A NEW train ticket has been announced with the aim of making it easier for people to get away at weekends.
Great Western Railway (GWR), which runs services from Reading station, says its Long Weekender ticket can offer savings of more than 60% and give people more time on short breaks.
The ticket allows customers to depart at any time on a Friday or Saturday and return at any time on Monday, making the tickets cheaper than a peak Anytime return.
GWR says it launched the new ticket to offer flexibility to those who want to get away early, while providing a cheaper return journey to those who no longer need to be in an office five-days-a-week.
As an example, it says that a Weekender ticket from London Paddington to Chippenham would be £69, while an Anytime Return ticket would be £206.60 – a saving of 66%. A journey to Cardiff Central would be £99, instead of £280.40, a saving of 64%.
It adds that Sundays have become particularly busy for train services, with more people choosing to travel over the weekend, while changes in work patterns have seen commuter journeys fall when compared with pre-pandemic levels.
GWR sales and marketing director Amanda Burns said: “Changing customer patterns have provided a clear opportunity for us to expand our leisure offers, particularly on a Monday.
“We’ve been working closely with destination management organisations like Visit Bristol, Visit Bath and Visit Cardiff to help promote the Long Weekender and they are really supportive of this ticket.
“This offers great savings if you’re heading for rest in the West, either staying at a hotel or B&B, or visiting friends and family. And if you need to catch up on those work emails on the way home on Monday, you can do so from the comfort of the train.”
The Long Weekender tickets can only be booked via GWR’s website, and is for routes from London Paddington to the wider Bristol area and South Wales.
For more details, log on to: www.gwr.com
