What sort of ticket do you need?

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Another one,

If you live within Devon and Cornwall, and travel predominantly between stations in the 2 counties, a Devon and Cornwall railcard will save you money.


(It currently costs ^10, I saved in the region of ^100 last year)

I will probably add something about other area cards, but to my knowledge (bearing in mind this is to be 'exampled' on TransWilts)  there are no such Wiltshire Railcards.    There was a Westbury to Weymouth experiment with senior bus passes - is that still running?

[Lee]

I picked up a leaflet on the Westbury-Weymouth bus pass discount recently (TWSW^» (TravelWatch SouthWest - website) day) so I assume yes. 34% off Standard off-peak and anytime single and return tickets, 0930-2300 Mon-Fri, all day weekend's and public holidays. Journeys must start within these times.

Also available between Swindon-Worcester Foregate Street via Stroud.

Travel available with all TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) on the routes concerned.

[brooklea]

And applies to disabled as well as senior bus passes.

[Cynthia]

I've been writing an "intelligent newcomer's guide" to finding the right fare - basically to help bewildered newcomers.  What have I missed?   What have I got wrong?   What have I over explained?  Examples, most of which will be TransWilts based, to follow in the full guide.

The most expensive ticket on which to make a train journey is likely to be ...

Any time
Any permitted route
Adult
With no railcard or concession
First Class
Single
For one person
Booked online by credit card and delivered by priority post

But you can probably make some big savings ^ let's look at each of those it turn.  Not all options apply in all cases, and the terms and conditions are just summarised here for your initial guidance.  Some options / concessions work together,  but with others you need to choose which is best for you.

Any time
* Anytime tickets let you travel at any time of day, but
* Offpeak tickets let you travel outside the rush hour, and any time at weekends
* Super Offpeak tickets let you travel at quieter times
* Advance tickets are bought the day before travel or earlier and for the train at a specific time
* Megatrain tickets on some routes are similar to Advance tickets

Any permitted route
* The "routing guide" defines the limits of "any permitted" and it can be quite flexible, but
* Tickets sold as ^via xxxxx^ or ^not via xxxxx^ may cost less
* Tickets sold as ^Particular train company only^ may cost less

Adult
* You can travel on an adult ticket at any age, but
* If you are aged 60 or over, a ^Senior Railcard^ may get you a lower fare
* If you are aged 55 or over, a ^Club 55^ promotion may be running and offer a lower fare
* If you are aged 16 to 25, a ^Young Person's Railcard^  may get you a lower fare
* If you are aged 5 to 15, you can travel on a child's ticket, usually at half price
* If you are aged under 5 (and reading this ^ you are very clever!) you can travel free with an adult

No railcard or concession
* You don't need a railcard or concession of any sort to travel, but
* If you are a member of HM forces, you can get reductions with a railcard
* If you are disabled, you can get reductions with a railcard
* If you are travelling in the South East, you can get reductions with a Network SE railcard
* If you are a visitor from outside the UK^▸ (United Kingdom), you can buy BritRail tickets before you travel
* If you are a railway employee and / or family, you may get a concession on your travel
* If you are a railway employee at work (e.g. driving the train) you don't need a ticket
* If you are accompanying a visitor from outside the UK, you can get a residents Britrail pass
* If you are travelling to London for an international train or ferry connection, look at London CIV^▸ (International Convention for the transportation of Passengers)

First Class
* You can travel anywhere in the passenger area of a train with a First Class ticket, but
* If you travel standard class, closer seating & less extras included, it is usually cheaper
* Even with a First Class ticket, you can't travel on a special charter train

Single
* Tickets from "A" to "B" are available for almost all journeys in the United Kingdom, but
* If you buy a period return, it will cost less than two singles
* If you buy a day return, it will cost less that two singles (better discount than a period return too)
* If you are making multiple journeys on the same route, you can buy a season ticket
* If you are making multiple journeys in an area, look at Ranger, Rover and Freedom tickets
* If you are making multiple journeys and don't live in the UK, look at Britrail and Interrail passes

for one person
* Each person may buy their own ticket individually, but
* If you are in a group of three or more, look at ^Groupsave^ tickets
* If you are travelling with children, consider a ^Friends and family^ railcard
* If you are travelling with a friend, take a look at a ^two together^ railcard

booked online by credit card
* You can purchase online and get your tickets delivered to you, but
* Some online ticket sales companies charge credit card fees and others don't
* Some online ticket sales companies charge postage / deliveries and others don't
* Some Train Operating Companies give a web discount on some tickets
* If you buy online, you can pick up your tickets at a ticket vending machine (TVM^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine))
* You will not be charged a credit card or delivery fee if you buy at the station / an agent
* You can also buy on the train if you join at a station where you cannot buy tickets

There are other ways to save too, for example
* If no day return is offered for your whole journey, you may find it cheaper to buy a day return to an intermediate station at which the train stops, then a day return from there to your destination. This can also help at the ^shoulder^ of peak and offpeak.
* If you are going for a few days, but no period return is offered, you may find it cheaper to but a period return to a destination station slightly further along the route
* If you have a trip that involves going to several destinations, you may be able to buy a ticket to the most distant and break your journey, rather than buying separate tickets.
* If something goes badly wrong and you are seriously delayed, you may be able to claim some of your fare back ^ usually in travel vouchers

And some useful add-ons too:

* You can add a sleeping berth on overnight services from London to Scotland / the South West
* You can add a travelcard for underground and buses to your ticket to London
* You can add entry to a tourist attraction
* You can add your ferry ticket to Ireland, Northern Ireland or Holland
* You can add a local bus journey in many towns
* You can add ^weekend first^ at weekends to upgrade to First Class

Everything mentioned above is legitimate provided that you stick to the terms and conditions of each pass and tickets that you use.  Good advise if offered on this forum, and I have tried to be accurate in this post, but I have had to simplify in places. It is your responsibility to check. Please remember that ticket conditions and options are complex, and that for some requests staff may not offer you the lowest price.

