ATW Club 55 (now live)

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I have just downloaded their latest information on this from their website. The offer runs from 4th September and 14th December 2011, with return ticket validilty of one month (or until 14th December).

The price has now increased from £15 to £18, from the offer earlier this year, but there is still the £2 discount for holders of either a Senior Citizen Railcard or a Disabled Persons Railcard. The same fares add-on facility from certain bordering areas still applies as earlier this year, but with some price changes. One notable example being an add-on fare of £20.50 on Chiltern Railways between Birmingham and London Marylebone. Seat Reservations are stated to be optional with this offer. On Monday to Friday, the same morning arrival restriction to Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Cardiff of 0930/1000 still applies and between 1600 to 1900 for departures from London Marylebone.

I have won the battle that I fought with ATW earlier this year, as the over-60 National Concessionary Bus Pass has now been added to the Proof of Age requirements when purchasing such tickets, which is now in print in all the literature for this offer.

 

[merlodlliw]

It starts again Sept 4th. Rules below, sorry its long. Bob

http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/Club55/

1) To take up this offer you must be aged 55 or over and provide proof of age when you travel using a Club 55 ticket. We will only accept passport, driving license, pension book or a bus pass as proof of age.
2) Customers who are unable or refuse to provide proof of age on request will be required to purchase a new ticket as if no Club 55 ticket is held, no credit will be given for the Club 55 ticket.
3) Club 55 travel will be valid between 4 September and 14 December 2011. Outward travel is permitted on the date shown on the ticket and return travel is permitted within one calendar month of the date of outward travel or 14 December whichever is the earlier. All travel must be completed by 14 December 2011. Travel on 15 December 2011 or later will require a new ticket to be purchased.
4) Travel is valid on the entire Arriva Trains Wales network and the services of the following operators (supplementary return add-on fare applies):
Chiltern Railways - Between Birmingham Moor Street and London Marylebone (£20.50 add-on). An interchange between Arriva Trains Wales services and Chiltern Railways is available using London Midland between Smethwick Galton Bridge to Birmingham Moor Street.
Cross Country – Between Cheltenham and Birmingham New St only (£10 add-on).
First Great Western - Between Bristol, Bath Spa, Taunton, Westbury, Castle Cary (£5 add-on).
London Midland – Between Crewe and Liverpool only (£5 add-on).
Northern Rail – Services in the Greater Manchester County – Bursough Bridge/Bromley Cross/Glossop/ Littleborough/Greenfield/Poynton and Patricroft (£1.50 add-on).
Merseyrail – Any station on the Merseyrail network (£1 add-on)
Add-on fares are only allowed at one end of the journey and not both. Journeys may start or end on the add-on area of the partner train operating companies. Add-on fares must be purchased as a complete journey when the Club 55 ticket is being purchased and cannot be purchased without the core Arriva Trains Wales Club 55 ticket or as an addition at a later date. Club 55 tickets can be used on the services of other train operators within the Arriva Trains Wales network for line of route travel only using the following operators: First Great Western, Cross Country, London Midland, Virgin Trains between North Wales and Crewe. Travel on the services of operators not included in the Club 55 offer will require a new ticket to be purchased. Some Club 55 tickets will have limitations on the train operating companies that can be used on some journeys and only the company or combinations of companies shown on the ticket.
5) A £2 discount to Senior Railcard and Disabled Persons Railcard holders is available on Club 55. Other than this, there are no other railcard/child concessions available in conjunction with this offer.
6) On Mondays to Fridays, some morning travel restrictions will apply. Journeys may not be made which arrive into Cardiff Central, Birmingham New St, Manchester Piccadilly or Liverpool Lime St / Central before 9:30am and 10.00am for London Marylebone. Evening travel restrictions also apply to departures from London Marylebone from 4.00pm to 7.00pm.
7) Date of outward travel may be changed providing this is done before the date of outward travel. Changes on or after the date of outward travel will be treated as refunds and a new ticket will have to be purchased. Any change of date must be within the scope of the offer.
8) Refunds. A full refund, less administration fee, will be granted on unused Club 55 tickets. There are no refunds for part used tickets (this includes travel in one direction only or any journey not completed before 14 December).
Please note: Club 55 tickets will not be available for purchase until the promotion start date, 27 August 2011. You cannot travel until 4 September 2011.
9) All tickets are issued subject to National Conditions of Carriage and can be used by any permitted route or any additional routing permitted on the ticket. Travel beyond the map shown in this leaflet will require a new ticket to be purchased for that journey.
10) Seat reservations are optional with this offer. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.
11). Club 55 offer valid until 14 December 2011.

