This weekend I need to travel from Cambridge to Cuxton on Saturday morning, and then return from Lenham to Cambridge on Sunday evening.
My initial plan for this was to buy a Cambridge to Cuxton return (£22.70 with Network Railcard), which would allow outward travel on HS1, and intuitively to me, would be valid to return via Maidstone Barracks, walk to Maidstone East, and then into Victoria. This would mean I needed to buy an additional Lenham to Maidstone single (£3.35) for the start of the return journey, and then stay on the same train at Maidstone and use the return leg of the Cambridge to Cuxton ticket from there.
However, having just gone to check the times on National Rail Enquiries, it appears that my intuition was slightly wrong, and the Cambridge to Cuxton ticket isn't valid on the route I want to take
Although I can get National Rail Enquiries to let me travel from Cuxton to Maidstone Barracks on this ticket, I can then only get it to let me travel onwards via Tonbridge and Sevenoaks into London Bridge. This route would mean I need to change at Maidstone on my actual return journey from Lenham, and then also have replacement buses around Tonbridge, which I don't want to do!
As a result of this, the best ticket option I've now been able to find is to buy a Cambridge to Lenham return (£28.60 to travel out on HS1), which appears to be valid to Lenham via St Pancras, Strood, Rochester, Swanley and Lenham if I ask for "via Rochester", so I would stop short on the outward leg at Strood and then get a Strood to Cuxton single (£1.65).
Although this is a bit more expensive, it's not going to break the bank, so I don't mind paying this if it's what I have to do. But I find it hard to believe that this route from Cambridge to Lenham is valid from Cambridge via St Pancras, Strood, changing at Rochester, changing at Swanley, Maidstone East and Lenham (which seems an utterly ridiculous route); whilst Cambridge to Cuxton is not valid from Cambridge via Victoria, Maidstone East, changing to Maidstone Barracks and in to Cuxton (which, whilst obviously not direct, appears much less ridiculous than the route to Lenham!).
I was just wondering if anybody knows if I'm missing a trick in specifying an appropriate "via" point in the journey planners to make them confirm my initial plan would be valid after all? Or if I do need to get the slightly more expensive ticket combination?
My initial plan for this was to buy a Cambridge to Cuxton return (£22.70 with Network Railcard), which would allow outward travel on HS1, and intuitively to me, would be valid to return via Maidstone Barracks, walk to Maidstone East, and then into Victoria. This would mean I needed to buy an additional Lenham to Maidstone single (£3.35) for the start of the return journey, and then stay on the same train at Maidstone and use the return leg of the Cambridge to Cuxton ticket from there.
However, having just gone to check the times on National Rail Enquiries, it appears that my intuition was slightly wrong, and the Cambridge to Cuxton ticket isn't valid on the route I want to take
Although I can get National Rail Enquiries to let me travel from Cuxton to Maidstone Barracks on this ticket, I can then only get it to let me travel onwards via Tonbridge and Sevenoaks into London Bridge. This route would mean I need to change at Maidstone on my actual return journey from Lenham, and then also have replacement buses around Tonbridge, which I don't want to do!As a result of this, the best ticket option I've now been able to find is to buy a Cambridge to Lenham return (£28.60 to travel out on HS1), which appears to be valid to Lenham via St Pancras, Strood, Rochester, Swanley and Lenham if I ask for "via Rochester", so I would stop short on the outward leg at Strood and then get a Strood to Cuxton single (£1.65).
Although this is a bit more expensive, it's not going to break the bank, so I don't mind paying this if it's what I have to do. But I find it hard to believe that this route from Cambridge to Lenham is valid from Cambridge via St Pancras, Strood, changing at Rochester, changing at Swanley, Maidstone East and Lenham (which seems an utterly ridiculous route); whilst Cambridge to Cuxton is not valid from Cambridge via Victoria, Maidstone East, changing to Maidstone Barracks and in to Cuxton (which, whilst obviously not direct, appears much less ridiculous than the route to Lenham!).
I was just wondering if anybody knows if I'm missing a trick in specifying an appropriate "via" point in the journey planners to make them confirm my initial plan would be valid after all? Or if I do need to get the slightly more expensive ticket combination?