Brit Rail--buy tickets now?
 

Our family of 4 will be traveling by train from London to Oxford this summer (R/T). Our travel dates are firm and the fares are now showing up on http://www.nationalrail.co.uk.

Is there an advantage to buying our tickets before we leave the U.S. or should I just wait until we get to London?

Thanks

Hey there! I just wanted to let you know that I believe BritRail passes are not available in the UK. Taken from www.britrail.net:

"Purchase your BritRail Pass in advance and avoid disappointment - these exclusive passes, at these attractive rates, are not available in Great Britain. "

BTW, I know what people have said about Rick Steves (I don't want to open a can of worms here) But if you buy the passes through his site he gives you free stuff (a DVD, maps etc) You might want to check it out! :) We bought our passes on a Monday and had them by Thursday morning.

Have a great trip!

Many of the fares on trains in the UK are cheaper if bought in advance. So, you may save some money by ordering now. Having said that London-Oxford is a pretty short ride, and the "cheap day" singles are only £15 each way, so I don't even see if you're going to save by purchasing in advance. Trains are so freuqent that I'd just go buy it when you travel.

And make sure you check the website of the train operator, First Great Western. They may have more fares available:

www.fgwtickets.co.uk

Your title is a little misleading. You are not asking about "Britrail" passes. You are simply asking about whether to buy your London/Oxford tickets in advance. (Britrail is a pass really only useful for folks taking several long distance journeys and wanting the freedom to not have to make specific travel plans)

In general train tickets are just like plane tickets - advance purchase usually gets you better fares. One exception in the UK are day return tickets for round trip travel on the same day.

So if you are going to Oxford and staying ovenight it will be cheaper to purchase ahead of time. If you are traveling London/Oxford and back to London on the same day you can wait until you are in London.

The difference between a day return and an almost unrestricted offpeak return on this route in about 20p: it's roughly £16.10 vs £16.30 for tickets you just buy from the ticket office or the machines when you get to the station.

Trains go at least every half hour, though changing at Reading means there's really a train about every ten minutes.

You'll probably save a few pence by advance ordering. But that will commit you to a specific train: and it's hard to see the point of such meticulous planning for a 60 mile journey several months away. Just turn up and buy a ticket (but make sure you have one before getting on the train, and they now impose a surcharge for selling tickets on the train)

If your budget's tight, get the bus: there's one about every 5 minutes round the clock.

If your budget's really tight, and you really can commit to a specific time, go to www.megabus.com

Wonderful advice from all--thank you!

Flanneruk: I have a tendency to overplan but I'll take your advice and wait.