Did you know that you can buy cheap train tickets at a discounted price thanks to Avanti Superfare? There’s just one twist… you won’t know what time train you’re booked onto until 24 hours before!
Here’s the lowdown on Avanti Superfare, and whether we think it’s worth the last minute anticipation.
Everything You Need To Know About Avanti Superfare
What is Avanti Superfare?
It’s quite a clever concept really.
Avanti West Coast offers train travel all over the UK and whilst some routes and times are very popular, others are less so. This can also change depending on what day you travel.
That’s why they created Avanti Superfare so they could match empty seats with customers who had a bit of flexibility.
This is because when people buy an Avanti Superfare, instead of selecting a specific train, they simply select a time frame for their travel – morning, afternoon, or evening. In fact, they won’t know what train they’re on until 24 hours before departure.
The massive perk is that Avanti Superfare tickets have set prices with a potential huge discount, since they range from £9 – £30 one way, depending on your route.
The key thing to remember is that you can only buy an Avanti Superfare between 7 and 21 days before your trip.
What Are the Time Ranges for Avanti Superfare?
Each time frame spans 5 hours. So if you select morning, afternoon or evening, you could get any train departing in the following timeframes.
Apply online
Online premium service
Morning
07:00 am – 11:59 am
Afternoon
12:00 pm – 4:59 pm
Evening
5:00 pm – 9 pm
What Routes Can You Book Avanti Superfare On and How Much Does It Cost?
Avanti Superfare offers cheap UK train tickets to and from these routes:
Route (to and from)
Price
London to Manchester
£20
London to Liverpool
£15
London to Preston
£22
London to Birmingham
£9
London to Birmingham International
£9
London to Glasgow
£30
London to Stafford
£12
London to Crewe
£14
London to Stoke-on-Trent
£14
London to Warrington Bank Quay
£15
London to Macclesfield
£16
London to Wilmslow
£18
London to Oxenholme
£26
London to Wigan North Western
£20
London to Lancaster
£25
London to Nuneaton
£9
London to Wolverhampton
£9
London to Coventry
£9
London to Rugby
£9
London to Runcorn
£15
London to Penrith
£26
London to Carlisle
£28
Manchester to Milton Keynes
£18
Preston to Glasgow
£12
Why Isn’t My Avanti Journey Listed Above?
Do you use Avanti but your train isn’t listed here? This might be because you have to make a transfer to another train network during your journey.
For example, for a trip to Chester I could use Avanti Superfare for a trip to Crewe, but then I’d need to book my tickets between Crewe and Chester separately.
What Are the Rules of Avanti Superfare?
You can check out all the terms and conditions on the website, however, these are a few key points to keep in mind when buying a cheap UK train ticket from Avanti Superfare:
- Tickets must be purchased 7 days in advance and up to 56 days before your travel.
- Select a morning, afternoon or evening time frame, for which you’ll be allocated a random time.
- Superfare tickets are standard class and one way only.
- All Superfare tickets are non-refundable and can’t be cancelled.
A Step By Step Guide to Buying an Avanti Superfare Ticket
1. Search For Your Destination
Visit the Avanti Superfare website. Select your departure, destination station, and the date you want to travel. Remember you can only book 7 to 21 days before departure.
2. Choose a Travel Window
Select a single time frame: morning (7 am – 11.59 am), afternoon (12 pm – 16.59 pm), or evening (5 pm – 9 pm)
3. Review and Pay
Read through the important terms and conditions, enter your email, and then pay for your ticket online.
4. Receive Your Ticket
You’ll receive your exact departure time and ticket in your emails at least 24 hours before the departure date.
Can I Buy Multiple Avanti Superfare Tickets in One Booking?
You can purchase up to 9 tickets per Avanti Superfare booking.
Do You Get a Guaranteed Reserved Seat When Using Avanti Superfare?
Once you’ve been matched with an empty seat you’ll be sent a seat reservation to your emails. However, If you’ve booked multiple tickets there’s no guarantee that those seats will be together.
Can I Use My Railcard or Another Discount With Avanti Superfare?
Avanti Superfare can’t be used in conjunction with any other discount or promotions like your railcard or a child discount.
Are Superfare Tickets Always Available?
Access to Avanti Superfare tickets will be subject to availability; typically you’ll find more vacant seats on weekdays. With trains being busier on weekends, spare seats tend to be limited during those times. So, if you want to lock in your preferred travel times, it’s a good idea to book those Superfare tickets as early as possible – or instead buy an advance ticket.
Avanti will also have blackout dates and times where superfare tickets aren’t available. This may be for various reasons like engineering works or strikes. You can check here for the latest blackout dates.
Is The Avanti Superfare Cheaper than Advanced Tickets?
At the time of writing, these were the cheapest advanced single fares we could find in the next 3 months versus the Avanti Superfare price.
Route (to and from)
Avanti Superfare Price
Cheapest Advanced Single in the next 3 Months
London to Manchester
£20
£32
London to Liverpool
£15
£25
London to Preston
£22
£32
London to Birmingham
£9
£15
London to Glasgow
£30
£35
London to Stafford
£12
£19
London to Crewe
£14
£21
London to Stoke-on-Trent
£14
£25
London to Warrington Bank Quay
£15
£30
London to Macclesfield
£16
£32
London to Wilmslow
£18
£30
London to Stockport
£20
£30
London to Wigan North Western
£20
£32
London to Lancaster
£25
£32
Do We Recommend Avanti Superfare?
If you have the flexibility and have missed out on the cheap advance tickets, this is an amazing way to save money on your next train journey.
On checking an off peak return train between London to Glasgow for Anna, our social media assistant here at Cheap Holiday Expert, we found the following costs for a journey 2 weeks in advance:
Avanti Superfare
Cheapest Advance Singles
Off Peak Return
Without Railcard
£30 each way
£60 total
£52 & £46.50 single
£98.50 total
£170.40 total
With Railcard
£30 each way
£60 total
£34.40 & £30.65 single
£64.95 total
£112.45 total
As you can see, Avanti Superfare was cheaper than booking the cheapest singles, even when using a railcard! It’s also substantially cheaper than buying an Off Peak return.
In addition, when we checked fares just 7 days before, there was an even bigger saving.
It is a shame you can’t use a railcard on top of the deal, but it still feels like a great way to save some pennies should you just simply need to get to a destination at the best price point.
We’ve used it a couple of times so far and it worked just as they said it would – we’re impressed!
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