Are there any cheap railtours?

[MK Tom]

I've never actually ridden a mainline railtour in my life, but it's something I really want to do. However everything I look at is £70-£80 mininum epic tours to the other end of the country. I will certainly do ones like that when I have the money to spare, but currently that's well out of my affordable price range. Aren't there any smaller ones? Something that just lets me ride heritage stock on the main line over a short-medium distance, for under £40?

I fully appreciate why the larger tours cost what they do, so this isn't a complaint about that. I'd just like to know if there are ones I could do that are smaller and therefore cheaper. Shorter, cheaper rides on the larger tours would be good too if that's possible.

 

[Bertie the bus]

There are very few cheap railtours beacuse a large proportion of the fare goes towards hiring the locomotives, crew and stock and is therefore not distance related. The only ones that do occassionally pop up are run by TOCs themselves and use their current rolling stock - DMUs or EMUs usually. DRS also occassionally run very reasonably priced charters.

Many tour operators offer part fares between pickup points and these can be reasonably priced. Check for tours in your area and contact the tour operator directly for details of part fares.

 

[table38]

You can get on the Charity Railtours stock move on 10th May for a mere £20.

But it's one-way so you'd need to get home again somehow

 

[matt]

The Shakespeare Express can be done for as little as £12.50 if you can get to Stratford-Upon-Avon

 

[gazthomas]

£70-80 is quite usual these days but UK Railtours has tours less than£50 regularly and last year I did Stevenage to York and back first class for £15. Their HST and 159 trips are generally great value. I picked a tour randomly and less than £50.

http://www.ukrailtours.com/tourshow...n_trains&tourfile=150425_A_TICKET_TO_RYDE.txt

 

[matt]

Those tours aren't heritage stock though which is what the OP was after

 

[BritishRail83]

You can get on the Charity Railtours stock move on 10th May for a mere £20.

But it's one-way so you'd need to get home again somehow

First I'd heard of of this, thanks for letting us know.

 

[MK Tom]

Thanks everyone. Despite the stock the IOW one would be great, but I have to add £14 to the cost for getting to Waterloo in the first place!

The Charity one to Crewe is a nice possibility, especially if I can get a cheap LM single back to MK.

What I'd really like to see is some little runs that do local rare track, like Aylesbury-Bicester or things like that!

 

[gazthomas]

A HST at 40 years old isn't heritage stock! I went to York for £15 with mark 1's, cold and wet

 

[12CSVT]

There were several opportunities to do one way trips last year for the price range you are talking about.

Wednesday 7th May 2014 - 33029 + 4TC stock Ealing Broadway to Swanage (the 4TC was then used as hauled stock at the Swanage diesel gala over the next few days.
Sunday 11th May 2014 - 33029 + 4TC stock Swanage to Ealing Broadway
(can't remember the exact price but excellent trip - as was the gala)

Sunday 7th September 2014 - GBRF stock move Crewe to Basingstoke (formed of mk1s)
92028 + 92038 Crewe to Wembley yard
73207 + 73109 Wembley Yard to Basingstoke
Prices ranged from £25 (I think) to £40 depending how far you travelled, ona 'pay on the train' basis.

One Sunday in December 2013, 20142 ran top & tail with a GWR steam loco over part of the London Underground system, 5 return trips, £25 a trip.

This coming Friday, there is an evening trip from Crewe to Ironbridge using top & tailed class 37s for £19. Sold out months ago unfortunately.

 

[QJ]

Check out West Coast Railways Scarborough Spa Express scheduled to run this summer. Like last year class 47 and mark 1 stock are to be used I believe and there are a number of pricing levels available depending on which travel options are chosen.

 

[alexl92]

I'm in a similar situation to the OP, however with the disadvantage of living in Yorkshire. Aside from the SSE (as I may be working full time by August), are there any similar cheap tours for those of us stranded in the north?

 

[89-763-733]

Thanks everyone. Despite the stock the IOW one would be great, but I have to add £14 to the cost for getting to Waterloo in the first place!

The Charity one to Crewe is a nice possibility, especially if I can get a cheap LM single back to MK.

What I'd really like to see is some little runs that do local rare track, like Aylesbury-Bicester or things like that!

UKR tours with the 159s normally include free travel to where you join the tour as long is it is a SWT service only. It is however not mentioned on the current IOW tour webpage so I suggest contacting them

 

[blackfive460]

Check out West Coast Railways Scarborough Spa Express scheduled to run this summer. Like last year class 47 and mark 1 stock are to be used I believe and there are a number of pricing levels available depending on which travel options are chosen.

