Any tips for cheap Glasgow-Bristol routes?

[tornado]

I always try and travel by train where possible for environmental reasons, but here's one I'm really struggling with.

Plan is for a weekend away to see friends in Bristol, going on Friday and coming back Sunday or Monday.

All my usual tricks such as splitting tickets, booking far in advance, finding obscure fares, slower but cheaper routes etc. aren't working. A return to Bristol is always coming up far higher than £100 (I am not eligible for any type of railcard).

With flights costing £30 each way, finding it very hard to justify the train. Not to mention it's a long arduous journey.

My only discovery so far is Crewe-Bristol anytime return via Hereford - £84. But once you add on getting to Glasgow the price goes a lot higher.

Any tips?

 

[Watershed]

Unfortunately there just isn't a particularly cheap way of getting between Glasgow and Bristol by rail. The only suggestion I could make is that Avanti or TPE Advance fares to Crewe or Manchester (respectively) are generally not too bad and from there you might be lucky enough to get a cheap-ish Advance fare down to Newport with TfW, with the add-on to Bristol not being much extra.

But that still might not add up to much less than the £100 figure you've seen.

Flying is far quicker and, if the fares aren't too high, it's also easily cheaper and less hassle than any of the rail options, even if you took one of the handful of direct XC Glasgow services. It's one of those journeys where rail simply can't compete effectively.

 

[tornado]

The Crewe-Newport advances are over £40 one way, the anytime return I found beats those. Glasgow-Crewe is £18.50 min. So looks like £120 min. And that's using the somewhat slower Welsh Marshes line route. via Bham and the prices go crazy.

 

[30907]

The Crewe-Newport advances are over £40 one way, the anytime return I found beats those. Glasgow-Crewe is £18.50 min. So looks like £120 min. And that's using the somewhat slower Welsh Marshes line route.

For a journey of 400 -odd miles each way, that's not a bad price IMO -15p/mile - though I can see thatvyou might be tempted to save a few £ and hours!

 

[Dai Corner]

In reality, the planes will be flying and the trains running whether the seats are occupied by you, by somebody else or are empty so your choice will make no difference to the environment.

Save the time and money and spend them with your friends.

 

[Watershed]

In reality, the planes will be flying and the trains running whether the seats are occupied by you, by somebody else or are empty so your choice will make no difference to the environment.

Save the time and money and spend them with your friends.

Indeed. The direct, marginal impact one additional passenger's weight has on the aircraft's fuel burn is negligible, perhaps 3-5 litres for a journey of that length. You would probably that much fuel driving to the station at either end!

Of course if everyone thought that way, that would lead to airlines running more flights. But realistically, most people would already choose flying over the train for a journey like this, so you are only really responding to the market signals by doing so.

 

[30907]

Indeed. The direct, marginal impact one additional passenger's weight has on the aircraft's fuel burn is negligible, perhaps 3-5 litres for a journey of that length. You would probably that much fuel driving to the station at either end!

....or to the airport, but in neither case in the stratosphere.

Of course if everyone thought that way, that would lead to airlines running more flights. But realistically, most people would already choose flying over the train for a journey like this, so you are only really responding to the market signals by doing so.

It would lead to fares going up first, as train fares have. If flights need to be priced at cost only £30, it suggests a fairly weak, or at least variable, market for the 700-odd seats a day on offer.