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East Coast free first class tickets

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SickyNicky

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Just received a nice surprise from East Coast. 2 free first class tickets for anywhere on their network. Is anyone else getting these? Here's the email I got:

Virgin Trains East Coast said:
... our regulars mean the world to us – and you're certainly one of them.

You've travelled with us a fair bit this year, so to show our appreciation we thought we'd treat you to 2 free First Class tickets!

Whether you want to use them on a return journey for one, or share them with a friend for a swanky single trip – they're ready and waiting for you when you next log in to your account. Just make sure to book your trip in advance (at least 7 days), and travel off-peak – tickets are valid for travel until 23 March 2016.

We hope you enjoy it – and thanks again. Big love.

The T&Cs are the same as the old rewards tickets used to be.
 
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Darandio

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Considering all of the negativity regarding EC Rewards and the move to Nectar, this is a nice development.

Out of interest, how much was your 'travelled with us a fair bit this year'?
 

SickyNicky

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Out of interest, how much was your 'travelled with us a fair bit this year'?

I used to put all of the rail tickets for my former employer through their website. Maybe £5000 of business in 2015, until it closed. Nothing since then, of course.

Except a whole slew of rewards 1st tickets :)

Edit: of course, they use TrainSplit now (sorry mods, couldn't resist!)
 
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trainophile

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I've had the same email :D . I haven't spent a great deal on East Coast trips this year, probably a couple of hundred quid if that, but I always book my other tickets through the EC website, and spend a fortune on those.

Nice surprise, wonder what the availability is like.

Edit: Just did a dummy search on a couple of random days in Feb, KGX to YRK, and expected to see a box with £0.00 price option, but there are only the usual prices. Is there an availability checker somewhere I wonder, as with the Reward tickets. Presumably they haven't all gone already, the email only came through an hour ago!
 
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Minilad

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I have done around 16700 miles on 91s this year. Plus approx another 6000 on EC HSTs
Doubt I will get any free tickets though!!
 

trainophile

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Just did a dummy search on a couple of random days in Feb, KGX to YRK, and expected to see a box with £0.00 price option, but there are only the usual prices. Is there an availability checker somewhere I wonder, as with the Reward tickets. Presumably they haven't all gone already, the email only came through an hour ago!

Ah, when I logged into my account there are £0.00 tickets available :oops::lol: .
 

ainsworth74

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Yeah I got the email as well plus I got offered a free first class lounge pass valid for one month a few weeks ago.
 

westv

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Same email here. Spent around £2k on EC tickets this year.
 

SickyNicky

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Well I've just successfully booked myself a trip up North in February (and back, many of you will be sad to hear) on the Chieftan. So thank you, East Coast.
 

SickyNicky

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WOW, you got a move on with booking all that! :lol: Hotels next?

Booked the premier inn at Inverness central (river ness) already. Quite convenient and I do like premier inns.

You never know when they'll withdraw these, or make them really restricted, and it was always hard to get availability on the chieftain anyway.

One hint. If your want to break the journey into two legs, use timetable only mode and chose stop at Grantham. It'll give you a change at York, and two different traction types in each direction.
 

trainophile

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Envious. Thanks for the tip. I have told Andy about the freebies but by the time he gets around to agreeing to put the cat in the cattery there won't be many tickets left! :roll:

You live in the same city as me, so share the dilemma of whether to go to London or York to embark on an EC trip. London adds an extra day (and night) onto the costs, but you do get more train travel that way!

Pity FC on GWR is so stupidly expensive.
 

SickyNicky

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Envious. Thanks for the tip. I have told Andy about the freebies but by the time he gets around to agreeing to put the cat in the cattery there won't be many tickets left! :roll:

You live in the same city as me, so share the dilemma of whether to go to London or York to embark on an EC trip. London adds an extra day (and night) onto the costs, but you do get more train travel that way!

Pity FC on GWR is so stupidly expensive.

London every time. It doesn't add a day - you can easily connect with the Chieftain and 1st on the Cathedrals express is £20 with a railcard for dates in Feb at the moment.

Coming back there's even the 2245 via Newport available.
 

trainophile

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Cathedrals express? I'll have to look into that!

Edit: That's amazing, three hours travel in 1st for £19.45 - thank you I never knew about that one.
 
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ainsworth74

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Quick jaunt to London arranged for the end of February including breakfast on the way up and an evening meal on the way down. VTEC wanted £50 a ticket on those services (with a railcard) so I'd consider £0 to be rather good value for money :lol:
 

SickyNicky

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Cathedrals express? I'll have to look into that!

Edit: That's amazing, three hours travel in 1st for £19.45 - thank you I never knew about that one.

You've been able to do it for years at that price. Previously I had to buy Hereford to Thurston advances because there were none to London. But now it's really easy.
 

Starmill

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What amount of that was for work though?

I would imagine the purpose of travel isn't what it's about! It's about (at my guessing) East Coast travel that you have booked on their own website. I guess Minilad's 91 journeys would all need to be booked at a ticket office or with one of his own pens! :p

I will be using mine on the Highland Chieftain if it's available, because although I did do it on Rewards, I was a bit ill on the day and feel the need to go to the extreme endurance again :D
 
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rjholt

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Same here. Nice touch after the demise of the EC Rewards scheme in favour of Nectar. Previously a dozen 1c returns earned healthy rewards....now....just about achieves an egg and cress sandwich at Sainsburys
 

yorkie

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If I go above and beyond I have to come back via Skye, Mallaig Fort William!
SickyNicky, and about 10 more of us, already did that last Summer :lol:

As for VTEC's offering, no such offer for me (and even if there was, it's nothing compared to how EC used to reward their customers).

I used to buy everything through their site, but not any more. Due to their closure of EC Rewards, and the replacement being useless, I'm boycotting their site, other than when it's genuinely beneficial for me to use it.
 

Starmill

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I never use their site anymore in protest at the closure of rewards. The exception until recently was for booking GR Advances for their own online discount. Alas this has now been removed from January too, so apart from the seat selector there is no benefit to using their site. I can happily live without choosing my own seat given the better rewards on offer from buying GR Advances through other websites!
 

SickyNicky

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I never use their site anymore in protest at the closure of rewards.

Indeed. They have lost a substantial chunk of business by closing that scheme, I suspect, including my own. However, I'm sure someone, somewhere did the maths and decided that they were losing more money by giving away travel than they were gaining by the extra commission.

I'm not sure that I agree with them.
 

Starmill

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They made a profit from my 15 or so free journeys in First. I certainly wouldn't have paid the going rate for any of them as it stood and I planned whole trips out for days using them for other moves that I then bought additional tickets for. Precisely the same with this pair of free tickets, £35 spent on a filler move. And what does it cost them to give me one free seat on the Highland Chieftain that I wouldn't have paid anything for?
 

rg177

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3 Month lounge pass was offered to me, so i'm now free to use any lounges operated by VTEC until March 16th. Nice touch considering London fares going through the roof and the rewards scheme vanishing.

Through the course of 2015 i've spent £594.10 on the website, so not a bad reward considering I rarely use it these days.
 
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