"The UK has the most expensive train fares in Europe"

[SpookyFrank]

Trying to get return ticket to Weston Super Mare from Lancaster (for about a week )for me and kid after August 14th with a railcard and not finding any deals at all :-(

Try searching for just the main line bit, presumably Preston to Bristol?

 

[Pickman's model]

Try searching for just the main line bit, presumably Preston to Bristol?

Yeh two singles often cheaper.

 

[T & P]

While that might be the case when you are doing split tickets or the like, 90% of non necessary expensive tickets are a result of people not knowing a few things about walk-up fares. Essentially you just need to know:

1. Travelling after about 9.30am will very often be very significantly cheaper, because you can then get an off peak return.
2. An off peak return is about the same price as a single - so never buy two singles when a return will do the job.

Now you go to National Rail Enquiries, and put in the days/times you want to travel, remembering to tick the 'return' box.

eg:

View attachment 278666

Now, press Go, and in most cases the results will come straight up:


View attachment 278667

There it is, straight away, the off peak return of which I spoke.

For most of the examples in this thread, following the above process will get you what you need, no special tricks. The prior knowledge required is not that advanced.

You are continuing to ignore the fact that I said I couldn’t remember what train station it was. The couple live in Arundel but the wedding was at a town some distance away. The station we needed was £50 per head, and that’s the bottom line of it all. Saving £20 per head to go to Arundel only to piss the savings away on two taxi journeys (not to mention the risk being late) delivers the same overall cost.

Choose not to believe me if you wish, I don’t really care

 

[Saul Goodman]

For ‘your ticket buying incompetence’, everyone else please read ‘anyone who is not a geeky trainspotting wanker'

CFY

 

[8ball]

While that might be the case when you are doing split tickets or the like, 90% of non necessary expensive tickets are a result of people not knowing a few things about walk-up fares. Essentially you just need to know:

1. Travelling after about 9.30am will very often be very significantly cheaper, because you can then get an off peak return.
2. An off peak return is about the same price as a single - so never buy two singles when a return will do the job.

Now you go to National Rail Enquiries, and put in the days/times you want to travel, remembering to tick the 'return' box.

eg:

View attachment 278666

Now, press Go, and in most cases the results will come straight up:


View attachment 278667

There it is, straight away, the off peak return of which I spoke.

For most of the examples in this thread, following the above process will get you what you need, no special tricks. The prior knowledge required is not that advanced.

Ooh - tell us all your secrets, Ticket Fairy!

 

[teuchter]

You are continuing to ignore the fact that I said I couldn’t remember what train station it was. The couple live in Arundel but the wedding was at a town some distance away. The station we needed was £50 per head, and that’s the bottom line of it all. Saving £20 per head to go to Arundel only to piss the savings away on two taxi journeys (not to mention the risk being late) delivers the same overall cost.

Choose not to believe me if you wish, I don’t really care

Changing your story now. First it was "either Arundel or a station in the general area", now it's "the couple live in Arundel but the wedding was at a town some distance away".

You'd have to go somewhere about twice as far from London, for an off peak return to hit £50. And that's at today's prices. You're talking rubbish. It was £50 because you did it wrong.

 

[hash tag]

Yes, honestly, I have bought 2 tickets in advance to Scotland already and am trying to book 2 more. I have my sleeping tickets to Inverness and am now trying to book regular service back from Aberdeen late September. The website we tried said there is a change to timetables between now and return date and tickets not on sale yet. How am I supposed to book early and cheap to achieve this.

Btw. I am trying to upgrade the sleeper tickets. Caledonian say the thing I am after is always booked far in advance as it's very limited and can be cancelled without loss at short notice. Can you let me know if one becomes vacant I ask. No they reply, just keep looking

 

[teuchter]

You are wanting to upgrade to one of the double-bed rooms? There's only one or two on each train. The situation at present is a bit unusual because as they have told you, you can book on the sleeper at "advance" prices with full rights to refund at the last minute. Normally you have to pay full price (ie loads) to get that flexibility. This is to encourage people to travel despite Covid uncertainties and I expect they will stop doing it quite soon.

 

[hash tag]

Sleeper is booked. My issue is trying to book non sleeper returns for end of Feb.

 

[teuchter]

It's because of this

Normally, the timetable for any particular day is confirmed 12 weeks in advance. For a temporary period Network Rail isn’t able to do this, instead confirming timetables approximately 6 weeks in advance. This means that for some routes online journey planners, including National Rail Enquiries, will not be completely accurate until approximately 6 weeks before travel.

Find details of current incidents | National Rail

A portal into UK rail travel, including information on ticket purchase and promotions, train times and delays, and more.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

 

[Riklet]

Teuchter just give it up jesus. If you have to post 2 pages of screenshots dont you think it might be almost like........ itd be too much for most people.

Lol someone finds a single for 23 quid and you gently remind them they could get a return for 95 quid off peak. £47.5 a single... bit of a difference there soldier! 23 quid seems expensive enough as it is to go 2 hours on some uncleaned GWR plague-wagon at the moment.

Fares seem more expensive than ever btw and fewer discounts to boot. Such bullshit.

 

[Dogsauce]

Try searching for just the main line bit, presumably Preston to Bristol?

There’s big engineering works going on at Bristol Temple Meads at the moment, that might be affecting ticket availability. Some cross country services are running via Bath instead then via Westbury to Taunton, skipping Bristol (though still calling at Bristol Parkway). Some trains might not have been fully booked on the system while they work out diversions and timings, so cheap tickets released late. Probably worth splitting ticket to Birmingham, then to Parkway, then local train (possibly bus substitution) to WSM.

