Travel First Class on Virgin Trains for Less than Standard Class (Sometimes)

waterstar

Came across “unusual feature” of online train ticket booking recently on booking trip from London to Manchester return over the “late May bank holiday”.

Basically I wanted to travel outwards on Friday afternoon and back on Tuesday morning. I believe the cheapest tickets (advance purchase) ever available on this route are £12.50 each way, giving total of £25.

On the National Rail website Standard Class tickets for outward leg were showing various prices from £61 upwards, with a return ticket on late Tuesday morning of £12.50 available.

However the “national rail website” had a “headline figure” of “cheapest available return ticket £43”. Despite much scratching of my head I could not “see” the combination of tickets which gave this fare.

Finally I “clicked” on the “headline figure” on the website and “first class fares” then popped up as well. On the same trains as the cheapest “standard class single” was £61 single the cheapest “first class single” was £30.50! Hence the £43 round trip (adding £12.50 for the return journey).

The vagaries of computerised booking systems/yield management systems!

I guess this only occurs on a period of high demand (as for example on Friday afternoon before a bank holiday) and customers typically only want to buy “standard class” tickets. Hence the price of standard class tickets is driven up by demand whilst “first class” tickets remain unsold.

Hope this is useful to some other moneysavers.

BettiePage

Hubby got tickets from http://www.thetrainline.com/default.asp?href=&T2ID=4524_20074281408
for £10 cheaper than national rail (inc postage and they were delivered within 24hrs.Same route, same time. same dates.

wileycat

If they sell out of Virgin Value tickets, the next cheapest are Virgin Vlaue 1st tickets, I get one occasionly!

trubster

The value 1st tickets seem to sell out before the value std's do.