Crewe to Cambridge

[Wiggaz]

I will be doing a day return trip as above on Saturday, 3 July.

Speed is of the essence, so I intend to travel via Euston/Kings Cross on Virgin/FCC.

I'm happy to book the first train from Crewe, but otherwise I do not want to be tied down to specific trains.

An OPR is £74.50, but it seems to me that a Super-Off Peak Day Travelcard from Crewe for £32.40 and an OPR between London and Cambridge for £20 would also get the job done for a significant saving.

Are there any other cheaper options - e.g. an extension between Zone 6 and Cambridge? If so, how much is it and would I be able to use it on the non-stop trains from/to Kings Cross?

Thanks

 

[yorkie]

I will be doing a day return trip as above on Saturday, 3 July.

Speed is of the essence, so I intend to travel via Euston/Kings Cross on Virgin/FCC.

I'm happy to book the first train from Crewe, but otherwise I do not want to be tied down to specific trains.

An OPR is £74.50, but it seems to me that a Super-Off Peak Day Travelcard from Crewe for £32.40 and an OPR between London and Cambridge for £20 would also get the job done for a significant saving.

Yep, the Off Peak Return (Code SVR, not OPR) is £74.50 +Any Permitted (valid via London) and is quite expensive.

There is a Saturday-only One Day Travelcard (WDT) from Crewe, routed Virgin Trains Only, priced at £32.40 which is very reasonable I think.

Off Peak Day (CDR) from London to Cambridge is indeed £20 for the Any Permitted ticket.

Are there any other cheaper options - e.g. an extension between Zone 6 and Cambridge? If so, how much is it and would I be able to use it on the non-stop trains from/to Kings Cross?

Thanks

Yes, extensions are available to allow use on non-stop trains,.

A ticket from Boundary Zone 6 to Cambridge is £16 for an Off Peak Day Return (CDR).

The code OPR doesn't apply to Off Peak or Off Peak Day returns in any cases that I've seen, but it can sometimes apply to Super Off Peak returns, so I advise against using that abbreviation if there is any doubt as it can cause even more confusion. Railway ticketing is ridiculously complicated, and the so-called "simplification" was a sham.

You can get both tickets from Crewe. If they struggle to find Boundary Zone 6, you can tell them the 4 digit code is 0072 (there is no 3 letter CRS code for Boundary Zone 6).

 

[Wiggaz]

Thanks very much (with apologies for the incorrect use of codes!!)

 

[John @ home]

it seems to me that a Super-Off Peak Day Travelcard from Crewe for £32.40 and an OPR between London and Cambridge for £20 would also get the job done for a significant saving.

Be careful with the Super Off-Peak Day Travelcard Crewe - London Zones 1-6.

Despite the name, it is not a Super Off-Peak ticket. It is a quota-controlled Advance ticket.

CREWE 1243 - LONDON ZONES 1-6 0035
Ticket type WDT - SAT DYTCRD VWC
Route 00474 VIRGIN TRNS ONLY
Price £ 32.40

Restriction VY
OUTWARD TRAVEL: Available for date shown. Available by Virgin train shown.
RETURN TRAVEL: Available for date shown. Available by any Virgin train..

Outward Validity: Day - DATE ON TICKET. Time - TRAIN ON TICKET
Return Validity: Day - DATE ON TICKET. Time - ANY VIRGIN TRAIN

Break of Journey: Out/Rtn - NO
Pre-Booking Req: 1800 Day Before
Reservations Compulsory: YES Outwards Only

Discounts:
Child - NO
Railcard - NO
Group - NO

Reservations are compulsory for the outward journey and customers must travel on their reserved train. The ticket is quota controlled on the outward journey. In other words, it is an Advance ticket.

This is the most outrageous abuse of Fares Simplification by a train company that I have seen.

I will be doing a day return trip as above on Saturday, 3 July.

For that day, I can't get Virgin to offer me this product, but East Coast offer it on all Virgin trains from Crewe from 0600 to 0929 - search for CRE to 0035.

 

[Wiggaz]

I've now booked on the 0720 from Crewe

Virgin's Super Off-Peak Day Travelcard has struck me as a strange beast ever since I discovered it. I agree that the name is misleading, but I still think that the ticket is very good value given the flexibility on the return leg. I suspect that it is not as well known as it deserves to be; I may have missed something, but I've never seen it publicised.

Interestingly, I've seen instances where this ticket can work out cheaper than two Advances. Once upon a time I would have been surprised by this given the ticket's advantages, but the more I learn more about rail ticketing/fares the less surprised I become about anything!!

 

[tony_mac]

I suspect that it is not as well known as it deserves to be; I may have missed something, but I've never seen it publicised.

I haven't either, but it always seems to be sold out at least a few weeks in advance - so I think it probably shares a quota with the lower-tier advance fares.

There's no railcard or child discount either, despite the National Rail claims 'Child discounts apply for all Off-Peak fares, Railcard holders get 1/3 off all Off-Peak fares.'

Eastcoast doesn't even sell it for children, despite the fact that it may be the cheapest ticket, even without a child discount.

I've seen instances where this ticket can work out cheaper than two Advances

We've seen instances where an Anytime return is cheaper than two Advances!