Sorry a really basic question but one adult and two children Barking to Oxford returning today. Is it cheaper to get the adult ticket from Paddington to Oxford and separate pay as you go on the tube . Kids travel free on TfL. Thanks so much!
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Barking to Oxford
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Off-peak day return (without railcard), Paddington to Oxford is £37.70 + 2 @ £18.85 = £75.40 + 2 @ £3.40 = £82.20
Off-peak day return (with railcard), Barking via London to Oxford is £25.70 + 2 @ £7.30 = £40.30
Off-peak day return (without railcard), Barking via London to Oxford is £38.60 + 2 @ £19.30 = £77.20
So, without a railcard, the cheapest is for the adult to buy a Barking via London to Oxford, and for the children to use their Zip cards to Paddington and get tickets to Oxford from there. However, you will save (slightly) on the deal by buying a £35 railcard, which brings the overall price down to £40.30.
Off-peak day return (with railcard), Barking via London to Oxford is £25.70 + 2 @ £7.30 = £40.30
Off-peak day return (without railcard), Barking via London to Oxford is £38.60 + 2 @ £19.30 = £77.20
So, without a railcard, the cheapest is for the adult to buy a Barking via London to Oxford, and for the children to use their Zip cards to Paddington and get tickets to Oxford from there. However, you will save (slightly) on the deal by buying a £35 railcard, which brings the overall price down to £40.30.
It's actually not as simple a question as it might first seem, as the answer varies depending on a lot of factors.
Since your kids are presumably aged 0-10 they travel free on TfL when accompanied by you as an adult. The same goes for travel on 'interavailable' National Rail routes, such as c2c between Barking and West Ham/Limehouse/Fenchurch Street.
In principle the cheapest option would be for you to buy an adult ticket from Barking to Oxford, costing £38.60 for an Off-Peak Day Return. Meanwhile, your kids only need a ticket from London Terminals to Oxford since their travel to Paddington is free. That would cost £18.85 per child so £76.30 in total for the 3 of you.
However, using a Family Railcard works out marginally cheaper - even once you include the cost of buying it for a year. It gives you 1/3 off your adult fare and the children 60% off the already-discounted child fare, making the total fare £40.30. Add on the £35 cost of the Railcard and the grand total is £75.30, a £1 saving.
Of course you then have a Family Railcard you can use for the rest of the year for travel all around the country. Even around London, there are some journeys where it would be worthwhile using compared to contactless.
There are also some retailers that will offer you discounts on the headline price of a Railcard. At the moment I'm aware of TicketyBoo offering half price on Digital Railcards with discount code UKTRAINS.
There may be other retailer offers too, though most of them seem to involve retailers like TrainPal that are known for poor customer service and have catches like needing to "activate" the Railcard before you can use it, by buying a ticket through them.
Since your kids are presumably aged 0-10 they travel free on TfL when accompanied by you as an adult. The same goes for travel on 'interavailable' National Rail routes, such as c2c between Barking and West Ham/Limehouse/Fenchurch Street.
In principle the cheapest option would be for you to buy an adult ticket from Barking to Oxford, costing £38.60 for an Off-Peak Day Return. Meanwhile, your kids only need a ticket from London Terminals to Oxford since their travel to Paddington is free. That would cost £18.85 per child so £76.30 in total for the 3 of you.
However, using a Family Railcard works out marginally cheaper - even once you include the cost of buying it for a year. It gives you 1/3 off your adult fare and the children 60% off the already-discounted child fare, making the total fare £40.30. Add on the £35 cost of the Railcard and the grand total is £75.30, a £1 saving.
Of course you then have a Family Railcard you can use for the rest of the year for travel all around the country. Even around London, there are some journeys where it would be worthwhile using compared to contactless.
There are also some retailers that will offer you discounts on the headline price of a Railcard. At the moment I'm aware of TicketyBoo offering half price on Digital Railcards with discount code UKTRAINS.
There may be other retailer offers too, though most of them seem to involve retailers like TrainPal that are known for poor customer service and have catches like needing to "activate" the Railcard before you can use it, by buying a ticket through them.
Alpine Rider
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So many permutations but I thought the kids travel free with their zip cards valid as far as West Drayton which is a fair way nearer to Oxford.
Is the add on fare for the kids the same from West Drayton as from Paddington?
Is the add on fare for the kids the same from West Drayton as from Paddington?
The OP didn't specifically state whether their kids had Zip cards; it's possible they don't in which case that would be an additional cost to consider.
In any case my understanding, based on this post from @MikeWh, is that 5-10 Zip cards only provide free PAYG travel (when used to touch in and out at Zones 1-6 stations). They're not equivalent to Travelcards in the way that 60+ or Freedom Passes are - so they can't be used for non-stop splits like this.
Thanks so much for all the above. Was rushing. Paid 39.40 on Trainline as the GWR website was difficult to use form scratch in a hurry. Hadn’t thought of a family railcard.
May get a delay replay on the return leg as it was carnage.
It seems incredible that a 5 coach train from Oxford to Paddington on a Saturday night has 2 first class coaches and 3 standard! Not sure what that’s about
Thanks again
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I have just seen this site operates a ticket selling website ? Is there a link please
May get a delay replay on the return leg as it was carnage.
It seems incredible that a 5 coach train from Oxford to Paddington on a Saturday night has 2 first class coaches and 3 standard! Not sure what that’s about
Thanks again
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
I have just seen this site operates a ticket selling website ? Is there a link please
A 5-car GWR IET train has 36 1st class seats and 290 standard class. If it was a 9-car it would be 71 1st class and 573 standard class.
MarlowDonkey
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One of the coaches that may have looked like first class is actually a composite. That means it has mostly standard class seats with a first class section at one end.
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