Are Sail Rail tickets valid on the Caledonian Sleeper?

[4SRKT]

For example, setting off from Dublin on the afternoon boat, picking up the sleeper at Crewe and getting the 09:00 Kyle of Lochalsh for a single at about £40. Seems too good to be true to me.

 

[route101]

I think you have to buy a supplement Im not an expert though.

 

[4SRKT]

I think you have to buy a supplement Im not an expert though.

I know about buying the supplement to go in a berth, but is the Sail Rail (which as I understand it is a SOR) valid to be used with the supplement?

 

[First class]

Yes they are valid in the seated sleeper, but you must have a mandatory reservation, so you must book it prior to travel. You can be refused carriage on the sleeper if you do not possess the required reservation. There is no charge to book a seat.

For an extra £40 you can get a decent kip in a berth.

Not easier to go Dublin-Belfast-Stranraer-Glasgow...?

 

[4SRKT]

Yes they are valid in the seated sleeper, but you must have a mandatory reservation, so you must book it prior to travel. You can be refused carriage on the sleeper if you do not possess the required reservation. There is no charge to book a seat.

For an extra £40 you can get a decent kip in a berth.

Not easier to go Dublin-Belfast-Stranraer-Glasgow...?

Thanks. So I need to ring ScotRail before I travel and either reserve a seat or book a berth. The Sail Rail will do the rest.

Possibly easier to go via Belfast, but the connections at Stranraer are so bad that it's a big hassle. Also, this is not about sense, but about gricing. Planning to break en route at Bangor, and go on the Welsh Highland to Porthmadog, Ffestiniog to Blaenau, and Conwy Valley to The Junction before heading on to Crewe for the sleeper. I did the WHR/FR combo this summer and was so impressed I'm going to try and make it an annual event. I might get my dad to join me from Bangor to Kyle, but as he's a priv holder he'll have to make his own arrangements on the sleeper. He can pay my supplement at the same time to make sure we get in the same compartment!

 

[John @ home]

is the Sail Rail (which as I understand it is a SOR) valid to be used with the supplement?

But the ticket valid via Crewe is not a SOR, For example, Kyle of Lochalsh - Dublin Connolly CIE tickets are:

route Stranraer Stena
SDS £57
SOR £114

route Holyhead Stena CIV
ECS £31.50 6C
ECR £63.00 6C

Restriction 6C is:

Outward & Return Travel
Valid on date on ticket only.
Valid on Stena Line services port to port only.
Reservations are compulsory on the ship leg.
Break of journey on rail leg only.
No unaccompanied children under 16 permitted to travel.

Refunds
Tickets issued in the UK: Standard refund procedures apply.
For tickets issued in Republic of Ireland: Refunds cannot be given. The customer must claim through Irish Rail.

ECS/ECR is Economy Single/Return. This means the ticket does not carry the priviliges of a SOR, for example free upgrade to First Class at weekends on Virgin Trains. The full description is:

Ticket Code: ECS
Ticket Class: STANDARD
Ticket Name: ECONOMY SINGLE
Single/Return: SINGLE
Out Validity:- DATE ON TICKET ONLY
Break of Journey: NO

Ticket Code: ECR
Ticket Class: STANDARD
Ticket Name: ECONOMY RETURN
Single/Return: RETURN
Out and Return Validity:- DATE ON TICKET ONLY
Break of Journey: NO

Reservation coupons for the ship leg are mandatory and rail tickets are not valid without them

NOT VALID PORT TO PORT

Planning to break en route at Bangor

It seems that break of journey (except on the ship!) is specifically permitted by the Restriction code and specifically prohibited by the description of the ticket type. Note also that both outward and return legs are valid only on the date shown on the respective tickets (with, presumably, the usual rules about continuing into the second day where necessary).

There is no restriction in either on the use of sleepers, so I agree the tickets should be valid on payment of the appropriate supplement.

 

[yorkie]

I think "Break of journey on rail leg only" is a bit daft. What does this mean? I guess it means that you can't parachute down onto the boat, or jump overboard, or errr... that's about it. So it's basically meaningless!

But at least it's pretty clear that a break of journey at Bangor is fine.

 

[First class]

I think "Break of journey on rail leg only" is a bit daft. What does this mean? I guess it means that you can't parachute down onto the boat, or jump overboard, or errr... that's about it. So it's basically meaningless!

But at least it's pretty clear that a break of journey at Bangor is fine.

I think it is a legacy phrase because some shipping services call at more than one port, e.g. Aberdeen-Kirkwall-Lerwick, so with this type of ticket you couldn't break your journey at Kirkwall...

BR Sealink probably had similar routes...

Either way, it offers a bit of protection in case current ferry operators decide to do the same without having to redraw the fares.

 

[Flying Snail]

I think it is a legacy phrase because some shipping services call at more than one port, e.g. Aberdeen-Kirkwall-Lerwick, so with this type of ticket you couldn't break your journey at Kirkwall...

Don't think it is a legacy as that description is new, until last year there was no Break of Journey allowed on any sail-rail ECS/ECR tickets via Holyhead or Fishguard.

As long as the route is valid I can see no reason why they wouldn't be valid on the seats, I wouldn't be so sure if FSR would let you buy a birth with one though.

 

[4SRKT]

The lack of break on the return journey is a problem though. I want to come back from Kyle to here, then go back to Dublin a week later. If it was a proper SOR I would have broken at Wigan and then split at Littleborough and Walsden to get back to Bradford for not much. Later I was going to get back onto the route at Chester by getting an advance Huddersfield > Chester and a single Shipley > Huddersfield.

I could still get the ticket to get a cheap way of going Kyle > Wigan, and just not cover the Wigan > Dublin part of the route. I doubt I can get from Kyle to Wigan for £31.50 any other way frankly! Then buy a Shipley > Dublin ECS for £28.50 when it's time to go back again (forget the sleeper supplement: I'll have to go on the seats to pay for the extra ticket!).

I don't suppose Kyle > Holyhead via the ECML and York > Manchester > Chester is a valid route is it?