How do you get cheap train tickets?

[Paulie Tandoori]

Can't be used/known about very much then as i regularly get on a return train at a later station than the one on my ticket when travelling to Cornwall as i've had to take my kids back to their ma's first which is up t'north end, whereas my p'n'm are down t'south. Never had a problem at all.

 

[revol68]

no. Jesus, it's not complicated.

if you get on the train ON THE RETURN JOURNEY later than the stop you're supposed to get on at, and they notice, they can throw you off.

how? Your ticket allows you travel on that line between certain stations, no?
How can they throw you off for just getting on at a later station, as if they are going to call the cops?

 

[Dubversion]

how? Your ticket allows you travel on that line between certain stations, no?
How can they throw you off for just getting on at a later station, as if they are going to call the cops?

They can do this. I've already pointed out that it sounds like bollocks, are you asking me to justify it on behalf of the rail companies?

 

[dolly's gal]

i don't understand this travelling short business? and it's making my head hurt trying to!

anyway, we got so fucked off with splashing out on extortionate rail fares, we bought a car. and i'm sorry if that makes us cunts, but we couldn't afford it the other way round.

and in answer to the op, often it’s a lot cheaper if you buy two singles as opposed to a return fare.

 

[zenie]

i don't understand this travelling short business? and it's making my head hurt trying to!

anyway, we got so fucked off with splashing out on extortionate rail fares, we bought a car. and i'm sorry if that makes us cunts, but we couldn't afford it the other way round.

and in answer to the op, often it’s a lot cheaper if you buy two singles as opposed to a return fare.

Yeh it's so bloody difficult to try and find the chep fares and I'm not paying 60 quid for a train that would only cost me 30 in petrol!!

I thought trains were meant to be cheaper

 

[trashpony]

I thought trains were meant to be cheaper

Where the bloody hell did you get that idea from?

 

[tastebud]

the thread of my day

yeah, i travel loads with work & end up spending a bloody fucking fortune on fucking rail fares! today around six hundred quid, for example. it makes me swear so bloody much on a daily basis. we're a small charity & can't afford hundreds of £s every time we have to go somewhere. i mean, surely a month in advance should make a difference. but no.

cunts.

 

[janeb]

However, as in general I think this 'scam' is most likely to work when travelling between a big station and a smaller one that is close to a big one (London to Durham perhaps?) you'd probably be unlikely to encounter ticket inspectors on the platform or station exits.

Actually, hate to be a pedant and I know this is only an example, but there often is a ticket inspector at the way onto or off the platform at Durham.

Reckon it's becuase of the proximity to Newcastle and loads of people will board at Newcastle and not get tickets if going to Durham (or the other way around) because the trips only 10/15 mins and you often don't get checked on the train.

 

[zenie]

Where the bloody hell did you get that idea from?

LOL You're not helping

 

[dolly's gal]

yeah, i travel loads with work & end up spending a bloody fucking fortune on fucking rail fares! today around six hundred quid, for example. it makes me swear so bloody much on a daily basis. we're a small charity & can't afford hundreds of £s every time we have to go somewhere. i mean, surely a month in advance should make a difference. but no.

cunts.

have you signed up to virgin charity line? it's not great for all fares, but for some peak-time travel you get decent prices.

 

[tastebud]

have you signed up to virgin charity line? it's not great for all fares, but for some peak-time travel you get decent prices.

cool, thanks a lot dolly. i'm gonna forward this to everyone.

 

[Relahni]

I reck the best idea is to bunk the train.

It used to be a hobby of mine. Unfortunately, those days are sadly gone as my other half isn't that keen on bunking trains.

A good trick of mine was to walk briskly past the inspector when he was checking a ticket - giving him no opportunity to stop or recognise you etc. Pretend you are going to consume something from their shitty shop - then sit down in a seat that the hapless inspector thinks he's already checked.

The only time it sort of didn't work was when the inspector came back and asked me if he'd seen my ticket - I said yes and flashed an out of date ticket - he fucked off!

bunking trains is

 

[Fuzzy]

my g/f has been travelling from coventry to truro a lot lately. if she got one ticket covering all her changes from coventry to brum, brum to plymouth and plymouth to truro it would cost her about 70 return. by buying a single ticket between cov to brum, a single from brum to chetlenham, another single from cheltenham to truro it comes out about 30 quid. she buys all her tickets on line and picks them at the station. she stays on the same train as if she had bought the one set of tickets even though in effect she is using three single tickets for different components of the journey.

 

[trashpony]

my g/f has been travelling from coventry to truro a lot lately. if she got one ticket covering all her changes from coventry to brum, brum to plymouth and plymouth to truro it would cost her about 70 return. by buying a single ticket between cov to brum, a single from brum to chetlenham, another single from cheltenham to truro it comes out about 30 quid. she buys all her tickets on line and picks them at the station. she stays on the same train as if she had bought the one set of tickets even though in effect she is using three single tickets for different components of the journey.

So when the ticket inspector comes round, does she hand the stack to him like a deck of cards?

That is fucking ridiculous.

 

[dolly's gal]

So when the ticket inspector comes round, does she hand the stack to him like a deck of cards?

That is fucking ridiculous.

well yes, and they bank on people not being arsed to work all of this out.

 

[zenie]

my g/f has been travelling from coventry to truro a lot lately. if she got one ticket covering all her changes from coventry to brum, brum to plymouth and plymouth to truro it would cost her about 70 return. by buying a single ticket between cov to brum, a single from brum to chetlenham, another single from cheltenham to truro it comes out about 30 quid. she buys all her tickets on line and picks them at the station. she stays on the same train as if she had bought the one set of tickets even though in effect she is using three single tickets for different components of the journey.

How does she know this will work out cheaper it must take her ages to work out?

