London has a dense network of local suburban commuter trains, separate from London’s famous Underground system.
These are slowly being integrated into a single coordinated London public transport system with common ticketing.
You can now use the Oyster card, the preferred payment method for public transport in London. This includes rail, buses, the Underground and the Docklands Light Railway (DLR).
We cover using London’s train network on a dedicated page in the context of its part of an integrated London public transport system.
Visit our London Rail services page for more information.
The UK national rail network radiates out from London offering direct inter city services with frequent schedules to most major towns and cities in Great Britain.
Typically, train travel is quicker but pricier compared to bus services, and for major routes, it often outpaces private cars as well.
Visit our National Express, FlixBus & Megabus coach services to/from London page for more information.
As a general rule of thumb for journeys of around an hour or so there is no financial advantage in pre purchasing tickets, you may as well buy at the station on day of travel. For longer journeys, advance purchase fares offer great savings.
Reserved seating is only available on the main line routes; for most services, you can simply choose any open seat that appeals to you.
The three types of rail tickets are broadly:
For longer distance trains, travelling by rail can be very expensive purchasing standard fares, often more expensive than flying. Advance purchase tickets on these longer distances on the other hand can be bargains.
The cheap tickets are normally released 3 months before your departure date and the best deals often sell out quickly.
Two types of digital ticket are available: etickets and mobile tickets.
Your eticket is sent as a PDF attachment in an email, which you can access either directly from your email or through the Trainline app.
Mobile Tickets are just like etickets, except you can only open them directly in our app and you need to ‘activate’ the ticket before you use it. Mobile Tickets can’t be shared or used on more than one device. They can be scanned directly form your phone with no need to print.
Digital tickets are accepted for most train journeys in the UK. While some stations might not have ticket gates for scanning your phone, you can simply show your ticket to a staff member, and they will assist you. Additionally, e-tickets are valid for travel throughout Europe as well.
There are three paper ticket options:
Keep in mind that if you plan to pick up your tickets from a machine, while most central London stations offer these machines, Luton and Stansted Airports do not have them. However, you can find ticket machines at Heathrow and Gatwick Airports.
You can purchase genuine tickets for the Airport Express trains, including those for Heathrow, Gatwick, and Stansted.
Train stations feature staffed ticket offices alongside ticket machines. They accept all major credit cards and cash payments.
To check fares and schedules, visit the Trainline website, where you can also purchase tickets for home delivery.
Railcards are money saving passes targeted at leisure travellers to encourage then to use the British railway network on their travels.
Numerous Railcards exist, each designed for specific target requirements. However, the general concept behind all of them is that you pay a one-time fee, which is valid for either one or three years, allowing you to enjoy substantial discounts on almost all train tickets across Britain.
For just one or two trips, the upfront expense of a Railcard may not seem worth it. However, if you frequently travel by train for leisure or plan to explore the UK by rail, it’s definitely worth considering.
Various Railcards include:
*To utilize the Railcard, at least one member of the traveling group must be listed on it. Additionally there should be at least one child traveling on a child fare ticket. The maximum group size eligible for discounts with a Railcard is four adults and four children. The individual named on the Railcard must accompany all passengers who have purchased discounted tickets for the entire journey.
Visit our Railcards and their use on a visit to London page for more information.
The BritRail Pass is a pass only available to overseas visitors to Great Britain.
The passes come in different durations and cover various regions of Great Britain. There’s even a specific pass designed for visitors in London who wish to take day trips outside the city by train.
The initial cost of the Railcard doesn’t justify their use just for one or two journeys, but if you regularly use the railways for leisure travel or are using the railways to tour the UK they are very well worthwhile looking at.
Visit our BritRail train passes for England, Scotland & Wales page for more information.
The national railways sponsor a hugely popular and long running promotion that allows those people using the train to visit leading attractions to get two people admitted for the price of one.
When visiting London you can you can get 2FOR1 admission to many of London’s major sights including the Tower of London, the full list is very, very long and covers all of Great Britain.
Visit our 2FOR1 sightseeing offer with Travelcards/trains page for more information.
London has many train stations acting as the terminus for London rail services from all over the country. Each station serves a particular area of Great Britain and they are all interconnected by the London Underground.
Visiting London? Save time and money on London public transport