Not this summer.
Mr. Smith is keeping his toys away from Scarborough this year until October when there'll be three SSEs during the school's half term week.
Hardly surprising after what happened last year.
WCRC are running York to Carlisle two days a week though but diesel to Hellifield for £65 in standard.

 

[DarloRich]

Not this summer.
Mr. Smith is keeping his toys away from Scarborough this year until October when there'll be three SSEs during the school's half term week.
Hardly surprising after what happened last year.
WCRC are running York to Carlisle two days a week though but diesel to Hellifield for £65 in standard.

what happended last year?

 

[alexl92]

what happended last year?

West Coast were banned from operating Steam locos on certain parts of the network. A yellow fire risk warning was in place, meaning that steam locos should only be in light steam with the accompanying diesel doing most of the actual work traction-wise, to prevent lineside fires as the weather had been quite dry. West Coast-operated 5972 Olton Hall - the Hogwarts Express loco - caused a fire after a hot coal fell off the engine.

Network Rail felt that 5972 was doing more work than it should have, hence the fire, and implemented a short-term ban, saying that if WCRC could provide assurances that certain procedures were in place to prevent a repeat then the ban would be lifted. West Coast argued that NR were being petty and tried to sue for lost earnings. It got messy.

Eventually it was found that although the issue of whether the steam engine was obeying the ban was largely irrelevant (the train was only about a mile into the region where the warning was in place), West Coast had some major failings in terms of communication and safety policy - I can't remember for certain but I think I remember reading that the steam crew hadn't been told about the yellow warning. The result was that the ban was extended. The SSE was one of the worst affected services as it had to be diesel-hauled for the rest of the summer, having been advertised as steam.

(Disclaimer: I'm doing this from memory; feel free to correct me if I've got mixed up)

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

There is this short tour for £39:

http://www.tyseleylocoworks.co.uk/tours/tr_2015_0411us.htm

 

[blackfive460]

(Disclaimer: I'm doing this from memory; feel free to correct me if I've got mixed up)

If anyone really wants to know the ins and outs of this there's a long thread elsewhere and this link will take you to the ADA's references and final determination on the matter. See ADA20 towards the bottom of the list.

 

[IanD]

I'm in a similar situation to the OP, however with the disadvantage of living in Yorkshire. Aside from the SSE (as I may be working full time by August), are there any similar cheap tours for those of us stranded in the north?

Disadvantage? You should count yourself lucky. I used to dream of living in Yorkshire. Luxury.

 

[alexl92]

Disadvantage? You should count yourself lucky. I used to dream of living in Yorkshire. Luxury.

Oh I do! Living in Leeds is just a disadvantage from a rail lover's perspective - relatively few railtours, not much interesting through the station... Middleton aside, the nearest heritage lines are Wensleydale (1hr drive), Keighley (45min drive) or Embsay (40 min drive on a good day) and I have neither the car nor the money to do it.

Love Yorkshire though.

 

[yorkie]

Something that just lets me ride heritage stock on the main line over a short-medium distance, for under £40?

Under £40 is pushing it - you're looking at a mini tour for that price.

But we can get you a £59 ticket (£10 discount for forum members booking through me; the normal fare is £69) on an exciting railtour on the 11th of July. Details to be announced by the end of March.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I'm in a similar situation to the OP, however with the disadvantage of living in Yorkshire. Aside from the SSE (as I may be working full time by August), are there any similar cheap tours for those of us stranded in the north?

Yes. Keep the 11th of July free!

 

[87019Chris]

Sunday 7th September 2014 - GBRF stock move Crewe to Basingstoke (formed of mk1s)
92028 + 92038 Crewe to Wembley yard
73207 + 73109 Wembley Yard to Basingstoke
Prices ranged from £25 (I think) to £40 depending how far you travelled, ona 'pay on the train' basis.

I did this tour and the Problem was it was a one way tour meaning, you had to buy a single back to where you live, so I paid £x to get to Crewe on the Sunday morning then £35+ to get from Basingstoke to Leeds again. I'm NOT complaining, it was a great day out, I had lost of fun and I'm very thankful to GBRF for running it. But with the OP's concerns you still end up splashing out £££ to get there and back.

