CIV ticket Emsworth to St Pancras

[Graham H]

First of all thanks to the site for alerting me to the existence of CIV tickets. However the CIV ticket to LNE seems more expensive so what am I doing wrong.

As suggested I looked at BR fares and Emsworth to LNE comes up as £40.70 standard class single walk up fare. Little note says 'fare set by southern'

However using National Rail the Anytime single Emsworth to St Pancras says £36.50 using Southern and Thameslink. I need to be at St P by 10:00.

By contrast the return fare does show some saving. BR fares says £49.80 return and National Rail £71 by buying singles each way as strangely the return fare on Nat Rail comes up as £81.40.

I am not actually travelling until May but as on line tickets arent showing yet that far out I looked at next week just to get an idea.

As 4 of us are travelling back from Amsterdam I was going to use Group Save for the St Pancras to Emsworth part as its late evening in super off peak times and normal tickets for the 2 people travelling out.

Any help gratefully received, no railcards owned

 

[island]

CIV tickets are priced differently to reflect the extra protection offered and also many include London Underground.

Without seeing the specific screens I wouldn't be able to comment on the £71 or £81.40 prices.

 

[Graham H]

CIV tickets are priced differently to reflect the extra protection offered and also many include London Underground.

Without seeing the specific screens I wouldn't be able to comment on the £71 or £81.40 prices.

Hi yes I appreciate there is some protection but from what I read on previous discussions I understood the CIV ticket was priced at a more generous rate than peak hour tickets whereas in my case the anytime fare is less anyway by about 10% which I appreciate isnt a huge saving

 

[Alex365Dash]

As suggested I looked at BR fares and Emsworth to LNE comes up as £40.70 standard class single walk up fare. Little note says 'fare set by southern'

This fare is route ”.” (dot, 01000) valid either way into London, either direct via Three Bridges or via Havant into Waterloo. It also includes Underground validity, so you can use it on the Tube from a London terminal (e.g. Waterloo or Victoria) to St Pancras.

However using National Rail the Anytime single Emsworth to St Pancras says £36.50 using Southern and Thameslink. I need to be at St P by 10:00.

This fare is routed “Three Bridges” to London Thameslink and is not valid via Havant, and also (unless using an inter-available route, which in this case the only relevant one is London Bridge - St Pancras - Kentish Town / West Hampstead) isn’t valid on the Underground - you’ll need to use Thameslink instead.

By contrast the return fare does show some saving. BR fares says £49.80 return and National Rail £71 by buying singles each way as strangely the return fare on Nat Rail comes up as £81.40.

Given your travelling group, it appears that you can get a saving of about £4.60 by just ignoring the CIV fares and purchasing the following:
- Anytime Day Single from Emsworth to London Thameslink route Three Bridges: £36.50 x2 = £73
- Off-Peak Day Single from London Thameslink to Emsworth route Three Bridges w/ GroupSave discount: £22.75 x4 = £91
- Total: £164

The other option would be buying CIV returns for the two of you going out and non-CIV singles for the extra two coming back (there are no fares defined from London International to Emsworth):
- Euro High Saver CIV Return from Emsworth to London International: £49.80 x2 = £99.60
- Off-Peak Day Single from London Thameslink to Emsworth route Three Bridges: £34.50 x2 = £69
- Total: £168.60

 

[Graham H]

This fare is route ”.” (dot, 01000) valid either way into London, either direct via Three Bridges or via Havant into Waterloo. It also includes Underground validity, so you can use it on the Tube from a London terminal (e.g. Waterloo or Victoria) to St Pancras.

This fare is routed “Three Bridges” to London Thameslink and is not valid via Havant, and also (unless using an inter-available route, which in this case the only relevant one is London Bridge - St Pancras - Kentish Town / West Hampstead) isn’t valid on the Underground - you’ll need to use Thameslink instead.

Given your travelling group, it appears that you can get a saving of about £4.60 by just ignoring the CIV fares and purchasing the following:
- Anytime Day Single from Emsworth to London Thameslink route Three Bridges: £36.50 x2 = £73
- Off-Peak Day Single from London Thameslink to Emsworth route Three Bridges w/ GroupSave discount: £22.75 x4 = £91
- Total: £164

The other option would be buying CIV returns for the two of you going out and non-CIV singles for the extra two coming back (there are no fares defined from London International to Emsworth):
- Euro High Saver CIV Return from Emsworth to London International: £49.80 x2 = £99.60
- Off-Peak Day Single from London Thameslink to Emsworth route Three Bridges: £34.50 x2 = £69
- Total: £168.60

Thanks for that very detailed reply ! I hadnt twigged I could go via Havant as the BR fare table said 'set by Southern' so the CIV ticket is a little cheaper than anytime via Havant which might be quicker but the easiest route would be to use Southern and change into Thameslink at Three Bridges/Gatwick/East Croydon so the underground issue you mention wouldnt affect me. Thanks for confirming what I thought. Two anytimes going up and a group save coming back

 

[Watershed]

London International CIV tickets don't always offer a saving. In this case, you are paying slightly more as the fare from Emsworth includes travel on the Underground (which a route 'London Not Und' ticket to St Pancras wouldn't), and you get two months of validity for the return portion (whereas a normal Off-Peak Return is only valid for a month).

Tickets to London International CIV aren't offered with a GroupSave discount, so may well be more expensive for your circumstances.

 

[Graham H]

Belated update and thanks for all the advice. In the end SWR are offering advance tickets even for what I consider the morning London bound peak. Havant to St Pancras via W'loo and the underground. £20.80 each to get there during peak commute times and a real bargain £11.70 each back mid evening. Cant grumble at that as I dont need any flexibility as I know when I need to be there and when I will be back.