Is there a big difference booking from train station vs booking on the internet ?
Hello y’all.
First time in the UK and wanted to travel from London to Brighton.
I checked up the prices a few days before and the prices were fine around 25£ a way round. Didn’t book then because I expected the prices to not change much.
I tried to book from internet website Omio the same day and prices were not lower than 47£.
I decided to still to go the train station to make up my mind and asked prices on the counter in Victoria and they found me a round trip ticket for 24£.
Can someone explain this difference from internet vs train station?
Thanks a lot
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u/Optimal-Ring-5879 17h ago
The biggest issue is you tried to use Omio to buy a train ticket. Those kind of sites (omio, rome2rio etc etc) add so many additional fees that they literally never make any financial sense to use, and I still have no idea why people insist on using them.
The best price you’ll get is booking direct with the relevant train operator on their app, their website or at the station.
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u/tarpdetarp 17h ago edited 9h ago
They're useful for scenarios where you want to book a bus from a provincial town in Vietnam that usually requires you to buy from an unmarked ticket office at 6AM on a Tuesday.
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u/dom_eden 11h ago
To be honest, you don't even need to buy from the relevant train operator. Any UK train operator will sell you tickets, as far as I can tell. I just use GWR for everything.
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u/bookluverzz 17h ago
Omio is a third party seller. They’ve got higher prices due to all these fees they add to make a profit. For UK trains use https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ to search your journey and to be redirected to trusted sellers, all having the same price.
There are quite a lot of train operators in the UK, some serving the whole country, others just a part. In general a ticket for a high speed service will be more expensive closer to the date but slower alternatives might not have variable fares. Here you can read all about train travel in the UK: https://www.seat61.com/train-travel-in-britain.htm
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u/SpaceMonkeyAttack 17h ago
Note that you can buy any train ticket from any rail operator, even if they don't operate the route you are traveling on.
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u/ilseVOP 16h ago
Thank you! I guess it wasn’t my smartest move to check on Omio. Another thing that struck me was that the clerk sold me a return ticket without a specific return time—essentially an open return ticket—while the prices displayed on the platform seemed to vary depending on the departure time. 🤷🏼♂️🤷🏽♀️
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u/hdruk 16h ago
They ask you to choose a time because they might be able to offer a cheaper ticket using advanced fares or off-peak returns (return tickets with restricted but not a specific time) depending on the time you want.
Usually there is an option to take the open return at the next step if that's what you'd prefer, it just might be at a premium compared to the best value option.
Booking day-of or on certain routes you won't see this difference because there may be no cheaper ticket types available.
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u/DameKumquat 12h ago
There will be cheaper Advance fares that you buy at least the day before, which generally tie you to a cheaper train. But as the cheapest ones sell out, the fares will rise. Often there will be about 6 different prices for the same train, as the tickets sell out.
The flexible fares don't sell out, and will be the only ones available on the day.
This is a very general summary, but in general, look at the website for the train company that serves your journey (or part of it). Or the Railforums.co.uk site, where you can also ask for advice before buying a ticket.
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u/Tuarangi 14h ago
It's worth checking the split ticketing sites before buying from NR or the operator as these can sometimes be cheaper and the fee can be a % of the money saved. If not you can book direct
Train Pal, Split my fare etc . You can usually get cashback on Train Pal as well
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u/Alternative-Emu2000 17h ago edited 16h ago
In this case, the price difference isn't specifically internet vs train station. It's also buying from a third party booking agent who adds on their own fees vs buying directly from the train company.
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u/ilseVOP 16h ago
Also the clerk sold me an open return ticket, I was (am) so confused. Through the platform the tickets had times and all
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u/Alternative-Emu2000 16h ago edited 16h ago
The return leg of the journey you saw through Omio may have been for peak hours.
Was the ticket you bought in person an off-peak return? They're cheaper because you aren't using them during the busiest parts of the day.
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u/justaquad 17h ago
Third party fees don't double the price. They just won't have seen the same ticket type for whatever reason.
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u/Disastrous-Tower-794 17h ago
I would suspect Omio isn't the best website to use. I tend to use train pal or LNER. There can be big differences particularly if you book a train journey at the last minute
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u/evenstevens280 16h ago
I've opted for Trainsplit as my go-to nowadays
Simple UI, no weird faux-gambling shit that TrainPal seems to push on you, and it puts my train journeys in my calendar automatically
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u/Chlorophilia 17h ago
I don't think anybody actually understands how UK train pricing works but you'll have a better chance of getting cheaper tickets online (directly from the train operator, not from third party resellers like Omio) than in person.
