to London a few months back and dont have much idea about tickets.

Is there a way to have a season ticket from ilford - basingstoke which is also valid on LU thro the route?