Two Together Railcard Question

Q1 -no

Q2 - yes, yes, 1, 1

one card, two people, photos of both, both must travel together when using the pass, cost is £35 for the one card, £106 spend on tickets to break even.

For those short trips I wonder if you will reach break even because most of those will have Advance low priced tickets which save a ton of money but tie you to specific trains.

I haven't worked out the fares for you. Somebody may come along who will.

All train companies can and do sell each other's tickets and at the same prices.

Yes you will spend £53 each (even on the cheapest Advance (fixed train) fares, so worth it, as long as you travel after 9.30am on weekdays-

[The Advance Fares are what is shown below unless otherwise noted- flexible fares are higher]

London to Bath £33.50
(Bath to Salisbury - Advance Single £8 + Salisbury to Bristol Advance Single £12)
Bath to Bristol Off Peak Day Single £10.20
Bristol to Shrewsbury £16.70 via a change at Wolverhampton; or £36 on some rather dodgy split ticketing via Newport (Wales)- £42.10 on 'proper' split ticketing.
(Bristol to Chepstow £9 Day Rover on Traws Cymru hourly bus, no railcard discount)
(Bristol to Cardiff 2 x Advance Singles £19)
Shrewsbury to Chester £14.50 Anytime Day Single (Advance Single at £15.10 is higher)
Chester to Llandudno £7.40
Llandudno to Manchester £10.10 or Manchester Airport £13- Split Advance Tickets [split at Earlestown, surprisingly]- or £17.10/£14.50 respectively on unsplit Advance Tickets on direct trains [yes, the Airport is cheaper than the City Centre, although 10 miles beyond the City Centre, note that the Earlestown route takes a change and longer, so is not recommended)

All fares quoted before railcard discount is applied.

Note that these are cheapest actually available fares in 2 months time- they may be higher at your time of travel. There may be cheaper fares in the fares manuals (which I haven't checked)- however on some flows there are theoretical Advance fares in the manuals which are never or very rarely issued, as demand does not justify such deep discounting).

Note also that London to Bath is a lot cheaper travelling from Waterloo on Advance Tickets changing at Salisbury, but it takes an hour longer.

Firstly, you buy one "Two Together" Railcard, The purchasing process will require you to fill in the details of the two people using the card. You'll need photos in your phone gallery. If you use the Railcard App, it will be stored on your phone.
When booking tickets on line, there is usually a box or drop down menu to select that you have a Railcard and its type. In your case you will select two people, one railcard of the Two Together type.
The deduction will be automatically shown. On some sites, the non-discounted price may still be shown, with a line through it or greyed out, probably a marketing strategy yo show how much you have saved.
I normally book on line using one of the Apps. My local rail companies are Northern and Avanti and I use one of these to buy tickets anywhere in the country. All companies sell each others tickets, although there is nothing wrong in booking directly with the company that operates the actual trains that you will be using. Once paid, you will be issued with e-tickets that can be stored on your phone wallet.

Q1 -no

Q2 - yes, yes, 1, 1

one card, two people, photos of both, both must travel together when using the pass, cost is £35 for the one card, £106 spend on tickets to break even.

So we purchase one card, indicate two travelers, select the Railcard type, and in the drop down below railcard type, select "1"

I am just repeating this to make sure I have it right.

If I have it right now, thank you!

Thank you isn31c for pulling up all of the fares and providing options for cheaper fares.

I need to decide if we should stay for free on points at the Hyatt Regency in the city center and then taxi to the airport the next day, or just take the train from Llandudno straight to the airport and pay for an airport hotel. The latter is more stress free and it seems the airport train will be slightly cheaper.

I am just repeating this to make sure I have it right.

Yes, all correct

And be sure your Two Together railcard is on your phone to show to the conductor! My husband was asked to show ours every time we travelled by train.

It's been a couple of years, but I think that the TT railcard can't be used for any journey - I think it's only for the non-"rush hour" times, but you'll find this out when you book or buy tickets. Others on this forum doubtless can chime in.

Two Together is for train travel after 9:30 M-F. No time restriction weekends and Bank Holiday Mondays.

And yes, your Railcard forms part of your ticket and must be shown when the ticket is checked.

Also you can book your tickets in advance and say you have the card. You won’t need the card until you actually travel. I was able to purchase our train tickets in advance indicating I have (well, I would have!) the card. When we arrived in London, we purchased the card at Waterloo station the day before our first train ride as I wanted a physical card. By not buying the card until the last moment, you can extend the life of your card if you are making two trips to England within a 12-month period. The first time we purchased it was a physical card; the second time we purchased the card through the app.

While waiting in line at Waterloo, we recognized the fellow in front of us as an actor we had seen in a TV series we enjoyed several years prior. We had a great conversation with him. He’s up for an Oscar this year for Best Supporting Actor! 👏🏽