How to buy a British train ticket

It is most convenient to travel by train in Britain. Today, Bian Xiao will tell you how to buy a train ticket if you take a train in Britain. The following small series takes you to see how to buy train tickets in Britain, with information on websites and tickets.

Traveling in Britain, the train is the most convenient, fast and comfortable means of transportation. Britain is the first country in the world to privatize railways and the first country in Europe to privatize railways. Different regions are operated by different railway operators, so the train tickets in Britain can be said to be the most complicated in the world. Different time, different companies and different purchase methods will make the price of train tickets you buy vary greatly, and its complexity is completely equivalent to that of air tickets. So how can I buy cheap train tickets in Britain? Let's do homework together.

Anytime (popular ticket): This refers to the normal fare, just like the standard quotation of air tickets and hotels, there is no discount, just buy it and leave. The advantage is convenience. You don't need to make a reservation in advance. You can buy tickets directly after the railway station. It's the same as the domestic train ticket, but this way is a real English local train, because the fare is particularly expensive. Usually, as a rational person, he won't buy such a ticket unless he has to leave immediately in an emergency.

Off-peak: Like the London Underground, train tickets in Britain are divided into peak hours and off-peak hours. The railway transportation in Britain is very developed, and the train is the most commonly used mode of transportation for office workers, just like the urban subway in China. In order to let others avoid the rush hour, the railway operation company introduced the gradient price in peak and off-peak hours to disperse the passenger flow. However, each company has a different definition of peak period. The general peak period refers to 6:30-9:30 in the morning and 4:00-7:00 in the afternoon. When purchasing tickets, you need to check how the company is defined. There are three types of off-peak: off-peak.

One-way ticket, off-peak day round-trip ticket and off-peak day round-trip ticket.

Return goods (valid within one month). Under normal circumstances, it is most cost-effective to buy a return ticket. The fare is not the superposition of two single beds, but a little more expensive than a single bed, giving people the feeling of giving away. For example, Bonley bought from London to Manchester before, and the fare was 37 pounds one way and 43 pounds round trip. If you travel, you can buy a one-month round-trip train ticket, so you can pick it up at the midway station. For example, buy a one-month round-trip train ticket from London to Edinburgh and play all the way from Newcastle, York, Manchester City, Birmingham and Oxford.

Advance payment (discount ticket): This kind of ticket, just like domestic promotion tickets, can only be grabbed when personality explodes. Bonley hasn't met it anyway. This kind of ticket is very cheap, but the disadvantage is that the ride time is fixed. If you miss the next train, you can't use it. Generally, you are not allowed to refund or change your ticket.

young people

Card (student ticket): As the name implies, it is a ticket for students. Like the London underground, it can be cheaper to buy train tickets 1/3. Students here refer to full-time students aged between 16-25, including graduate students, who can apply with their passports and letters of introduction from the school. The annual fee is generally 28 pounds, but you can save it by taking a few trains. Note that you must carry this card when you take the train, and you need to show it to the ticket inspector together with the train ticket when you check in, otherwise you will be severely punished if you are found to be absent.

group

Tickets (group tickets): Group tickets refer to tickets for 3-4 people purchased at one time, which is very suitable for group travel. Two-four people count as two votes. For example, four people are equivalent to buying only two tickets. If you book in advance, the price will be cheaper. This kind of group ticket is also suitable for the London underground, one-card and the like, with high cost performance.

first

Class (first class ticket): British train tickets are divided into two classes: first class seats and ordinary seats (second class seats). First-class seats are more spacious and comfortable, free wifi is available, and the fare is very expensive; Second-class seat, standard seat, the environment is different according to each operating company, Virgin is very high-end.

The train ticket booking website commonly used in Britain is 1. Train.

TrainLine is the largest website for inquiring and booking train tickets in Britain. All routes of British Railways can be booked. If you book in advance, you can find very cheap special tickets, and you can also book Eurostar, hotels, theaters and so on. In addition to bank card payment, the train line also supports PayPal payment.

in fact

The biggest function of TrainLine for me is to query. You can enter the origin and destination, find out which company operates the line, and then go to official website to buy tickets. If directly

If you book tickets on the TrainLine, you have to pay a certain handling fee for each ticket, and you have to pay extra for choosing to mail the tickets.

2. National Railway Company

national

Rail is the British national railway information network, just like the domestic railway official website. In fact, there is no advantage in Britain, but the title is a little big. Like other booking websites, there is no special difference. The website can inquire about the detailed trains and fares on the same day or later, and the tickets will be automatically transferred to official website, the railway operation company.

