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[MSE Archna]

Updated 26 August 2008
(comments in the discussion may relate to earlier incarnations of the deal)

What's the deal?

A selection of train routes are currently going very cheap, you just need to know where to look and what to do

• London to Manchester route, sub-£10, until 10 October
  
  Virgin Trains are selling dirt cheap tickets from London Euston to Manchester and vice versa, but do this and you can sometimes grab fares from as little as £1 each way if you're lucky, but sub-£10 is available for most people. At the moment there are plenty of £3, £7 and £9 tickets. The caveat is you need to print your tickets at home and ensure it's clear and legible. Click here for more help on printing tickets.
  
  To book simply go to the Virgin Trains website, select your route (either to or from Manchester) and search the dates for the £1 fares. If you can't find £1 tickets, £3, £7 and £9 fares are available, still a bargain! You can now book for travel up to 14 August 2008 (though this offer has been regularly extended). Full terms and conditions.

• Birmingham to Glasgow/Edinburgh route, £2.50 return.
  
  Cheap trains operator Megatrain has added another route to its portfolio. Tickets can now be bought between Birmingham and Glasgow or Edinburgh on Virgin Trains' West Coast Mainline.
  
  Fares start at £1 each way plus the 50p booking fee. While the very cheapest fares can go quickly and there are only one or two journeys a day, if the times suit you then it's a no-brainer.
  
  Remember when searching it'll also bring up fares for sister site Megabus so check carefully that you're looking at the rail fares (you should be able to tell from the train and bus symbols next to the train times when you've done a search).

• Birmingham to London for a tenner
  
  This is a nifty service to slash the cost of travelling between Birmingham and London. Use Chiltern Railways special ticket to your mobile service which costs from £5 each way and you could pay just £10 to get to London.
  
  While the route is slower and takes you from Birmingham Snow Hill or Moor Street to Marylebone rather than Birmingham New Street to Euston, if you're willing to spend a little longer getting there then the price difference can be huge.

For tips and tricks to finding cheap travel read Cheap Train Tickets: How to find hidden fares

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[NewToThis]

My brother told me about the £1 fares the other day. Sadly, I would have to travel from Maidenhead to Paddington and then across to Euston by tube. The cost of this means that it is just as cheap - and more convenient - to travel from Maidenhead via Reading or Oxford. If I book a couple of weeks in advance, I can travel for £13 each way. Still a very good deal!

[malcolmwilliamson]

Thanks for this tip Archna.
Having missed the earlier Virgin deal I managed to get in first thing this morning to book a London-Manchester return for £4.

[Lugh_Chronain]

Can you book a ticket then print it out at a later date like with National Express who’ll send a duplicate to your inbox. I'm asking this as I could book one at home then print it at work if this is possible otherwise I'll just book one the next time I'm at work.

[Riq]

I think I love you.

Bets deal ever (that isn't on the gambling board)

[west_bear]

Originally Posted by Lugh_Chronain

Can you book a ticket then print it out at a later date like with National Express who’ll send a duplicate to your inbox. I'm asking this as I could book one at home then print it at work if this is possible otherwise I'll just book one the next time I'm at work.

I have the same issue - needing to print out receipts/tickets at home yet no printer - yet there is a free solution!

Install a PDF printer on your machine (free) - then you can print the web page as a PDF document, send it to work and print from there. It looks exactly like the orignal webpage.

Download from http://www.cutepdf.com/Products/CutePDF/writer.asp

[gaz6078]

Thank you very much for this info. I used this site and managed to book a return for me & the wife for only £12 return ( very cheap) ,if you don't mind going @ 9-30pm it was on offer for only £1 each way. Travelodge are doing a special offer for June, July & August for only £9 a room for the night until 31 Jan 2008 so hurry, I managed to book a room for 3 Nights for £27 in July. Good luckGAZ6078

[Lugh_Chronain]

Thanks west_bear! And just one more thing can you explain to me what they mean when they say draft mode? It says in their T's & C's tickets should be printed in normal print mode. Tickets printed in any other mode will not be accepted. Does this not apply to PDF too?

[ticketcollector]

When you go to print you can select in print options different options.

e.g.
Draft
Best
Normal

Fast Draft
Fast Normal
Normal
Best
Super Best

This is purly how quickly and how much ink your printer uses to print the ticket, Normal is okay but draft uses less ink and prints quickly. This is what they mean in the T&C

[Sparky29]

If you live along the route, say Stafford, there is nothing to stop you getting off the train early and travelling for a pound. Cheap as chips!

[Pin Head]

When does this offer end? Will there be tickets on say 1st March?

[Lugh_Chronain]

MSE Archna says in her OP "You can book up to 15 February 2008 at the moment, though this may well be extended."

[Lugh_Chronain]

Originally Posted by Pin Head

When does this offer end? Will there be tickets on say 1st March?

I misunderstood your question Pin Head. At the moment you can only book up 'til Fri 15/02.

[Lugh_Chronain]

I discovered that once you've ordered your tickets you can go to the My Account section of the website. Once you're logged on click on View tickets in the My Account section and from there print your order by ticking the ticket you want printing. This might be convenient for those without a printer.

I had to go to my local library using this method to print the tickets and in the end they came out much clearer. The photo copier at work wasn't printing out clear enough; I couldn't see the last four digits.

I managed to get two singles at £3 each saving me £7 in all as I'll be traveling from Manchester Piccadilly to my destination which will mean I'll have to purchase two day returns at £6 each. So two single day returns would be £12 altogether + two P@H singles to Manchester = £18.

It would normally cost me about £25 if I went direct to my destination if I booked in time but they are actually £62 at the moment so saving me from having to spend an extra £44 to be honest if I were to get a return.

[Queen.For.A.Day]

Does anyone know if you can buy one of these cheap tickets, and then upgrade to First Class on the train?

You used to be able to do this on Virgin Trains, but now I'm not so sure.

[dzug]

Originally Posted by Sparky29

If you live along the route, say Stafford, there is nothing to stop you getting off the train early and travelling for a pound. Cheap as chips!

In practice there may not be but the T&C say:

You must board and alight at the stated departure and arrival stations. You may not board or alight at other points on the route. If you do a penalty or full fare may apply.

So it depends whether there are any ticket checks at the station you get off at - which is unlikely to be Stafford as most London-Manchester trains don't go through Stafford, let alone stop there.

[dzug]

Originally Posted by Queen.For.A.Day

Does anyone know if you can buy one of these cheap tickets, and then upgrade to First Class on the train?

You used to be able to do this on Virgin Trains, but now I'm not so sure.

These particular ones - I doubt it

Your ticket is only valid for the date, train and reserved seat(s) shown on your ticket(s).

More generally - maybe.

[Nick1969]

Can I ask a simple question? Ive bought our tickets and printed them off.

What do I do when I get to the station? do I need to take it to the ticket office or do I just board the train with the A4 print offs?

Im so looking forwards to going to London.

HELP fast would be most appreciated.

[Lugh_Chronain]

It's seems to be the norm to present your ticket on board unless you are asked to present it at the station. A ticket inspector onboard the train came round when I went up to Manchester recently and asked everyone who had one to present their P@H tickets ready for inspection.

Don't forget to bring your payment card (VISA, Debit, etc) as proof of purchase otherwise you will have to pay the full fare for that journey.

[Nick1969]

Sorry whats a P@H ticket? I had to print off my tickets as part of the special offer above and Im not sure if I need to show that print off on the train?

Thanks for your help