Trains to away games

I know a few people do this regularly so I just wondered what sites you guys use?
I've had a bit of a scare so long story short I'll be trying to get to more town games on the train now my regular footballing is potentially over or atleast for the foreseeable future.

I found a couple but just wanted some feedback from others who use trains, I managed to find the split fare website and found a train for £60 return to Wimbledon from Taunton. I only paid £40 for the play off final to London so prices have either rising at a big rate or I'm looking on the wrong sites.

Whichever site you use, trains are becoming a bit of a non-starter. Had a look for a potential trip to Cambridge in a few weeks, it’s the thick end of £100 already and the return trip is the best part of 4 hours on a good run. That’s for a trip I could probably do in just over 2 hours in a car.

In Germany you can get unlimited rail travel anywhere across the entire country, for a whole month, for €9 or about £7. This country is so fcking backwards it does my nut.

Quoted from ska face

Whichever site you use, trains are becoming a bit of a non-starter. Had a look for a potential trip to Cambridge in a few weeks, it’s the thick end of £100 already and the return trip is the best part of 4 hours on a good run. That’s for a trip I could probably do in just over 2 hours in a car.

In Germany you can get unlimited rail travel anywhere across the entire country, for a whole month, for €9 or about £7. This country is so fcking backwards it does my nut.

Absolutely agree with you.

I use the Trainline - can’t say for certain that it’s the best value, but it’s very convenient for multiple leg journeys and has a simple layout

The earlier you book the cheaper you get Lukeo, so this is probably why the fare has looked as though it has gone up

'Split my fare' is your best option if your journey involves more than one train operator. ie. Grimsby to London.
https://www.splitmyfare.co.uk/

But if you are going Grimsby to Manchester then the cheapest fares are always on the single operators web site, TransPennine in this case.


As said before the earlier you book the cheaper it should be. Also a ticket for a specific timed train is usually cheaper than a ticket valid on any train.

Quoted from ska face

Whichever site you use, trains are becoming a bit of a non-starter. Had a look for a potential trip to Cambridge in a few weeks, it’s the thick end of £100 already and the return trip is the best part of 4 hours on a good run. That’s for a trip I could probably do in just over 2 hours in a car.

In Germany you can get unlimited rail travel anywhere across the entire country, for a whole month, for €9 or about £7. This country is so fcking backwards it does my nut.

Same across pretty much the whole of Europe, even the supposed poorer countries.

Just before the pandemic I was planning some inter-railing around Central Europe for a few weeks, the cost of travelling was unbelievably cheap.  Taking in six or seven cities over pretty much the whole length of a continent was going to cost me much less than a return to Kings Cross from Doncaster (never mind from Cleethorpes).

If this country was remotely serious about climate change, which it isn't, the first port of call should absolutely be a modern, effective, accessible and affordable rail system.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Same across pretty much the whole of Europe, even the supposed poorer countries.

Just before the pandemic I was planning some inter-railing around Central Europe for a few weeks, the cost of travelling was unbelievably cheap.  Taking in six or seven cities over pretty much the whole length of a continent was going to cost me much less than a return to Kings Cross from Doncaster (never mind from Cleethorpes).

If this country was remotely serious about climate change, which it isn't, the first port of call should absolutely be a modern, effective, accessible and affordable rail system.

Just one of many reasons the UK finds itself behind the likes of Estonia, Oman and Lithuania (ffs!) on the global quality of life index.

In my daily work I get to speak to people from around the world and in particular Europe, and I often ask the question “so, is everything going to shít in your country as well then?”.

“Nope, it’s just you guys” is typically the answer you get back. Of course, there have been some serious events with global implications already this short decade, namely Covid and the war in Ukraine. But boy oh boy, we haven’t half made a mess of it.

The state and cost of rail prices is one thing, but when people can’t afford food or to pay their rent / mortgage then things are really bleak.

