Three Bridges to London/Bletchley and Brighton

[bookish]

Hi!
I hope that you can help, because I find the ticket system to be really confusing.

We are coming to UK (flying to Gatwick from Sweden) on Aug 25th and leaving on Aug 31.
We're going to stay in Crawley and will use Three Bridges station.

We want to go to :
Bletchley: 1 day
Brighton: 1 or possibly 2 days
London: 2-3 days. What stations we use in London doesn't really matter.

No set dates for this, we will probably decide one or two days in advance.

We will not need tickets to and from Gatwick.


We will try to travel off peak, as I understand that this is considerably cheaper.

Now, I can use the journey planner to find the cheapest/best fares.

What I really want to know is what strategy we should use!

Is it a good idea to buy a TwoTogether card?

Can we somehow get cheap tube fares together with our train tickets (for the London days)? We are probably only going to travel in zones 1 and 2.

Is it better to buy tickets one or 2 days in advance and pick them up on the station, rather than buying at the station?

I'm grateful for any advice on this!

 

[30907]

Assuming you are happy to start your journeys after about 0900 on weekdays.

For your trips to London, you should buy an Offpeak Travelcard which includes unlimited tube and bus travel in London. This costs very little more than a plain Offpeak day return to London.
I would choose the "not Gatwick Express" version rather than the "Thameslink" version which is the cheapest, and ignore the even cheaper Super Offpeak versions..

For Brighton a simple Offpeak day return will do.

For Bletchley you will probably want to take the direct train "via Kensington Olympia" and this is a bit cheaper than going via Victoria and Euston. Cheap Advance fares are available on this route, but you have to travel on specific trains, and they may not be available close to the time on the trains you want. An Offpeak return will be more flexible but more expensive.

A Two Together railcard will pay for itself - remember it is only valid after 0930

The only tickets you MUST buy in advance are the Advance tickets for Bletchley.

 

[JB_B]

Hi!
(1) I hope that you can help, because I find the ticket system to be really confusing.

Now, I can use the journey planner to find the cheapest/best fares.

What I really want to know is what strategy we should use!

(2) Is it a good idea to buy a TwoTogether card?

(3) Can we somehow get cheap tube fares together with our train tickets (for the London days)? We are probably only going to travel in zones 1 and 2.

(4) Is it better to buy tickets one or 2 days in advance and pick them up on the station, rather than buying at the station?

I'm grateful for any advice on this!

(1) Yes, it is complicated - particularly on this route. A lot depends on your relative appetite for economy over convenience/flexibility.

(2) Quite possibly - unless you go for the absolutely cheapest options it could easily be worth the £30 (or £27 online at the moment - will need a UK address and *may* take upto 5 working days).

(3) If your London/Bletchley trips are on the Sat,Sun or Monday then this ticket

http://www.brfares.com/#faredetail?orig=TBD&dest=0035&rte=789&tkt=WRE

(Without railcard £12 each per day / £7.90 each with - Three Bridges to London Zones 1-6 ; Valid on Thameslink trains only) might be useful. (Similar but more expensive and restrictive tickets are available on other days; you can pay more if you need any-operator flexibility).


I think you could extend this with a day return Zone 6 to Bletchley (for £15.10 or £9.95 each with railcard)

http://www.brfares.com/#faredetail?orig=0072&dest=BLY&tkt=CDR

[4] Probably not worth it IMO.

 

[Reason077]

All these journeys are within the Network Railcard area, so that may be a better option than the Two Together railcard. The Network Railcard can be purchased on the spot at station ticket offices, and is valid for 1-4 people travelling together.

 

[bb21]

Don't forget that there is a minimum fare of £13 on weekdays for Network Railcard.

 

[James Wake]

Hi!
I hope that you can help, because I find the ticket system to be really confusing.

We are coming to UK (flying to Gatwick from Sweden) on Aug 25th and leaving on Aug 31.
We're going to stay in Crawley and will use Three Bridges station.

We want to go to :
Bletchley: 1 day
Brighton: 1 or possibly 2 days
London: 2-3 days. What stations we use in London doesn't really matter.

No set dates for this, we will probably decide one or two days in advance.

We will not need tickets to and from Gatwick.


We will try to travel off peak, as I understand that this is considerably cheaper.

Now, I can use the journey planner to find the cheapest/best fares.

What I really want to know is what strategy we should use!

Is it a good idea to buy a TwoTogether card?

Can we somehow get cheap tube fares together with our train tickets (for the London days)? We are probably only going to travel in zones 1 and 2.

Is it better to buy tickets one or 2 days in advance and pick them up on the station, rather than buying at the station?

I'm grateful for any advice on this!

Welcome to the country, and to my hometown. When you go to Brighton, there is also the option of the bus, which runs hourly Monday-Saturday and takes just over an hour. A Family day Metrovoyager is £12.50 if you travel together at all times, can be purchased on the bus. The bus also stops just a minute from the pier and main seafront, with about a 10-15 min walk from Brighton Station. The timetable for the route 271/273 is here: http://www.metrobus.co.uk/download/28146.3/271-and-273-timetable-300515/?disposition=inline
If you need any other local information about the town, buses etc, let me know.