 

[Red Dragon]

I have just tried the ATW website and found that the Club 55 offer is already live - a day ahead of schedule.
Hope this is useful.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
ATW on-line booking now not working fully, can book [stn]MAN[/stn] to [stn]PWL[/stn], but not [stn]MAN[/stn] to [stn]CDF[/stn].

 

[extendedpaul]

I will be travelling from Cardiff to Holyhead on the afternoon Premier Service during September with a Club 55 ticket.

I quite fancy treating myself to first class but am I right in thinking it will cost an extra £50 for the one way journey ? Does that just cover the evening meal and a first class seat or are there other perks ?

I would be interested in the views of anybody who has used the service - is it worth the cost ?

 

[firespire]

The Club 55 online purchasing has always been flakey, whether decides to sell you a ticket you want is hit and miss.

Important to be aware of the engineering works on the first couple of weekends of September between Newport and Shrewsbury. http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/EngineeringWorks/
The computer will probably be organising journeys away from ATW territory and then telling you the offer isn't available. If you wanted to use Club 55 and the bus replacement services presumably you have to try and force it to to route via Shrewsbury.

 

[Red Dragon]

The Club 55 online purchasing has always been flakey, whether decides to sell you a ticket you want is hit and miss.

Important to be aware of the engineering works on the first couple of weekends of September between Newport and Shrewsbury. http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/EngineeringWorks/
The computer will probably be organising journeys away from ATW territory and then telling you the offer isn't available. If you wanted to use Club 55 and the bus replacement services presumably you have to try and force it to to route via Shrewsbury.

Have tried forcing Manchester to Cardiff via Shrewsbury, out on Wed 7th Sept, rtn on Fri 9th Sept but still no joy. Will try again in the morning.
Manchester to Pwllheli was fine.
Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[firespire]

I've had a play around with journeys to/from Cardiff and stations nearby and they don't seem to be working, maybe they are entering the fares bit by bit.

 

[bb21]

I read it as a £20.50 add-on to the Club 55 fare to Marylebone and not just £20.50 for the whole journey.

 

[CosherB]

20% increase in cost from the last such offer earlier this year is a bit steep. My income has not risen at all since then - why is 'rail inflation' so much higher than 'my inflation'?

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I read it as a £20.50 add-on to the Club 55 fare to Marylebone and not just £20.50 for the whole journey.

You are quite correct. All the "add-on" fares are additional to the £18.00 ATW Club 55 ticket. This has always been shown very clearly in all the Club 55 leaflets produced by ATW in the past, as well as in this leaflet. It must also be clearly understood that the "add-on" facility can only be used at one end of a journey, not additionally at both ends of a journey with a "Club 55" as the centre portion.

If the £20.50 price applied to the journey itself, can you imagine the numbers using this facility to London Marylebone.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I have just tried the ATW website and found that the Club 55 offer is already live - a day ahead of schedule.

The published literature states that the current Club 55 promotion offers a ticket purchasing facility from 27th August, but the first allowed date of travel being 4th September.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

20% increase in cost from the last such offer earlier this year is a bit steep. My income has not risen at all since then - why is 'rail inflation' so much higher than 'my inflation'?

I think that you have to bear in mind that £18.00 is the price for a ticket that offers return facility of one month, which should be compared with a return rail ticket for that period that is normally priced.

However, from the reading of your recent postings on another thread, a rise of £3.00 in the ATW Club 55 offer, should not pose undue problems to an airline captain earning 100K per annum :roll:

 

[Red Dragon]

I've had a play around with journeys to/from Cardiff and stations nearby and they don't seem to be working, maybe they are entering the fares bit by bit.

Perhaps I was running into the Cardiff time and day restrictions - see Merlodlliw's post above.

Have now booked MAN to NWP with a snr railcard for £16 rtn, and will break the return journey at Ludlow for the Food Fest on the way back to Yorkshire.

Manchester Pic to Pwllheli rtn was fine @ £16 with a snr railcard. Just hope the weather is good for this one.