My husband and I arrived at the Kings Cross station and bought (2) 7-day travel cards from a lady person at the train station and charged us 41.4 pounds per card. We thought it was just about 30p but i didn't ask her (my bad) why she was asking for a much higher price. Has anyone experienced this before ? I think the lady is from East Coast and our travel cards say 1st class, london terminals and london zones 1-2. Thanks.
Posted by
Boscombe, Dorset, UK
964 posts
I'm no expert, but I'm guessing 1st class has something to do with it. I'm sure somebody more knowledgable will be along to answer your question.
Posted by
Spring, Texas
635 posts
Are these 7 day Oyster Cards or East Coast train passes? I just bought two 7 day Oysters for zone 1 and 2 for about 27.5 GBP each. They won't cover trains but will cover the DLR. I haven't heard of any "1st class" tube tickets.
Posted by
OP
SLC
11 posts
Does the 7 day travel oyster card cover the 2for1 promo ? I read somewhere, probably here, that we need to get the tickets with the rail logo on it or it won't be valid for the 2for1. I am suspecting the first class, but we were never asked if we wanted it. Oh well. Thanks for the replies.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33823 posts
Oyster cards are no good for the 2 for 1 promotion from the rail companies. A ticket from the railways is required and folk here have found that a rail company issued Travelcard (showing the BR logo of arrows) which is valid on the day does the trick. Travelcards can be loaded onto Oyster cards and work perfectly well for travel but are useless for the 2 for 1 promotion. Regarding the price you paid, I think there may have a failure to reach a complete understanding. Its a shame you didn't question it at the time. There are no East Coast trains which travel between zones 1 and 2, but conceivably you could travel among Victoria, Charing Cross, London Bridge, and Cannon Street by train in First Class and never get beyond zone 2. Why you'd want to beats me but it is a legal ticket. Did you mention to her that you had a First Class Britrail pass? Otherwise it seems that perhaps you have been "done".
Posted by
Bromley, Kent,, UK
1829 posts
You have been sold a first class travelcard, which is worse than useless in central London. If you are near a mainline station why not pop in to the Travel Enquiries Office and explain what happened. You may get lucky http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/seasonticket/tickets
Posted by
OP
SLC
11 posts
We did go back to the Kings Cross Station to get an explanation. The man we talked to was friendly and after we told him about what happened, he said that maybe the person who sold us the ticket pushed the wrong button and that it was their mistake that we overpaid for the travel cards. He told us to come back tomorrow so that a manager is present to do the refund. Now, I'm feeling much better and even a little optimistic. The lady that we talked to last night was not helpful, when we asked if we could get a supplement for the ride to the airport, she said that was not possible and we had to buy a travel card covering all zones. When she mentioned how much the tickets were, I asked her to repeat it, and when she did I was too tired and a little shocked to say anything (we just arrived by train a little past 9p after a day trip to St. Andrews in Scotland and I don't think we're the first people that she sold tickets to). Well, moral of the story -- always speak up when in doubt. Lesson learned.