Bury St Edmunds to Bootle new Strand

[bradleyd]

Hi, I'm looking at travelling from Bury st edmunds to Bootle New Strand, on either Friday 28th october (after 4pm) or Saturday 29th, and arriving back on Sunday 30th (before 9pm). Can you help me find out the cheapest possible way of doing this journey, with regards split tickets etc. I cannot buy my tickets until Tuesday 25th October!

I do not have any railcards, and i don't mind how long the journey, or how many trains (as long as i can buy a cup of tea at some point on the journey)

Many Thanks

 

[First class]

The walkup (on the day) fare is £89.90 not valid via London and not before 9am M-F, however:

Bury St Edmunds to Douglas (IOM) is £87, valid any time, and with Break of Journey. This is valid via London (including LU transfer) and Liverpool. You can also use it on the 2-car Class 158 route across to Liverpool, although via London would be a preferred route for me.

Incidentally, why would anyone ever buy a SOR return from Liverpool/Preston/Lancaster to London??

Liverpool-London SOR = £261 Douglas-London £87.00
Lancaster-London SOR = £289 Douglas-London £87.00

Saving of around £200 both walkup tickets, with pretty much identical validity!!!! Surely the biggest savings?

 

[island]

Incidentally, why would anyone ever buy a SOR return from Liverpool/Preston/Lancaster to London??

Liverpool-London SOR = £261 Douglas-London £87.00
Lancaster-London SOR = £289 Douglas-London £87.00

Saving of over £200 both walkup tickets, with pretty much identical validity!!!! Surely the biggest savings?

Well, you're comparing a return to a single, but the point still stands as the single costs less than half the return. But people buy them for the same reason as anyone else overpays for a rail ticket — because the system is absurdly complex!

 

[First class]

It is a return,

ECR - ECONOMY RETURN
00996 - +ISLE OF MAN SPC
Non-standard discounts apply
1 Adult @£ 87.00 = £ 87.00
__________
£ 87.00

Standard Class Return

 

[Mutant Lemming]

A combination of an off peak return from BSE to Kings Cross £37.50, A London Midland Great Escape ticket for Friday or Saturday and Sunday £10 x 2 and a single each way Liverpool to Bootle New Strand £2.30 x 2 would come to £62.10 though you would need to print off the vouchers to buy your Great Escape tickets (and buy them from the ticket office at Euston by platforms 9,10,11 and not the main ticket office). Will also take you a fair bit of time.

http://www.londonmidland.com/tickets-and-fares/great-escape/

Above is link to the Great Escape offer... and below one to their timetables

http://www.londonmidland.com/your-journey/timetables/

(forgot to mention was thinking you'd walk between Kings Cross and Euston - add £4 if you want to make the one stop and almost as much walking down and up escalators tube journey between the two)

 

[bradleyd]

Thanks for all of your help.

I have been looking through times, and i think that if i manage to get the 15:56 from bury st edmunds on the friday, i can get into Kings Cross for 18:05. Then the 18:29 from euston to crewe, arriving at 21:27, before getting the 21:31 crewe to liverpool south parkway, and then from there to new strand. I do not know these stations at all, so do you think that this gives enough time?

Do you know of any other options, with that as the earliest train, which will get me into bootle new strand that day, using the London Midland offer?

 

[First class]

Just bear in mind that Mutant Lemming did not tell you about the PEAK TIME SUPPLEMENT on the "Great Escape" if you leave London between 1600 and 1900 on a Friday.

Make sure you obtain your voucher in advance!

£5.00 extra so that combination comes to £67.10, (if you get Underground Kings Cross-Euston, £71.10).

I do not believe 4 minutes is adequate connection time at Crewe. You must allow 10 minutes, otherwise the train company is not liable if you miss your train. I suspect the train could easily arrive 4 minutes late... not to mention the platform is usually the very furthest one, (11/12?)

You need to factor in waiting for the 22:31 LM service to Liverpool South Parkway, arriving there at 23:07.
Then get the 23:24 service to Bootle NS arrives 23:50.

I'd rather pay £87 and get there on a MUCH MUCH quicker, easier route!

 

[Mutant Lemming]

Apologies for neglecting to mention the extra fiver peak time supplement for the Friday evening train, also regarding what you iniitally said........

!

I don't mind how long the journey, or how many trains (as long as i can buy a cup of tea at some point on the journey)

Many Thanks

London Midland discontinued on train catering so you wll need to take a flask (or a kettle and some milk,water,tea bags etc).

It's about a 10 minute walk (if you know where you are heading) from Kings Cross to Euston and you may have to queue to buy your ticket (and supplement if it's the Friday) so your train in to KX needs to be on time.

As a back up (or if you wish to avoid the supplement) you could catch the 19:13 to Birmingham arr 21:16 and then the 21:36 Birmingham to Liverpool train (which would be the 22:31 from Crewe).

The LM midland service from Euston arrives at Crewe a good dash along a platform and across a footbridge (usually) and 4 minutes is cutting it a little too fine.

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/sjp/CRE/plan.html (you need to scroll down to see platform layout)

The train from Euston tends to arrive on Platform 2 or 3 while the Liverpool service usually leaves from 6 or 11