Discounts and Railcards
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Discounts and Railcards
What Railcards can I use on TicketyBoo?
You can use the following Railcards:
- 16-17 Saver
- 16-25 Railcard
- 26-30 Railcard
- Annual Gold Card
- Disabled Child Railcard
- Disabled Persons Railcard
- Family & Friends Railcard
- HM Forces Railcard
- Job Centre Plus Travel Discount Card
- Network Railcard
- Senior Railcard
- Two Together Railcard
- Veterans Railcard
Railcards provide a 1/3 discount for most single and return fares. The 16-17 Saver and Job Centre Plus Travel Discount Card provide a 50% discount on these fares, as well as season tickets.
Please note: Railcards often have restrictions such as a minimum fare, and some aren’t valid before 09:30 or 10:00 on weekdays. We’ll automatically apply the correct discount for your journey. You can see the full rules for each Railcard here.
How do I get a Railcard?
We now sell Digital Railcards through our app! Click here for more details.
Alternatively, you can buy your Railcard online through the official Railcard website or from your local station ticket office. Please note: some Railcards (such as the 16-17 Saver, 26-30 Railcard, and 3-year Railcards) are only available online.
What group discounts do you offer?
If you’re travelling together with another adult, such as a partner or friend, you can buy a Two Together Railcard to get 1/3 off most fares. Full details are available here.
If you’re travelling as a group of 3-9 adults, you can get a 1/3 GroupSave discount for Off-Peak tickets with most train operators. We’ll apply the discount automatically if you’re eligible. You don’t need to show a Railcard to take advantage of the GroupSave discount.
In some cases, we’ll sell GroupSave adult-rate fares for any children in your group. We’ll only do this if it works out cheaper than charging child-rate fares for them.
Please note: you must travel together at all times if you buy a Two Together or GroupSave ticket. Full GroupSave details are available here.
What child/family discounts do you offer?
Children aged 0-4 travel free, provided they don’t occupy a seat.
Children aged 5-15 pay the child fare, which is usually 50% of the adult fare. You can get a further 60% off the child fare if you buy a Family & Friends Railcard – and even better, up to 2 adults also get 1/3 off their fare! Full details are available here.
Children aged 16 and 17 can’t travel on child tickets, but they can get a 50% discount on most adult fares – including season tickets – using the 16-17 Saver. Full details are available here.
Several train operators also offer cheap flat fares for children when they travel together with an adult, costing £1 or £2. We’ll suggest these to you automatically if they’re the cheapest option.
Why am I not getting the Railcard discount I expected?
Whilst Railcards usually provide a 1/3 discount, there are some reasons why the discount might be less than this, or there might be no discount at all. These include:
- Minimum fares: Many Railcards have a minimum fare, so the fare will only be discounted down to a certain cost; if the fare is less than this, you won’t get a discount.
- With the 16-25, 26-30, Veterans and HM Forces Railcards, the minimum fare is £12 and applies if you’re travelling before 10am Monday-Friday with a flexible ticket (e.g. Off-Peak or Anytime). However, for the 16-25, Veterans and HM Forces Railcards the minimum fare doesn’t apply during the months of July and August.
- With the Network Railcard, the minimum fare is £13 and applies all day Monday-Friday.
- Time restrictions: Many Railcards have a time restriction, meaning they won’t provide a discount before a certain time.
- With the Annual Gold Card and Two Together Railcards, you won’t get a discount before 09:30 Monday-Friday.
- With the Family & Friends and Senior Railcards, you won’t get a discount for journeys within London & the Southeast (in the area where Network Railcards are valid) during the morning peak Monday-Friday. The exact cutoff varies depending on the journey you’re making, but it’s usually between 8-10am.
- Geographic & operator limitations: Network Railcards are only valid within London & the Southeast – see this validity map. Annual Gold Card discounted tickets are available within the Network Railcard area plus some additional routes – see this validity map. Please note: there are some routes, e.g. around Birmingham, where Annual Gold Card discounted tickets aren’t valid on all operators.
- Ticket type & first class restrictions: Some Railcards only provide a discount for flexible tickets (e.g. Off-Peak or Anytime), and not on fixed-train tickets (Advances). Some Railcards are also only valid in standard class so they don’t provide a discount on first class fares. A few Railcards provide a discount on Advance tickets in first class, but not first class flexible tickets (e.g. Off-Peak or Anytime).
You can rest easy, knowing that we’ll automatically apply the correct discount for your fare and journey. You can see the full rules for each Railcard here.