Plymouth to Cardiff - Cheap Return

[charlee]

Well me and a few friends want to go to Cardiff from Plymouth for day out, to do some shopping etc etc. However i have looked at prices and its like £48.00 return. Thats too expensive for us. Is there any way of getting cheaper tickets. As i remember getting tickets Plymouth to Paddington for £20 each way.

Need cheaper tickets like around £20 return, end of march!

 

[FGWman]

Need more info. Is it a day trip or longer ?

 

[charlee]

I think it will be a day trip or could be longer no more then 3 days!

 

[First class]

Freedom of South West rover is £74 for 3 in 7 days. No chance of £20 return IMO!!! The very cheapest singles are around £15 each way (XC Only), and they will be gone by now. If you go for the Off Peak return, you may as well buy the rover. Checking around, it looks like the Advance tickets are now around £25-£30. It will only get dearer!

 

[tony_mac]

There are Advance tickets at around £15 each way to Bristol

 

[jkdd77]

If it is a day trip on a Saturday or Sunday, it may be possible to make some savings by 'splitting' the journey into two CDRs, Plymouth- Taunton, Taunton- Cardiff.

Plymouth- Taunton CDR: £17
Taunton- Cardiff Central CDR: £22.50
Total: £39.50 per person with possibility of Groupsave on FGW services (only).

(Making this journey on a weekday, after 09:30 (when a PLY- TAU CDR becomes valid), would not leave much time in Cardiff for a day trip).

 

[142094]

You also don't state how many friends you are going with - do FGW operate a GroupSave scheme?

 

[LexyBoy]

You also don't state how many friends you are going with - do FGW operate a GroupSave scheme?

They do - the standard 3 or 4 for the price of 2.

Thus for 4 adults, it would be £139 (£34.75 each) for Plymouth-Cardiff Off Peak Returns (buy on the day from the ticket office). Or, using the split suggested by jkdd77, around £79 (£19.65 each).

This would only be valid travelling with FGW only - i.e. Plymouth-Bristol-Bristol Parkway-Cardiff.

 

[John @ home]

This would only be valid travelling with FGW only - i.e. Plymouth-Bristol-Bristol Parkway-Cardiff.

Why is it necessary to go via Bristol Parkway? FGW operate twice an hour Bristol Temple Meads - Cardiff.

It is the Exeter - Bristol part of the journey where FGW services are generally the slow trains only.

 

[LexyBoy]

Why is it necessary to go via Bristol Parkway? FGW operate twice an hour Bristol Temple Meads - Cardiff.

Of course they do, silly me. There are some FGW London-Devon/Cornwall services routed via Bristol (not sure about weekends), but as you say it's likely to be a local service for the first leg.

 

[TEW]

If you are travelling on a Monday-Friday the direct Plymouth-Cardiff service at 0806 can have some cheap advance fares on. If you are staying overnight the 0900 service in the other direction has some cheap advance fares as well. They are however rather slow services. Can't tell the exact price without dates that you wish to travel though.