CIV tickets and London Termini

[SS4]

I have a trip booked for Eurostar at the end of October and just need to sort out a CIV ticket for getting from Birmingham to London International (LNE) before 0745 on a Friday to allow an hour for check in. If it makes a difference I do hold a 16-25 railcard

The restriction code is EVS .

SOUTHBOUND TRAVEL
Not valid on any trains timed
to arrive at London Euston
before 0940

Now this gets me into London far too late. However, I see that the restriction code explicitly mentions Euston but the ticket itself is marked as ✠ANY PERMITTED so would I be right in thinking I can use this on a direct service (it's also the shortest route iirc) from Moor Street (BMO) into Marylebone (MYB) and travel by tube to St Pancras.

The service I was looking at was the 0515 ex-BMO (arr MYB at 0701). I'd also appreciate if anyone familiar with London would be able to say how long it'd take to get from the subsurface lines at Kings Cross underground to St Pancras? I am a lazy sod so will probably end up walking to Baker Street rather than mess with the deep tube.

As a wild shot, can I take advantage of Virgin's railcard easement? I suspect not because the journey would not be entirely on Virgin even though I'd walk from Euston to St Pancras.

 

[OwlMan]

Firstly do not commit yourself to a ticket to London International until you have phoned Eurostar telesales. They have tickets to Lndon Eurostar CIV that only they can sell and very often they are cheaper.

Peter

 

[gordonthemoron]

Firstly do not commit yourself to a ticket to London International until you have phoned Eurostar telesales. They have tickets to Lndon Eurostar CIV that only they can sell and very often they are cheaper.

Peter

Phone 01233 617913, lines open 09:00 to 17:00 Monday-Friday

 

[SS4]

Firstly do not commit yourself to a ticket to London International until you have phoned Eurostar telesales. They have tickets to Lndon Eurostar CIV that only they can sell and very often they are cheaper.

Peter

Phone 01233 617913, lines open 09:00 to 17:00 Monday-Friday

I was going to buy it from Eurostar telesales as I won't be near St Pancras until the end of the month for collection but didn't realise they had tickets only they could sell, I'll give them a ring next week (as advised by the operative when I booked the E* ticket) or sooner if I get impatient

Cheers guys

 

[CyrusWuff]

Seconded...The ones you get from Eurostar Telesales to London Eurostar CIV (LOE) can be significantly cheaper than the London International ones!

Birmingham Stations - London Eurostar CIV via High Wycombe is just £10.00 for a Euro Open Single (no Railcard discount available) for example.

 

[Be3G]

With the exception of that via High Wycombe single, in this case the fares to London International CIV and London Eurostar CIV are exactly the same (ignore the incorrectly displayed travelcard fares for the later).

 

[CyrusWuff]

With the exception of that via High Wycombe single, in this case the fares to London International CIV and London Eurostar CIV are exactly the same (ignore the incorrectly displayed travelcard fares for the later).

Seems to be mainly an East Coast and West Coast "thing" not to offer a discount for London Eurostar. A quick look shows that Greater Anglia, EMT and FGW all offer lower fares to London Eurostar than to London International.

 

[jkdd77]

It appears to be possible to buy 'through' tickets from Eurostar directly to most National Rail stations, but this is not the cheapest option here and in any case, the OP has already booked his/her tickets from/to London.

 

[OwlMan]

With the exception of that via High Wycombe single, in this case the fares to London International CIV and London Eurostar CIV are exactly the same (ignore the incorrectly displayed travelcard fares for the later).

You are assuming that one allocation of Advance tickets covers both destinations.
AIUI London International is part of the same pool as London Stations and London Eurostar has its own allocation.

 

[SS4]

Nice one, never realised Eurostar had their own allocation of tickets, I'll give them a ring on Monday, thanks for the advice

 

[Max]

Nice one, never realised Eurostar had their own allocation of tickets, I'll give them a ring on Monday, thanks for the advice

My advice would be to be very patient when you phone. There is only one man in the office and the line can often be engaged! Monday morning first thing can be particularly busy because that's when businesses tend to phone up. That said, when you do get through, he is extremely helpful and very friendly so it's definitely worth the wait.

It's also worth noting that bookings made through Eurostar Domestic can also now be collected through a normal TVM and don't have to be done at St Pancras.

 

[philjo]

Presumably these tickets can also be purchased in person as the Eusrostar ticket office at ST Pancras?

I need the CIV add-on for October (from a FCC station so no reservations involed) as when I booked the ES website wouldn't do t athrough booking as it said it was too far in advance so I just booked from St Pancras.

 

[SS4]

My advice would be to be very patient when you phone. There is only one man in the office and the line can often be engaged! Monday morning first thing can be particularly busy because that's when businesses tend to phone up. That said, when you do get through, he is extremely helpful and very friendly so it's definitely worth the wait.

