Ely-Tenby "No tickets available" from GWR

[bspahh]

At www.gwr.com if I search for a train from Ely to Tenby leaving at 9am on Saturday 25th September, coming back at 9am on Saturday 2nd October, it reports some trains but says "No tickets available"

If I try through www.chilternrailways.co.uk then it gives a super off peak return, where the price is set by GWR which is this fare:
https://www.brfares.com/!faredetail?orig=ELY&dest=TEN&ldn=1&tkt=SSR

I would like to go out via London and return via Birmingham. With www.trainsplit.com I can set a different via option for the outward and return journeys. It gives a split ticket with returns for Ely-Carmarthen and Carmarthen-Tenby. This is 10% more expensive than Ely-Tenby via London, but for me its worth it, as I'd like to see the route via Birmingham, and its normally pretty expensive.

GWR have supersaver returns for Ely to Tenby and Ely to Carmarthen. I can't see any differences from here:

https://www.brfares.com/!faredetail?orig=ELY&dest=TEN&ldn=1&tkt=SSR
https://www.brfares.com/!faredetail?orig=ELY&dest=CMN&ldn=1&tkt=SSR

I asked at a booking office, and they said that they could only sell me single tickets for a Ely-London-Tenby-Birmingham-Ely route.

Why can't GWR sell tickets that they set?

Is the Ely-Carmarthen ticket valid via Birmingham?

 

[Class800]

All fares on BR FARES are marked 'any permitted'. This is a start. But we need to work out what the permitted routes would be. I am very busy right now, so someone else may be able to check the routing maps and guides before I get a chance

This is for walk up fares. Some advance purchase fares have a routing - but that will be built into the fixed itinerary anyway

 

[yorkie]

Trainsplit is happy to sell the through fare, but not for travel via Birmingham (as you say it will offer a more expensive combination for that journey), so there is likely an issue with the maps (I'll leave it to someone else to look into that in detail)

I've no idea why GWR are not showing any tickets but I've given up with TOC sites as they aren't a patch on Trainsplit (plus I want a seat selector!)

You could just buy the through ticket and travel via Birmingham in one direction anyway as in practice no-one is going to argue it's unreasonable to avoid London!

 

[Haywain]

The only mapped routes are via London, although the shortest route appears to be via Birmingham, Shrewsbury and the Heart of Wales line.

 

[bspahh]

The only mapped routes are via London, although the shortest route appears to be via Birmingham, Shrewsbury and the Heart of Wales line.

I noticed that route, but one of the trains is a bus on the day I want to travel.

Another option, with different split tickets, was to go Tenby, Carmarthen, Aberystwyth (by bus), Birmingham and Ely, but I'm travelling with my wife, and I decided it was better to keep it simple.

Anyway, I'm glad that I now have tickets, an itinerary and seat reservations to return by Tenby-Carmarthen-Cardiff-Birmingham-Ely.