 

[teuchter]

‘Ruthless overhaul’ of train fare structure and pricing needed, warns rail expert

Exclusive: Seat61.com founder prescribes radical measures to lure back passengers

www.independent.co.uk

Mark Smith's prescription is about right. The focus is on the fares structure, and single leg pricing as I also said somewhere upthread.

 

[hash tag]

You are wanting to upgrade to one of the double-bed rooms? There's only one or two on each train. The situation at present is a bit unusual because as they have told you, you can book on the sleeper at "advance" prices with full rights to refund at the last minute. Normally you have to pay full price (ie loads) to get that flexibility. This is to encourage people to travel despite Covid uncertainties and I expect they will stop doing it quite soon.

Tickets for end of Sept Aberdeen are now out there.
I looked at train line who advise to set up a ticket alert for the cheapest tickets, which I did. I thought they would be cheaper
if I booked sooner rather than later - turns out this might not be the case.
I have been through the booking process with LNER. I select service, Etc. go a long way through the booking process and then
review tickets before buying only to find out the tickets are not next to each other but behind each other. I then go through the
lengthy process of trying to amend the tickets only to find there are only 2 tickets left on this service - it's just bollox.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

£64.14, I can book you specific seats at no cost


How much is the train and how long does it take?

 

[Saul Goodman]

£64.14, I can boo you specific seats at no cost
View attachment 282520

How much is the train and how long does it take?

It would be fucking outrageous if the train was more than half that price.

 

[hash tag]

Train I'm looking at is more than that

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Train I'm looking at is more than that
View attachment 282521

Looking to book a month and a half in advance and most fares are already unavailable. Piss poor show.

For balance, also 22nd September, also £64.14

 

[hash tag]

We still have to get to St P from the airport as we are booked in for a night there

 

[hash tag]

I have looked 2 or 3 times a day. Have left out preferences. Each time the site shows there are only 2 seats available at this price. Each time, the seats are different to the previous searches and never are the two seats side by side. It's infuriating

 

[teuchter]

I had some similar problems recently with the LNER site. I think the whole system is a bit messed up due to the way they changed it for Covid distancing. I would try emailing them describing the problem you are having.

The reason other services are marked 'not available' is that they aren't LNER direct services (so they don't offer advance fares on them). You can try booking the trip in two legs, one aberdeen to Edinburgh (you might be offered scotrail and crosscountry advance tickets) and one Edinburgh to london and you will have more choices . The plane maniacs will freak out that you'd have to change trains (too complicated for them to deal with) even though they are advocating a trip with at least three legs.

You can also try the trainsplit.com website which will look for split ticket options for you automatically.

 

[teuchter]

Also...you could just buy the two tickets and then in practice it's 99% likely that you will be able to sit together.

 

[hash tag]

I emailed LNER on Friday and filled out the feedback stuff.

 

[hash tag]

The update. I have checked the ticket position on line 2 or 3 times per day and the online system appears up the wall. There has been no reply to my email so I just phoned them. Took 30 minutes to get through and have managed to get required tickets no problem.
Tickets have arrived by email. The tickets are showing a discount we are not entitled to.

 

[Storm Fox]

Also "Any Permitted Route" is a joke. I tried to figure it out.
There is over one thousand page pdf, plus another pdf to reference the first pdf to work out a permitted route.
For example Chandler's Ford in Hampshire to Waterloo, but you have to change (or course), but to keep officially in the Any Permitted Route you have to change at Eastleigh and get a slow train to Waterloo. You cannot change at Southampton Airport Parkway 2 miles down the line to get the fast train. There is a notice at Chandlers Ford saying this.

 

[teuchter]

Also "Any Permitted Route" is a joke. I tried to figure it out.
There is over one thousand page pdf, plus another pdf to reference the first pdf to work out a permitted route.
For example Chandler's Ford in Hampshire to Waterloo, but you have to change (or course), but to keep officially in the Any Permitted Route you have to change at Eastleigh and get a slow train to Waterloo. You cannot change at Southampton Airport Parkway 2 miles down the line to get the fast train. There is a notice at Chandlers Ford saying this.

Permitted route rules are very complicated but if you want to see whether going via a certain station is allowed, add it on the NRE journey planner as a "via" station. If it then offers you one ticket for the whole journey, you know it's ok. If it's not on a permitted route then it'll offer you two tickets.

In your case if you want to get the faster train you need to buy a ticket to SAP and then another one from there to Waterloo.

Nothing to stop you changing onto the fast train at Winchester though, but maybe the timetable means that doesn't get you any advantage.

 

[T & P]

They say there are about 500 million life-supporting planets in this galaxy alone.

Never mind just on Earth, I reckon not a single one of those 500 million planets that might have developed intelligent life and advanced civilisations will have a more laughably expensive and over complicated railway fare set up than this blessed country.

 

[teuchter]

Quite a step up in hyperbole from the thread title.

 

[Saul Goodman]

They say there are about 500 million life-supporting planets in this galaxy alone.

Never mind just on Earth, I reckon not a single one of those 500 million planets that might have developed intelligent life and advanced civilisations will have a more laughably expensive and over complicated railway fare set up than this blessed country.

I wonder if any of them have their own version of teuchter, or is he a unique earth anomaly.

 

[Storm Fox]

So taking a Saturday: Chandlers Ford via Southampton Airport to Waterloo £41 per person. via Eastleigh £25 but so £16 to travel about 2 miles plus about 25 minutes longer.
So if Mrs Fox want to go fabric shopping on Goldhawk road. That £81 to 4hours on a train for £50
Or drive to Shepherds Bush pay £25 for parking come and go as we please and still save money, if not the planet.

Now, Salisbury is the nearest station so I can use the Any Permitted Route to my advantage and get a ticket to Dean and the permitted routes are via Southampton and Salisbury so if one line is blocked I can go the other.