Apologies, I’ve gone off on a real tangent there - I’m just upset and angry at the state of our once great nation. My kids are 8 and 6, and it both frightens and saddens me to think what the world they are growing into has in store for them.

And that’s before we get to the spectre of nuclear war, climate change and antibiotic resistance.

Anyway, carry on…

I use split ticketing but I also have a senior rail card so it would be a no-brainer if as Ska said the rail system was anything like decent. Last season I did Torquay from the East Midlands for less than £50. Weymouth was £36 and that was via London.

My first go to for cheaper tickets is Trainline.
Some may moan about the  modest booking fee but from the app you can book tickets with seat reservations, add the journey to your calendar, print off tickets with journey information on them and I've found that countless times there are tickets available on there that aren't showing on the individual companies sites plus any split saves and cheap 1st class are automatically shown.
My pissy pensioner railcard is automatically linked to it and if (or rather when) there are any delays or cancellations you are notified via app and email well in advance.
On the subject of cancellation and delays I've found them great as a refund for cancellation is at the press of a button if required but if claiming delay repay you have to do it via the train company itself.
I don't know if it's a glitch but when claiming on most company websites you have to put in your Trainline transaction ID number and bingo, refund for the whole amount, outward and return.
Sometimes up can be a right pain, they'll refuse a refund at first and you appeal meaning time spent in front of your computer but I added up refunds for the the last two years and it's over £600 in rail vouchers and money back in the bank.
I've had in effect free trips to places like Southend, Rochdale, London and to Manchester more times than I care to remember as the service is now so poor.
I'm lucky in as much as it's a 25 minute drive from mine to where I can park up in Doncaster so if going North or South on the East Coast Mainline I'll always look at buying tickets from there which saves an incredible amount, a London return for something like £18 isn't something to be sniffed at.
Yes, I don't mind the ten bob booking fee when I save hundreds over the year and find it extremely useful.

Quoted from Poojah

Just one of many reasons the UK finds itself behind the likes of Estonia, Oman and Lithuania (ffs!) on the global quality of life index.

In my daily work I get to speak to people from around the world and in particular Europe, and I often ask the question “so, is everything going to shít in your country as well then?”.

“Nope, it’s just you guys” is typically the answer you get back. Of course, there have been some serious events with global implications already this short decade, namely Covid and the war in Ukraine. But boy oh boy, we haven’t half made a mess of it.

The state and cost of rail prices is one thing, but when people can’t afford food or to pay their rent / mortgage then things are really bleak.

Apologies, I’ve gone off on a real tangent there - I’m just upset and angry at the state of our once great nation. My kids are 8 and 6, and it both frightens and saddens me to think what the world they are growing into has in store for them.

And that’s before we get to the spectre of nuclear war, climate change and antibiotic resistance.

Anyway, carry on…

I'm not sure that Oman is a country to get too worked up about - it's a very rich country with very low prices for things like petrol and low taxation. The standard of living for Omanis and ex pats is very high. Think UAE with the glitz dialed down.

I usual book direct with either TPE or LNER and get an e-ticket sent to my phone which avoids postal fees and is a lot more convenient.

I never use Trainline because of the extra fees they charge.

Always been a bit of Sh1t one this. The trains are expensive, they are usually packed on most journeys and the quality of service is appalling. But, when it’s run as a business what do you expect as people have little or no choice. If you don’t like it…..do one!

Go abroad, and the trains are comfortable and more importantly double decked (unfortunately the infrastructure in this country doesn’t allow). The stations are even more welcoming and have decent facilities.

There are other choices such as megabus I guess but, not always that good and nowhere near as convenient as a train

Good luck luke

We are paying the price for inventing and building everything first in Victorian era. Much easier to build modern system from scratch in now developed/ developing world. Having benefited from our invention they now want us to pay them compensation . Rant over Trainline I have used for years does split tickets as well now and never had a problem with it.. Get a Railcard if your eligible numerous categories and one third off

Quoted from HerveJosse

We are paying the price for inventing and building everything first in Victorian era. Much easier to build modern system from scratch in now developed/ developing world. Having benefited from our invention they now want us to pay them compensation . Rant over Trainline I have used for years does split tickets as well now and never had a problem with it.. Get a Railcard if your eligible numerous categories and one third off

I have a Disabled Person's Railcard. Has saved me an absolute fortune over the years.

