One day z1 travelcard from Luton Airport

[Kilmarnocklad]

Hi folks,

Just a quick bit of fares advice. I am looking to see how to book a single from Luton Airport (incl the airport bus) to London, with a one day zone 1 travelcard included. Not sure which ticket to select, if I choose London z1 as the destination is this only for 1 journey in London.

By the way we have a Two Together Railcard.

 

[greatkingrat]

You can't buy a single with a travelcard included. Your options are either 1) Buy a return travelcard (even if you don't intend to use the return leg) or 2) Buy a single to London and then use Oyster / Contactless to pay for any tube journeys.

The first option will probably work out cheapest, particularly as you have a Two Together Railcard.

 

[Hadders]

When are you planning to make this journey as this will affect the advice given.

 

[swt class 450]

Hi folks,

Just a quick bit of fares advice. I am looking to see how to book a single from Luton Airport (incl the airport bus) to London, with a one day zone 1 travelcard included. Not sure which ticket to select, if I choose London z1 as the destination is this only for 1 journey in London.

By the way we have a Two Together Railcard.

It will work out cheaper for you to buy a ticket from "Luton Airport Parkway" (not "Luton Airport") and then pay separately for the cheaper Arriva routes A or 100 buses (not the expensive rip off heavily advertised Go Ahead route 888 shuttle bus) between Luton Airport and Luton Airport Parkway. The Arriva routes A and 100 are just as frequent as the shuttle bus (every 10 minutes) and take two minutes quicker. The Arriva routes A and 100 cost just £1.60 Single or £2.60 Return which is much cheaper than the rip off shuttle bus and much cheaper than buying a through ticket including the shuttle bus.

The normal prices are as follows:

Without 888 shuttle bus included:
•Super Off Peak Travelcard - £16.40
•Off Peak Travelcard - £21.60
•Anytime Travelcard - £34.40

With 888 shuttle bus included:
•Super Off Peak Travelcard - £18.90
•Off Peak Travelcard - £24.10
•Anytime Travelcard - £36.90

Where as if you purchase your ticket from "Luton Airport Parkway" instead of "Luton Airport" and separately pay for the Arriva bus routes A or 100 your total cost will be as follows (total cost including bus and train):

Total cost:
•Super Off Peak Travelcard - £18.00
•Off Peak Travelcard - £23.20
•Anytime Travelcard - £36.00

So it is definitely worth it buying a ticket from Luton Airport Parkway and then taking the Arriva routes A or 100 as you will save quite a bit of money.

Prices with a railcard will be even cheaper (and it will still be better value to pay separately for the Arriva bus and the train).

Also note that the only combined train and travelcard tickets you can buy are zones 1 to 6 (which are the prices shown). You can not buy a zone 1 only or any other combination.

You can also easily walk from Luton Airport to Luton Airport Parkway in about 15 minutes to save even more money but if you have lots of heavy luggage its probably best to take the Arriva bus and then the train.

Hope this helps.

 

[Hadders]

Note that Super Off Peak Travelcards are only available on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays.

 

[greatkingrat]

So it is definitely worth it buying a ticket from Luton Airport Parkway and then taking the Arriva routes A or 100 as you will save quite a bit of money.

Prices with a railcard will be even cheaper (and it will still be better value to pay separately for the Arriva bus and the train).

With a railcard, the shuttle bus costs £1.65, compared to £1.60 for the Arriva bus so they would save the grand total of 5p each. Hardly a massive ripoff.

If you are making a return the through travelcard costs an extra £2.50, while the Arriva bus is £2.60, so it is actually more expensive.

 

[swt class 450]

Note that Super Off Peak Travelcards are only available on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays.

Ah yes. Good point. I forgot to mention that.

With a railcard, the shuttle bus costs £1.65, compared to £1.60 for the Arriva bus so they would save the grand total of 5p each. Hardly a massive ripoff.

If you are making a return the through travelcard costs an extra £2.50, while the Arriva bus is £2.60, so it is actually more expensive.

Its worth noting that the Arriva routes A and 100 are usually far more reliable than the shuttle buses. The Arriva buses normally turn up on time where as the shuttle buses often seem to get bunched together so you can often end up waiting ages for them. And the Arriva routes have the advantage of being two minutes quicker and they are normally also a bit quieter as well. So even if you only save 5p it is still definitely worth it.

I know they are accepted for the through tickets but do the shuttle buses even accept railcards for individual tickets? As far as i am aware i thought the £2.10 Single and £3.40 Return were the only tickets you could buy onboard? Or are railcards only accepted if you buy before you board the bus from a ticket office or a TVM?

 

[lightbulb]

Ah yes. Good point. I forgot to mention that.



Its worth noting that the Arriva routes A and 100 are usually far more reliable than the shuttle buses. The Arriva buses normally turn up on time where as the shuttle buses often seem to get bunched together so you can often end up waiting ages for them. And the Arriva routes have the advantage of being two minutes quicker and they are normally also a bit quieter as well. So even if you only save 5p it is still definitely worth it.

