When do cheap tickets become available?
Train travel within the UK
When to book: Most train operators release Advanced Single tickets 12 weeks prior to travel. Sign up to our Ticket Alert and we'll notify you as soon as these discounted tickets are released.
- Advance Single and First Advance Single tickets offer fantastic savings and are the cheapest type of ticket available. You can buy Advance tickets for most long-distance journeys.
- As Advance Single tickets are the cheapest fares on offer they're also very popular. We show real-time availability, so you can see exactly how many tickets are left and make sure you get the best deal.
- Almost all Advance Single tickets are sold with a seat reservation.
- As a bonus, you can use your Railcard for further discounts. So, if you have a student, senior, child’s or disabled person’s Railcard you can look forward to even cheaper train tickets to a range of wonderful destinations.
- Advance Single tickets are only valid for travel on the date and time specified and are non-refundable. For a fee it's possible to change the date or time of travel but this comes with restrictions.
For further information on these tickets, or if you prefer a more more flexible option then our handy ticket guide might help you choose.
Train travel on Eurostar
When to book: Eurostar tickets are released around 180 days in advance.
The cheapest Standard Tickets are very popular and sell out quickly, so we recommend you book as early as possible.
If you have some flexibility try and travel mid-week, there are more cheap tickets to be found on Tuesdays and Wednesdays than on Fridays, Sundays and bank holidays.
These tickets are non-refundable but can be exchanged for a fee.
Train travel across mainland Europe
SNCF Tickets
When to book:
- Domestic SNCF tickets bare released 3 months in advance.
- SNCF tickets to/from Italian destinations are released 4 months in advance
Cheaper French train tickets are called Prem’s and are available on all TGV (French: train grande vitesse), Intercités and TER trains. They are extremely popular and sell out quickly, so we recommend you book as early as possible.
Thalys Tickets
When to book: Tickets are released 3 months in advance.
Cheaper Thalys tickets are available for travel to Paris, Brussels, Cologne and Amsterdam and many other cities in between.
They are very popular and sell out quickly, so we recommend you book as early as possible.
These tickets are only valid for travel on the date and time specified and are non-refundable and not exchangeable.
Travel between France and Spain
When to book: Renfe-SNCF tickets are released around 4 months in advance.
Cheaper tickets are available between France and Spain on the Renfe-SNCF cooperation high speed rail line. They are very popular and sell out quickly, so we recommend you book as early as possible.
Most tickets can be partially refunded or exchanged up to 7 days before travel, please check the terms of your ticket on the booking page before purchasing
Travel between France and Switzerland
When to book: Lyria tickets are released 4 months in advance.
Cheaper Lyria train tickets are called Non-Flex and cover travel between France and Switzerland. They are very popular and sell out quickly, so we recommend you book as early as possible.
Non-Flex tickets are only valid for travel on the date and time specified and are non-refundable and not exchangeable.
German Tickets
When to book: Deutsche Bahn tickets are released 90 days in advance.
There are 3 ticket types that over cheaper travel Saver-Ticket, Europa-Spezial and Sparpreis Ticket. These tickets are available for travel within Germany and for travel from German to other countries, including Italy, Denmark, Sweden, France and Switzerland.
The refund and exchange terms differ for each of these ticket types, please check them on the booking page before purchasing your ticket.
Austrian Tickets
When to book: OBB tickets are released approximately 180 days in advance.
Cheaper OBB train tickets are called Sparschiene tickets, they are very popular and sell out quickly, so we recommend you book as early as possible.
Sparschiene tickets are only valid for travel on the date and time specified and are non-refundable and not exchangeable.
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