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Original poster

Frigging hell! The price of train tickets to London!!

358 replies

Hellotoallmyfans · 02/09/2021 12:28

Why have train tickets become so expensive? (I don't use public transport usually so not very aware of fluctuating prices)

Every couple of years or so I book for us to go to London as a family (2 adults, 3 dcs) to go see a show and take in some sights - the theatre tickets were £600(!) but I was expecting that as I know that's what it costs for decent seats, ditto the hotel which is £500 for two rooms for one night. But what I wasn't expecting was to then have to pay another £340 on top for train tickets from Manchester to get there! Last time we went, before covid, the train was £90 for a family ticket! There doesn't seem to be any options for family tickets and all the websites I've looked at are showing the same price.

I don't know what I'm looking for here, just having a moan really! Or maybe the name of a secret website that does cheap train tickets? Grin

Everything is so bloody expensive isn't it? I guess I will have to suck it up and pay as I've booked the theatre tickets now which I'm sure will non-refundable. It's just gutting that I am looking at close to a grand just to get there and stay for one night. We could literally have flights/hotel for a week in Europe for that! Not taking into account the theatre tickets and the £££+ we will probably end up spending on food/drink and other attractions (wanted to maybe do a boat ride and some museums).

It's going to be at least £2k+ spent on one night in London! I don't know if it's even worth it? Grrr.

OP posts:
ClareBlue · 04/09/2021 03:08

It's a scandal. Just come back from Italy and did Verona to Bologna (2 hours) for 18 Euro and Bologna to Fano (2 hours) 16 Euro. Buying tickets on the day.
How are these prices into London sustainable?

linsey2581 · 04/09/2021 07:02

@Pigwig10 see my post above to get cheaper tickets x

lap90 · 04/09/2021 08:21

Im shocked at the price you paid for theatre tickets. What on earth are you going to see?

Lounginginmanchester · 04/09/2021 08:41

I'm in manchester. Family of 4 return trip to london is £159.70 on the train with the family railcard. Still expensive but you'll get the cost of the railcard back in one trip Op.

hedgehogger1 · 04/09/2021 08:46

It's appalling that it's cheaper to fly when it's so much worse for the planet. :(

alig99 · 04/09/2021 09:30

Have you looked at flights, they are often cheaper and you can get the tube from the airport. Or look at Coaches. If you have time (at least a month in advance) sites like red spotted handkerchief might be able to reduce cost. Also how about driving down, you could leave your car in the suburbs for free overnight and safely near a train/rube Station and the fare will be a lot less. Also ticket prices are cheaper the later in the day you travel.

OneStepOut · 04/09/2021 10:46

Nobody I know uses trains. We are very happy with coach travel instead. It's not any less comfortable but the price difference is huge.

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 04/09/2021 10:47

@OneStepOut

Nobody I know uses trains. We are very happy with coach travel instead. It's not any less comfortable but the price difference is huge.
Even when the coach trip is 8 hours compared to the rail at 3?
Annoyedanddissapointed · 04/09/2021 10:48

@hedgehogger1

It's appalling that it's cheaper to fly when it's so much worse for the planet. :(
Yup. Take some comfort in the fact that it's not common in Europe though
pollymere · 04/09/2021 11:19

I went to Edinburgh in July and the tickets were around £120. Consider booking singles as they're frequently cheaper and there should be either a family ticket or group ticket discount. It could be all the cheapest options have gone already or you want to travel when it's more expensive.

OneStepOut · 04/09/2021 12:15

Well, yes. Unless you want to pay 10x the price for the shorter journey.

Maximum71 · 04/09/2021 13:42

How about flying to Luton, then training in?

Allinadayswork80 · 04/09/2021 13:52

Totally agree, I’ve wanted to travel with the kids to London from the West Country for a show/sightseeing same as you but have found exactly the same - train tickets are absolutely shocking!

Comedycook · 04/09/2021 14:32

@OneStepOut

Nobody I know uses trains. We are very happy with coach travel instead. It's not any less comfortable but the price difference is huge.
But it seems really sad to me that train travel is now considered a luxury!
onlychildhamster · 04/09/2021 22:50

But it seems really sad to me that train travel is now considered a luxury!

