We will be taking the train from London's King Cross Station to Edinburgh, but want to stop in Newcastle to see family. I cannot find a route that stops in Newcastle. Should I buy two singles - one from London to Newcastle and another from Newcastle on to Edinburgh. We will be traveling in September. Thanks.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
What timetable site did you use? East Coast trains go directly from London King's Cross to Edinburgh Waverley and they all stop in Newcastle. If you were to buy an anytime single ticket from London to Edinburgh, you could take any East Coast train to Newcastle, get off for a few hours, and continue on to Edinburgh on any other East Coast train, all on the same ticket. However, those tickets are very expensive. Discount fares are posted on www.eastcoast.co.uk about 12 weeks in advance. They can be very cheap, but you are limited to a specific departure time and your ticket is worthless if you miss the train. You could buy a discount fare ticket for London-Newcastle and a regular ticket for Newcastle-Edinburgh so you could be flexible on how much time you spend in Newcastle. Or you could book discount fare tickets for both legs, knowing that you would have to leave Newcastle on a specific train.
Posted by
OP
Guthrie, OK
251 posts
Thanks, Tim. I guess I just missed the stop in Newcastle when I was looking at times and fares. We do have a a set date traveling from London to Newcastle and then on to Edinburgh, but are a little unsure as to how much time we will spend in Newcastle. We would like to arrive around noonish and spend the afternoon with family. Its ok for us to arrive rather late at Waverly Station, because our hotel is just a 5 minute walk from there. Our travel date will be leaving London on Sepember 25. I plan on purchasing that ticket ahead of time to save money, but guess I could wait on the Newcastle to Edinburgh leg until I know more details.