Jacobite Train Sold Out Summer 2023. Any way to get a mid-July ticket?

You probably already read this but according to the FAQ on the official website, you may be able to get tickets the day of travel.
However, it doesn’t sound too promising:

On some of our trips (The Jacobite, Scarborough Spa Express and The Dalesman) limited tickets may be available on the day, which include First Class, the HP style Compartment Carriage (only available on The Jacobite) and Standard Class. These are sold on the Platform direct from the Guard on a first come first serve basis therefore early arrival (approximately an hour before departure) is recommended. These cannot be secured beforehand and there is unfortunately no guarantee of how many, or if any, tickets will be available on any given day. Please also note the 'on the day' tickets are cash only.

Edited to add;
I was intrigued by your question so did a bit of research.
I’ve not taken this train (yet) but you
can take a regular train on this route and you can book your tickets (usually 12 weeks in advance of your travel date) here: www.scotrail.co.uk/

Wishing you a great trip!

P.S. If your itinerary includes Edinburgh please let me know if you’re interested in restaurant/ pub recommendations. My daughter lived there for 5 months during her study abroad semester and she compiled a couple of lists.

The ordinary diesel service train travels over exactly the same tracks and never sells out- so you get exactly the same views, arguably better views due to the train design and the fact it is not so crowded.
NO need to book in advance- on a return journey the saving is a few pence.
Take the 1212 from Fort William, which arrives at Mallaig at 1338. The morning steam service will be on the opposite platform so you can get up close to the engine. It leaves 30 minutes later.
You then have the afternoon in Mallaig until 1605 or 1815.
The afternoon train will be in the platform when you get back to the station.
On the way back (on the 1605) you could get off at Glenfinnan at no extra cost, with time to see the monument (which the Jacobite doesn't let you do) and see the steam train pass through the landscape and landscape before joining the later train.
Or get off at Morar and visit the beautiful beaches.
These are 'turn up and go tickets' which cost a fraction of that of the steam service and cannot sell out. You can always go to the station at 0915 to try to get stand by tickets for the steam train. If not spend the morning in Fort William then do the above. Nothing to lose.
As far as I am concerned a far better day than on the steam train.
Travelling in mid July there is also a good chance that Network Rail will have imposed a steam ban due to fire risk, so you could well end up travelling behind a Diesel engine anyway, but spent 3x as much to do so.

@isn31c and @Priscilla :
Thank you both so much for responding.
@Priscilla : I did see that tickets may be available on the 'day of', so maybe we will just turn up early and see.
Also, I would LOVE to have any Edinburgh tips. We have a handful of days in Edinburgh and may or may not do a day-trip to Glasgow after our NC500 trip. Our interests are: Local craft beer; Whiskey; Casual dining; Traditional live music and local culture.

@isn31c : This is great information, thank you! I will have to look up a timetable and see if we can fit in the diesel service train. We will have a car so we may need to see if there is a return trip from Mallaig to Ft William and back rather than starting in Fort William. We will be en route from Skye to Fort William that day so it may be a problematic schedule if the round trip needs to start in Fort William.
It looks like the latest train from Mallaig to Fort William is 10:06am. Unfortunately, it also looks like the ferry from Armadale arrives no earlier than 10:50am.

So much great information in this forum. Thank you both.
Looks like we may have to be satisfied with seeing the train from either the platform or at Glenfinnan Viaduct (or both) as we go through!

@ Dr Toonz-
So you're travelling on a Sunday then.
Here's an idea- take that first ferry over, which arrives at 1050. Have a bit of time in Mallaig, then drive down to Glenfinnan Viaduct to see the afternoon train to Mallaig, which departs Glenfinnan at 1356.
Drive on to Fort William.
Then take the afternoon service train FW-Mallaig return FW d 1619, Mallaig 1743, depart 1815 FW a 1937.
The morning steam train arrives on the other platform at Fort William at 1603, and you pass the afternoon return steam train in the station at Arisaig at 1726, as that is a passing point on the single line railway.
I've just looked and the Jacobite isn't doing single tickets this year so you couldn't have joined it at Mallaig anyway.

@isn31c :
"Great minds...."
I just looked that plan up this morning and it looks like it will work! Perfect solution!
And a bargain (I can't look up July prices yet, but at about £60 total for 2 people return trip it is a real steal!).

Thank you!

Where are you seeing £60 for 2
The Off Peak Return fare which applies all day Sunday is £16.00 each

The OP is likely looking at the cost of two singles, having accidentally omitted to scroll down the page to Off Peak Day Return. In person at the station, on the machine or from the clerk this is much clearer.
If he actually tried to purchase 2 singles on line a message would pop up, saying do you want to buy the cheaper day return?

RE: That cost: I tried hard to do 2-people / off peak (Sunday) return. I may have messed it up! :)
Happy to know it may be even cheaper!

I have run through the ticket parameters and now see that it is indeed £16pp return.
Thanks for the tip!

My husband and I rode the Jacobite Steam Train last summer and really enjoyed it! I would suggest checking back on the website regularly. I wanted morning tickets but they were sold out on the days we could take the train, so we opted for the afternoon tickets that were available at the time. Checking the website two or three weeks later, I saw that a lot more tickets had opened up. I imagine they added extra cars due to demand. I had already worked our plans around the afternoon journey by that time, so didn’t try to change them. It really is a memorable trip, and I think trying to go by steam engine if you can is worth the extra effort to get those tickets.

Priscilla, (and others) I would be interested In Edinburgh eating recommendations..

near Royal Mile -

and also in the area south of the City Center near Mayfield Road (where we are staying)
Perhaps this should be a separate topic. I am quite new to this forum.
Thank you

@DebbieP and @Penguin73 :
Thanks for chiming in.
I will look into the steam train possibility. I would love to do it, but I'm afraid the timing may not work out.

DrToonz,
Please refer to this post from last
August where I included my daughters lists.

I checked all the places she recommends, and it looks like they’re all open, except for possibly ‘The Potting Shed’, and ‘The Royal Mile Market’

I hope you enjoy Edinburgh as much as we did.

Wishing you a wonderful trip!

P.S. And please post a trip report upon your return!

Thank you, @Priscilla . This is great. :)

You’re welcome!

If you have other questions, by all means, just start a new topic!

There are many savvy travelers who’d be happy to answer your questions, give you suggestions. etc, etc.

And… I’m following along as I dream of a future trip to the U.K.