Barnsley <> Manchester airport ticket query

[mick69]

yet to book my train tickets and need advice on the permitted route if my flight gets delayed.
i'm planning on booking a return ticket with seat reservation for a set train back
(any o/p, return within 1 month) but 2 options available, both similar in price
1 is via sheffield and the other via huddersfield, either are good for me,

if landing back on time and allowing time to collect luggage then hudds is the first available,
but what if my flight is delayed and i miss the planned train?
would i need to wait for the next train going via hudds even though 2 trains via sheff could be available before?
i know if not it'll only be an hour wait at most, but i'm sure i'm not alone in saying once your holiday is over and after a 4 hour flight i just want to get home asap,
not sure if my tickets would apply to use the flight delay option

thanks, mike

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Someone who really knows what they are talking about should be along soon, but assuming that you are not planning on getting an advance ticket and given that the tickets are similar in price, buy the more expensive ticket. My understanding is that it will therefore also be valid on the cheaper route.

On TPE, there are some unique rules for Advance tickets starting from Manchester airport to allow for delayed flights. Depending on where you are going, those might also help you.

 

[mick69]

it's just a standard off peak return but 1 must be passing through hudds & the other through sheff
not sure if i selected seats for a preferred train even though i can use tickets on later trains they'd allow me to use a different route if i got delayed to get home quicker

 

[alistairlees]

it's just a standard off peak return but 1 must be passing through hudds & the other through sheff
not sure if i selected seats for a preferred train even though i can use tickets on later trains they'd allow me to use a different route if i got delayed to get home quicker

Where are you travelling from? We need to know this in order to provide any useful advice.

 

[mick69]

barnsley to manchester airport

 

[island]

As the fares are the same price, buy whichever one suits your outbound journey and if you wish to use the other route going back, you can obtain an excess fare ticket free of charge from the ticket office or on board to use the other route instead.

Your ticket won’t be tied to a particular train, though your seat reservations will.

 

[mick69]

obtain an excess fare ticket free of charge

thanks, never heard of this before

 

[Hadders]

Where there are different geographical routeings between two different places and you wish to travel out via one route and return via another then you can obtain a Change of Route Excess. For a change in one direction this costs half the difference between the appropriate fares. It can be obtained onboard without penalty. Note that many staff know little about excesses so they can be difficult to obtain.

For example, London - Birmingham:

Any Permitted: £56.70
Via High Wycombe: £50.00

To travel one way via High Wycombe and return via another permitted route but the High Wycombe fare, and a change of route excess which would cost £3.35.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

TPE's Airport Advance allows you to return on a train up to 3 hours after your booked train, if your flight is delayed.
You have to get this endorsed at the Airport ticket office before return travel starts.
If you are on a standard off-peak ticket, this is unnecessary of course as the ticket is flexible anyway.

 

[_toommm_]

Personally, I would go via Sheffield. The reason is that Huddersfield to Barnsley is only 1 train an hour; Sheffield to Barnsley is up to 4 trains an hour (2 Express, 2 stopping).