1. Search your journey on Trainline, to get an idea of the times and original prices. Right now, the next train from Newcastle to London (calling at Northallerton) would cost me £76.20.
2. Open up trainsplit.com and splitmyfare.co.uk (they both do the same job, but it’s best to cross-reference). It tells me that the same journey, on the exact same train, would cost me £45.60 using split ticketing. Magic?! Essentially, the website has worked out that I can buy two separate tickets (one from Newcastle to Northallerton costing £11.60, and one from Northallerton to London costing £34.00). I won’t have to change trains or my route, because both journeys can be completed on the same Newcastle to London train that I found originally.
3. Beware, though. Sometimes the train times on these websites are out-of-date. To save the absolute maximum and to be sure you’re not getting scammed, don’t book the tickets via the split ticketing site. Instead, go to the original train company website with no booking fees (lner.co.uk in this case), and add the separate parts to your basket, double checking that the times will link up, and that you’ll still be saving money.
A 16-25 railcard is a lifesaver and easily pays itself off, getting you 33% off pretty much any train ticket – look out for offers when you open/change your student bank account. Unidays also has a no-strings 40% discount on LNER tickets. You can use these discounts on top of the split ticket savings. Now go and spend all that cash on trebs!
Feature Image Credit: Flickr.com
