Expert’s five tips to save money on train tickets this Christmas | Travel News | Travel

UK train operators are the most expensive in Europe, according to a study.

It found British train operators charge on average over two times more than operators in the European Union for routes of similar lengths, according to analysis by clean transport campaign group Transport and Environment (T&E).

The analysis, which covered 27 European operators and and 8,000 ticket prices, found “travelling by rail in the UK is particularly costly” with prices driven up by “private monopolies”.

Amid the price hikes, experts at QR Code Generator have come up with five tips to help you save on your next train journey.

Book ahead 

Even though planning exactly when you’ll travel can be tricky, especially over the holiday period, advance tickets are often much cheaper.

For example, at the time of writing an off-peak single from London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly on Wednesday 18 December costs £76.30 for the 9.33am train, compared to just £21.20 on the train a few minutes later at 9.46am, using split-save for two tickets.

Railcards are likely to pay for themselves in one or two trips

Railcards which cost £30 may seem like an investment, but they often pay for themselves almost immediately.

At the time of writing, an off-peak return from London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly drops from £54.00 to just £37.44 on Wednesday 18 December, saving over half the cost of the card in one trip.

Travel together to save on tickets

The Two Together railcard earns up to a third discount for both passengers. For example, the same off-peak trip mentioned above from London to Manchester at the time of writing would be £74.69 for two tickets, saving over £33 compared to £108.00 at the full price.

Travel during off-peak times to save big

The best fares are usually found during off-peak times. In cities, travel is normally off-peak after 09.30 am, while in smaller towns, it’s after 09.00 am. Weekends and bank holidays are always off-peak.

Get refunds when you’re entitled to them

Train operators have different compensation policies, but you can claim for delays as short as 15 minutes. Around 30-40% of journeys face delays, and 80.6% of claims were compensated from April 2023 to March 2024. It’s worth checking if you’re entitled to a refund.