 

[teuchter]

I'll probably get shit for this but.

Pie Face and I are going to Glasgow for Easter.

We wanted to go by train, for the obvious eco-reasons.

After searching for tickets for ages - and quite a long way in advance - the cheapest we found were more than £200.

We got flights - all in - for £25 each.

Fucking ludicruous

That doesn't sound right. The standard walk-up saver return to Glasgow is round about 95 quid, isn't it? Where did you get the £200 figure from? Were you trying to go first class on a peak-hour train or something?

And it's worth mentioning that you have to add on the costs of getting to and from the airports at each end to that £25.

Personally, I think the whole notion of taking flights within the UK is outrageous and pretty much indefensible for anything other than emergencies. To glasgow, it barely saves you any time centre to centre, even if the plane arrives on time which seems to rare with the budget airlines.

 

[teuchter]

my g/f has been travelling from coventry to truro a lot lately. if she got one ticket covering all her changes from coventry to brum, brum to plymouth and plymouth to truro it would cost her about 70 return. by buying a single ticket between cov to brum, a single from brum to chetlenham, another single from cheltenham to truro it comes out about 30 quid. she buys all her tickets on line and picks them at the station. she stays on the same train as if she had bought the one set of tickets even though in effect she is using three single tickets for different components of the journey.

I do this kind of thing from time to time.

There's a kind of pleasure to be gained from the fact that the mildly anoraky amongst us can gain an edge on the rest of the population by fiddling about on train operators' websites.

But really, it's pretty pathetic that this is the way things work these days. It only serves to discourage people from using public transport.

 

[Orang Utan]

Let me start by saying this only counts for GNER, though I'm sure this applies to the others. What you find online is invariably different from what you may hear if you phone them up. Online, there are fares that range from £20 to £280 from London to Leeds. You are unlikely to get any fares at the lower price online unless you have lots of patience. The best thing is to call them up a couple of days before you travel and ask them what the cheapest way to travel to your destination is (and back if you need). They have to tell you, and in my experience they are happy to (it's only the managers who want to rip you off). I've got £20 return tickets to Leeds from London recently doing this. My sister has managed to secure 1st class tickets for £30. So take your chances!

 

[Orang Utan]

oh yeah, and it's usually for singles each way of course, not returns. And if you are organised enough to do it a month in advance, you might as well.

 

[teuchter]

oh yeah, and it's usually for singles each way of course, not returns. And if you are organised enough to do it a month in advance, you might as well.

Yup. and if you're using thetrainline.com it only shows you return tickets to start with - you have to click through to see the single fares which often work out cheaper if you're buying in advance.

 

[Fuzzy]

So when the ticket inspector comes round, does she hand the stack to him like a deck of cards?

That is fucking ridiculous.

no just the ticket that is valid for the particular part of the journey she is on. not exactly a hardship if you're saving yourself 40 quid is it?

 

[Fuzzy]

How does she know this will work out cheaper it must take her ages to work out?

she's did spend a bit of time trying different combinations and now she's found a price she is happy to pay for three different journey's she just uses the same one. again not exactly a hardship if you're saving yourself 40 quid every journey you make.

 

[trashpony]

no just the ticket that is valid for the particular part of the journey she is on. not exactly a hardship if you're saving yourself 40 quid is it?

No.

I meant that it was fucking ridiculous that it costs less than half if you do lots of little journeys - it's just a rubbish system with bugger all transparency which makes me a bit cross

 

[Fuzzy]

No.

I meant that it was fucking ridiculous that it costs less than half if you do lots of little journeys - it's just a rubbish system with bugger all transparency which makes me a bit cross

indeed. but before we get a revolution in public transport we'll just have to continue to faff around doing things like this to save us money. i agree it is ridiculous and its more than likely that in time the train companies will get switched on to it and try and put a stop to it.

i wonder what it would take to get an effective and reasonably priced public transport system. sorry that is a bit of an open ended question.

 

[trashpony]

indeed. but before we get a revolution in public transport we'll just have to continue to faff around doing things like this to save us money. i agree it is ridiculous and its more than likely that in time the train companies will get switched on to it and try and put a stop to it.

i wonder what it would take to get an effective and reasonably priced public transport system. sorry that is a bit of an open ended question.

 

[Fuzzy]

it is unlikely isnt it? I wonder whether you could start again.

 

[quimcunx]

certainly I remember a friend of mine used to travel from Dundee to Perth on the Aberdeen to Glasgow train, lay out his half drunk can, his half-read newspaper, look as if he was sleeping and rarely have to pay the fare.

When I first moved down here I used to try and get the £49 apex return ticket to Dundee each christmas. I managed it the first time but never again. I would phone in November to say they'd be released on 1st december then when I phoned back they'd all be gone. I gave up and just travelled when I wanted on an open return and stop off in Glasgow or Edinburgh, or York on the way home.

 

[Guineveretoo]

Is there a date in which they are released and then all bought up or what?

How to find cheap fares, by a self proclaimed expert.

All the answers you need

 

[EastEnder]

apparently 'travelling short' is now against the rules, which is fucking ludicrous.

I can "sort of" understand their justification. The restrictions only apply to the cheapest tickets, usually the sort bought in advance where you specify your exact starting & destination stations. If you rock up at the station on the day and buy a full price ticket, you can get off wherever you like. They could, justifiably, argue that part of what the full price ticket buys you is flexibility - no different to buying a cheapy plane ticket compared to an expensive one.

IMHO, the real problem isn't with the overtly strict T&Cs of the cheap tickets, it's with the fact that the cheap tickets aren't actually very cheap, and the expensive ones are daylight robbery. If the prices, across the board, were much more reasonable, people won't have to try so hard to find ways of travelling economically.