On another note something I noticed not so long ago was the Lack of Leeds/York to London charters (correct me if I'm wrong havent had much time to check recently), and the VAST amount of London to York Charters. I wouldn't mind a charter or two down the ECML and a day in London.

 

[theblackwatch]

On another note something I noticed not so long ago was the Lack of Leeds/York to London charters (correct me if I'm wrong havent had much time to check recently), and the VAST amount of London to York Charters. I wouldn't mind a charter or two down the ECML and a day in London.

The problem with London is that it is easy and cheap to get there anyway. Why book on a railtour to there for (say) £79.50 when you can get a direct train anyway for less than that on advance tickets?

 

[87019Chris]

The problem with London is that it is easy and cheap to get there anyway. Why book on a railtour to there for (say) £79.50 when you can get a direct train anyway for less than that on advance tickets?

By the same meaning couldn't someone from London book a cheap ticket to York? Instead of the charter?

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

There were several opportunities to do one way trips last year for the price range you are talking about.

Wednesday 7th May 2014 - 33029 + 4TC stock Ealing Broadway to Swanage (the 4TC was then used as hauled stock at the Swanage diesel gala over the next few days.
Sunday 11th May 2014 - 33029 + 4TC stock Swanage to Ealing Broadway
(can't remember the exact price but excellent trip - as was the gala)

Sunday 7th September 2014 - GBRF stock move Crewe to Basingstoke (formed of mk1s)
92028 + 92038 Crewe to Wembley yard
73207 + 73109 Wembley Yard to Basingstoke
Prices ranged from £25 (I think) to £40 depending how far you travelled, ona 'pay on the train' basis.

One Sunday in December 2013, 20142 ran top & tail with a GWR steam loco over part of the London Underground system, 5 return trips, £25 a trip.

This coming Friday, there is an evening trip from Crewe to Ironbridge using top & tailed class 37s for £19. Sold out months ago unfortunately.

I would be interested in doing one of the trips like you mention here, how does one find out about when they are running and booking up? Doing with MK1 or MK2s and a diesel would be great but even better if there was some steam haulage too.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I've never actually ridden a mainline railtour in my life, but it's something I really want to do. However everything I look at is £70-£80 mininum epic tours to the other end of the country. I will certainly do ones like that when I have the money to spare, but currently that's well out of my affordable price range. Aren't there any smaller ones? Something that just lets me ride heritage stock on the main line over a short-medium distance, for under £40?

I fully appreciate why the larger tours cost what they do, so this isn't a complaint about that. I'd just like to know if there are ones I could do that are smaller and therefore cheaper. Shorter, cheaper rides on the larger tours would be good too if that's possible.

Railway Touring Company are doing the SusseX Belle on 08 Dec, steam hauled circular tour from London Victoria to Eastbourne for a 90 minute break, then diesel to Hastings and steam again to London, at GBP £ 59.00 if that's any help.

 

[MK Tom]

Under £40 is pushing it - you're looking at a mini tour for that price.

But we can get you a £59 ticket (£10 discount for forum members booking through me; the normal fare is £69) on an exciting railtour on the 11th of July. Details to be announced by the end of March.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Yes. Keep the 11th of July free!

Well yeah, a mini tour would be fine! That was kind of the point of my original post. The tours I usually see (even £59 to be honest although that's a great offer) are out of my price range, but also bigger and more elaborate than I need. I'd just like some heritage traction on the main line or some unsual bits of track. I don't need to go huge distances, it's more just the experience I'm after.

 

[theblackwatch]

By the same meaning couldn't someone from London book a cheap ticket to York? Instead of the charter?

London has a much larger catchment area than York, with a charter promoter that has a huge circulation list having been in business for well over 30 years. Plus a large number of the charters from London feature things like steam, or go on elsewhere.

 

[route:oxford]

A cheap rail-tour...

Surely one the cheapest is the daily Loco-hauled Fife-circular?

 

[185143]

A cheap rail-tour...

Surely one the cheapest is the daily Loco-hauled Fife-circular?

and the ATW manchester 67 I suppose. North Wales rover and a couple of MAN-CTR returns and you can stay on the set for most of the day (apart from Longsight when the set reaches MAN)

 

[Tim R-T-C]

Retro railrours run tours from Yorkshire and are not overly expensive - http://retrorailtours.co.uk/

Of course no-one really wants to leave Yorkshire, thats why most tours come here rather than going out.

My problem is that most tours are on a Saturday when I am at work. More Sunday tours would be welcome.