national rail

[emmie]

does anyone else get confused when looking for travel information, and particularly rail fares. There are standard fares, first class, off peak, and so forth, but with different companies it can be different prices, and i honestly find it hard to navigate, and more importantly to get the best deal. Having a day out, say on the spur of the moment just seems to cost more.

[emmie]

perhaps you all drive, oh hum

[buildersmate]

Agree it can be confusing.
I've had some success using a website called 'the train line' for advance purchases.
Having a day out on the spur of the moment is typically going to cost more than an advance purchase.
One has to navigate through the definitions of when 'peak times' are, and these vary according to the train operator and route.

[China Doll]

I don't find it difficult at all but then I am very used to it. I also know what peak hours are because I mainly travel in the them unfortunately :-/ I think it's just something you get used to the more you do it. I do think the tickets are very over priced though and it's better to plan very far ahead so you can get the best deals which does rather rule out spur of the moment type things.

[emmie]

it's just that anything you might want to do as said on the spur of the moment is virtually out of the question, and i agree tickets are well overpriced.

[MarkRae]

I use this: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ - click the "Cheapest fare finder" button...

[emmie]

markrae, have looked at that too, thanks anyways.

[dzug2]

It can be hard to navigate, yes - but many people try to overcomplicate it.

There's not a lot of point going from site to site looking for a cheaper price for the same journey - they all sell exactly the same tickets at exactly the same price. The only exception is that a few companies discount some journeys on their own trains. And some (notably thetrainline - avoid) charge fees on top of of the fare

Some of the sites are set up to give you the fastest journeys rather than the cheapest - but these will have an option to show slower cheaper journeys.

And the rest is down to knowing the rail system with its quirks and anomalies - they are always going to exist in any system

[gingejbee]

It's always been true that the longer ahead you buy tickets, the cheaper- so spur-of-the-moment travel is always going to be a shock. If it is on-a-whim travel, it needs to be off-peak.

[emmie]

no wonder the fares just go up and up, if more people take to the road, and stop using the train, because of the high cost of rail travel, take the family out and you are considerably out of pocket.

[buildersmate]

Dzug
Any observations on discount websites that don't charge (or charge less) fees on top?
(Sorry to hijack the thread)

[dzug2]

There really aren't any 'discount' web sites - they are all selling the same tickets. The discount they shout about is available everywhere, not just through them.

thetrainline, raileasy charge booking and/or delivery fees. Most of the train companies don't. Redspottedhanky doesn't. There's some more obscure ones that I've never bothered looking at that I assume do but may not.

And your local station doesn't charge any fees - same prices.

[China Doll]

Yes builder... don't use them unless you know the journey very well! I used one to book my train to Sleaford to see my sister and new born nephew: I got on the slowest, grimmest train which stopped at just about every station we passed and then broke down for ten minutes or so about two stops before Grantham (where I was changing) causing me to miss my connecting train to Sleaford and there wasn't another train for just under an hour. What should have been a full day spent with my sister and nephew turned in to about 2 hours at best, I was very disappointed, especially when I found out that most of the trains going to the big cities up north stop at Grantham the same way trains from Waterloo stop at Clapham Junction!

[emmie]

china doll, that is my experience of using the rail service, expensive, unreliable, and so often stops at every station, consequently missing connections. I wouldn't do it unless i sometime need to.

[China Doll]

My experience is generally very overcrowded trains, delays and last minute cancellations... but I travel in rush hour every morning in to central london. Generally me experience in travelling outside of London (Reading, Plymouth, Penzance, Lake District) and not in rush hour has been very good.

[emmie]

China, not so much asking your personal details, but seeing as we are in the city, which part do you work, do you have a long commute.

[China Doll]

Very central, I commute to Charring Cross daily and only go a few stops further in. I come in from south east london and subject to the trains the journey is actually only 20 mins to Charring Cross and then another ten minutes on the tube.

[jno]

it can be worth signing up for emails from the train operators, so they notify you of special deals, which can be useful for those spur-of-the-moment trips

[dave1948]

Despite what people may say on here it is not cut and dried with train prices. last year I needed to travel back north from Cambridge on a Saturday. I looked at tickets well in advance and when they became available different train companies were changing up 230% for the same journey.

It does pay to look around and (if you can) when advanced tickets become available spend half an hour comparing prices before you buy. Also if it is a long journey look at buying split tickets .

I really am amazed that the same journey on our railways can still cost so different prices according to when and with whom you do the journey

[Messi_Ten]

The trainlinecom are NOT good for any purchases. Like a few others, they're ticket agencies charging fees and have no connection wth the rail industry. Always use the train operating companies for the best deals and accurate information.