I have been playing on the internet all morning trying to find the best way and prices for four of us to do a day trip from central London to Bath by train. I really don't get understand all the prices and fares.<BR>Is it necessary to make reservations? Should we book ahead -- there seems to be a 7 day advance fare, but I worry about the tickets being sent to me in the US before we leave next week.<BR>We are thinking about going on Sunday, June 30, but I understand the "best restuarants" for lunch are closed on Sunday. Would we be better off going on Monday or Tuesday?<BR>Can someone, Ben Haines, maybe, help with the best way to but or reserve these tickets? And do we need to confirm a return time, or leave that open. The special fare restrictions sound like we must reserve our return. We'd like to be able to stay as late as we want that day or maybe come home early.

Going to Bath, I've never made advance purchases or reservations; and I've not had any problems with getting a seat. If you travel to Bath on a Friday or Saturday, which I haven't done, you will probably find more travelers going. But going there on any other day, and returning on any day but Sunday, will probably not necessitate advance purchases or reservations. I haven't ever purchased special fares with any restrictions, so I can't help you there. Maybe another traveler, possibly British, can assist.

Maybe I should have been more specific. I found that the standard roundtrip fare from London to Bath in 2nd class is 60 pounds. That's 240 pounds or nearly $360 US for the four of us. I can't see spending that much for a day trip. To get a better fare -- some listed as low as 24 pounds or something like that -- do I have to do it in advance?

I am not an expert but my experience says you should wait until you get there. The tickets should be cheaper and you may decide to change your plans at the last minute and then you won't lose anything. <BR>I was in Bath on a Sunday several years ago and it was "dead". Many of the pubs we wanted to stop by were closed and the downtown closed down about 4 or 5pm. <BR>Hope that helps.

We did this a couple of months ago, with 6 people, and looked at all the same options that you have, but didn't have a fixed enough plan to book tickets ahead, so decided to just bite the bullet and buy the cheapest return ticket available on the day that we wanted to go. Well, it turns out 4 people is a magic number, if you're all traveling together. When I asked for 6 tickets, they offered us a group fare for 4, comparable to the pre-booked fares on the web site (but you can't take separate trains at any time) and 2 at the regular day return fare (which I think was still cheaper than the full 60 pound fare). There was no need to choose any particular train ahead of time from the point of view of getting a better fare. However, the trains were very full (or many of the empty seats were reserved), so that we did end up scattered around the train both going and returning, so that might be a reason to pick a particular train and reserve ahead of time. (We were traveling on a weekday, so Sunday might be quieter.)

It's been a while since I did a day trip to Bath, but I will try to help out.<BR><BR>Sharon: are you looking at this website: http://www.great-western-trains.co.uk/? This is the train that travels to Bath from Paddington Station in London. The cheap fares (Apex fares) for day return (same day round trip) start at about &pound;17.50 BUT you must buy your ticket the day before you plan to travel and their may be some restrictions on what time of day you travel. Good Luck!

Oops I forgot...the day before you want to travel, just go to Paddington Station and purchase the tickets. Also, Bath (and London) is pretty mmuch dead on Sundays.

In late April, we just showed up at Paddington, bought our tickets, and hopped a train. No reservations needed, though the train was pretty full in the afternoon (commuters returning home). For the kind of money you are talking about, consider a one day coach tour. You'll probably get to see another area or 2 (like Stonehenge, or Warwick).

For one or two a train trip makes sense - especially with cheap day return tix. But for more than two, it is MUCH cheaper to rent a car for the day. You could visit Bath, Avebury and probably Stonehemge at your own speed, and save a LOT of money.

Erin's comment about restrictions reminded me: I'm pretty sure that the "cheap day return" fares require you to travel after 9:30 in the morning on the outbound leg (at least on weekdays) - there are no restrictions on the return in the evening.

We've taken day trips to lots of places from London and never booked ahead except for York. Bath is a pretty common destination and you can very easily get a "cheap day return" ticket at the station the morning you are going. I'd avoid a Sunday tho since it is kind of an "off day" so to speak.<BR>I would not rent a car if you are staying in London, it's more hassle then it is worth and if you are not used to driving on the left I'd not bother trying to get used to it for one day only.<BR><BR>A thought you might consider is hiring a driver for the day. The service we use to pick us up at the airport (and take us back out) is www.london-transfer.com. I know they do day trips too. If you contact them tell them Lori recommended their company, Ray Skinner is the owner. I've known several people that hired a driver and had a marvelous day (it can be cheaper then the train if there are several of you).<BR><BR>Also - there are tours. A friend took EvansEvans and thought it was great.<BR><BR>Incidentally, while Sundays can be off days we were recently in Canterbury on a Sunday and it was great. Nearly everything was open.

Let me put my two cents in and say I would not recommend renting a car for this trip. We did it, and the hassle to get out of London was one thing, and then the parking in Bath is another nightmare. However, we did enjoy Bath, and it is worth a trip in my opinion.

Sharon, maybe we will cross paths. Sounds like you're going the same week we are. Funny, but I posted a similar question a couple of months ago. Some of the answers were similar, but there were several threads about how Sunday is a great day to go to Bath -- now it seems like most of the responses are just the opposite.<BR><BR>We still haven't figured out what we are going to do. We see theatre every night, so leaving London after 9:30 and being back before 6 or 7 doesn't seem to leave a lot of time in Bath. Is the fare going to be a lot higher if we leave earlier in the morning? I guess we won't know until the day before we go, when we can get the actual prices at Paddington.<BR><BR>We too thought about renting a car, but everyone seemed to talk us out of it. I think we'd lose a lot of time doing the pick up and the return -- those things never seem to be too quick in London according to my experience.

The other downfall to renting a car is if you don't know how to drive a manual shift, you will pay through the nose for an automatic shift. The train ride to Bath is about 90 minutes and very picturesque. If you pick the wrong time of day, driving from London to Bath could be a MUCH longer trip.

Hi all<BR><BR>I too am going to be in London and planning a day trip to Bath sometime in the last two weeks of June. I had no idea about the cost of the train fares. My problem now, while I would like to purchase cheap day return ticket, I would also like to be in Bath to take the either 10:30 or 11 am walking tour through the tourist board. <BR><BR>How long is the train trip, if on time?<BR><BR>Cheers

RITA: The trip is 90 minutes long and the station is in the center of the downtown district.

You cannot get a cheap day return ticket from London Paddington to Bath, only from waterloo to Bath - a journey that is longer and less frequent.<BR><BR>Saver return is the cheapest available ticket that you can buy one the day of travel for Paddington to Bath. It costs &pound;39.50 per person. However, First Great Western's Groupsave can save groups of 4 adults 50 percent, see http://www.gwt.co.uk/fares/fares.html

Sorry, on a Sunday the cheapest walk on fare is SuperSaver return, at &pound;32. GroupSave still applies.

Thanks, Ben. I think we will forget about Sunday and go during the week. The super saver less 50% group rate sounds great! But I can't figure out from the website how early we can or cannot go and return. Anyway to find out?

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