Swansea to Dundee

[saj]

any of you guys know what's the best day to travel or should i say quitest/less busy time? i'll be catching great western from swansea to bristol parkway and then cross country to dundee, is it best to travel on a sunday? or in the middle of the week? and also can i reserve the dissabled seating space? also does anyone know of any special offers on at the moment for cheap tickets thanks in advance

 

[AlterEgo]

I'm not a fares expert on that particular route (so I'll leave this for someone else to interject), but Sundays are a nightmare travelling on CrossCountry, or on anybody to and from the North/Scotland.

You can request the disabled space if you are a wheelchair user.

 

[OwlMan]

Without knowing when you wish to travel it is imposible to tell you which tickets to buy. As you wish to reserve a disabled space it would be helpful to know whether you have a disabled railcard and/or are confined to a wheelchair

Peter

 

[John @ home]

i'll be catching great western from swansea to bristol parkway and then cross country to dundee

The hourly CrossCountry service Bristol Parkway - Edinburgh tends to be overcrowded and, in my experience, provides a poor level of customer service. Instead, I tend to use ATW. For Swansea - Dundee, I would recommend:

ATW: Swansea - Manchester Piccadilly (hourly service)
step-free connection using lift
TPE: Manchester Piccadilly - Haymarket (2-hourly service)
northbound cross-platform connection, southbound step-free connection using lifts
EC or Scotrail: Haymarket - Dundee (2 trains an hour)

This is slower than using CrossCountry but usually less expensive and my expectation is that you would have a more pleasant journey. If you respond with suggested dates and times, we will be able to assist with fares.

If you intend to start your journey at Llanelli again, you may find the Heart of Wales line suitable. When I used the 0934 Llanelli - Shrewsbury last month, the single-coach vehicle had 3 members of staff and 22 passengers, an accessible toilet and a well-stocked buffet trolley.

 

[saj]

no i am not dissabled but i will have a 9 month old baby so was hoping to take a small buggy just so that she could nap in it some of the time, any time from the 17th of this month i'll be travelling from llanelli/swansea to dundee, i have stopped in haymarket a number of times and every time was an apsolute nightmare, talk about over crowding.. more like sardines, the last time i stopped in haymarket i just about squeezed me and my baby(in her car seat) and i was wedged right up to the door, i did have seat reservations but the train was so packed i couldnt make my way through to find them and to make matters worse the air con had packed in and was blowing hot air out in the carriage i was in, i must of lost a stone in just sweat so i vowd i'd never stop in haymarket ever agian, i have never had a good experiences every time i've passed through, i'm not a great fan of the crosscountry service either the smell from the toilets is enough to put anyone off, i dread to think how they are gonna be in this weather, but needs must lol .... so travelling on a sunday is a definate no no, any other days you can suggest? i just want a stress free journey
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
If you intend to start your journey at Llanelli again, you may find the Heart of Wales line suitable. When I used the 0934 Llanelli - Shrewsbury last month, the single-coach vehicle had 3 members of staff and 22 passengers, an accessible toilet and a well-stocked buffet trolley.[/QUOTE]


that sounds very stress free, if i travel from llanelli to dundee using this service how many stops will i have to make? and any time in the morning for my departure will do about 8 onwards

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Doing that is 0934 off Llanelli into Dundee a staggering 10 hours later at 1955, but that just takes you a different way to Shrewsbury / Crewe, you would still have to change at Crewe and Haymarket...

 

[saj]

Doing that is 0934 off Llanelli into Dundee a staggering 10 hours later at 1955, but that just takes you a different way to Shrewsbury / Crewe, you would still have to change at Crewe and Haymarket...

yes i just checked, that's definitely not suitable

 

[Squaddie]

You could consider travelling via London. It takes a little longer (though not excessively so) but travelling with First Great Western and East Coast is considerably more comfortable than with Arriva Trains Wales and Cross Country. It's a short taxi ride from Paddington to Kings Cross.

On Wednesday 20 July you can get an Advance from Llanelli to Dundee via London for £90. Leave Llanelli 0858, change in Swansea and London, arrive Dundee 1955.

 

[saj]

You could consider travelling via London. It takes a little longer (though not excessively so) but travelling with First Great Western and East Coast is considerably more comfortable than with Arriva Trains Wales and Cross Country. It's a short taxi ride from Paddington to Kings Cross.

On Wednesday 20 July you can get an Advance from Llanelli to Dundee via London for £90. Leave Llanelli 0858, change in Swansea and London, arrive Dundee 1955.

Thanks for the info squaddie, i'll will definitely be looking into it, i will admit i've never travelled to london, and the thought terrifies me lol but maybe it's not so bad as i imagine? or knowing my luck it probably is lol

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply back i very much appreciate it hope you all have a great summer where ever you are .

 

[sonic2009]

Distance: 4.7 km. | Duration: 12 min.

first 310.4 meters £2.20
3.76 km. x £1.20 per km £4.80
waiting in traffic (~4 min.) £1.50
environmental charge £0.20
Total £8.80
on a weekend it would be £10.10

cost of a taxi from Paddington to Kings Cross.. Esitmate

 

[OwlMan]

If you wanted to cut down the journey time you could fly between Cardiff and Edinburgh using flybe (the price of flights seems to vary considerably depending on date) and travel by train at each end.

Peter

 

[sonic2009]

If you wanted to cut down the journey time you could fly between Cardiff and Edinburgh using flybe (the price of flights seems to vary considerably depending on date) and travel by train at each end.