I know they are accepted for the through tickets but do the shuttle buses even accept railcards for individual tickets? As far as i am aware i thought the £2.10 Single and £3.40 Return were the only tickets you could buy onboard? Or are railcards only accepted if you buy before you board the bus from a ticket office or a TVM?

Railcards are only accepted if buying from a TVM or ticket office. Conversely, if you are prepared to walk to the Hotel bus stop (about 5 minutes from the airport) a cheaper fare is availble: from memory £1.10 single, (can't remember what the return fare is) with no railcard discounts. This fare is advertised on a notice stand at Parkway station, by the shuttle bus stop.

 

[Kilmarnocklad]

Thanks for that Guys, we are arriving at Luton Airport 1045 on Monday 1st May, having a night in London then off from Stansted Airport on Tuesday afternoon.
Planning on doing some spotting around the London suburbs Monday Afternoon/evening. Mainly for class 700's!
What do I put as the destination when buying this ticket online?
We are happy to get the ticket from Luton Airport Parkway and pay seperately for the bus.

 

[swt class 450]

Railcards are only accepted if buying from a TVM or ticket office. Conversely, if you are prepared to walk to the Hotel bus stop (about 5 minutes from the airport) a cheaper fare is availble: from memory £1.10 single, (can't remember what the return fare is) with no railcard discounts. This fare is advertised on a notice stand at Parkway station, by the shuttle bus stop.

Thanks for the info. I wasn't aware of this. I might email Go Ahead London to find out full details of all their prices on the 888 shuttle bus. I believe Arriva also have a slightly cheaper fare for this journey on the A and 100 but i cant remember what they are off the top of my head. I might email Arriva as well to find out. Its so annoying that so many bus companies don't put the prices of their Single and Return fares online. Very few bus operators seem to want to publish their faretables.

Thanks for that Guys, we are arriving at Luton Airport 1045 on Monday 1st May, having a night in London then off from Stansted Airport on Tuesday afternoon.
Planning on doing some spotting around the London suburbs Monday Afternoon/evening. Mainly for class 700's!
What do I put as the destination when buying this ticket online?
We are happy to get the ticket from Luton Airport Parkway and pay seperately for the bus.

If you are wishing to purchase your ticket online in advance then you just enter the following stations:

FROM: Luton Airport Parkway
TO: London Zones 1-6

You can also just buy on the day from a ticket office or TVM for the same price if you prefer. No cheaper advance fares are available so booking online will not save any money. Also I'm sure you are already aware but the Arriva routes A and 100 can not be booked online so you can just buy these from the bus driver on the day.

 

[Hadders]

Monday 1st May is a Bank Holiday. To save faffing around for the sake of 5p I'd simply buy a Luton Airport to London Zones 1-6 Super Off Peak Day Travelcard costing £12.50 with a railcard discount.

This needs to be obtained before you board the bus at the airport. There are TVMs at Luton Airport although there were long queues for them when I last travelled through the airport. You could buy them from any station local to you (Kilmarnock could sell them, if that's your nearest station?) This would mean you wouldn't need to queue at either the airport or at Luton Airport Parkway station upon arrival.

 

[Kilmarnocklad]

Monday 1st May is a Bank Holiday. To save faffing around for the sake of 5p I'd simply buy a Luton Airport to London Zones 1-6 Super Off Peak Day Travelcard costing £12.50 with a railcard discount.

This needs to be obtained before you board the bus at the airport. There are TVMs at Luton Airport although there were long queues for them when I last travelled through the airport. You could buy them from any station local to you (Kilmarnock could sell them, if that's your nearest station?) This would mean you wouldn't need to queue at either the airport or at Luton Airport Parkway station upon arrival.

Thanks Hadders! That's what we'll do, we are only 5 mins away from Kilmarnock station! I assume you can buy these things a few days before!

 

[bb21]

I think Hadders has the best suggestion above for both simplicity and convenience. It's a lot of faffing about otherwise for the sake of 5p.

 

[bb21]

Thanks Hadders! That's what we'll do, we are only 5 mins away from Kilmarnock station! I assume you can buy these things a few days before!

You can buy online and collect from a TVM in advance if you wish.

 

[Hadders]

Thanks Hadders! That's what we'll do, we are only 5 mins away from Kilmarnock station! I assume you can buy these things a few days before!

Make sure they sell it from Luton Airport to London Zones 1-6, not Luton Airport Parkway otherwise you'll need to pay for the bus. The price should be £12.50 each.

 

[lightbulb]

Railcards are only accepted if buying from a TVM or ticket office. Conversely, if you are prepared to walk to the Hotel bus stop (about 5 minutes from the airport) a cheaper fare is availble: from memory £1.10 single, (can't remember what the return fare is) with no railcard discounts. This fare is advertised on a notice stand at Parkway station, by the shuttle bus stop.

I checked at Parkway, and they have removed the board that advertises the Hotel fares. The ticket staff at the bus stop confirmed that they do still sell the single ticket at £1.20 adult (I didn't ask about the child single). There are no return fares, and as for railcard discounts, officially none. I say "officially" as I was asked which railcard I had. I showed him my disabled persons railcard saying that I wasn't travelling right now, and he said that if I got the right staff, I might be "waved on".