travel within England and shopping this site...

The Great British Heritage Site has the Collection spots where you would need to turn in your voucher for the actual pass.

http://www.britishheritagepass.com/Shipping

Looks like the closest collection point to Swindon is either London or Stratford-Upon-Avon. That's a shame there isn't one in Bath.

It was much easier last summer, I was able to just get the voucher stamped at the first site I went to. I never had to go out of the way to one of these 8 collection spots.

I'm trying to find it on this site, but can't. Which heading is it under?

It sounds like something I'd be interested it getting! I'll be flying into London anyway, so I could get it done before going onto Swindon.

That is so weird - I was just at the site and it had a link where you could buy directly. Now it just shows prices and alink to the official site, and the link to buy direct from Rick doesn't seem to be there.

I swear I was just at the site and it looked different and you could buy from Rick. Maybe I had a cached version of the webpage.

I'm sorry! It doesn't look like that will help you out.

On the RS page given by Beth, the Britain Heritage Pass is listed as a "buy in Britain" pass and there is no link to buying it from RS. Maybe things have changed since Beth bought it. You could always call ETBD and ask.

You could, however, order a two-days-in-eight Britrail London Plus Pass Flexi for $74 (2nd class). That would cover your London-Swindon trip as far as Didcot Parkway (one stop before Swindon). A separate open ticket for Didcot Parkway-Swindon costs £13.70. The pass would NOT cover your Swindon-Bath Spa trip.

The open fare for London-Swindon of £46.50 = $92.45, not $73.

If you buy a railpass from RS, you get a 20% discount on items purchased in the travel store. However, for your two journeys, a railpass won't be cost effective.

The walk-up fare for London Paddington-Swindon is £46.50, but discount fares booked 30-60 days in advance are as low as £15.50. The walk-up fare for Swindon-Bath Spa is £11.50 and the advance fare is £9.50. For discount fares, you have to travel on the day and at the specific time you book. Walk-up fares are good on any train all day.

Book at www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk. You have to register first using a UK postal code (use one for any London hotel). Then when it comes time to pay, change the address to match the one associated with your credit card. Pick up your tickets at a FastTicket machine at Paddington station, using your credit card and the confirmation number you'll be given. If you have trouble with the machine, go to a ticket window.

So, the walk up fare (which I would feel better having) for both trips would be $73.00 & $23.00 for a total of $95.00.

How much would a railpass cost?

If I buy the railpass from RS, I'll save $94.00 on my order.

What I'm wondering is, if I buy the railpass, even though it's not the most cost effective as far as traveling goes, would it save me enough on my RS purchase so that the overall cost is less?

Does that make sense???

Depending what you want to see when you go, an alternative to buying a Rail pass to get the 20% discount, you could purchase the Great British Heritage Pass, which is also available under Rick's Railpasses section. I bought one last year and was able to get the 20% discount code.

The pass covers admission to many sites in Great Britain such as St. Paul's Cathedral and the Globe in London, Stonehenge, the Baths in Bath, and many more. It usually pays for itself in only a few site visits. Apparently, the rules have changed since I bought it last summer, and now you get a voucher in the mail and then have to exchange the voucher for the pass at one of 8 Visitor Centers (don't know where these are, but there is not one in Bath).

More Info:

http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/greatbritain.cfm#gbh

http://www.britishheritagepass.com/

That's okay. At least now I know about it and can see if it's something I should get. So, thanks! :)