Questions for friends in England and Wales:For train and coach tickets, is thetrainline.com good?
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@cybervegan @dillyd Just to be explicit, I think the concensus here is that any third party "booking service" will charge you more, and that probably includes thetrainline.com.
Booking direct from either nationalrail or the individual rail companies will not incur booking fees, so will always be cheaper.
If you want flexibility on the day, you can't beat a standard saver return or off-peak return. These are sometimes a good idea for shorter journeys, but very expensive for longer distance.
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Questions for friends in England and Wales:
For train and coach tickets, is thetrainline.com good?
Also, should we book tickets in advance or can you just show up and travel last minute?@dillyd
looks like you already got most of the answers. If you're eligible on grounds of age or travelling with a friend look at getting a railcard - you can save the initial cost on one journey.
And on trains don't forget to look at first class - sometimes the price difference is quite small and you get free snacks and drinks as well as more space. -
@dillyd
Trainline charges fees on top of rail fares. Rail tickets are available without fees from any of the operators apps - all apps sell tickets for all* rail operators.
LNER and Cross-country are the two I use.You may know this but - Advance Tickets are cheaper but tie you strictly to specific trains and there are harsh penalties for not taking the train you have bought the tickets for.
Anytime tickets (including off peak) are flexible and more expensive, sometimes much more expensive.Reservations are not generally required, but can be useful and are normally free.
All rail travel is expensive in Britain compared to the European mainland.
Consider a Eurail Pass or Britrail ticket.I can't speak for coach travel - but it's stitched up between Flixbus & National Express
*The pointless & expensive Heathrow Express is an exception to everything.
There are a couple of private companies - Lumo and Grand Central that have different fare structures and require reservations@dillyd
Seat61 has a guide to British rail travel
A beginner's guide to train travel in Britain
A beginner's guide to train travel in Britain, explaining fare types, railcards, rail rovers, BritRail passes and the best way to buy tickets.
(www.seat61.com)
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@dillyd
Trainline charges fees on top of rail fares. Rail tickets are available without fees from any of the operators apps - all apps sell tickets for all* rail operators.
LNER and Cross-country are the two I use.You may know this but - Advance Tickets are cheaper but tie you strictly to specific trains and there are harsh penalties for not taking the train you have bought the tickets for.
Anytime tickets (including off peak) are flexible and more expensive, sometimes much more expensive.Reservations are not generally required, but can be useful and are normally free.
All rail travel is expensive in Britain compared to the European mainland.
Consider a Eurail Pass or Britrail ticket.I can't speak for coach travel - but it's stitched up between Flixbus & National Express
*The pointless & expensive Heathrow Express is an exception to everything.
There are a couple of private companies - Lumo and Grand Central that have different fare structures and require reservations@MikeFromLFE @dillyd yes - I have NEVER chosen to use the Heathrow Express. Unless you really need to be in Paddington, then the tube from Heathrow into London will probably only take an extra 15 mins and save a packet.
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