Train Tickets

[Rhyscot]

Heey, probily me and my friends biggest train journey yet alone and was just wondering would we need to book train tickets or can we just buy them on the train. The station isnt that big and i cant see it being to busy. Just unsure whether we are going to turn up and there not be a space or something.

Thanks

[pie_and_a_pint]

Hiya, bloody well done on getting those tickets!! My advice for you is:

1. Buy a Young Person's Railcard - it saves you 1/3 off

2. Have a bit of a look around online and see what the best price is you can get for a ticket - I like thetrainline.com

3. Usually buying on the train or turning up at the station is more expensive, but not always. Could you pop down to the station and ask there how much it would be to Castle Cary and then look online to compare?

4. Be prepared to split your journey up into bits to get a cheaper ticket - e.g. I live in Oxford, and if I want to go to Manchester it is cheaper for me to buy a ticket from Oxford to Wolverhampton and a ticket from Wolverhampton to Manchester than it is to get one ticket from Oxford to Manchester... does that make sense?

5. Do not ever change in London - it costs way more. From places in the north, it's ofetn cheaper to go via Wolverhapmpton than via Birmingham!

[Insomaniac]

For anyone travelling from London it's generally cheaper to get a London - Pewsey and a Pewsey to Castle Cary ticket. You'll be on the same London to Castle Cary train, so don't need to change at Pewsey, but by splitting your journey you'll save a bit of money. I saved about £20 last year by doing this. British rail prices are truly bizarre.

Oh and in answer to your original question. Is there any reason why you don't want to book. Booking in advance will guarantee you a spot on the train and also mean you don't get stuck in a queue at the train station because the automatic ticket machine is not working and the person at the front of the queue is having an argument about why a single train ticket to Newcastle is £173 (as has happened to me before).

Edited June 5, 2009 by Insomaniac

[paulo999]

The easiest option is an Off Peak ticket. The cheapest place to buy that is at the station, because unlike some online services, there's no booking fee.

Buying on the train is variable. Some companies charge hefty premiums.

Buying Advance fares, can be cheaper, but is risky. If you don't make it for the right train on the way home, you could be hit for a much higher fare than if you'd bought an Off Peak, which is flexible about what trains you can get.

[Rhyscot]

Great stuff, thanks for that. I think ill be heading down the station tomoro and booking them !

Say if an Adult ticket was £60 how much would a child ticket be ? Just out of knowledge ? Thanks

[pineapple-tea]

Great stuff, thanks for that. I think ill be heading down the station tomoro and booking them !

Say if an Adult ticket was £60 how much would a child ticket be ? Just out of knowledge ? Thanks

[Rhyscot]

yehh true, and i think i can ! I do it on local journeys to go shopping etc with my mates so i dont think i should have a problem.

[pineapple-tea]

yehh true, and i think i can ! I do it on local journeys to go shopping etc with my mates so i dont think i should have a problem.

[Rhyscot]

Yeeh definatly ! I think its hard to destinguish the ages when a 16 year old and 15 year old stand next to each other ! So they cant prove anything !

[verrymerry]

While we're on trains I have a YP (young persons) single from Euston > Manchester Piccadilly on Monday at 29th June (the day Glasto ends) at 9pm which I don't need if anyone wants it? I don't want the money for it as its only going to get binned

[Vectrex]

Best to book ahead. As train journeys paid for on the day can be astronomically expensive. And you've probably left it a little too late now to get the VERY cheapest available advance tickets. Did you book the tickets then? If so, what was the cost? Thing is if you book at booking offices they are unlikely to give you the very cheapest available tickets. Because they'll give you say the cheapest available Shrewsbury-Castle Cary tickets, whereas it could be cheaper to get a combination of return tickets such as Shrewsbury-Birmingham and Birmingham-Castle Cary returns. Getting journeys cheaper via this "hidden" technique is not what train booking offices or train booking websites like to tell you.

If you do experiments on online train booking websites you can discover from the comfort of your PC chair ways of getting the cheapest available fares. Also avoid websites such as Thetrainline and Qjump as they charge booking fees. Use train company websites such as Firstgreatwestern(for journeys anywhere in the UK) as they don't charge any booking fees.

[llcoolphil]

I still get asked for ID when buying 15 games

[Phil-itfc]

worth checking online for vouchers to get money off young persons railcards. i know every so often there are voucher codes floating about.

[Rhyscot]

We've been and spoke to a woman at the train station and she claims it makes no difference if you buy it on the day or book it now, we chose not to listen to her and bought the tickets on that day. They were £29 each for two "under 16" tickets, because we're both "under 16"

[paulo999]

Best to book ahead. As train journeys paid for on the day can be astronomically expensive. And you've probably left it a little too late now to get the VERY cheapest available advance tickets. Did you book the tickets then? If so, what was the cost? Thing is if you book at booking offices they are unlikely to give you the very cheapest available tickets. Because they'll give you say the cheapest available Shrewsbury-Castle Cary tickets, whereas it could be cheaper to get a combination of return tickets such as Shrewsbury-Birmingham and Birmingham-Castle Cary returns. Getting journeys cheaper via this "hidden" technique is not what train booking offices or train booking websites like to tell you.

If you do experiments on online train booking websites you can discover from the comfort of your PC chair ways of getting the cheapest available fares. Also avoid websites such as Thetrainline and Qjump as they charge booking fees. Use train company websites such as Firstgreatwestern(for journeys anywhere in the UK) as they don't charge any booking fees.

[orangemoonbeam]

Ello all.

I'm getting a lift to the site on wednesday with some mates but am travelling back on the train on my own on monday- my question is, can i buy a ticket in advance if i dont have a clue what time train i'll be on? Is it a nightmare trying to buy train tickets on the monday?

[Al the CAT]

Ello all.

I'm getting a lift to the site on wednesday with some mates but am travelling back on the train on my own on monday- my question is, can i buy a ticket in advance if i dont have a clue what time train i'll be on? Is it a nightmare trying to buy train tickets on the monday?

Edited June 8, 2009 by Al the CAT

[orangemoonbeam]

Cheers!