Circular / 'round robin' tickets - What examples exist?

[Lockwood]

Portsmouth to Waterloo, out via Guildford, back via Basingstoke? It's more -o- shaped than O shaped, but does it count?

I guess the easier circular routes that aren't perfect circles would be the Waterloo - Waterloo?

 

[SargeNpton]

By nature of the Routeing Guide, the more expensive routed fare is valid on the less expensive routed fare. If the via Taunton route is more expensive than via Honiton, you can automatically travel via Honiton on a via Taunton ticket.

The "Via Taunton" route shows Taunton as a mandatory location, which would prevent a journey planner offering the relevant fares on a journey via Honiton.

There is a "TAUNTON/HONITON" route but, as far as I can tell, it is not currently used for any fares.

 

[Haywain]

The "Via Taunton" route shows Taunton as a mandatory location, which would prevent a journey planner offering the relevant fares on a journey via Honiton.

This is true but the via Taunton ticket will be accepted on trains via Honiton, based on my recent experience.

 

[mangyiscute]

The "Via Taunton" route shows Taunton as a mandatory location, which would prevent a journey planner offering the relevant fares on a journey via Honiton.

There is a "TAUNTON/HONITON" route but, as far as I can tell, it is not currently used for any fares.

The routeing guide states that a ticket is also valid on routes where the ticket for those routes is cheaper, therefore the taunton ticket is valid on the honiton route since the honiton ticket is cheaper. Although agreed, someone who tries to buy a ticket going one way and back the other they won't be offered a return and may end up paying more than they should.

 

[TheSel]

Not specifically a 'circular ticket' as such, but a Day Return Chester ~ Shrewsbury is valid via either Wrexham or Crewe, so out one way, back the other is perfectly valid.

 

[xotGD]

Newcastle to Thornaby or Middlesbrough. Via the ECML one way and the Durham Coast the other.

 

[A S Leib]

The "Via Taunton" route shows Taunton as a mandatory location, which would prevent a journey planner offering the relevant fares on a journey via Honiton

Although on nights when the Night Riviera's diverted via Yeovil the 'via Taunton' fare would still be necessary if not using an advance ticket, presumably?

 

[Gathursty]

I bought a Perth to Insch return last year. Out via Aberdeen and return via Inverness. Fascinating and amazing scenery. Thank god for the trolley service!

 

[Dai Corner]

Maybe a trivial example but Radyr-Ninian Park-Cardiff Queen Street-Radyr.

 

[mangyiscute]

Maybe a trivial example but Radyr-Ninian Park-Cardiff Queen Street-Radyr.

I'd suggest for a truly circular train, the Radyr to Coryton service and you can walk between the two termini - surely there can't be a train service which its two terminating stations that close together (but not being the same station) despite travelling more than just a direct line between those two station

 

[xotGD]

Birmingham New Street to East Midlands Parkway. Out via Leicester, return via Derby.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Urmston to Southport (route "Any Permitted"). Out via Liverpool. Return via Wigan/Manchester.

 

[fandroid]

Southampton to London Terminals OffPeak Return offers a multitude of possible routes that could effectively create several circles. To complete the circle in London could require a tube or bus fare though. It's certainly valid via Brighton as well as via Reading

 

[43096]

London to Oxford, out on Chiltern, return via GWR to Paddington (or even into Waterloo by changing at Reading)?

 

[Springs Branch]

Urmston to Southport (route "Any Permitted"). Out via Liverpool. Return via Wigan/Manchester.

Another circular possibility in the same area is Bolton to Chester.

Booking engines quote the obvious routes up front - via Manchester, Earlestown & Helsby, or Wigan, Warrington BQ & Helsby. But with very little coaxing, journey planners also generate itineraries via Piccadilly & the Mid-Cheshire Line, or via Wigan, Headbolt Lane & Birkenhead - both at the normal BON-CTR Any Permitted fare.

In between these last two geographical extremes are other permutations (with itineraries available at the normal through fare) involving Manchester - Lime St via either the full Chat Moss or CLC routes, or Wigan - Lime St via St Helens Central.

In fact, a less than scrupulous traveller with time on their hands, a paper ticket and a bit of luck avoiding hungry barriers* & diligent grippers might see this as a poor man's Cheshire Ranger and spend the day going backwards and forwards, covering various plausible routes and seeing how many TOCs and different haulage can be ticked off.
(Bonus points awarded for bagging the couple-a-day Lime St-Wigan via Newton-le-Willows stoppers, and using EMR between Oxford Rd & Lime St.)

I should take a look at Bolton - Shotton journeys to see if the Borderlands Line via Bidston can be added as another possible route.

* Buying the ticket as Westhoughton - Bache (same fare) might mitigate this risk.

 

[lyndhurst25]

[*]Walking Tour Tickets - out by one rail route, bit of a hike, then back via another. This is basically an open-jaw day return and sounds like it was only available for certain specified stations and walks.

I'd be interested to know some examples of these walks - no doubt options would be publicised via those characteristic railway handbills in racks at stations. It's no surprise that several years issues of LMR timetables printed the Walking Tour Tickets advert at the bottom of the Manchester - Hayfield/Macclesfield via Rose Hill tables.

Given this was the 1960s and frequencies of service at many of the prime candidate stations might be *slim* (especially on Sundays), you'd hope that BR Marketing bods who selected itineraries, and eager ramblers setting off for their Grand Day Out both paid careful attention to the train timetables.

View attachment 148059

Those Y-shaped returns for hikers were, until recently, available on the Settle & Carlisle and Bentham lines. Returns to the following pairs if stations could be used interchangeably - Horton in Ribblesdale and Clapham, Ribblehead and Bentham. It was never well advertised but I did make use of it on a few occasions as it was good value, especially with a Dales Railcard. I understand that Northern withdrew the concession a few years back and, partly due to the resulting increased cost, I haven’t used the train to get to hikes in that area since.