Peter

A good option, but the op has a child. do they not require to be on parent's passport etc?

instead of the train the op could get megabus/cityllink straight from edinburgh airport to dundee.

 

[ainsworth74]

A good option, but the op has a child. do they not require to be on parent's passport etc?

Pretty sure that you've not been able to have a child on a parents passport for some time (think it stopped back in the late 90s) so the child would need their own passport. But why would the OP need a passport for a domestic flight? Most airlines accept photo IDs as far as I'm aware.

 

[OwlMan]

A good option, but the op has a child. do they not require to be on parent's passport etc?

instead of the train the op could get megabus/cityllink straight from edinburgh airport to dundee.

No, children under 16 do not need id on domestic flights if travelling with their parent(s). The parent needs photo ID (usually driving licence/passport)

Peter

 

[Greenback]

I would not consider Cross Coutnry for a journey from South Wales to Scotland. At least nto sicne the introduction of Voyagers. As others have said, it will be a far more pleasant journey experience, and usually a lot cheaper to travel via London, Crewe or Manchester.

As to flying, the last time I checked there was not a great choice of flights from Cardiff to Edinburgh. Cardiff Airport is also a bit rubbish in my opinion. Last time we were there it was a busy Friday night and no refreshment facilities were open apart form those airside, which were absolutely swamped with hungry and thirsty travellers!

 

[MidnightFlyer]

If you wanted, you could get one of the Plymouth-Edinburgh HST services (there's four a day M-F), the first would be about 1430 or so off Bristol though, you may get into Dundee rather late in the day, especially with a child with you...

 

[island]

Can't say I'd recommend FlyMayBe, whatever other decision you come to!

 

[Squaddie]

i will admit i've never travelled to london, and the thought terrifies me lol but maybe it's not so bad as i imagine?

You just get into a taxi alongside platform 1 at Paddington and get out at Kings Cross. It's easy (and, as Sonic says, only about a tenner). You can get something in M&S at Kings Cross and board the train straight to Dundee.

 

[saj]

this is the cheapest i found, and i might go for this

6.22 llanelli to crewe 10.30 £29.75
11.09 crewe to haymarket 14.15 £28.45
14.32 haymarket to dundee 15.46 £13.60

totall price £71.80 single

i did say i'd never travel via haymarket again but when i thought about it i allways end up at haymarket at 5 ish and my guess is that's probably the bussiest time, so if i leave on an earlier train i'll get into haymarket at 14.25, so suerly it cant be busy at that time??

 

[John @ home]

i did say i'd never travel via haymarket again but when i thought about it i always end up at haymarket at 5 ish and my guess is that's probably the busiest time, so if i leave on an earlier train i'll get into haymarket at 14.25, so suerly it cant be busy at that time??

I think Haymarket will be fine at 14.25. You will also have the advantage that in the Llanelli - Dundee direction it's a cross-platform interchange from platform 3 to 2. When I was last in Haymarket in March, the person travelling with me was very relieved that the new lifts are now operational. It makes a big difference to someone who finds stairs difficult.

Enjoy your journey!

 

[saj]

I think Haymarket will be fine at 14.25. You will also have the advantage that in the Llanelli - Dundee direction it's a cross-platform interchange from platform 3 to 2. When I was last in Haymarket in March, the person travelling with me was very relieved that the new lifts are now operational. It makes a big difference to someone who finds stairs difficult.

Enjoy your journey!

very dissapointed that there was no lift in the past, luckily i didnt need to use the lift but being a smoker with an half hour wait for my conecting train a lift would of been heaven lol needless to say i was livid, and having a baby in a car seat + a suitcase there was no way i was atempting them stairs lol

but the lift is working, i'm travelling earlier to avoid traffic, all in all it should go smooth and i'm actually looking forward to the journey (fingers crossed)

Thanks for your reply john, hope you have a great summer x


edit: one question i forgot to ask was... is it worth traveling first class? even if i travelled first class from crewe to haymarket? i'm not sure if i can take a small baby in first class though

 

[John @ home]

is it worth traveling first class? even if i travelled first class from crewe to haymarket? i'm not sure if i can take a small baby in first class though

You certainly can take a baby in First Class. In 2007 I travelled in a First Class restaurant car with a 4-day-old baby on the way to his grandfather's wedding. A very little fellow made a big impression with the restaurant car staff!

Whether it is worth it depends on a number of factors:

• the train company and their trains. Some First Class accommodation is almost identical to Standard, eg Southern's Electrostar trains. But I think Virgin Voyager's First Class is very comfortable, and would be tempted for a Crewe - Haymarket journey if the price was competitive.
• the level of service. Some train companies provide none at all. Virgin are towards the other end of the scale. On their Voyagers you can expect attentive service and, on weekdays, their light bites menu.
• the price. You quote £28.45 for Crewe - Haymarket and I see that this price is available in Standard on Monday 18 July at 1109 for 1 Adult and 1 Child with a F&F Railcard. That Railcard gives no discount in First Class, but you then don't need to buy a Child ticket for the under-5. Currently, a First Advance ticket is available on that train for £48.

On balance, I would buy a First Class ticket for this journey given that the difference in price is less than £20. Your baby may occupy a First Class seat free of charge if this is not causing the exclusion of a paying passenger. That is a risk on peak trains to and from London, but the relatively low Advance fares available a few days before travel indicates that for the 1109 Crewe-Haymarket this risk is negligible.