Penzance to London return

[Busaholic]

Advice please for my wife who wishes to travel from Penzance to Paddington on Monday 14th May on the 16.00 train, returning Thursday 17th May on either the 16.03 or 18.03 (but not the 17.03, unless the fare on that one was spectacularly low), second class. We do not have a working printer, so cannot print off tickets at home, and she would prefer to buy and collect ticket(s) at the booking office in Penzance this coming weekend. She is eligible for a Senior Railcard, but doesn't have one and, if she bought one, might not use it again within a calendar year. What tickets and/or splits might be available?

Thanks in advance. I admit to finding all this a minefield, but we're not loaded so the cheapest possible fare would be appreciated.

 

[ForTheLoveOf]

The cheapest option as far as I can tell would be to get a straight Super Off-Peak Return. Due to its validity, this would mean departing Paddington on the return journey at 18:57, changing at Plymouth and then only arriving at Penzance at 00:41 the following day. Taking an earlier train would be more expensive and involve splitting.

Since the price of the undiscounted ticket would be over £100 in any case (as either Advances aren't available or they're not the cheapest option), it's definitely worth getting a Senior Railcard - even if it's only used for this one journey during its year's validity. A Senior Railcard costs £30 ordinarily (it can be obtained at a discount using various promotional codes, or for £15 worth of Tesco Clubcard points) and gives a 34% discount, so the Super Off-Peak Return would cost 'just' £75.50, plus however much you get the Railcard for.

If there's any chance at all that your wife will get tickets of about this cost twice more in the next three years then it'd be worth considering the three-year Railcard. At £70 it's a steal for the potential discounts it offers (and again, there are various discounts available on the upfront cost). Don't forget that you can get cashback when you buy the Railcard - and not an insubstantial amount at that - through websites such as Topcashback and Quidco.

 

[greatkingrat]

There is no 1803 on 17th May, just the 1603 and 1703. This is due to engineering work closing the line via Newbury and Penzance trains being diverted via Melksham.

 

[sonic2009]

It may not be ideal, but you mentioned funds were a possible issue, but have you considered National Express.

Leaving earlier on the Monday at 1150 arriving into London at 2120 £15.30, returning on the Thursday at 1600 arriving into Penzance at 0055 £12.40

Total cost £28.70 (includes a £1 booking fee), usually there is a chance to stretch your legs on the outward journey and possible the return as driver change/break will be needed.

 

[hi2u_uk]

It may not be ideal, but you mentioned funds were a possible issue, but have you considered National Express.

Leaving earlier on the Monday at 1150 arriving into London at 2120 £15.30, returning on the Thursday at 1600 arriving into Penzance at 0055 £12.40

Total cost £28.70 (includes a £1 booking fee), usually there is a chance to stretch your legs on the outward journey and possible the return as driver change/break will be needed.

i got cramp when travelling from london to truro by train , i think the national express bus to cornwall would be hellish

 

[Busaholic]

Thanks for the advice/info, folks. I'm afraid NatEx is out of the question, for travel sickness reasons apart from other considerations. It'll probably be an anytime offpeak return, with rail card because the latter makes a small saving even on that one trip. The booking clerk was unaware of the cancellation of the 18.03 next Thursday, expressed gratitude for my mentioning it!