A very random question for this forum but I usually find the answers I'm looking for here! Trains aren't such a big think in NI, I've only been on one train journey over here and it was very much a show up and buy your ticket on the day kind of thing. I'll be travelling to Birmingham for a training course in mid December and it finishes on a Thursday around 3.30pm. I'm then going to be travelling on to Liverpool via train to stay the weekend. My question is, do these sort of journeys need booked in advance? Would the price increase if I simply bought a ticket on the day? Are these sorts of trains ever full in that they may become sold out? I'd rather not book it in advance as there is a good chance the training course will finish up earlier (or even later) than 3.30pm.
You don't have to book in advance. It should be cheaper if you do - the cheapest tickets are released around 12 weeks before. The cheaper the ticket, the more restrictions it normally has on when and where you can travel and with which train operator. The rules can be pretty confusing at the best of times so worth checking before you pay. And yes, trains in the middle of the day are often surprisingly busy in my experience. So if you can book a seat it's worth doing for more than a 15 minute journey. Assuming you want a single just aim for an anytime single ticket. You'll lose your seat reservation if you get a different train to the one booked but can still travel on another service.
Trains? They're for the little people. Let me know when you come over and I'll lend you Jeeves and the Meistermobile.
I'd also try fare-splitting websites before you book. Due to the way routes are priced, you can often make decent savings by paying for stop A - B and then B - C (on the same train, without getting off), instead of paying for A-C.
I got a train in NI: from Belfast to Portrush. It did appear to be a bit of a novelty to the locals, though.
To give you an idea of advance ticket prices i just had a check on trainline.com for you. On Thursday the 13th of December (we play at Everton on the Monday btw) ticket prices for Birmingham to Liverpool range from £9.50 to £29.60. It's the same on national rail enquiries but there they also give the option of an "anytime" ticket priced at £39.80. That i guess would be the price on the day. So with give or take a 75% saving you could for instance book 2 different timed tickets and it would still be half price. Personally i'd just book a train that leaves a good while after the course is due to finish. PS Dont forget that the cheaper priced tickets will get more expensive the nearer you get to the date.
I really hope Teresa may sorts out this mainland-northern Ireland train discrepancy. I don't know what kind of a pm could allow this
I too am disappointed, as my brother Laurence is an enormous brain box on almost everything one needs to know about trains. Been that sort of day,all things considered.
