Let's get on the train in England!
How to buy a train ticket
Travelers say that buying train tickets is complicated. What's complicated is that there are some things that are "unbelievable" in the light of the Japanese system. However, once you know that, it's very easy to get on, and there are many plunge points such as "It's natural to be late for a few minutes", "The boarding gate is not clear", and "The seat doesn't fall down ...". As a "human train", there is no doubt that you will be attached to it at the end of your trip!
Here's an example of using a student discount to book a round trip (ordinary seat) from Leicester to London on weekends. From Leicester, you will arrive at London's St Pancras International Station (Eurostar's first train station).
1. 1. Before going to the ticket reservation site, consider whether it would be better to become an annual member and buy a ticket at a discounted price.
Even if you become an annual member, you can only use it for a few weeks, so it's a shame, but the annual membership fee for the student discount card is £ 30. (As of December 2019) It is a British train whose price changes depending on the departure time and day of the week, but for example, when going back and forth from Leicester to London on the weekend, you can take your favorite train without specifying the time, the popular `` Super Off Peak'' If you buy the ticket, it's £ 66 round trip without discount. With a discount card, you'll get £ 43.55 and a discount of over 30%, so even if you're just thinking about going to London, you'll pay for it in two round trips.
As for how to obtain a student discount card, you need a student ID card to prove that you are a student, so you need to register as a student at a local school or university and take the procedure after receiving your student ID card. All you need is an application form (available at the station), a local school / university student ID card, an age-verifying item (passport, etc.), £ 30 and a photo to use for the card. The photo is a small size of about 1.5x2 cm, but if you have it, please bring it with you. There is also a simple photo booth in Leicester Station that can be used for around £ 5. However, it is often broken, so we recommend that you bring it with you.
If the student discount card is not crowded, you can make it immediately.
Click here for details → 16-25 Railcard
2 . Next let's go to the site
There are many sites, but this one is recommended.
The Trainline There is no need to issue a ticket here, you can choose to put the purchased ticket on the mobile screen and go through the gate, or print the ticket and use it on the day, so you can purchase it in Japan before going to the UK can. Purchase with a credit card. (** Fee is £ 1.50 per case (as of December 2019))
If you plan to apply for the student discount in 1 above, you can purchase the student discount ticket when you buy the ticket (even if you don't actually have the card yet). However, in this case, please be sure to complete the procedure for issuing the student discount card by the day before you use the ticket . For early morning departures, the station window may not be open.
3. 3. Enter the departure and arrival stations.
The Trainline ← You can go to the site from here.
Select your station and One Way or Return . You can select the date by clicking the down arrow at the end of.
Four. Enter the desired date and time.
If you do not want to purchase a student discount card, click " Get times & tickets " here and skip to step (9).
If you are using the student discount, click the down arrow at the end of the entry.
Five. Select the type of discount card.
Click " Add railcard " at the end of.
6. Select the type of discount card.
Click the down arrow at the end of.
7. 7. Select the type of discount card.
Select " 16-25Railcard ", which is a student discount for high school and college students.
8. Make sure the correct card name is displayed.
If there are no problems, click the green " Get times & tickets ".
9. You can select the desired time while looking at the price.
In this case, buying one way at a time costs £ 41.90, but the green box " Super Off-Peak Return " is cheaper at £ 43.55 for a round trip, so choose this one.
In some cases (especially on weekdays), it may be cheaper to buy one way at a time. This is called an " Advance Ticket" and will be stated on the ticket as well. In that case, you can only take the train with the specified time . Please note that if you pass the train, not only will you lose your seat selection, but you will not be able to use it as a ticket . Unless the train is canceled due to the circumstances of the train company, no refund will be given, so you will have to purchase the ticket again.
In comparison, " Super Off-Peak Return " is convenient for those who want to go sightseeing without worrying about time.
If you want to purchase " Super Off-Peak Return " and reserve a seat, click the time at the end of the arrow (06.24 in this case, but you will be taken to the same screen no matter which time you choose). After that, a screen for selecting the time will appear, so select the desired train time. However, even if you make a reservation here, with " Super Off-Peak Return ", you can sit anywhere as long as there are vacant seats, as long as you miss the seat, you will not be assigned a seat.
Ten. Select a seat.
Select whether to select a seat. There is no reserved seat charge. Also, it is very crowded on weekends and during peak hours on weekdays, and it is recommended to reserve a seat, especially from Leicester, as you may not be able to sit without a seat. Since it is the first train from London, you can sit down first even if you do not specify it.
If you want an eTicket, you can't continue to buy other tickets. (It may be a bug, but it seems that it can not be done at this time), so just click " Continue " to proceed to the payment screen.
If you want to issue a ticket locally, you can continue to buy other tickets. Click " Add another journey " to continue.
11. 11. Select the ticketing form
If you select the top one, you can use the ticket machine to issue tickets at the nearest station. You will need the credit card and reservation number you used to make the reservation.
The green box is the eTicket , and you can go straight to the ticket gate without lining up at the ticket machine. It is a system that displays the QR code on your mobile phone and passes through the ticket gate, but it is safe to print it just in case because there may be unexpected situations such as not being able to connect to Wifi on the day.
** Please note: The above information is current as of December 2019, so it is expected that there will be changes and revisions when booking your ticket. We are not responsible for any problems, purchase of wrong tickets, refunds, etc. using the above information, so please use the information as a reference and make a reservation at your own risk.