Quoted from HerveJosse

We are paying the price for inventing and building everything first in Victorian era. Much easier to build modern system from scratch in now developed/ developing world. Having benefited from our invention they now want us to pay them compensation . Rant over Trainline I have used for years does split tickets as well now and never had a problem with it.. Get a Railcard if your eligible numerous categories and one third off

We are paying the price for having a political system centred entirely on privatisation and the extraction of wealth. Shareholders have extracted billions from the rail system in this country, much of it directly out of the pockets of taxpayers in the form of subsidies. It’s an absolute racket and a fcking disgrace. Train operators in France, Germany and elsewhere in Europe hold shares in British transport companies and subsidise THEIR fares with OUR money.

Quoted from ska face

Whichever site you use, trains are becoming a bit of a non-starter. Had a look for a potential trip to Cambridge in a few weeks, it’s the thick end of £100 already and the return trip is the best part of 4 hours on a good run. That’s for a trip I could probably do in just over 2 hours in a car.

In Germany you can get unlimited rail travel anywhere across the entire country, for a whole month, for €9 or about £7. This country is so fcking backwards it does my nut.

It's ridiculous. I went back through my bank statements from last season, I spent over £650 on trains alone following Town last season. Average price for a train to a home match being over £40. Most expensive train tickets were Torquay at £95 and Weymouth at £75. Yeah, I'm booking tickets late but it's obscene that the premium is so high to do this. I don't know what I'm doing next week let alone for the entire season. My social/work life generally dictates what Town matches I get to, not the other way round. The only way you can snap those few cheap train tickets up is to commit to a match months in advance.

Quoted from golfer

The earlier you book the cheaper you get Lukeo, so this is probably why the fare has looked as though it has gone up

Some of the train lines haven't been releasing advanced tickets during the strikes. Avanti in particular, tickets just weren't available from London for the Stockport or Barrow games until about a week before. I was up for Barrow but by the time tickets were available online it was £136 for a return!

As others have said, get yourself a rail card if you are eligible. They are £30 for a year and save you a third of the fare.

There was an offer recently for digital rail cards for £20 a year. Would be worth checking if they are still available if you are thinking of getting one.

I refuse to use Trainline, they always add services to the schedule that haven't been confirmed with the operators. Also an absolute nightmare to get hold of for refunds etc.

I always stick the operator I'm travelling with.

With the rail card can you only use it via the train line app or can you use it even if you use websites such as split fare. Com

Quoted from lukeo

With the rail card can you only use it via the train line app or can you use it even if you use websites such as split fare. Com

Any train ticket from any operator wherever you buy it.

Quoted from ginnywings

As others have said, get yourself a rail card if you are eligible. They are £30 for a year and save you a third of the fare.

There was an offer recently for digital rail cards for £20 a year. Would be worth checking if they are still available if you are thinking of getting one.

£70 for three years if digital. I got mine in May. For London games you can get it linked to an Oyster card and get a third off non-peak travel across London, including the tube.

I'm quite well placed in Donny. I have a disabled pass for South Yorkshire so travel to Sheffield for free. That is well handy for trips to the Midlands and London.

I've done a lot of travelling from Donny to London. With a railcard its usually £20 return.

I'm using a NatEx discount card too. Off to Wimbledon from Meadowhall and its £12.60 return travelling down on the Friday. If you decide to get off at Golder's Green its only an hour or so more than the rail journey from Sheffield to St Pancras.  

I always use Trainsplit for my tickets, you can make some great savings, especially if getting advance fares.