Britain/United Kingdom/England/london - manchester

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Expert: - 11/2/2011


Question
Hello

I hope this message finds you well. I have a couple of questions about london and the UK and I would appreciate any help

1) if I stay in manchester (bolton or rochdale).. how much will it cost to commute to london daily and get back... would a railcard help with this matter...and long will it take..

2) I am told that i should get an oyster card for my commutes in london.. but on the oyster website i got lost in the many options.. I basically would like to commute from zones 1 to 3.

would the oyster card be any beneficial if i end up choosing to stay in manchester


Cheers

Answer
A monthly "season ticket" to London from Manchester - which is the cheapest option, as you can travel on any train as often as you need, costs £1,153.60.

A ticket valid for 3 months is slightly cheaper at £3,460 for the full 3 months.

From Bolton or Rochdale, it's just a few pounds more.

For a few more pounds a month, your Season Ticket can be upgraded to an Oyster card for use on London's buses and underground. The Oyster only works in and around London, with Manchester being approximately 200 miles form London. Do note that all these fares will go up by an average of 8% in January 2012.

From Manchester, the journey time is between 1hour 58 minutes and 2 hours 12 minutes - a ticket bought on the day of travel is between £120 and £140 for the return journey, so you can see that  season ticket offers a very large saving.

From Bolton, you would need to take 2 trains, with a weekday journey time of 2 hours 45 minutes to over 3 hours.

From Rochdale, you would need to take 3 trains with  a journey tine of about three and a half hours.

Do remember to add on up to an hour from arriving in London to getting to your place of work, unless this is very close to Euston, which is the station which Manchester trains arrive at. You also have to add time from your home to the Manchester station, too, of course.

Do let me know where I can help further, please.

Alun Hill, MCIJ

http://www.AlunHill.com

Britain/United Kingdom/England

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Alun Hill MCIJ

Expertise

As a full time, UK based, travel journalist, I travel almost constantly around the whole of the UK, searching out restaurants, hotels and "must see" places. Visitors for both business and pleasure are welcome to ask questions. I almost always travel by public transport, so questions on rail, air and coach / bus travel are also very welcome. I also regularly write about and use the "Eurostar" rail service between London and Continental Europe - which uses a tunnel under the English Channel - so I am able to help with any questions there, too.

Experience

I'm a full time, UK based, travel journalist. I travel almost constantly around the whole of the UK, searching out restaurants, hotels and "must see" places for my readers. I have been writing about, filming and reporting from UK tourism destinations for over 12 years. I cover both "business" and "pleasure" trips for my readers.

Organizations
I am a member of the "Chartered Institute of Journalists" (the world's oldest professional body for journalists), the "British Association of Journalists" and "The International Travel Writers Alliance". I hold a full UK Press Card, issued by the Metropolitan Police at Scotland Yard, London.

Publications
National and local press in UK. Local and National TV in the UK and Europe (Germany, Hungary), reporting on travel and tourism in the UK.

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