Please sign in to post.

Train from Heathrow to Penrith

Posted by on

My wife and I are flying to London in March, arriving at Heathrow at 13:00. After taking the tube to Euston, we want to take the train to Penrith from Euston station but are a bit confused about reserving a train from Euston to Penrith. If we buy an advance single for the Avanti West Coast, we could possibly run into a major problem if our plane arrives late. If we can't make it to Euston in time to catch our reserved train, is there any way to take a later train instead without buying an entirely new ticket? Is it possible to pay a small fee to alter our ticket to a later train?

We understand that we could purchase advance single anytime tickets but they cost nearly four times as much. Are there other options we should consider?

We are also confused about the offpeak singles -- what times are considered offpeak?

Thanks so much in advance!
Michael

Posted by
2512 posts

Off-peak is departing London after 9.26 am Mon to Fri;

Times confirmed here. https://www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/tickets-and-savings/ticket-types/off-peak-tickets

Off-peak is the flexible ticket you want in case your flight is delayed. Just take pretty much any train and find a seat. These are walk-up fares; buy at the station or online - same price.

An Advance ticket means you have to commit to a train time and hard luck if you miss it.

Posted by
8 posts

That helps a lot! Buying offpeak single tickets will give us the flexibility in case of a late plane arrival. Should we expect any problem getting a seat on any given train since the time won't be reserved? I don't know how crowded the trains are to Lake District in mid-March.

Posted by
501 posts

If you buy your off peak ticket in advance, you can usually reserve a seat on the train you think you’re most likely to use - but then can still take any other off peak train.

There will be seats available unless you happen to be travelling on a peak holiday day. There are always unreserved seats.

Posted by
2512 posts

The busiest day will be Friday afternoon with people going north from London for the weekend. But you'll still likely get a seat. On other days you'll be fine.

You can still reserve a seat with an off-peak ticket, though the seat reservation will only apply to a particular train. The ticket itself will apply to all valid off-peak trains.

Posted by
5814 posts

There is always one unreserved car (Car C) on an Avanti train- 3rd from front. If it happens to be an 11 car train there is also Car U which is unreserved- between first and standard class,

What would worry me more is that most people going to Penrith are final destination Keswick. The last train that connects into a bus is the 1630 from Euston. If you land on time at 1300 you would arrive Euston at 1500 with reasonable luck. So I wouldn't book the 1530 anyway- too optimistic. So the 1630 would be the sensible train to book for in any event.

The evening peak trains are nowhere near as heavily loaded as they used to be pre Covid, which is why the 1730, 1830 and 1930 all tend to have very cheap advance fares. I know, I use them.

Given how tight your timings are for the last bus I would book a hotel in London that night, then travel up on an early train next day. The 0730 train gets you into Keswick by 12 noon via Penrith.

Posted by
5814 posts

By the way you can upgrade to 1st class on Avanti using Seat Frog for possibly as little as £10, if you have a flexible ticket until 30 minutes before departure. So if you think a late train will be really busy try that. You will get a free meal and drinks as well. So if you got a £10 upgrade you've got your money back.
https://www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/tickets-and-savings/ways-to-save/offers-and-rewards/seatfrog

It's 18 miles from Penrith to Keswick so if you missed the last bus a taxi would set you back around £40.

If say you booked an advance ticket on the last train from Euston at 1930, then a taxi from Penrith that would be cheaper than a full price flexible ticket. The 1930 arrives Penrith at 2238. Jump in a cab at the station rank. You would be at Keswick by just after 2300.

Add Reply

Please do not reply to violations of our Community Guidelines.