Rail Travel: Tips on Cheap Tickets

graememcc

Hi all.

I'm heading from Glasgow to Manchester with friends on 30th April, returning 2nd May. Having used the Holiday Inn 2 nights for 1 deal in another thread to drive down the price of the hotel, I don't want the travel to cost more than the stay

Going down on the 30th, there are £19 Advance Singles available, so I'm happy with that - it's coming back up on the 2nd I need to work on. A direct train with Transpennine weighs in at £55, which would mean I may as well just buy an off peak return at £63.40.

There doesn't seem to be any advance singles available for 2/5, despite National Rail saying TransPennine's bookings are open for this date. Does anyone know whether they're simply not available yet, or if that they've been and gone?

Assuming I have missed them, the cheapest option I have found so far is £24.60, via a somewhat circuitous route. The TPE website quotes £14 for Manchester->York->Change to East Coast Service->Edinburgh, from where we can catch a local service to Glasgow for £10.60. Do any ticket-splitting experts have any ideas regarding other routes back I could look at?

dzug1

graememcc wrote: »

There doesn't seem to be any advance singles available for 2/5, despite National Rail saying TransPennine's bookings are open for this date. Does anyone know whether they're simply not available yet, or if that they've been and gone?

They won't have been and gone - not this far ahead. Not on EVERY train.

My guess is it's a Sunday, there are engineering works to be finalised and that they will appear later. No guarantee that there will be any, but it would be unusual not.

matthewbarnaby

I'm due to start a new job communting from Bedford to London Liverpool St.
The season ticket is so, so very high.
Has anyong got any tips on
A) how to get it for cheaper (there must be a way please)
how to pay for it (4.240.00 up front, work has no scheme and train doesnt do a direct debit system)
The longer ticket I buy the more I save but it is still so high, I tried to follow MSE advice and look for a split but no joy
HELP

lollipop_28

my husband and I are travelling to London Heathrow from York on Monday 3rd May and returning on Sunday 9th May. To get to Heathrow I'm just planning on getting the tube as the Piccadilly line goes from Kings Cross St Pancras to Heathrow and takes about an hour. We need to be at Heathrow by 5pm so need to be in Kings Cross by 3.30 -4pm. On 9th May we are wanting to get a train from Kings Cross at about 9.30am.

I can't seem to find any good prices... my husband has an annual season ticket to Sheffield so he could manage with a ticket from Doncaster to Kings Cross if it makes it any cheaper... Its so confusing and making my brain hurt, can someone help??

dzug1

lollipop_28 wrote: »

my husband and I are travelling to London Heathrow from York on Monday 3rd May and returning on Sunday 9th May. To get to Heathrow I'm just planning on getting the tube as the Piccadilly line goes from Kings Cross St Pancras to Heathrow and takes about an hour. We need to be at Heathrow by 5pm so need to be in Kings Cross by 3.30 -4pm. On 9th May we are wanting to get a train from Kings Cross at about 9.30am.

I can't seem to find any good prices... my husband has an annual season ticket to Sheffield so he could manage with a ticket from Doncaster to Kings Cross if it makes it any cheaper... Its so confusing and making my brain hurt, can someone help??

You are probably trying to book too early. The Sunday definitely won't be on sale yet - the Monday should be but may be delayed as it's a bank holiday

dzug1

matthewbarnaby wrote: »

I'm due to start a new job communting from Bedford to London Liverpool St.
The season ticket is so, so very high.
Has anyong got any tips on
A) how to get it for cheaper (there must be a way please)
how to pay for it (4.240.00 up front, work has no scheme and train doesnt do a direct debit system)
The longer ticket I buy the more I save but it is still so high, I tried to follow MSE advice and look for a split but no joy
HELP

Split ticketing rarely if ever works on commuter routes, nor on season tickets.

However consider:

using PAYG Oyster for St Pancras (or maybe Farringdon) - Lpool St - either on the tube or (cheaper but slower) the bus - or even walk. From Farringdon anyway

This MAY be cheaper than a season ticket right through

BryanC

Hi everyone

Help needed! Been offered a job in Liverpool and really want to take it. I have looked into the season ticket commuting costs from Manchester and have been told that it will be £2300 for 12 months.

Does anyone know of ANY way to knock some of that off? There must be some way, has to be surely??!

All help greatly appreciated :A

miller

BryanC wrote: »

Help needed! Been offered a job in Liverpool and really want to take it. I have looked into the season ticket commuting costs from Manchester and have been told that it will be £2300 for 12 months.

Does anyone know of ANY way to knock some of that off? There must be some way, has to be surely??!

At the risk of it looking like I'm taking the P, that ticket is £2396, if you get it from Glossop to Liverpool (longer route), its £2392. With that extra £4 you can have pint and packet of crisps to celebrate your new position :j

parkender

Bogof_Babe wrote: »

The man's a genius! :T

I use this station regularly and if I’ve managed to get a ticket cheap to another destination via Chester but still want to get off at Chester I just let the guy on the barrier let me through to either visit the Cash Machine (outside the barriers), pick up a ticket for another day from the ticket office, visit the toilets etc. They have never stopped me yet. Then it's just a case of walking out of the station.
Pretty sure the barriers are unmanned later on too and are left open - maybe after 20:00.

cdbeswick

Whatever anyone does, stay clear of raileasy.co.uk - my son used them to try to find out whether the booking he had made on a mainstream online ticket purchasing site had gone through ok, as the site crashed on him twice. He did not realise that the telephone number for raileasy.co.uk is premium rate, and has paid over £12 (or rather I have!), to find out very little.