Visiting Family, How much will the ticket cost?

[Pink]

Hi,

I'm planning on travelling to Northern Ireland, in the next couple of weeks [End of September]

Would Someone be able to tell me how much the fare will cost for 2 adults, from London to Belfast?

We have 1 railcard between the two of us, which is a disabled railcard.

and a Route to do it, as i can't find anything?

Thanks

Big Hugs and Kisses

Deanna

xxxx

 

[mikeg]

I'm no expert on the subject of Sail-Rail fares, but the best route would be via Holyhead and Dublin if coming from London. Virgin Trains run one service per day on weekdays from Euston to Holyhead, otherwise you'll need to change trains. I have no ideas as to times. Please note you will need to book in advance and obtain reservations as these are compulsory, at least for the ship part of the journey. Since Arriva Trains Wales set the fares, they will likely be the most knowledgeable ones (knowledge of Sail-Rail fares and booking procedures are poor among some rail staff, though in theory Sail-Rail tickets can be bought from any staffed station and I suspect the knowledge at London Terminals shouldn't be too bad. Euston would be the most relevant London terminal should you wish to take this route). The best bet would be to give telesales a ring on 08709 000 773 or consult the following website: http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/SailRail/ In this case, I might be tempted to go with telesales, as they may be able to advise you better as to your options.

There is then included an onward connection via rail from Dublin to Belfast. These tickets are very good value, starting at £49 per person for a single.

http://brfares.com has the available fares (maybe a few months out of date), I don't seem to be able to get it to apply a disabled adult discount though.


There is an alternative route which is to go via Ayr and Cairnryan (bus is provided between the two places), and again one ticket covers the whole journey and I believe you need to book reservations in advance. Again, the sail-rail website should help you out here and recommend should you want to book over the phone the ATW telesales number above. Once again, tickets are from £49 each way per person. Note that here the ferry goes straight to Belfast.


Beyond my advice, I would recommend reading what The man in Seat 61 has to say, just don't book your tickets through there as it uses Raileasy which charges unnecessary booking fees.

As for times and routes, the National Rail Enquiries Website also gives itineraries but does not sell tickets (www.nationalrail.co.uk)

 

[calc7]

I didn't read the full post, but Virgin run a lot more than one service per day to Holyhead. (Off the top of my head, I believe it is 7 to Bangor, 5 of which continue to Holyhead, but happy to be corrected).

 

[ainsworth74]

I didn't read the full post, but Virgin run a lot more than one service per day to Holyhead. (Off the top of my head, I believe it is 7 to Bangor, 5 of which continue to Holyhead, but happy to be corrected).

Four services from Euston to Holyhead (0910, 1710, 1810, 1910) and five from Holyhead to Euston (0448, 0551, 0655, 0855, 1358). But by changing at Chester it's effectively hourly (a few odd gaps when travelling from Holyhead). There are also a couple of extras that run only to Bangor (0810 and 1610).

 

[mikeg]

My mistake, I must have readbthe VT website wrong. Thinking about it, having lived on the WCML I should have known that!

Sent from my PlayBook.

 

[bb21]

If you hold a 16-25 Railcard, the ticket routed +CAIRNRYAN STENA (ie. going via Ayr) attracts the usual discount. You might want to consider getting this Railcard if you don't already have one, as the saving on this one trip could be worth the price of the Railcard.

 

[Pink]

If you hold a 16-25 Railcard, the ticket routed +CAIRNRYAN STENA (ie. going via Ayr) attracts the usual discount. You might want to consider getting this Railcard if you don't already have one, as the saving on this one trip could be worth the price of the Railcard.

bb21, you know the railcard you refer to in this post, does this include a disabled railcard?

and do you know what the fare is via Ayr

 

[island]

Chatham (CTM) to Belfast NI is £49 each way via Cairnryan, £49 each way via Holyhead with Irish Ferries standard, £50 each way via Holyhead with Stena (not HSS or Lynx), or £54 each way via Holyhead on the Irish Ferries Swift service. £5 supplement on Holyhead fares if booked on the day of travel.

Fares from London are the same, so you might as well book from Chatham and save the cost of the journey in.

A 16-25 Railcard gives the usual reduction if travelling via Cairnryan. There is no discount for Disabled Railcard holders.

 

[bkhtele]

Lots of good advice above, for N.Ireland I prefer London Euston dept 9.30 am Glasgow 14.01 Belfast 21.45. Lovey new ferries from Cairnryan. If you liked the upgrade on the ferry to Calais upgrade to Stena Plus for £16 single.

Return either 7.30am from Belfast or 11.30am: Glasgow 14.01 London Euston 21.45.

Have a look at my trip report in forum "trip reports" 24/8/12 Swindon-London-Glasgow-Belfast.

Book at Euston or with Scotrail over the phone, Internet is very unreliable for these tickets. You only need to book the ferry, you can take any reasonable route. £98 return as an anytime return ticket without restrictions as long as you stick with the ferry.

Times are slightly different at weekend, weekend first is worth it to Glasgow (or Holyhead).

You can get a through ticket to stations in N.Ireland for a few extra £'s if you can find someone who understands the system!

 

[reb0118]

Hi Deanna,

Just a thought, but you could go out one way & back the other. e.g. Out via York, Edinburgh, Glasgow, & Ayr for the Cairnryan - Belfast ferry. Returning via Dublin for the Holyhead ferry - then via Chester & Crewe to Euston.

You would travel through all 5 of the Home Nations (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, & Wales) and get a trip on both the ECM & WCM.

I've done the North Channel & the Holyhead crossings and although the journeys were long they were enjoyable. Lots of different scenery enroute & lots to do on the ferries.

Check out seat61 for more details.

Enjoy your trip

 

[bkhtele]

Hi Deanna,

Just a thought, but you could go out one way & back the other. e.g. Out via York, Edinburgh, Glasgow, & Ayr for the Cairnryan - Belfast ferry. Returning via Dublin for the Holyhead ferry - then via Chester & Crewe to Euston.

You would travel through all 5 of the Home Nations (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, & Wales) and get a trip on both the ECM & WCM.

I've done the North Channel & the Holyhead crossings and although the journeys were long they were enjoyable. Lots of different scenery enroute & lots to do on the ferries.

Check out seat61 for more details.

Enjoy your trip

Yes that is a good option, I have done it. There is no reservation on the Dublin enterprise so you can get an earlier train and stop a few hours in Dublin if you like. It is easier to buy the return portion in advance at a station or over the phone I believe. The standby fare via Holyhead is also more flexible & only £5 extra. Stena plus is very good on the Cairnryan ferries.