jent103

The last thing we have to do logistically for our trip this summer (UK & Ireland) is buy train tickets. At this point, I'm leaning towards a BritRail pass - about $30-60 more with lots more flexibility (I think). But I'm thoroughly flustered in trying to figure this out and would appreciate some expert assistance!

The four trips we would need to take are...
- Manchester airport to Windermere (cheapest I've found: 17 pounds with two changes and only an hour after our plane is supposed to land, or 33.80 for later trips, including some with no changes)
- Windermere to Edinburgh (cheapest: nationalrail.co.uk says 23.50, but when I go to buy I can only find 47.00)
- Edinburgh to London (cheapest: 35.00 on Virgin or 43.60 on GNER. Sadly, it was 14.50 on Friday!)
- Stansted Express - 14.50, all the time!

So it sounds like the four-day BritRail flexipass would be our best bet, at more or less $300. My questions:

- First and foremost, will those super cheap fares magically reappear?
- Can we, with a BritRail, just hop on any train, any time? This is my impression, but I can't find anything on rail sites to back that up.
- If that is true, will the routes we're taking be crowded enough that we'll want a reservation anyway? (And would we do that by dropping by the station ticket office?)
- Any preference between Virgin and GNER for Edinburgh-London?

Sorry for the long post - and thanks in advance for the help!

PalenQ

With a pass you can take any train any time - no restrictions.

GNER has a much more comprehensive schedule than Virgin on that route.

Go to www.nationalrail.co.uk to compare fares and see what is available online and at the station as you have done and should continue to do. For walk-up fares the pass probably is a good deal as these can be sky high.

Only for the Edinburgh-London route in 2nd class would i recommend seat reservations as these trains IME are often full - no doubt due to the ultra-cheap online specials. First class will not be full and you can just waltz on IME. If you have questions on the pass i always advise calling BETS (800-441-2387) who will patiently answer your questions expertly even if you bought your pass elsewhere IME.

Try www.thetrainline.com for a similar site to nationalrail.co.uk or try the GNER and individual rail franchisee sites.

jent103

PalenQ - thank you! I hadn't tried BETS yet. I have been looking at nationalrail.co.uk, the Trainline site, and GNER/Virgin/Trans Pennine's sites - it's a bit of information overload, trying to find the cheapest way to go! (We're on a tight budget, in case you couldn't tell...)

If we wind up with the pass, is there one company/site that's best to buy it from? I've seen several.

rogerdodger

Hi, just a couple of comments. I always use a Britrail pass on my yearly visit, not so much to save, but rather for the flexability of taking any train at any time, and to make last minute changes in the place that I might want to visit. I have never made a reservation and once had to stand for 1/2 hour, but in the main, it worked out for me. The past two years I have started buying a 1st class pass and I will not go back to standard. I buy from Rick Steves, however, there might be better places. It just works for me.

d1carter

My only experience with Britrail would match Rogerdodger. I bought our passes from Rick Steves and you take them to the ticket office to get validated. Once validated, you're off. The flexibility of jumping on a train is really convenient. If traveling as much as you are, I would buy the Britrail pass before you go.

jent103

So it turns out I'm somewhat of an idiot! Most of those ticket prices were for both of us, not just one - I assumed they were singles from dealing with airline sites that displayed things that way. Anyway, if I buy tickets today, they'll come to about $150 each, which is MUCH cheaper than the BritRail pass. The flexibility would be nice, but we do already have B&B/hostel reservations everywhere, so it's not like we can just decide to stay in Edinburgh an extra day. Thanks to everyone for your input on the passes, though!