Split Ticketing: Report successful routes here

Creckless

Can anyone suggest a good split, or better route to cut down the cost of this return journey?

I usually travel on Friday afternoon returning on Sunday afternoon. I'd like to go either tomorrow (late notice, I know!) or next Friday.....but this is an oft-travelled route for me, as I live oop north and my fella lives down south, so any tips would be appreciated!

Thanks

richardw

Try Birmingham new street, banbury, reading, basingstoke

purecharmer

Hi guy's and gal's Traverling from Birmingham to Exeter St Davids - - Birmingham to bristol £6.50 Bristol to exeter £4 .

A total of £10.50

Ticket splitting still working quite well , I'm going to see in a minute if it still works on buying tickets for further than your traverling.

dzug1

purecharmer wrote: »

Hi guy's and gal's Traverling from Birmingham to Exeter St Davids - - Birmingham to bristol £6.50 Bristol to exeter £4 .

A total of £10.50

Ticket splitting still working quite well , I'm going to see in a minute if it still works on buying tickets for further than your traverling.

Fine - but it won't work on every train as those are advance prices at the cheaper end of the scale so will sell out quick.

blueclouduk_2

My best deal so far has been.

Darlington to Romford. Less than 1 week of notice to travel.

Normal cost of standard class ticket booked on National Express East Coast website site.

£506 for two passengers!

A very high fare but we had to be in Romford hospital before 11.30am and so had to catch the 6.30am service from Darlington.

What we actually paid:

£306 for two passengers First Class!

The £306 even included a new railcard which obviously will have benefits later in the year.

Breakdown.

Disabled person's railcard.
First Class single ticket from Darlington to Peterborough.
First Class single ticket from Peterborough to Kings Cross.
London one day Travel Card, Zones 1-5.
First Class single ticket from Kings Cross to Peterborough.
First Class single ticket from Peterborough to Darlington.

Why first class tickets? Ridiculously, a standard class return using the rail card but without breaking to the journey was £331. For all my hard work trying to reduce the fare by splitting the journey, SWMBO and I decided to go first class. The seats are wider, tea, coffee and water are brought to your seat regularly and are free. A newspaper is thrown in too. When your mobility isn't very good, then these benefits are cracking

There was an extra benefit (if the above wasn't enough) that the ticket type, despite being first class, changed. Apparently the First Class Advance tickets have some restrictions. However, the "full fat" tickets also allow you to use the First Class Lounge at Kings Cross. A relaxed, air-conditioned room with free drinks and newspapers. All of the drinks are brought to your seat. This gives the chance to psych yourself up for the London stage of the journey and also the chance to delay your onward travels to just past 9.30am when the cheaper London Travel Cards go on sale. Yep, you guessed it, the tickets that took us between Peterborough and London at both ends of the day were the "full fat" type allowing us to use the First Class lounges. We were even allowed to use the Lounge at Liverpool Street Station.

The London Travel Card was an ordinary, off-peak, ticket that covered us for the central London Zone 1, all the way to Romford in Zone 5. The Travel Card covered us for the overground train between Liverpool Street and Romford station. The buses between Romford station and Queen's Hospital and a little diversion from Liverpool Street station to Tottenham Court Road on the way back.

Saved £200 and got a new railcard. The next journey to hospital in January will mean we can save £225. Not bad for a little bit of clicking and typing.

P.S. A huge thanks to the MSE website for letting me know about the ticket-splitting facility.

Xoco

I booked a single ticket from Penrith to York, travelling in just under a month's time. The initial price was high, so I checked exactly the same journey by splitting the ticket at the station where I'd have to change.

Penrith - York : £42

Penrith - Preston : £6.50
Preston - York : £14

A total saving of £21.50, or 51% of the single ticket fare. Amazing! Thanks a million to this fantastic site for pointing out the huge savings to be made this way.

Xoco

What's more, I've just realised that if I'd been thinking quickly, I could have saved another £2 by splitting the second ticket at another station where I have to change anyway, Manchester Piccadilly. So I could have saved £23.50 or 56% of the single ticket price. Must be more vigilant in future...

Oliashby

Hi guys,

I need to get down to London King's Cross from Chester to get the Eurostar (2pm to Paris- woo!) on the 27th of December. I'm coming back on the 1st but that's probably to Sheffield. I've looked through the boards but can't really find a definitive answer. I've heard all about splitting but not sure where to split. Also I heard that "travelling short" on this route can save money and I reckon although it's banned I could blag it! ;-)

Any ideas would be hugely appreciated, I'm not really a seasoned traveler and am totally baffled by the whole thing. Many thanks in advance,

Oli

richardw

Try Chester-Nuneaton, Nuneaton-Leicester, Leicester-London St Pancras

m1chelle1982

Hi, I neeed to travel from London to Kidderminster preferably on 24th December...any ideas of the cheapest way?

Last year I booked in advance with Virgin and got the tickets for £10 each way, first class, but they don't seem to have similar offers this year :-(

Thanks