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

[Hellotoallmyfans]

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?

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.

It's not just London. DH and I are up North - we were looking at going to an attraction about 35 miles away by train. We'd been previously by car and the parking was quite expensive - £12 for the day. I looked at train tickets and it was over £20 each for an adult day return ( we don't qualify for any discounts/rail cards). Even an advance ticket would have been £14 each.

I prefer to use public transport for environmental reasons, but the rail network is pricing itself out of the market.

Agree with others re railcard. Trainline also now do an automatic ticket split option - where you get multiple tickets for the same trip - that cuts costs. Last long distance train we took (with two together railcard and ticket splitting) was £40 for a return for two for a long weekend - so not travelling at particularly odd/unpopular times.

Have you also looked into premier inn hub hotels? They are around £70 a night in central London and have all the same amenities as premier inns but in more compact rooms. The perk is that they’re all quite new, so less hit and miss than normal premier inns that can be quite dated. We’ve stayed in them a few times and never had issues.

With a railcard you will be under £180ish

You're not wrong, train prices are surprising. I looked at Edinburgh/Birmingham and fancied treating myself to first class because I'm booking weeks in advance and so thought it would be not too expensive. £340 return!! And the standard fare was £179 return. Got a flight for £72 instead.

Tell me the dates!

No, you only need one family and friends railcard which is £30 for a year and covers two adults and up to six children.

@SquirryTheSquirrel - you and your DH should be qualified for a two together card.

You only need one Family and friends card.

I would honestly check flights🤷🏻 youight score some cheap man to lon ones

I'm going to look at all these options, thanks so much everyone! I already looked at redspottyhankie and the price was the same but il look into getting a family railcard.

I live in London and the price of train tickets from there to York is beyond awful.

Pre-covid we did these trips 2-3 times a year.

You can have two adults named on the railcard and it covers up to 3 children.

We usually stay in Premier Inn. The St Pancras one is lovely and we have also stayed at Kensington Earls Court many times. I wasn't so much for Euston.

I would disagree on theatre seats. If you have vertigo like my dh or are too far back you can miss a lot. I never buy top price but check out reviews and photos on Seat Planner and theatremonkey.

What dates are you looking at?

We went 2 weeks ago and drove as the train was so expensive.
Parked in Q Park in Chinatown,fabulous location right by Leicester Square was £104 for a day and a half.
Would definitely use this carpark again, right beside the premier inn we stayed in.

Getting a store club card takes a couple of minutes and can almost always be done online at this point. Fair enough if you don’t want to share your information for a discount, but the effort barrier is practically non-existent.

I gave up with spottedhanky years ago despite having used them for many years before that. Splitticketing.com is much better

@Hellotoallmyfans
secure.railcard.co.uk/purchase/family-and-friends?opref=buynow&_ga=2.141284658.129537603.1630583344-240740997.1630583344

1/3 off rail fares for up to 4 adults and 60% off for up to 4 kids between 5 and 15
Two adults can be named on one card, so when one cardholder isn’t using it, the other can
The Railcard costs just £30, so after a couple of trips, the card will have paid for itself
Over a year, you could save an average of £114

Not too sure about this as DH bought our railcard so other posters can correct me, but I think you only need 1 railcard. Its a gamechanger for me and DH, we use it at least fortnightly or every month!

I wanted to do a day return to London from Chester. 240!!!!!!

Which hotel? No way is that the right price for a radii son blu. Have you looked at the hiltons- they now guarantee connecting rooms and the 2nd room is reduced often (Hilton.com) or IHG (Kimpton Fitzroy is good- you can be in theatre land on bus in minutes or walk)

Hotels are still much lower than pre Cv19.

I'm finding the same, going down end September, booked a Premier by Tower Bridge for £32 on a Saturday night then found the train tickets were £200!!! Gutted as will probably have to cancel now
We do this journey quite often and the price has easily doubled! We have a rail card and I've been tracking prices since they came on sale, there were no early cheap prices for the times we need.

I looked the other day, thinking about visiting my dad 2.5hrs away by train. First glance said £84 return

I did then look at 'advance' singles, which were £20 each. Could book on even the morning of travel and collect at the station.

I used to have a railcard for 1/3rd off too but don't travel enough now to justify the £30 a year (if it's still that price!)

I live in Manchester I drive to Rugby and get the train from there when going to London

@Driftingblue

Getting a store club card takes a couple of minutes and can almost always be done online at this point. Fair enough if you don’t want to share your information for a discount, but the effort barrier is practically non-existent.

But if you don't actually shop at Tesco there is no point.

Definitely get a family railcard! You can buy online with negligible effort and then book your tickets!!!!!

Really?. I've just come back from a trip to Scotland (from London). Two adults. 1 child. £160 return (in total for the three of us). That is with a railcard though (to echo what everyone else says - you just need ONE railcard not one each!) I buy the 3 year version for £70 as we travel a lot by train.

Last time I did that trip it was cheaper to fly!

That's a mad price. I'm in Dublin, and can get a "Sail and Rail" ticket. It's a ferry from Dublin to Holyhead, and then a train to wherever I like in UK for €40.

Another triumph for privatisation

[quote OatMilkLatte]@SquirryTheSquirrel - you and your DH should be qualified for a two together card.[/quote]
Thanks @OatMilkLatte, I will look into whether it would pay for itself.

I do some long solo journeys costing upwards of £100 so a card for me only would easily pay for itself, but there isn't one I would be eligible for for solo travel. DH would be eligible for a senior railcard but I'm not old enough and I am the one who travels most by train because I don't drive and he does, so it's a balancing equation as to what options would be cost-effective!