Edinburgh-Dundee day return

[bravesirrobin]

Hi,

Planning a day trip on Saturday 3/9 from Edinburgh to Dundee for a friend’s birthday. The only return fares available appear to be period ones, but I’m certain I’ve travelled on a cheap day return in the past for much less than the £30.70 quoted on NRE. Am I completely misremembering or are CDRs no longer available?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[jfollows]

There is no Edinburgh-Dundee day return fare, the off-peak saver return for £30.70 is the starting point. You can probably split tickets en route and combine two day return tickets though.
EG Markinch £12.90+£14.60=£27.50 or £10.30+£11.70=£22.00 provided you meet the time restrictions of the tickets (H1 or H4) and the trains stop at Markinch in both directions.

 

[XAM2175]

There are Advance singles available in both directions if you're willing to give up flexibility. Trainsplit is finding return itineraries starting at around £18.50. Restricting it to flexible tickets only, there's a bunch of itineraries around £25 based on intermediate splits.

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[jfollows]

H4 not valid at weekends, so the cheapest cheap day return splitting at Markinch on a Saturday is the H1 combination for £27.50. TrainSplit will find cheaper options I'm sure.

 

[bravesirrobin]

Thanks for the responses -- I'll definitely look into the splits. Obviously my memory was faulty about the CDR.

 

[jfollows]

Thanks for the responses -- I'll definitely look into the splits. Obviously my memory was faulty about the CDR.

Your memory may not have been faulty, but certainly for a long time now day returns have been restricted to shorter distances; in my youth I bought a day return Macclesfield-Weymouth and that's not been possible for a long while now (it was when the Channel Islands Boat Train ran to Weymouth Quay if that means anything to you for how long ago it was). My recent experience is Wilmslow-Derby, where two tickets to/from Tutbury & Hatton are still available as day returns, but not for the entire journey. Possibly similar with Edinburgh-Dundee, or maybe the CDR existed until recently .... who knows?

 

[route101]

Surprised there is not a day return fare, its only around an hour from Edinburgh to Dundee.

 

[XAM2175]

Yes, I agree it seems odd there's no CDR. If the OP (or anybody else) were sufficiently interested in investigating further there's always the option of contacting Scotrail and asking.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Does splitting at Leuchars help any?

Most Scotrail services call there.

 

[jfollows]

Does splitting at Leuchars help any?

Most Scotrail services call there.

Splitting at Leuchars is £19.20+£6.10=£25.30 so it's cheaper than splitting at Markinch, yes.

 

[Hadders]

It’s likely that there used to be a CDR but it was withdrawn to ‘simplify’ fares, or more correctly to force a price increase via the back door by forcing passengers making a day return to purchase more expensive off peak return tickets.

This is a trick Northern got up to a few years ago, but I’m not sure if Scotrail did so as well.

 

[Par]

Seems ridiculous that CDRs existing for journeys of 200 miles plus from Edinburgh to places in Lancashire but not for the 60 miles to Dundee.

 

[317 forever]

I had this journey planned for September 17th until the strike was called. I already had plans to split my ticket at Kirkcaldy. I am more confident of more trains stopping there than Markinch for example.

So I have to decide between going on September 16th or by coach instead.

 

[AlastairFraser]

Hi,

Planning a day trip on Saturday 3/9 from Edinburgh to Dundee for a friend’s birthday. The only return fares available appear to be period ones, but I’m certain I’ve travelled on a cheap day return in the past for much less than the £30.70 quoted on NRE. Am I completely misremembering or are CDRs no longer available?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

I realise you've probably already taken the trip, but Ember electric coaches are worth a try - £7.50 each way between Edinburgh and Dundee, plus a wide range of departures.

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[Alex365Dash]

I realise you've probably already taken the trip, but Ember electric coaches are worth a try - £7.50 each way between Edinburgh and Dundee, plus a wide range of departures.

If you’re coming back, it may also be worth mentioning that Citylink is also the equivalent price for a return if those timings suit your needs better.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

I realise you've probably already taken the trip, but Ember electric coaches are worth a try - £7.50 each way between Edinburgh and Dundee, plus a wide range of departures.

Electric bus between Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Stirling, Kinross, Edinburgh Airport and more

Travel by electric bus between Dundee, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Stirling, Kinross, Fort William, Inverness, Edinburgh Airport and more. Brand-new buses, affordable fares and real-time tracking.

www.ember.to

Undoubtedly a good shout, but don't you just love the concept of a dedicated rail forum where folk instead suggest travelling by bus/coach rather than by rail.

 

[reb0118]

Splitting tickets at Leuchars is the recognised option for those making a day return to the city of jute, jam, & journalism - virtually all services stop there so you can catch the faster HSTs too.

 

[jfollows]

Splitting tickets at Leuchars is the recognised option for those making a day return to the city of jute, jam, & journalism - virtually all services stop there so you can catch the faster HSTs too.

It's also cheaper (£25.30) than splitting at Markinch (just a guess by me, to be fair, £27.50) or Kirkcaldy (£26.70), assuming in all cases Saturday travel.

 

[trainophile]

And if you have an open ticket for the Kirkcaldy to Edinburgh leg, Kirkcaldy is a pleasant place to spend an hour or two!

 

[317 forever]

Undoubtedly a good shout, but don't you just love the concept of a dedicated rail forum where folk instead suggest travelling by bus/coach rather than by rail.

On days like September 17th when I intend to make that journey for examples, such suggestions are inevitable as well as welcome.

But yes, I do get the sense of irony.

 

[AlastairFraser]

If you’re coming back, it may also be worth mentioning that Citylink is also the equivalent price for a return if those timings suit your needs better.

Of course, but Ember are better on this route from what I've seen from trip reports.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 4 Sep 2022 ==

Undoubtedly a good shout, but don't you just love the concept of a dedicated rail forum where folk instead suggest travelling by bus/coach rather than by rail.

£33 is a bit steep for that sort of distance IMHO, I love rail, but sometimes you need to be honest if there is a better public transport alternative.

 

[317 forever]

Splitting at Leuchars is £19.20+£6.10=£25.30 so it's cheaper than splitting at Markinch, yes.

Having looked at this in more detail, I see there are a few non-stop trains from Haymarket to Leuchars. So, Leucars seems wiser and more flexible than Markinch.

 

[bravesirrobin]

And if you have an open ticket for the Kirkcaldy to Edinburgh leg, Kirkcaldy is a pleasant place to spend an hour or two!

My travelling companion is born and bred in Kirkcaldy. I'm not entirely certain they share that opinion!

Splitting tickets at Leuchars is the recognised option for those making a day return to the city of jute, jam, & journalism - virtually all services stop there so you can catch the faster HSTs too.

Thanks, we ended up on the HST on the way out, and one of the stoppers on the way back. Or, so I'm told...had more pints than strictly sensible

Thanks all for the incredibly comprehensive answers.

 

[paul1609]

Being of a certain generation of sailors Kirkcaldy screams only one thing to me Jackie Os. The outcome was rarely such that a day return would have been much use, early morning taxis back to Rosyth were very expensive as I recall.