Hello, I will be in England for three months, starting on August 1st. I would like to travel between cities in England and also between England and Wales, England and Scotland, and England and Paris. My friend said something about train or bus passes I could buy that last one month. Does anyone know which passes are best? Will I be able to travel to all of the destinations mentioned above with these passes? I will be flying into Heathrow in London, so please let me know if I can buy these passes at Heathrow Airport. One thing I noticed when I looked at train tickets from Cotswolds to Edinburgh on the National Rail website is that tickets were very costly. One one-way ticket from Cotswolds to Edinburgh cost 130 British pounds. I am hoping to be able to travel around for less money than this, or I may be in trouble. Any ideas on monthly passes or other means of keeping transportation costs down would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Posted by
Salem, Oregon, USA
209 posts
Generally point to point is cheaper unless you intend to move long distances continuously. However, if you do go to Scotland from London you might do well with a Britrail Pass. Click on the Railpasses link on this site choose British and use Steve's chart to do the math based on how much you will be traveling. I don't know who, if anyone, you are traveling with, but Britrail passes generally allow you to take one underage companion free with an adult pass. For us, that made the passes very affordable where they would not have been just for two adults. The pass should give you some discount on Eurostar to Paris. But you can get a pretty good fare there just by buying early. Bus called "coach" for long distances is cheaper than rail and generally, but not always slower. If there is a pass, I don't know of it.
Posted by
OP
San Diego, CA, USA
16 posts
Thanks, Jenny!
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33819 posts
Lucky you to have such a nice long time. There are lots of ways to save money on British transport, generally based on planning ahead, age, or small group travel. There are all sorts of schemes. Its a shame the time window to help you with this is so short. If you decide to get a Britrail pass I don't know how you would get it in time. It would be very helpful to understand more about your situation. Do you qualify for any discount passes? Over 65, between 16-25, two traveling together, or 3 or 4? Will you regularly be repeating the same trip? Can you travel off-peak hours? Are you aware of Megabus? The Cotswolds is a very large area. Will you be moving around or have one base? Where? How many days of travel would you like to have in your 90 days?
Posted by
southwest, Missouri, U.S.A.
1717 posts
Hello Kristen. I think Rick Steves' business, located in the state Washington, is the best place for buying a railroad trains pass. If you decide to buy a rail pass for Great Britain, I recommend : on Monday talk via telephone to the person who sells rail passes at Rick Steves' business (Europe Through The Back Door). Ask : can a railpass purchased from them arrive at your address in California before August 1. I think it is possible.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
National Express offers Brit Xplorer passes for 7, 14, and 28 consecutive days. See here. However, unless you plan to be on the go nearly every day, you may do better with a 15-days-in-two-months BritRail Flexipass for two of your three months. See here.
Posted by
Boscombe, Dorset, UK
964 posts
Even without a pass, National Express coaches usually offer less expensive travel than trains and have an extensive network.
Posted by
London, United Kingdom
4684 posts
I think to be honest you've left it too late to get very cheap train tickets - go for at least two months in advance.
Posted by
OP
San Diego, CA, USA
16 posts
Thanks to everyone who sent me suggestions. It is much appreciated!
Posted by
Kansas
1175 posts
Check out www.seat61.com for all of your rail questions being answered.