In addition to the large-scale comprehensive ticketing websites mentioned above, there are many railway operators in the UK who book their own tickets for official website, mainly to sell their own routes. Such as the following commonly used booking network.

3.virgin stein

Virgin is a very popular long-distance train company in Britain, with comfortable environment, many lines, wide distribution and fast speed. It is the best choice for long-distance travel. Official website can also use Nectar card to score points when booking tickets, and they often provide some routes with two or three times the points. If you leave London for Scotland, such as Manchester City, Leeds and Edinburgh, Virgin is the best choice.

4. East Central Train

This company mainly operates routes in the middle of England, starting from London, passing through Leicester, Nottingham, reaching Sheffield and cities along the way. You can check the reservation directly in official website, and sometimes the discount is very strong.

5. The largest western region

This company mainly operates in the southwest of England and the south of Wales, starting from Paddington Railway Station in London and reaching Cornwall in the southwest corner of England, and the cities along the way include Reading, Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Plymouth.

6. Southern Railway

It mainly operates routes in the south of England, including from London to Southampton and Brighton in the south and Milton Keynes in the northernmost part.

7. Midland, London

Mainly responsible for the line operation from London to Liverpool, with the terminal at Euston Railway Station in London.

If you book tickets online, you can choose two ways to get tickets. One is to send it home by mail, and some companies will charge a certain courier fee. Another most convenient way is to pick up tickets at the self-service ticket vending machine or ticket counter at the railway station. If the ticket vending machine picks up the ticket, insert the bank card to pay according to the prompt, choose to pick up the ticket, and enter the booking email to pick up.

ReferenceNumber, the ticket will be printed; If you pick up the ticket at the counter, you need to show the booking mailbox.

In addition to buying tickets online, you can also choose to buy tickets on the spot. However, buying tickets on the spot is generally carried with you, which is not suitable for buying discount tickets and group tickets, and the selectivity is much smaller.

Tips for buying cheap train tickets in Britain 1. Book in advance. Try to set your own travel time in advance and book tickets in advance, especially in the case of legal holidays in Britain, train tickets will be relatively expensive, and booking tickets in advance can be much cheaper;

2. Compare the prices of several booking websites;

3. Try to buy tickets in groups and enjoy group ticket discounts;

4. If there is no discounted air ticket in the city you are going to, you can try to transfer in the passing city to see if there are any cheap air tickets;

If you are not in a hurry, you can choose tickets in the morning or evening, and the price is relatively cheap.

How to handle the train ticket refund is the same as the domestic situation. The train ticket refund in Britain is also supported, and the refund process is relatively simple and much more convenient to operate. As long as you take the purchased train ticket to the ticket window of any railway station, you can apply for a refund, or you can write to the station to ask for a refund (it is cumbersome and not recommended).

Refund mentioned here includes online shopping, telephone booking and direct ticket purchase at the window, but different types of train tickets have different refund policies. For example, the cheapest train tickets are advanced, and the cheapest tickets purchased long in advance are more troublesome to change or refund, just like the refund of discounted tickets purchased is very troublesome. Advanced tickets are generally not allowed to be refunded unless there are special reasons, which are made up casually. Unreasonable British people can make up any unreliable reasons. If you are sick and can't leave, you will usually be asked to show a fake doctor's certificate or certificate. Of course, there is a special company, and that is First.

GreatWestern, this company is more humane, and you can get a refund without showing a doctor's certificate.

Except for the pre-sale tickets, all other tickets are returned unconditionally. Generally, a certain handling fee will be charged, such as 5 pounds for Virgin Company and 5- 10 pounds for others. Handling fee is based on reference.

$ Number, if you buy one or more tickets at a time, there is only one handling fee. refer to

$ Number when you book a train ticket online, you will receive an email containing this number. Just show the mail when you refund the ticket. For the return train ticket, if you have already taken half of it, the remaining half-way ticket cannot be refunded, because in many cases, the fare for buying a return train ticket is the same as that for a one-way ticket.

In addition, British trains can carry bicycles and pets, which is Bunley's favorite and very humanized. Some trains have special bicycle storage compartments. You need to reserve a parking space when booking tickets, and there is no extra charge. If you can't book it, you can put it in the aisle of the carriage.

Finally, I must remind you that many railway stations in Britain do not have ticket gates, so you can get on the bus directly without checking in. Don't think you can evade tickets. Tickets are usually checked on trains, especially long-distance trains. Once the evasion ticket is found, it will be fined heavily. Don't take any chances and act according to the rules.