Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Train
Services between major cities and Devon and Cornwall tend to run at least hourly.
National Rail Enquiries
(
08457-48 49 50;
www.nationalrail.co.uk
) has information on times and fares.
Travel times and costs vary (the latter wildly); advance booking and travelling off-peak cuts costs dramatically.
Sample fares include London Paddington to Penzance (£60, 5½ hours, nine daily) and Edinburgh to Plymouth (£125, 10
hours, every two hours).
First Great Western
( 8457-000 125;
www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk
)
Routes include those from London Paddington
to Exeter, Penzance, Plymouth, Tiverton Parkway and Truro. It also runs services to Gatwick Airport and branch lines to
Barnstaple, Exmouth, Falmouth, Looe, Newquay, St Ives and Torquay.
CrossCountry
( 0844-811 0124;
www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk
) Links the southwest with the midlands, and the
north of England and Scotland. Stations served include Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds,
Newcastle, Cardiff and the main southwest stations between Tiverton Parkway and Penzance.
South West Trains
(
0845-600 0650;
www.southwesttrains.co.uk
) Runs services between London Waterloo and
Axminster and Exeter.
FARES
When calculating the cost of train fares to and around England's southwest there is no such thing as a standard
fare. As elsewhere in the country, prices vary according to demand and when you buy your ticket. Book a long
time in advance and travel on a Tuesday after 9am and it'll be cheaper. Buy your ticket on the spot at peak com-
muter time on Friday morning and it'll be a lot more expensive. Throughout this topic, we've generally quoted
sample
fares; somewhere between the two extremes. The price you pay will almost certainly be different.
We also don't specify a fare when the cost is less than £5.
Sea
Brittany Ferries
( 0871-244 1402;
www.brittany-ferries.com
) sails between Plymouth and Roscoff in France (6 to 8
hours; anywhere from two daily to three per week) and Santander in northern Spain (20 hours, one per week).
Prices vary dramatically; for cheap fares book early and take non-peak, non-weekend crossings. A 10-day, mid-week
return in mid-August between Plymouth and Roscoff is £80 for foot passengers; £350 for a car and two adults. A similar
Plymouth-Santander trip costs £230 for one on-foot passenger; £800 for a car and two passengers.
But off-season deals and special offers can bring the price down dramatically. Sample deals include £60 for a car and
two passengers on the Plymouth-Roscoff route; and 20 percent off journeys between Plymouth and Santander.