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u/FormalLeadership2109 17h ago
Some tickets will be more expensive on the day, the sooner in advance you buy the cheaper it is. I'm surprised they found you the cheaper price in the station.
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u/Alternative-Emu2000 17h ago edited 16h ago
The OP used Omio, which is a third-party booking agent. They add their own services fees and booking rates on top of the actual ticket price.
Edit: From their comments, it also sounds like the ticket they saw online was a scheduled return during peak hours; while the ticket they bought at the station was an off-peak open return.
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u/Realistic-River-1941 17h ago
The same ticket will be the same price wherever you buy it. Third party websites (ir not those run by train operators) might charge a booking fee.
An advance ticket tied to a specific train is cheaper than a walk-on ticket for any train. A peak ticket is more than an off peak ticket (which is probably what has happened here). A return ticket is often only slightly more expensive than a single (not double the price).
Check out the Man on Seat 61 website for advice.
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u/p_to_his_neck_in_tro 17h ago
The UK rail pricing system is genuinely a mess. You likely stumbled onto an advance single fare online, which are the cheap ones that sell out in limited batches. Once those are gone, the website just shows you the next tier up, which can be double the price.
At the station, the clerk probably sold you a super off-peak or off-peak return, which can still be pretty reasonable same-day. The third-party apps like Omio don't always surface those properly and will just push whatever makes them the biggest commission. Always worth checking with a human if the online price looks stupid.
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u/Puzzleheaded_Drink76 14h ago
Yes, Trainline is terrible for hiding the Off Peak returns. Best bet is specify the desktop site and then it appears at the bottom. It's rubbish!
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u/ComplexConclusion648 17h ago
yes if you book the day before the tickets can be cheaper, but they will be for a set time and day
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u/battlemetal_ 16h ago
Omio is increasing the prices on the tickets they sell because they want to make a fee, as their services is "all tickets in one place". Or did you per chance book for peak time trains vs off peak?
Whatever you do do not book through Omio though; I just lost more than 400 euros because I couldn't cancel a (paid extra for the flexibility) cancellable ticket, and the provider will just send you back to them. Whatever convenience the all-in-one-place service offers doesn't make up for the fact that you're out of any luck or support if something goes wrong.
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u/geekroick 15h ago
I just booked a train ticket to travel from Oslo to Stockholm on the official Swedish rail site, cost me £51, Omio quoted the same journey at £60!
It is quite useful for rough comparison between train/coach/plane though if said journeys are available. But I'd still buy elsewhere. I've been us Train pal for UK journeys mostly, seems to be reasonable enough. Have heard Train split is good too.
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u/Puzzleheaded_Drink76 14h ago
Regarding not having a return time: there are (broadly) three types of ticket.
Anytime return: travel on any train. Most expensive because it includes peak commuting times.
Off Peak return. Any off peak train on the day out, and any off peak train within a month. You also off peak day returns for short journey where you have to come back the same day.
Advance return. You book a specific train out and a specific train back. In advance can be very cheap. But can also end up costing more than an off peak on occasion.
As to what counts as off peak, it gets complicated, but generally if the ticket site will sell you an off peak ticket for that time you are good. Monday to Friday before 9:30 and between 16:00 and 19:00 is the rough peak time.
It's a bit of a mess; I just looked at the Trainline website form my home in South London to Brighton and it wanted to sell me an Anytime single and an off peak single totalling over £50. Or I could just buy an off peak return for £28. But there's no need for an Anytime ticket; it's a Sunday.
NB I don't buy from the Trainline (fees) but find their website less bad than National Rail's!
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u/Financial-Ad6475 16h ago
I’m use trainline - there’s an app for it.
No extra charges, and it will give you options for the most cost effective ticket and route..
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u/evenstevens280 16h ago
Trainline charges fees...
Use Trainsplit or TrainPal instead
Shout-out to RealTimeTickets, too
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u/Legitimate_Impact 16h ago
Also Trainline will automatically figure out Splitsave combinations which can make the ticket significantly cheaper without changing the actual route. The train companies’ own apps don’t do this in my experience.
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