Yahoo News I saved a lot of money on a train to London but it comes with a catch
Trains fares can cost a lot of money, and for many people a trip to London has become far too expensive. If you were planning on spending some time in the capital it will cost you a lot before you've even stepped off the train at London Euston.
There is a way of booking an Avanti train down to London and it being more affordable but it comes with a slight catch. If you are not on a tight schedule and looking to save a few quid then it could be the best option for you.
Earlier in the year, I made a last-minute decision to go to Liverpool's Carabao cup tie against Brighton and had to get the train to London before making my way to the south coast. At the time of looking at the trip it was showing well over £100 for a return trip to the capital.
READ MORE: Beautiful farm shop and café a short drive from Liverpool perfect for winter day trip
It would have been cheaper for me to fly to Europe from Liverpool and then into London, although it would have taken a lot longer. But I had a rare bright idea when I decided to look at the Avanti Superfare option as an alternative in the hope I could bag a cheap route down to London.
I was in luck because I was able to get from Liverpool Lime Street to London Euston on the morning of the game and a return tickets from Euston in the afternoon for a total of £30. However, there was a slight catch and it did come back to bite me.
The Avanti Superfare is categorised into three time slots. Morning (7am-11.59am), afternoon (12pm-15.69pm and evening (5pm-9pm) and you don't find out what train you're on until the day before you travel.
For example, if you booked a morning train from Lime Street Station on December 19, you would know you're travelling between 7am and midday, but it wouldn't be until the day before that you find out what time train you will be on and that would be the same for your return journey.
On the train down to London I was put on the 10.43am, meaning I arrived just after 1pm with my train to Brighton from London Liverpool Street scheduled to depart around 2.30pm.
The return journey was were the problem occurred for me. I booked on the afternoon section on my return to Liverpool hoping that I would touch lucky and get an early afternoon train. With that in mind I booked myself onto a specific train to get me back to London for around 11.30 in the hope I would be on the first afternoon train back.
The day of the game I received the email to see that I had been put on the 16.43 train for Liverpool Lime Street - meaning I wouldn't get back to Liverpool until after 7pm.
So I had five hours to kill in London until my train because I was on a specific train from Brighton and wasn't full of energy after a late night after the game. If you're not in a rush and can be flexible with your arrangement then this is a great way to save some money and travel down to London (or return to Liverpool) for a lot less.
The only issue is that these tickets can sell out during specific days. The standard fare for the Avanti Superfare from Lime Street to London Euston is £15 one way.
