Title: An insider's guide to cheap rail tickets | Travel | The Guardian
Headings: An insider's guide to cheap tickets
Travel
An insider's guide to cheap tickets
Patrick Barkham
@patrick_barkham
Six journeys, six tricks
Tactics

Content: The union has found that passengers pay 55p for each of the 199 miles on the train between Manchester and London, but just 17p a mile between Paris and Calais. This year UK fares have risen by an average of 4.3% - 1% above inflation - but many popular routes, long and short, have been hit by far higher rises. A standard open return from London to Plymouth went up 12.6% to £214. These increases come in a labyrinthine fare structure that is a legacy of the privatisation of British Rail. Franz Kafka could not conjure up a more complex tale than the way we have come to pay for our seat on a train. There are, however, some smart routes through this maze of fares and price increases - routes that can save you money every time you take the train, and that horrible sensation: cheap seat envy. One tip is to start your journey on the internet. There are bargain tickets if you book in advance. Martin Lewis's www.moneysavingexpert.com website has some good suggestions, including checking National Rail's online promotions index and, if you're taking certain Virgin and South West Train routes, looking at megatrain.com to see if you can pick up a £1 ticket.