SailRail: Valid to Heathrow?

[gpb_croppers63]

Hi All,

I'm looking at getting a flight out of Heathrow as it's a much better deal than flying from Ireland. I'm thinking of SailRailing it over from Dublin but can't find any information about whether the SailRail ticket is valid to Heathrow. I'm almost certain it wouldn't be valid on Heathrow Express anyway but can I use it on Heathrow Connect? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Paul Kelly]

It's available as far as Hayes & Harlington: http://www.brfares.com/#fares?orig=DFP&dest=HAY&rlc=

You could get that far on the Heathrow Connect and then buy a separate ticket for the final leg of the journey from Hayes & Harlington to Heathrow, which looks to be £5.60 single: http://www.brfares.com/#fares?orig=HAY&dest=H584&rlc=. Of course if you buy this in advance then you can just stay on the Heathrow Connect train straight through to Heathrow.

 

[gpb_croppers63]

It's available as far as Hayes & Harlington: http://www.brfares.com/#fares?orig=DFP&dest=HAY&rlc=

You could get that far on the Heathrow Connect and then buy a separate ticket for the final leg of the journey from Hayes & Harlington to Heathrow, which looks to be £5.60 single: http://www.brfares.com/#fares?orig=HAY&dest=H584&rlc=. Of course if you buy this in advance then you can just stay on the Heathrow Connect train straight through to Heathrow.

Yeah I spotted that one. It doesn't make sense that it's not valid to Heathrow but it looks like it isn't. I'd have to get the Tube from Euston to Paddington anyway so I'd probably be better off just getting the Tube all the way to Heathrow for £3 on the Oyster card. Thanks for checking though.

 

[bb21]

Yeah I spotted that one. It doesn't make sense that it's not valid to Heathrow but it looks like it isn't. I'd have to get the Tube from Euston to Paddington anyway so I'd probably be better off just getting the Tube all the way to Heathrow for £3 on the Oyster card. Thanks for checking though.

Heathrow Airport is not part of National Rail and that probably explains why it is not available.

 

[gpb_croppers63]

Heathrow Airport is not part of National Rail and that probably explains why it is not available.

Yes that would explain it. It's very annoying that the UKs busiest airport isn't part of the National Rail network. I also find it confusing that you can buy through fares from the Heathrow train stations but yet tickets like SailRail aren't valid there. It seems contradictory to me.

 

[cjp]

Yes that would explain it. It's very annoying that the UKs busiest airport isn't part of the National Rail network. I also find it confusing that you can buy through fares from the Heathrow train stations but yet tickets like SailRail aren't valid there. It seems contradictory to me.

BAA, not Railtrack/Network Rail put a lot of money into the line, the new tunnel, the trains and seek to recoup their costs.
Open Access, PFI and all that.

 

[gpb_croppers63]

BAA, not Railtrack/Network Rail put a lot of money into the line, the new tunnel, the trains and seek to recoup their costs.
Open Access, PFI and all that.

I can see that point but I was talking more generally that it seems crazy that the UK's busiest airport has no National Rail link. As you say, not much we can do about it.

Thanks everyone for confirming my suspicions about the SailRail ticket.

 

[bb21]

I can see that point but I was talking more generally that it seems crazy that the UK's busiest airport has no National Rail link. As you say, not much we can do about it.

Thanks everyone for confirming my suspicions about the SailRail ticket.

I absolutely agree. It is bonkers that a major transport hub of this country has a private line with fares not fully integrated into the national network.

 

[soil]

Yes that would explain it. It's very annoying that the UKs busiest airport isn't part of the National Rail network. I also find it confusing that you can buy through fares from the Heathrow train stations but yet tickets like SailRail aren't valid there. It seems contradictory to me.

The through fares are generally best avoided though, as they tend to be priced at HX rate plus the applicable London fare. So for a low cost fare like sail rail, there doesn't seem to be much sense in then making it expensive by adding the heathrow surcharge

 

[wintonian]

I absolutely agree. It is bonkers that a major transport hub of this country has a private line with fares not fully integrated into the national network.

BAA funding aside, from a business point of view with a captive market that's probably why. It some times amazes me that the bit to Manchester Airport hasn't been sold to Manchester Airports Group Plc yet.

 

[soil]

I'm not sure you can compare MAN with LHR. LHR has a lot of foreign tourists (walking ATMs), businessmen, etc. whereas a large proportion of MAN pax are families on package holidays to Spain.

 

[gpb_croppers63]

The through fares are generally best avoided though, as they tend to be priced at HX rate plus the applicable London fare. So for a low cost fare like sail rail, there doesn't seem to be much sense in then making it expensive by adding the heathrow surcharge

That is a good point. I still don't see why it can't be made valid on the Heathrow Connect only though. I wouldn't expect to be able to travel on HEX with a SailRail ticket but I would have thought the Connect would have been an option. C'est la vie I suppose.