# Gatwick express tickets



## Markjbloggs (6 Dec 2007)

Ok, simple question - is is better to get tickets for the Gatwick express (does it still go to Victoria?) at the station in Gatwick or on Ryanair?

tia


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## BeanPole (6 Dec 2007)

Best to buy them on board the train. They often don't even come around to collect them !!

Other option is to go into London using the regular Southern Rail, which is £6 cheaper, more frequent, and not a lot slower. You can buy a travel card from Gatwick airport train station, which will allow you to travel anywhere in the zone 1 - 6 area all day.

I wouldn't buy on board Ryanair

[broken link removed]


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## jrewing (6 Dec 2007)

BeanPole said:


> I wouldn't buy on board Ryanair


 
The *Stansted *Express tickets are cheaper on Ryanair than in the station.


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## EvilDoctorK (6 Dec 2007)

BeanPole said:


> Best to buy them on board the train. They often don't even come around to collect them !!
> 
> Other option is to go into London using the regular Southern Rail, which is £6 cheaper, more frequent, and not a lot slower. You can buy a travel card from Gatwick airport train station, which will allow you to travel anywhere in the zone 1 - 6 area all day.
> 
> ...



Agree entirely ... unless you're travelling at Rush hour really there's no point in using the Gatwick Express - save yourself £6 each way and take the regular train - it's only a few minutes slower.


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## Markjbloggs (6 Dec 2007)

Is there a travel ticket that cover Gatwick-Victoria return and the Underground for the weekend?


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## EvilDoctorK (6 Dec 2007)

No - you'll need to purchase a travelcard for the Tube in Central London when you arrive at Victoria .. it's not possible as far as I'm aware to buy a combined travelcard with your Gatwick - Victoria ticket (Gatwick is outside the zonal area that tube tickets work on)

Also depending on where you're going in Central London there are trains (4 per hour I think) from Gatwick Airport to London Bridge Station which continues on through Blackfriars to Kings Cross .. If you're staying down the City end of things this might be more useful than arriving at Victoria.


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## BeanPole (7 Dec 2007)

EvilDoctorK said:


> No - you'll need to purchase a travelcard for the Tube in Central London when you arrive at Victoria .. it's not possible as far as I'm aware to buy a combined travelcard with your Gatwick - Victoria ticket (Gatwick is outside the zonal area that tube tickets work on)


 
That's not true.

You can buy a zone 1-6 travelcard at Gatwick Airport station which will cover you for the day of arrival.

Equally, you can buy a travelcard covering Gatwick at any rail (but not Tube) station.

Where is your ultimate destination?


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## EvilDoctorK (8 Dec 2007)

Yes - but there's fairly limited point in buying the travelcard at Gatwick as it's not going to cover your train ticket in from Gatwick as Gatwick is well outside Zone 6 - so you'll still have to buy a separate train ticket.

Zonal travelcards only cover Heathrow (Zone 6) and City Airport (Zone 3) - all other airports are outside the zones, so you'd have to buy a travel card and a separate ticket from the zone boundary to Gatwick Airport.


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## BeanPole (9 Dec 2007)

EvilDoctorK said:


> Yes - but there's fairly limited point in buying the travelcard at Gatwick as it's not going to cover your train ticket in from Gatwick as Gatwick is well outside Zone 6 - so you'll still have to buy a separate train ticket.
> 
> Zonal travelcards only cover Heathrow (Zone 6) and City Airport (Zone 3) - all other airports are outside the zones, so you'd have to buy a travel card and a separate ticket from the zone boundary to Gatwick Airport.


 

Again - not true. You can buy a travelcard at Gatwick train staition that will cover your journey to boundary zone 6, and then give you unlimited travel within zones 1 - 6

See the bottom of this discussion chain, where the OP asks a similar question:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-302354.html


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## EvilDoctorK (10 Dec 2007)

Interesting - i hadn't realised this though I think it is still physically 2 separate tickets (a travelcard and a normal one way or return ticket to the travelcard boundary  - or at least it has been any time I've bought such a ticket).

Looking at the info on Nationalrail.co.uk

Gatwick - East Croydon (first stop inside the travelcard boundary) is £5.40 one way - but it seems like some of the trains (Southern) charge £7.80 for some reason - perhaps to stop people doing this?

So if you did this and then bought your Zone 1-6 travelcard for £6.70 it works out as £12.10 then I think  (or £14.50 if you get a Southern train)

A standard single to Victoria (or London Bridge) costs £9.20 ... so if it's possible to buy this ticket for £12.10 or so then it's probably a good deal as you're paying £3 extra for a travelcard then which would normally cost you at least a fiver (as you probalby only need zone 1-2), but if it's more than this it's probably not worth it really.

The other scam for going to Gatwick is that the fares to "Three Bridges" - the next stop south of Gatwick are actually cheaper than fares to Gatwick - so you can buy a ticket to Three Bridges and get off at Gatwick - nothing to stop you doing this. Saving is only a pound or so.


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## Markjbloggs (10 Dec 2007)

Public service announcement from the OP...

Flew into Gatwick at the weekend, went to the Travel Center just above the train station, got SouthernRail day ticket to Victoria for 3 people for £18 (for all 3, not each!!) which included unlimited Tube travel.

Like Amy Winehouse, I was made up !!


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## EvilDoctorK (10 Dec 2007)

Markjbloggs said:


> Like Amy Winehouse, I was made up !!



As you should be .. sounds like a great deal indeed - given the train is normally £9 per person


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## Deirdra (19 May 2008)

Does anyone know if the Oyster card can be topped up to allow travel on the Southern Rail train. Does the Southern Rail train go to London Bridge and onto Kings Cross (or just goes to Victoria?)

cheers


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## Deirdra (19 May 2008)

Sorry, saw another post about the First Capital Connect train going to London Bridge. I think Oyster card only valid on tubes and London buses?


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## EvilDoctorK (20 May 2008)

Pay as you go Oyster is not valid on most train services in London (If you have a monthly travelcard on your Oyster you can use it on the trains though) ...  this is supposed to be changing but the train companies have been pretty slow to introduce Pay as you Go so far - I have heard that it's supposed to be more widely introduced in 2009.

Train services where you can use Oyster are listed here - [broken link removed] ... none of the trains that serve Gatwick are covered.


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