Key Post How to get the best value on Irish Rail?

I took a return trip from Dublin to Cork yesterday, and had no idea of how to get the best value. It's hard to get information anywhere on this. Have any of you regular train travelers got any hints?

If you book online, you will be able to choose a seat, which would be important at very busy times - but it can be more expensive


Here are the fares if booking today - includes €2 transaction cost for booking online

[broken link removed]

If you book online and travel at a time other than the time you booked that day, you pay an extra €10 per journey. (There was some confusion over this. The ticket office said I didn't have to pay it. The ticket inspector said I should have been charged it)

Day Saver €63.50 - This is for a Day Return journey and is available to Dublin only. It is available as follows;
Tuesday - Thursday on the 09:20hrs, 10:20hrs and 11:20hrs services, Saturdays on trains between 06:00hrs - 11:20hrs. Not available on Mondays, Fridays or Sundays.

I don't seem to be able to buy an open return online?

If you want to travel first class tomorrow
It will an extra €50 - €119.98 compared to €69.98

You can get more information from http://www.railusers.ie/passenger_info/cheapest_fare.php

If you are traveling today but not coming back today
Book online


If you are traveling and returning today...
Book a return ticket at the station. It will cost €75.70 (I presume when you book in the station, you don't have to tell them what time you are coming back at?)

If you book online, it will cost you €77.90 and and additional €10 if you travel back at a different time on your ticket.

If you are traveling tomorrow and returning tomorrow...
Book today online - although it will be extra if you don't travel back on the train you book

If you are traveling tomorrow, but not sure when you are coming back...
Book each leg separately online

If you know the dates you want to travel and the specific times I would book on-line. You can book online up to 28 days in advance. The cheapest I can see for the 9th July booking today is €33 including all fees. If you feel like upgrading this ticket to first class booking today it is €73 total. The only problem with booking in advance is that if you turn up for an earlier train you have to get the ticket changed at the ticket office. They will normally charge €10 for this, but if you have already paid the maximum fare they may not charge.

Turning up in the station you can buy a day return or an open return, there is no time specified on the ticket and you can hop on any train but it is normally the most expensive ticket to purchase.

More and more people are booking seats and I would recommend that as your seat is guaranteed and you can even pick you specific seat very easily.

Book as far in advance as you can, I think they've opened it up to more than 28 days now.

Keep an eye out for discount codes by following Irish Rail on twitter, also keep an eye out on the boards bargain aleters thread as other discount codes are also posted there

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=346

Also if you're booking too late to get the discounted fares, remember that if you have an annual irish rail taxsaver ticket you get a small discount, it's difficult to find as it's only when you use the drop down for the adult price that it will show up.

In essence just book as early as possible, the €10 extra at the station is worth paying if you miss your booked return time as you could be liable to a fine if you haven't changed your ticket.

But if you book far in advance and don't travel, it seems hard to get even a partial refund?

No, can purchase up to two months in advance online and inspector charged me e10 recently when I took an earlier train

Brendan Burgess said:

But if you book far in advance and don't travel, it seems hard to get even a partial refund?

Click to expand...

Refunds are easy enough to get.
Just email or phone and leave a message.

You get 80% back if you cancel more than one day in advance, 50% on the day before

Berni said:

Refunds are easy enough to get.
Just email or phone and leave a message.

You get 80% back if you cancel more than one day in advance, 50% on the day before

Click to expand...

That seems very fair.

Is it written down somewhere?

T&Cs are here [broken link removed]
Memory was slightly out on the timings: 1 - 3 days = 50%, 4 or more = 80%

I traveled to Belfast on Wednesday.

I booked my ticket online on Tuesday night, and paid €40 for the return ticket.

The following morning, I checked the online price and it was €50, so I had saved €10 by booking a day earlier.

As I arrived in the station early, I checked the ticket machine to see how much a day return would be - and it was €40! So it is cheaper to buy it in the station on the day, than online.

I had booked an 18.05 train home, but finished my business early, so I went for the 16.05 train. I went to the ticket desk to pay the extra €10 for changing my ticket and he said "I don't think you have to pay anything". He checked with his colleague and they thought I was ok. But the guy checking the tickets as I boarder the train thought otherwise. He rang the ticket office and had a chat with them. He told me that "officially I should pay €10 but not worry about it".

Conclusion
If you decide at short notice to go somewhere and back on the same day, buy a same day return at the station in the morning.

It seems that many people have the same problem as I had:

http://www.railusers.ie/passenger_info/cheapest_fare.php

Irish Rail's fare structure is unnecessarily complex, it is extremely hard to even determine the correct fare in advance as few of the details are available in public, and even then there is a good chance that Irish Rail don't know themselves what the fare is. The scale of the inconsistencies is shocking.

"But I can't issue that ticket!" This is one of the most common complaints, you have done your homework and want a certain ticket and you meet a ticket clerk who either doesn't know how to issue the ticket or claims it can only be issued at a certain station.


The ticket machines behind the counter are identical at all stations and all are programmed the same. It is the fault of lazy ignorant or untrained staff not the equipment.