It's also worth noting that bookings made through Eurostar Domestic can also now be collected through a normal TVM and don't have to be done at St Pancras.

Yeah, the woman who I booked my E* ticket with said the same thing, if I can't get through tomorrow I'll try on Tuesday. I'm in no rush as I can always get the via High Wycombe single

edit: thought it'd be more than one guy doing it though even if it's not as profitable

 

[nickswift99]

Yeah, the woman who I booked my E* ticket with said the same thing, if I can't get through tomorrow I'll try on Tuesday. I'm in no rush as I can always get the via High Wycombe single

edit: thought it'd be more than one guy doing it though even if it's not as profitable

Eurostar are quite helpful about this. You can ask them to email the person who deals with BR bookings and they'll call you when they're able to get to it. Saves you hanging around on the phone.

 

[SS4]

Eurostar are quite helpful about this. You can ask them to email the person who deals with BR bookings and they'll call you when they're able to get to it. Saves you hanging around on the phone.

Wasn't necessary in the end, got through straight away (I always try and do these things in the afternoon because it's usually quieter)

As an update I got the tickets without any trouble, for a bargain £10 out and £6.60 return (darn minimum fare ) via High Wycombe. If anyone reads this in the future I'd recommend booking over the phone, it's no hassle and they're very friendly

 

[davetheguard]

Seconded...The ones you get from Eurostar Telesales to London Eurostar CIV (LOE) can be significantly cheaper than the London International ones!

Birmingham Stations - London Eurostar CIV via High Wycombe is just £10.00 for a Euro Open Single (no Railcard discount available) for example.

What, if anything is the difference between these two tickets (apart from price)?

A ticket to London International, includes the tube journey across London to St. Pancras if required and is valid at any time of day including the rush hour; does this also apply to London Eurostar CIV tickets?

And are they only available from Eurostar?

 

[maniacmartin]

This page from our ticketing guide explains these tickets in more detail.

 

[CyrusWuff]

What, if anything is the difference between these two tickets (apart from price)?

They key difference between the two varieties is that you have to be able to present your Eurostar ticket (or booking confirmation, depending on the TOC's local instructions) to buy and use a "London International" ticket, but that's not necessary for "London Eurostar" ones (where the Eurostar ticket is often issued for ToD at St Pancras).

Another difference is that "London Eurostar" tickets appear to only be sold as Singles, whereas "London International" ones include returns on certain flows.

"London Eurostar" ones are only available direct from Eurostar UK, either through the website at the same time as booking your Eurostar ticket, or through Telesales.

"London International" tickets, on the other hand, SHOULD be available from any ticket office.

A ticket to London International, includes the tube journey across London to St. Pancras if required and is valid at any time of day including the rush hour; does this also apply to London Eurostar CIV tickets?

Depends on the exact ticket type held, but they're certainly valid for a cross-London transfer where appropriate.

Picking an example at random:

• Cambridge - London Eurostar:
  • Euro 1ST Single : £15.00
  • Euro STD Single : £10.00
  • Euro High Saver Single : £6.00 (Valid arriving into St Pancras/Kings Cross after 0915, not valid departing Kings Cross/St Pancras between 1630 and 1830)
• Cambridge - London International:
  • Euro 1ST Single : £35.20
  • Euro 1ST Return : £70.40
  • Euro STD Single : £22.00
  • Euro High Saver Return : £30.50 (Out: Valid arriving into St Pancras/Kings Cross after 0915, not valid departing Kings Cross/St Pancras between 1630 and 1830, Return: By any train)
  • Euro STD Return : £44.00

 

[RJ]

Firstly do not commit yourself to a ticket to London International until you have phoned Eurostar telesales. They have tickets to Lndon Eurostar CIV that only they can sell and very often they are cheaper.

Peter

Why can only Eurostar sell them? I (not a Eurostar employee) sold a dirt cheap London Eurostar CIV ticket to a very grateful passenger wielding a return Eurostar ticket today, can I expect backlash for this?

 

[CyrusWuff]

Why can only Eurostar sell them? I (not a Eurostar employee) sold a dirt cheap London Eurostar CIV ticket to a very grateful passenger wielding a return Eurostar ticket today, can I expect backlash for this?

The short answer appears to be "Because Eurostar say so". Their product, their rules.

More specifically, a bit of Googling reveals (via archived PDFs of Newsrail Express issues 351, 352 and 354) that they were launched with the move to St Pancras International and only available through Eurostar and GNER Telesales initially, though this was later extended to include the Eurostar website.

Can't say whether anything will come of it, as that'd depend on Eurostar flagging it up, but there are perfectly legitimate reasons for issuing such a ticket in a ticket office (if your TIS doesn't suppress them), such as a ToD system failure or tickets being lost in the post, requiring issue of Duplicate/Replacement tickets.