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“It’s a big scam as usual,” Clifford Beeton wrote on (formerly Twitter). “My return ticket from Stoke-on-Trent to Glasgow is £142! Where are all the £25 tickets advertised?”
Mr Beaton is responding Northern Railway The post declared: “The British Rail Sale is back! With 1 million tickets to choose from across the North, get 50% off advance tickets.”
Rail sales for 2026 begin on 6 December, with cheap tickets for journeys between 13 January and 25 March remaining on sale until Monday 12 January.
The aim is to stimulate additional demand rather than reward existing travelers. The government said one million tickets were sold during last year’s rail sale, saving passengers an average of £8 per journey. What’s interesting, though, is that many buyers – including me – will make the trip anyway, just to save money on taxpayer dollars.
Prices are up about 6% from last year. But there are some excellent bargains, too. After hours of research I found that the best fare was from Liverpool Lime Street or Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston University for just £7: there are tickets for this price on many dates, but there’s a catch. Instead of taking the Avanti West Coast Express, these journeys take stop trains as far as Crewe and then to London North Western Railway, which takes just over an hour longer. Avanti also has it, but it’s four times more expensive.
You can trade speed for savings on other routes. Southern Airways’ long-distance journeys to Victoria via Gatwick cost just £4 from Portsmouth to London, while South Western Express trains to Waterloo (£10).
Intercity deals abound. For example, there are plenty of tickets available between Newcastle and London King’s Cross on January 13 for £25.10 Lanna (And some on Lumo for just £19.90). These prices are half price or better than the previous day’s prices.
However, I failed to find a cheap cross-country deal between Manchester and Reading or Bristol.
These are the key questions and answers.
Can I work cheaper?
Probably not. Most tickets are not eligible, including any time, most off-peak (with a few exceptions), seasonal and flex season.
Almost all fares on sale are advance tickets, where you commit to a specific train and time. Typically save 50%.
Normally, pre-sale fares increase based on demand, but rail sales involve selling a set number of tickets at a fixed price; once they’re gone, they’re gone. If a participating train company does not offer advance tickets, off-peak fares may be offered as an alternative.
Some price examples?
These transactions have gone through independent The first day of the rail promotion, valid for travel on a range of dates in the second half of January. Availability and prices will depend on the demand expected by train operators; for example, crowds will be reduced during half-term periods.
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Connecting South Wales and the West of England with London Paddington.
- One-way fares from Cardiff to London Paddington are £29 for standard class or £46 for first class
- Return fares from Bristol to London cost £22 (standard) or £42 (first class)
- Return fares from Plymouth to London cost £37 (standard) or £55 (first class)
Heading to the West Coast
Flying to London Euston from Scotland, North West England and the West Midlands, North West England and Scotland
- Glasgow city center £36
- Manchester Piccadilly £28.50
- Liverpool £21.50
- Birmingham £14
Lanna
On the East Coast Main Line connecting London King’s Cross with Yorkshire, the North East of England and Scotland, LNER offers the following offers to and from London:
- Leeds £19.70 (standard), £47 (first)
- Newcastle £25.10 (standard), £55.25 (first)
- Edinburgh £27.85 (standard), £60.25 (first)
Journeys not involving London
- Inverness-Edinburgh £11.65
- Newcastle-York £4.80
- Holyhead-Cardiff £36.70
- Liverpool-Hull £10.40
- Sheffield-Leicester £4.70
- Dover-Tonbridge £5
- Norwich-Colchester £4
How do I book?
You can go to the station, but virtually everyone books online. You can browse the websites of individual train operators. Booking direct with the operator makes things easier if something goes wrong with your journey, and you may be eligible for a loyalty bonus. But I would recommend using independent rail retailers who charge no fees – they will offer ‘split tickets’ to provide additional savings where appropriate.
For example, for Mr Beeton’s trip from Stoke to Glasgow, I found a number of split fares on Uber for £32.20 return, taking the East Midlands Railway to Crewe and from Avanti West Coast to Glasgow city center, saving 57%.
Do railcard and child discounts apply?
no railcard DiscountHowever, children aged 5-15 travel at half price. Likewise, if you are a railcard holder, independent rail retailers will be looking for the best combination.
Can I go first class?
Some operators offer luxury seats at 50% to 150% off (the latter, especially LNER on the East Coast main line, offer generous food and drink).
How soon should I buy?
ASAP. The one million tickets offered by Northern Rail may sound like a big number, but it’s small compared to the number of rail journeys in a typical 10-week period (around 350 million).
Cheap tickets for many trains are already sold out.
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