If you don't buy a ticket before you travel, when there's an opportunity at the station, or you travel on an incorrect ticket or do not adhere to the terms, you may be asked to pay the full single fare, you may be asked to pay a penalty fare, and you may be prosecuted.

What a mine of information this site is!  I'm sure if I wanted to find a train (and appropriate fare) for a journey to a Beltaine Festival on a full moon with Sagittarius ascending, (when the cider apple fairies are performing their blossom dance) grahame would be able to  sort it for me!  Speaking of celebrating the coming of spring I have today ordered my Wrinkly's Railcard!  Oh, big deal, I hear you say.  Well, perhaps it is, for a self-confessed petrol-headed ex-rallydriving motorphile. 

[Cynthia]

My Senior Railcard has just come through the letter box; crikey, that was quick, I only ordered it yesterday!  Hope the trains on which I'm planning to travel are as prompt! 

[LiskeardRich]

My Senior Railcard has just come through the letter box; crikey, that was quick, I only ordered it yesterday!  Hope the trains on which I'm planning to travel are as prompt! 

I hope they are more prompt, we don't want them arriving the next day! 

[bobm]

My Senior Railcard has just come through the letter box; crikey, that was quick, I only ordered it yesterday!  Hope the trains on which I'm planning to travel are as prompt! 

I hope they are more prompt, we don't want them arriving the next day! 

Oh I don't know - I miss the sleeper trains... 

[Cynthia]

Changing the subject slightly, but still within the bounds of this thread I think; what sort of ticket do I need? - at the moment, preferably a cheap one!  I logged onto FGW^▸ (First Great Western)'s site to explore my options for a quick outing on Monday, with which to Christen my new Railcard, and was horrified to see that it would cost me ^25.40 for an off-peak return to Newbury, compared to ^4.45 to Swindon or only ^9.65 to Oxford.  Why???  The possible time I'd chosen to travel would take me to Reading on a nice little circuitous route, although I noticed the Melksham-Westbury-Newbury option was the same price.  I asked one of the guys on the 'Live Chat' page why the fare was so expensive, which evoked a non-committal 'I couldn't possibly comment' type response. Oh well, as time is of the essence in my pre-op rusharound phase, I think I'll just trundle down to Trowbridge  for a couple of hours instead.  ^2 something-or-other; can't be bad!

[bobm]

If after, your trip to Trowbridge, you wished to continue to Newbury rather than go back to Melksham you can buy an Off Peak Day Return from Trowbridge to Newbury with with your railcard for ^10.55.  There are some direct trains from Westbury or you can double back via Reading.

[Cynthia]

If after, your trip to Trowbridge, you wished to continue to Newbury rather than go back to Melksham you can buy an Off Peak Day Return from Trowbridge to Newbury with with your railcard for ^10.55.  There are some direct trains from Westbury or you can double back via Reading.

Ok, thanks for that bobm, I will think about that possibility, but I am totally confused as to why it should only cost ^10.55 from Trowbridge to Newbury rather than the ^25 -odd from Melksham.  Was the fare structure as complicated prior to privatisation, I ask myself?

[grahame]

Ok, thanks for that bobm, I will think about that possibility, but I am totally confused as to why it should only cost ^10.55 from Trowbridge to Newbury rather than the ^25 -odd from Melksham.  Was the fare structure as complicated prior to privatisation, I ask myself?

There are some dramatic differences between Melksham and Trowbridge fares when heading south via Westbury.  Some reasons:
a) You may be at the boundry of DAY return and PERIOD return
b) There may be a "via xxx" ticket from Trowbridge but not from Melksham
c) The fare setter may be SWT^▸ (South West Trains) from Trowbridge and FGW^▸ (First Great Western) from Melksham
d) The fare from Melksham may also be the Chippenham fare and date back to the 1966 - 1985 period when there was no service via Melksham to speak of.

Combine multiple reasons here and the results can be huge:
Trowbridge to Farnborough Main 22.90 superoffpeak return, 28.60 anytime return.
Melksham to Farnborough Main 38.50 off-peak return, 118.00 anytime return.
Look closer though, and you'll see the Melksham fares are period returns and the Trowbridge are day returns.
Again look closer, and you'll see the Trowbridge fares are via Salisbury, but no such restriction on the Melksham tickets.

You may also find cases where Melksham fares are much better value for your journey than Trowbridge ones.  You can take a day trip to Oxford on a Saturday or Sunday from Melksham for 14.60, but a ticket from Trowbridge costs 33.00 ... all fares quoted are adult, without railcard. Again - "day return" v "period return" and "Chippenha group" v "Westbury group".

[Cynthia]

Oooh, my head hurts.......