How to save on train fares - 2023/4 advice

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page)

1. Buy in advance

2. Split your fare

3. Use a railcard

4. Travel in groups

5. Take advantage of flexible communting

And what would YOU add?  Here are some of mine:

6. Travel off "peak" or super off "peak"

7. Consider other routes that offer lower fares

8. Ask for journey specific help on the Coffee Shop

9. Ask for local advise at your local ticket office

10. [East Coast] look at open access operators such as Lumo, Hull Trains and Grand Central

[rogerpatenall]

Well, sadly, I am saving on fares by travelling only when absolutely necessary, which, these days, is rare. Pre-covid I used to travel London to Castle Cary up to 8 times a year, but the journey is no longer reliable, comfortable nor enjoyable, There used to be quite good deals in first class off peak, but I can't find them now, so I drive down from time to time.

In France also, where I spend much of my time living away from the TGV^▸ (Train a Grande Vitesse) tracks, the (new) trains are also not reliable. A day trip to Paris next week is costing double what we have previously paid, so that will also become a rare treat.

[broadgage]

Sorry to say that I agree. I used to travel regularly between Taunton and Paddington, but now avoid so doing for same reasons as given above.
Unreliable, uncomfortable, effectively no catering, risk of standing for nearly two hours due to the new shorter trains, reservations voided on half length trains and first declassified officially or otherwise.

[Clan Line]

................risk of standing for nearly two hours ..................

May be a better bet than sitting on those so called "seats" !

[ellendune]

................risk of standing for nearly two hours ..................

May be a better bet than sitting on those so called "seats" !

No I have tried it - it definitely isn't!

[Ralph Ayres]

10. [East Coast] look at open access operators such as Lumo, Hull Trains and Grand Central

...but beware Lumo's RyanAir-esque luggage policy, which I think is unique among British rail operators.

[Trowres]

As two of the responses have hinted, there are other options:

11. Use another transport mode;

12. Don't travel.

13. Move to a part of the country where train travel is cheaper.

14. Travel by train in a different country.

I bought a railcard about a year ago. The original purpose (trip) was cancelled and it was only in the final fortnight of the validity that I used it at all (still making a loss). I have made quite a bit of use of options 11,12,13 and 14.

Five reasons come to mind for what might be the lowest annual UK^▸ (United Kingdom) rail travel of my adult life (Covid years excepted):
a) Disappearance of business travel
b) Peak-time fares
c) Quality of offering not sufficient to justify premium pricing
d) Ticketing complexities and problems with online retailing
e) running short of goodwill.

[CyclingSid]

Travel in groups

Needs to be qualified by warning of those operators that don't accept Group Save, e.g. CrossCountry.

Buy in advance

Needs to be qualified that they are only valid on specified trains. Recent experience on South Western on a Saturday suggests that a lot of (unhappy) people do not understand that.

The introduction of the penalty fares regime was accompanied by a poster saying "It has never been easier to buy a ticket" should have been re-worded "It has never been easier to buy the WRONG ticket"