Advance Single - Ticket from Manchester to Edinburgh Waverley can I get off at Haymarket?

[TheSmiths82]

I have booked a £1 ticket from Manchester to Edinburgh Waverley but the hotel I am thinking about booking is in Haymarket, can I get off there instead or with it being an advance single would that count as breaking the journey? I get to Edinburgh late afternoon so it would save time if I can get off early.

 

[ainsworth74]

Technically not permitted as finishing short is prohibited on Advance tickets however internal industry guidance is that passengers doing this should not be penalised for doing so unless there is some suggest that they've done so to avoid paying the correct fare. Specifically it says:

Q: Can a passenger alight short of the destination on their Advance ticket, or board after the origin shown on their Advance ticket but on the same booked train?

A: Although Advance tickets are intended to be used only between the origin and destination stations shown on the ticket, there may be occasions where a passenger joins the correct train but at a later station, or alights earlier than the indicated destination. Although this is not strictly in accordance with the rules for Advance tickets, the Rail industry has agreed that in such cases, no additional fare should be charged (unless there is clear evidence of intent to try and avoid a higher fare).

So, I would say that if you want to be guaranteed a hassle free journey you shouldn't get off at Haymarket however the odds of coming to any sort of grief are remote.

 

[yorkie]

My understanding is that it is internal rail industry policy to accept tickets interchangeably between Haymarket/Waverley.

So I am pretty sure this discussion is moot!

I would be extremely surprised if you were not allowed to exit. Indeed, it's quite possible that the ticket will open the barriers, so you may not need to interact with staff.

However, for completeness, and this would work for other situations where such easements are not in place, you could potentially book an e-ticket from Waverley to Haymarket (£2.80 for a flexible fare, but I found advances for £1.20)

If staff refuse to allow the original fare to be finished short, then you can use the additional ticket to exit, and you've only lost out by a small amount.

Your journey would nominally be Manchester - Haymarket - Waverley - Haymarket, and you would have paid the correct amount for such a journey, and it would be ludicrous for someone to argue that you should have actually made the double-back to Waverley.

If the original fare is accepted, and the additional fare remains completely unused, you could get a refund on it (some sites won't charge an admin fee, for example we won't charge an admin fee providing it's within 2 hours of purchase)

 

[30907]

Or go through to Waverley and splash out on a tram or bus for £2 (note - a day ticket is £5/£4.80 contactless if you arrive early enough).

 

[bravesirrobin]

Shouldn’t be a problem — I do this regularly. Ticket usually works the barriers.

 

[reb0118]

Or go through to Waverley and splash out on a tram or bus for £2 (note - a day ticket is £5/£4.80 contactless if you arrive early enough).

An Edinburgh Plusbus is only £4.50 (even cheaper with an applicable railcard) and valid on the trams too (but not to/from the airport - even on a bus).

That said - I envisage no issues at Haymarket.

 

[gomango]

I have booked a £1 ticket from Manchester to Edinburgh Waverley but the hotel I am thinking about booking is in Haymarket, can I get off there instead or with it being an advance single would that count as breaking the journey? I get to Edinburgh late afternoon so it would save time if I can get off early.

If I was you I would not risk it.

 

[skyhigh]

If I was you I would not risk it.

Any particular reason why?

 

[gomango]

Any particular reason why?

Because I always believe that you should do the safe option

 

[wilbers]

One option is to ask on the train (or even at the ticket office in Manchester if time permits) if they will endorse the ticket for stopping short at Haymarket - they may say no, but if they did say yes that would remove all uncertainty at the barriers at Haymarket.

 

[TheSmiths82]

Thanks, I would want to do it officially as I just don't want any risk over a £1 ticket. I am not 100% sure I am staying in Haymarket, there is a £20 price difference between the hotels at the moment, there is one closer in old town but the reviews are not quite as good as the Haymarket one. I have stayed in the Haymarket one before and found it to be good. I just won't be able to relax on the train if there is any doubt, even if 99% of the time it will be fine.

I might not even end up going at all if the weather is bad so I need pay extra so I cancel the hotel if required.

 

[yorkie]

Thanks, I would want to do it officially as I just don't want any risk over a £1 ticket. I am not 100% sure I am staying in Haymarket, there is a £20 price difference between the hotels at the moment, there is one closer in old town but the reviews are not quite as good as the Haymarket one. I have stayed in the Haymarket one before and found it to be good. I just won't be able to relax on the train if there is any doubt, even if 99% of the time it will be fine.

I might not even end up going at all if the weather is bad so I need pay extra so I cancel the hotel if required.

In that case simply buy a Waverley to Haymarket ticket.

You don't actually need to do the double back.

If the original ticket is accepted, and you don't end up actually using the Waverley to Haymarket ticket, you can get it refunded, if it's an e-ticket bought within 2 hours.

 

[andythebrave]

Thanks, I would want to do it officially as I just don't want any risk over a £1 ticket. I am not 100% sure I am staying in Haymarket, there is a £20 price difference between the hotels at the moment, there is one closer in old town but the reviews are not quite as good as the Haymarket one. I have stayed in the Haymarket one before and found it to be good. I just won't be able to relax on the train if there is any doubt, even if 99% of the time it will be fine.

I might not even end up going at all if the weather is bad so I need pay extra so I cancel the hotel if required.

If you're meaning the Leonardo Royal hotels then you may be interested to know that my wife has just returned from a stay at the one in Jeffrey Street and, while she thought the breakfast was a bit average, she was mightily impressed with the rooms and, especially, the service from all the staff.