Okay to Buy Train Tix As We Go in England this June?

Tim will probably post a better answer. For most of Europe the answer would be wait. The fares are cheap and the discounts are not that great BUT for England I think it is smart to buy as early as possible. Most, if not all of the English RR have been privatized, fares are high, and their fare managers have been trained by our airlines.

Gio,

I can give you an empirical answer based on my experience on the trains over here. Perhaps there is an individual with a more polished or professional response for these specific journies.

As Frank mentioned english railfares are high and a popular source of whinging. I think I read last that the fare for 50 km of travel in the UK is equivalent to about 500km of travel in Eastern Europe. With that said I would give a lot of thought if you can lock in any sort of advance fare especially longer commutes if they exist.

I would encourage you to play around on nationalrail.co.uk and see exactly what the fares are like.

Gio - Yes I would recommend buying in advance. Here is a web site to look into http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com/. Currently putting in a day of March 30 your fare from Bath to Moreton-in-Marsh is from 6-21 GBP. For Moreton-in-Marsh to London your fare is 26.90 GBP.

As a side note my wife and I based out of Moreton-in-Marsh on our last trip to GB. I really like the area.

You should be OK in June, but travellers to the Cotswolds later in the summer should be aware of the following on the First Great Western website:

"Between 18 July and 30 August 2009, Network Rail intends to complete the first phase of engineering works in preparation for the restoration of a two-track railway between Charlbury and Evesham during 2010.

While this is great news for our customers in the long term, during the six weeks next summer there will be periods when we are unlikely to be able to run train services on this section of the line while the work is carried out.

How your journey will be affected

We will be providing alternative transport where necessary and special arrangements will be made for season ticket holders.

The work has been planned to coincide with the school summer holiday period."

You may find yourself on a bus rather than a train for part of the journey.

To get the best fare on the site Joel gave, look on the right-hand side of the homepage and make note of the current farthest out date for booking. Book Bath Spa to Moreton-in-Marsh as soon as your travel date first falls within that time period. Be aware that discount tickets are for a specific departure date and time. They are non-refundable and non-exchangeable. Unfortunately, the site doesn't show any discount fares for Moreton-in-Marsh to London.