 

[John Luxton]

Back in the late 70s there some really good Round Robin deals from Liverpool at weekends the ones I used were:

Liverpool LS - Crewe - Derby - St Pancras / Euston - Liverpool LS

Liverpool - Carlisle - Newcastle - Liverpool

Liverpool - Carlisle - Leeds - Liverpool

These I seem to recall were £4 or £5 first class.

Liverpool LS - Crewe - Shrewsbury - Swansea - Cardiff - Shrewsbury - Crewe - Liverpool LS this was priced at £5 / £6 and an excellent long day out!!

I think there was also a Liverpool - Carlisle - Barrow - Preston - Liverpool one - but I never did that.

Round Robins are something the TOCs should offer again and promote as they are particularly appealing to the leisure travel and not just the rail enthusiast market.

Since getting back into rail travel again I have done some "round robin style" trips but have used rovers / rangers for those, but would certainly consider buying one off circular tour tickets.

 

[jfollows]

Back in the late 70s there some really good Round Robin deals from Liverpool at weekends the ones I used were:

Liverpool LS - Crewe - Derby - St Pancras / Euston - Liverpool LS

I did that particular one myself, I recall, and First Class as you say, except I did it the other way round so it wasn't exactly the same.
I think the first leg was AM4 (class 304 EMU) still with its First Class to Crewe.
The Euston, leave Saint Pancras for Sheffield, Hope Valley for Manchester.
The down train from Saint Pancras ran very late, so much so that on arrival into Manchester (the ticket continued to Liverpool but I'd bought a single from Manchester to get to Liverpool that morning) my last train home (Poynton) had left, so it was the Guide Bridge staff DMU to Stockport for a taxi home.

 

[vectra33]

Would Man Vic- Blackburn work ?, out via Todmorden, return via Bolton

 

[xotGD]

Bradford to Leeds
Chester to Manchester

Or even:

Chester - Stockport - Man Pic - Huddersfield - Leeds - Bradford Interchange - Man Vic - Chester

Years ago I did Newcastle - Edinburgh - Carlisle - Newcastle with a return to Carstairs

 

[Ken H]

I had to go and see a client in London regularly in the 1980's. Cant remember ticket type but there again I wasn't paying. Starting Nuneaton, always to Euston. But back :-

1. Liverpool St - Watford via Graham Rd Spur then WCML to Nuneaton
2. St Pancras - Leicester - Nuneaton
3. Paddington - Oxford - Coventry - Nuneaton
4. Cant remember but I think Marylebone but may have been Paddington. Loco hauled train via High Wycombe to Banbury, then Coventry - Nuneaton

I think I did Brum - London, out via Rugby, back via High Wycombe then too.

Simpler times.

 

[Ken H]

Bradford to Leeds
Chester to Manchester

Or even:

Chester - Stockport - Man Pic - Huddersfield - Leeds - Bradford Interchange - Man Vic - Chester

Years ago I did Newcastle - Edinburgh - Carlisle - Newcastle with a return to Carstairs

I went for an interview in Edinburgh. From Brum via York, back via Carlisle.
Coming back the electric broke down so we trundled south dragged by a Cl 56.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Would Man Vic- Blackburn work ?, out via Todmorden, return via Bolton

Don't see why not. If the ticket was routed "via Bromley Cross", you'd need a one way change of route excess to route "Any Permitted" in order to travel out or back via Todmorden. Travel is also possible "via Preston", but that's invariably more expensive again than the other two options.

Getting a correctly priced one way change of route excess is the tricky bit, it usually gets overcharged.

 

[anothertyke]

Those Y-shaped returns for hikers were, until recently, available on the Settle & Carlisle and Bentham lines. Returns to the following pairs if stations could be used interchangeably - Horton in Ribblesdale and Clapham, Ribblehead and Bentham. It was never well advertised but I did make use of it on a few occasions as it was good value, especially with a Dales Railcard. I understand that Northern withdrew the concession a few years back and, partly due to the resulting increased cost, I haven’t used the train to get to hikes in that area since.

Really? I have done that many times and never been challenged. Probably passed you at Sulber Nick!

 

[lyndhurst25]

Really? I have done that many times and never been challenged. Probably passed you at Sulber Nick!

How recently? I remember seeing an email from Northern confirming that the concession had been withdrawn, maybe three or five years ago. Perhaps it has been reintroduced?

EDIT-

It was only last year! Mentioned in this thread-

Triangular journey from Shipley to Bentham then back from Ribblehead?

looking to travel from Shipley to Bentham and then return to Shipley from Ribblehead(same day) is the only option 2 singles?

www.railforums.co.uk

Perhaps someone should ask Northern again?

 

[anothertyke]

Perhaps I haven't done it since 22. Another option is to get the bus from Clapham back to Giggleswick Stn saving 2kms of road walking.

 

[xotGD]

Birmingham - Carlisle - Newcastle - Sheffield - Birmingham on a Birmingham to Newcastle ticket is another I used to do.

 

[Cheshire Rover]

A Cheshire Day Ranger gives you plenty of choices around Cheshire, Manchester, Wirral and Liverpool with options for most of the routes in the area as far East as Macclesfield etc.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

A Cheshire Day Ranger gives you plenty of choices around Cheshire, Manchester, Wirral and Liverpool with options for most of the routes in the area as far East as Macclesfield etc.

As indeed do many other local day ranger type products, such as the 'Cumbria Day Ranger', the 'North West Round Robin', and the 'Lancashire Day Ranger', to name but a few. Plenty of variety!

 

[PeterY]

I've done in the past lots of circular trips using the 3 mile rule. It's just a case of working out the mid way point.