@Comedycook Yes my colleague from india said his first impression of the UK- Never realized that public transport could cost that much! He commuted from Chelmsford to London daily...

Miisty · 05/09/2021 06:54

Got to take son(who had a car accident)to London Yes like you looked at train tickets day return to Crewkerne in Somerset ridiculous price No nearer specialists Coach probably

bellabasset · 05/09/2021 09:15

I live in Cornwall and even with a railcard it's expensive as you can't buy return tickets. My friend's son comes down by coach now

NeverDropYourMooncup · 05/09/2021 09:45

@OneStepOut

Nobody I know uses trains. We are very happy with coach travel instead. It's not any less comfortable but the price difference is huge.
We used the Megabus to come back home once.

First task was to get up the narrow, steep stairs to the seating. Not easy with a walking stick. Then the seats themselves were quite comfortable, if very close together so I couldn't move my legs. No point thinking about a toilet break, as that was back down the narrow stairs. The coach was then caught up in traffic through Exeter, which added another hour on to the journey before we'd even left the county we started in. Then there were other delays, all of which would leave people in random places waiting for their coach for around 2 hours longer than they expected (and not all coach stops had seating, which would leave less physically able people standing around waiting and wondering if it's going to turn up).

We finally arrived at Victoria Coach Station just as the last normal train services to our final destination were leaving. I was in pain, narrowly avoided falling down those narrow, steep stairs and then had to peg it over to the train station to avoid being locked outside in between night train services, which were one an hour.

Whilst it was certainly cheap, I'd say it was also effectively inaccessible for disabled, older and less mobile people. The National Express service wasn't running that day (no idea why, it just wasn't available), but if it had been, it would have been considerably dearer than the Megabus service.

Rail travel to the Southwest is bad enough when you're disabled, but on the whole, it's more accessible than the coach which we tried because of the cost and difficulty where there are cancelled train services and stupid levels of overcrowding and entitled dicks giving their giant suitcases seats. I suppose at least we got seats on the coach when we'd bought them, but I never want to do that again, even if it is cheaper.

We'll just have to use a car.

Bonesy1 · 05/09/2021 10:36

The Manchester/Lindon route is insane, as a single adult I paid £85 day return from Stoke for a 90 minute journey. There are no railcards available for my age range

41sunnydays · 05/09/2021 10:41

We are also a family of 5 and have never paid those kinds of prices for a hotel!

Also recently a friend family of 5 went up over the summer and stayed in a YHA for about £120 for all of them. For a private family room. So that's worth exploring.

We go to london regularly too and use either the family rail ticket or find driving and parking just as cheap as train .

Ted27 · 05/09/2021 10:58

@bellabasset

why do you think you can’t buy return tickets to Cornwall ? I’ve been travelling down to St Erth regularly for over 20 years, I’ve always had a return ticket

Comefromaway · 05/09/2021 12:02

@Bonesy1

The Manchester/Lindon route is insane, as a single adult I paid £85 day return from Stoke for a 90 minute journey. There are no railcards available for my age range
It’s got worse since the cheaper London Midland from Crewe to London stopped stopping atStoke.

It takes a bit longer but what we do is get the West Midlands train from Stoke, then change at Stafford. The average price of a day return is between £43-65

MorganKitten · 05/09/2021 13:35

It’s not just to London, it’s everywhere

Buggersticks · 05/09/2021 13:44

£2k for 1 night in London, fk that! I'd want the Queen to be putting me up at Bucky Pal. Nope. No. Nada. Can get a good week in the Canaries for that.

mydogisthebest · 05/09/2021 16:39

@ouchmyfeet

*Buy the tickets well advance with a Family and Friends Railcard - £30 for a year and gives a third off travel. My daughter, who is 12, usually gets a ticket for £5ish each way, which is so cheap it's funny. For us it's cheaper than getting the bus into town.

Travelodge circa £60 per night per room*.

So much nonsense in that post. The OP lives is Manchester, clearly at £5 per ticket you are much closer. I am also in Manchester and have just paid over £80 return for me and my 10 year old to go to London for the weekend (booked well in advance and with the friends and family railcard).

It's also not £60 a night for a travelodge in London. You are dreaming.

Travelodge at Covent Garden is £34.99 for the night of 17th October. Travelodge Euston is £29 for that same night