 

[talldave]

For the London trips, you can do it for £14.15 each person with a Two Together Railcard. Use an Off Peak Travelcard (£7.90) and a Three Bridges to Boundary Zone 6 Off Peak Day Return (£6.25). Both tickets have "Any Permitted" status which means you can take any combination of trains you like (including the Gatwick Express).

You can catch any train due into London at or after 09:50.

You can't buy the Three Bridges to Boundary Zone 6 ticket online - that's a ticket machine or ticket office task on the day of travel at Three Bridges.

The Travelcard can be bought online -
From: the specific station doesn't matter as long as it's inside the Zone 6 boundary, East Croydon, South Croydon, Balham all work.
To: use London Victoria or London All Zones Travelcard

Enjoy your stay - I recommend spending as much time away from Crawley as possible

 

[bookish]

1. Assuming you are happy to start your journeys after about 0900 on weekdays.

2. For your trips to London, you should buy an Offpeak Travelcard which includes unlimited tube and bus travel in London. This costs very little more than a plain Offpeak day return to London.
I would choose the "not Gatwick Express" version rather than the "Thameslink" version which is the cheapest, and ignore the even cheaper Super Offpeak versions..

For Brighton a simple Offpeak day return will do.

For Bletchley you will probably want to take the direct train "via Kensington Olympia" and this is a bit cheaper than going via Victoria and Euston. Cheap Advance fares are available on this route, but you have to travel on specific trains, and they may not be available close to the time on the trains you want. An Offpeak return will be more flexible but more expensive.

3. A Two Together railcard will pay for itself - remember it is only valid after 0930

The only tickets you MUST buy in advance are the Advance tickets for Bletchley.

Thanks for your help!
1. Oh, yes, we're on vacation, after all!
2. I have already decided to avoid the Thameslink tickets, they are too restricting.
3. Will the Two Together card be valid to use with an Offpeak Day travelcard?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

(1) Yes, it is complicated - particularly on this route. A lot depends on your relative appetite for economy over convenience/flexibility.


(2) If your London/Bletchley trips are on the Sat,Sun or Monday

Thanks for your input!

1. Convenience/flexibility takes precedence... as long as it's not stupid
2. I don't think so, but I will look at your suggestions.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

All these journies are within the Network Railcard area, so that may be a better option than the Two Together railcard. The Network Railcard can be purchased on the spot at station ticket offices, and is valid for 1-4 people travelling together.

I will check that put too!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Welcome to the country, and to my hometown. When you go to Brighton, there is also the option of the bus, [...]

If you need any other local information about the town, buses etc, let me know.

I don't think we'll go by bus, but it's good to know about it.
Thank you!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Enjoy your stay - I recommend spending as much time away from Crawley as possible

We'll probably not spend much time there We chose it because we have stayed at the hotel before and it's convenient that it's between London and Brighton, since we want to visit both.

 

[talldave]

3. Will the Two Together card be valid to use with an Offpeak Day travelcard?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Yes, it reduces the cost of the Off Peak Travelcard from £12 to £7.90. Note that the Network Railcard cannot do this, because it has a £13 minimum fare Monday to Friday.

 

[JB_B]

Yes, it reduces the cost of the Off Peak Travelcard from £12 to £7.90. Note that the Network Railcard cannot do this, because it has a £13 minimum fare Monday to Friday.

Actually, the £12.00 / £7.90 travelcard (super off peak thameslink only) is only valid Sat, Sun and Bank Holidays so the Network card would be OK if you just wanted that specific ticket

 

[Reason077]

If you buy a Three Bridges to London return with a Travelcard added, the Railcard discount applies to the combined total, so the Network Railcard's £13 minimum fare wouldn't be an issue in most cases.

It's £14.35 for the off-peak "not Gatwick Express" ticket, including a London Travelcard and the railcard discount, as long as you depart after 10:00am on weekdays.

 

[talldave]

Actually, the £12.00 / £7.90 travelcard (super off peak thameslink only) is only valid Sat, Sun and Bank Holidays so the Network card would be OK if you just wanted that specific ticket

The OP stated that they do not want Thameslink only tickets.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

If you buy a Three Bridges to London return with a Travelcard added, the Railcard discount applies to the combined total, so the Network Railcard's £13 minimum fare wouldn't be an issue in most cases.

It's £14.35 for the off-peak "not Gatwick Express" ticket, including a London Travelcard and the railcard discount, as long as you depart after 10:00am on weekdays.

Compared to £14.15 for my proposed split ticket combination that allows Gatwick Express (leaving Gatwick M-F 09:20 or later) or Southern (leaving Three Bridges M-F 09:18 or later) or Thameslink (leaving Three Bridges M-F 09:28 or later)....

 

[bookish]

Thanks, everyone, for your input!