A travel agent quoted me these rates for train fare in England for our trip this coming June. Do these prices seem average? I wanted to check before booking.
London to Oxford before 10:00 a.m. on a Saturday in June - $36.00 per person each direction.
London to Bath $63.00 if I leave at 8:30 in the morning (this would be on a Monday or Tuesday.)
Brit rail pass for 3 days for 4 people - $473.00
Eurostar from London to Paris $74.00 per person one way leaving late afternoon on a Saturday.
Thanks
C .M., They do not use $ in The UK, so any prices quoted in $ (of any sort) are by definition WRONG or an approximation (Except a Britrail pass, which is not sold in the UK, and may or may not be good value).
For time and prices for trains within the UK, go to the National Rail site: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/
For Eurostar, go to: http://www.eurostar.com/us-en
in both cases prices are cheaper if you book in advance.
I checked London (Paddington) to Oxford for random Saturday in April, and National Rail was quoting me from £6 per person each way.
London to Bath on a Tuesday from £14.50
If your travel agent does not understand the vast cost differences of booking in advance versus last minute, I would suggest a new agent or booking the trip yourself.
:-)
When to book varies with each train company, this website has useful info.
http://help.loco2.com/article/316-how-far-in-advance-can-i-book
This website is extremely useful http://seat61.com/UK-train-travel.htm
For Eurostar, I see £44, approximately $56, for June 17 for four time options. These will sell out and the price will go up as you get closer to the day of travel.
I wonder whether the travel agent is taking the path of least resistance and using RailEurope, which typically marks up rail fares quite a bit and often seems to ignore some of the less expensive options.
Whatever is going on, that travel agent is going to cost you a bunch of money if you let him/her handle your rail tickets! Which makes me wonder about any other work done for you on this trip.
Mrs. EB, I sure you realize there are very good, very bad, and all levels in between in any and all professions. We used an agent once that was not so good, but for years we've dealt with one who is really good. Please reconsider painting all travel agents with one brush stroke of "They play their clients as ignorant deep pockets". Thank you.
C.M. you can easily check these fares yourself on the National Rail website. The BritRail site will send you to RailEurope or ACP to buy passes, and you can see that the number you were quoted was not right - too low for 4 people.
Megatrain to Bath/London trips can be £10.50 each way, granted its after the 9.30 rush
The topic of travel agents comes up now nd then on here, and I guess my first question is "how are you paying this person?
Not for the tickets, but for their time, how are they making a living? If you are paying them a planning fee, say an hourly consulting fee or a flat fee, then question the prices. As others have pointed out, you can do better with some investigation, effort, and by taking some risk on non-refundable tickets. If the tickets come as a result of you not having to lift a finger, not spends hours figuring out websites and schedules, risk a mistake (is 6/5/2017 June 5th or May 6th?) and maybe comes with a recourse if things are not right, then maybe the price is cheap. A travel agent makes zero if they are booking tickets online just like we do, maybe commission if they are an agent for Raileurope or other retailer, a bit more if you pay them direct. I am not promoting use of an agent, have not used them in many years, but realize that if you choose them, you need to pay for a service you are not willing to do yourself, and then you need to find the skilled person that can do it with value, as opposed to a random agent.
You can get a ticket leaving London Paddington to Oxford leaving 8:21am arriving 9:16am, return train leaving 6:01pm arriving back in London at 7:14pm for £14.00pp if bought in advance 8-10 weeks, which is around $17.58pp depending on the exchange rate the day you buy them.
Bath...leaving Paddington Station at 8:30am arriving 10:05am, returning 6:43pm arriving in London 8:14pm for £29.00pp if bought in advance, which is about $36.41 pp round trip, depending on exchange rate
So for four tickets each trip, both trips would cost around $216.00. This could even be lower if you qualify for a family ticket. Go to....... http://m.nationalrail.co.uk
Each route has a big range of fares, with both advance-purchase discounts and roundtrip discounts, and can be more expensive if purchased on short notice. I don't find the prices that you quoted on Rail Europe, except for the Eurostar rate, although there are options in that price neighborhood. Some of them look closer to first class with advance purchase discounts, while the comments above are assuming and recommending 2nd class (which we agree is fine).
BritRail passes don't cover the Eurostar, so it sounds like you'd only use 2 days of a 3-day pass.
FYI, I see the BritRail South West pass for 3 consecutive days at $424 for 4 adults or the BritRail England pass for 3 consecutive days at $500 for 4 adults. (Consecutive would mean traveling Saturday and the following Monday, not Tuesday.) With either coverage area, the version for 3 days spread over a longer period costs a little more, but not exactly $473. Your agent may have added in the costs of a shipping fee, optional "Protection Plan," or their own fee.
