Using Groupsave3

[camen]

I am looking for 3 of us to travel from Totnes to Birmingham New Street on Friday 7 October at 15.49. The cost comes out at £82.50 (3 x £27.50 - the single fare for that journey) whether I use the Groupsave3 option or not.
Is the Groupsave3 not valid on this route or at this time, if it is valid what am I doing wrong?

 

[LexyBoy]

Welcome to the forum camen.

There are a couple of reasons you're getting a GroupSave discount on those journeys - firstly, GroupSave is not valid on any service operated by CrossCountry. Secondly, the fare you quote is an Advance fare, which is not eligible for GroupSave (walk-up Off Peak and some Anytime fares are).

If you're making a return journey and willing to take a slightly longer route, then GroupSave could get you savings (as well as being more flexible - you don't need to book in advance and all is not lost if you miss the train).

 

[camen]

Thanks for that, it does seem strange though that on the cross country website they should give you the option for Groupsave if they do not give it as a discount.

 

[hairyhandedfool]

It is not valid on Cross Country, but the Cross Country website can be used to buy tickets for other operators where Groupsave might be valid.

 

[class377man]

It is not valid on Cross Country, but the Cross Country website can be used to buy tickets for other operators where Groupsave might be valid.

Indeed, but it's very easy to see where someone not totally au fait with the ins and outs of ticketing trips over.

 

[LexyBoy]

Annoyingly, most (all?) ticket sales websites require the user to know about and select Groupsave, resulting in people being charged more than if they had bought from the station. National Rail Enquiries will correctly offer Groupsave where appropriate, though of course they can't sell tickets.

 

[camen]

Buying from a station before the day of travel is not an option for me as the closest station to me is over 30 minutes drive away, hence why I buy on line - all very confusing!

 

[LexyBoy]

Buying from a station before the day of travel is not an option for me as the closest station to me is over 30 minutes drive away, hence why I buy on line - all very confusing!

Groupsave is only available on walk-up fares though, so no need to buy in advance.

The websites can be confusing though, and don't make it clear what is valid and when.