Advance tickets are not usually refundable. However, we understand that sometimes your plans might change.
Until 31 March 2022, you can change your Advance ticket or get a refund as an eVoucher with no admin fee. Simply request your refund or rebook your journey before 18:00 the day before your original travel date and you will only be charged if your new ticket is more expensive.
Please check our Refunds page to see if more information about our refund policy.
Advance tickets are our cheapest ticket offered. Similar to when you buy an airline ticket, they are linked to a specific train time and seat number, so can't be used for any other train time or journey.
They are the best ticket to buy for your journey because they:
Are often cheaper* than other tickets
Always come with a seat reservation
You can combine different types of single tickets to save money
Save an average of 52%* when you book in advance. Saving on all Advance tickets booked on our website vs buying an Anytime ticket.
You can buy LNER Advance tickets on our website and on our app first, so you always know you're getting the best deal when you book directly with us!
The trains you can catch and the times you can travel with an Off-Peak ticket vary depending on three things, so be sure to check your ticket’s terms and conditions:
When the journey is
Where you’re going
And which train company that you are travelling with.
Yes, off-peak tickets are fully refundable and up until 31 March 2022, if you cancel your booking BEFORE 6pm the day before travel, you won’t be charged the industry £10 admin fee.
If you cancel your ticket AFTER 6pm the day before travel, an industry-standard £10 admin fee is applied.
Can be used on a different time train providing the earlier or later train is also within the terms of conditions of the ticket. View full Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak terms and conditions first.
Advance tickets
Advance tickets are our cheapest tickets and are only valid for the booked train.
You can change to another train by buying a ticket for the new date or time you want to travel on (you can't change the to or from station) and follow the instructions on this Refund form and we'll refund the original ticket for you.
Anytime tickets
Just as it says on the tin - these can be used at anytime. Reserve a seat for the train you'd like to travel on.
Booking a Family Return ticket is exactly the same as booking any other type of ticket. Choose where you'd like to travel from and to, what date you'd like to travel and how many adults and children are travelling.
Then choose from the available travel times in our journey planner and don't forget to reserve your seats!
A family is defined as being between a minimum of 1 adult and 1 child (aged 5-15 years old inclusive) up to a maximum of 2 adults and 4 children (aged 5-15 years old inclusive). The group size must be specified when you buy the ticket. All tickets required for travel must be bought at the same time.
Do I need to book a ticket for all the children even if they’re under 5?
While the National Rail Conditions of Travel state that children aged under 5 years old travelling with an accompanying fare-paying passenger can travel free of charge, they're not guaranteed their own seat on busy services. In order to guarantee a seat, we recommend under-5s are included as part of the overall number of people travelling with the LNER Family Return, but the decision is entirely at your discretion.
Can I book Caledonian Sleeper services via this website?
Yes, you can book tickets on a Caledonian Sleeper service when booking from a desktop or tablet device. However, we can only offer seat (not berth) reservations.
If you want to book a ticket and reserve a berth, you'll need to contact Caledonian Sleeper directly, or you could visit a station.
Keep in mind that if you buy a flexible or open ticket on our site and want to travel on a Sleeper service, you'll need a reservation. You won't be allowed to board without one.
How do I book tickets to London Thameslink stations?
If you're coming in from the North or South to one of the London Thameslink stations (St Pancras International, Farringdon, City Thameslink, London Blackfriars, London Bridge and Elephant & Castle) and want to book a ticket, just select "London Thameslink" as your destination when you book. This way you'll see the full range of fares for your journey.
Why can I see two tickets with the same name but different prices?
On some journeys to the same place there could be two different routes. One might go through London and one might not. If this happens you'll see two or more tickets with the same name but different prices. The difference in price can be because of different journey lengths or times. What normally happens is that cheaper tickets will have more restrictions about how they're used.
Yes. Train tickets can be used by anyone. If that person is collecting tickets from a ticket vending machine, they will need the credit or debit card used to make the booking. This might be a little tricky to work around so bear this in mind when booking. If it helps, you can request that tickets are posted to any UK postal address when you book online.
If you buy an eTicket, once you have loaded the ticket into your Apple or Google Wallet, you can share it with someone else. Alternatively, you can request a PDF to be emailed to you that can be printed.
You can also create Gift eVouchers for someone to purchase a train ticket.
The trains you can catch and the times you can travel with an Off-Peak ticket vary depending on three things, so be sure to check your ticket’s terms and conditions:
When the journey is
Where you’re going
And which train company that you are travelling with.
Flexible tickets can be booked through multiple different channels including but not limited to; LNER.co.uk, ticket vending machines and at travel centres.
Can I travel on an earlier or later train?
This depends on the ticket type.
Off-Peak, Super Off-Peak
Can be used on a different time train providing the earlier or later train is also within the terms of conditions of the ticket. View full Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak terms and conditions first.
Advance tickets
Advance tickets are our cheapest tickets and are only valid for the booked train.
You can change to another train by buying a ticket for the new date or time you want to travel on (you can't change the to or from station) and follow the instructions on this Refund form and we'll refund the original ticket for you.
Anytime tickets
Just as it says on the tin - these can be used at anytime. Reserve a seat for the train you'd like to travel on.
What restrictions are there, on open single tickets. E.g. can you break your journey?
Most flexible ‘open single tickets’ do allow a break of journey but please check before you travel or at the time of purchase as different ticket types have different terms and conditions attached to them.
What is a Flexible ticket?
Flexible tickets are provided to allow customers the option of having the flexibility to travel on multiple trains. They are normally split into three categories: Anytime tickets allowing the customer to travel on any train on the date selected, Off-peak tickets these are valid to be used at Off-Peak times and Super Off-Peak tickets which are valid at Super Off-Peak times.
An Open Return is a flexible ticket that doesn't make you choose a specific time or date to return. They're valid for one calendar month from the date of the outward journey. There are a few types of Open ticket:
Anytime: fully flexible tickets that can be used on peak and off-peak services.
Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak: fairly flexible tickets that can be used on off-peak services on some journeys.
We recommend making a seat reservation for your return journey to guarantee a seat. On some rare occasions on busy trains, you may not be able to reserve a seat. There is a small number of unreservable seating in Coach C.
Advance tickets are not usually refundable. However, we understand that sometimes your plans might change.
Until 31 March 2022, you can change your Advance ticket or get a refund as an eVoucher with no admin fee. Simply request your refund or rebook your journey before 18:00 the day before your original travel date and you will only be charged if your new ticket is more expensive.
Please check our Refunds page to see if more information about our refund policy.
Up until 31 March 2022, you can change the time and date of your tickets or get a refund as an eVoucher. If you request a refund or change your journey before 18:00 the day before travel, there is no admin fee.
If you change your journey or request a refund after 18:00 the day before travel, there is an industry standard £10 admin fee.
Yes, you’ll automatically be reserved a seat for an LNER journey when you book any Advance ticket and there are reservable seats available. Other train companies may have different reservation policies. Please check with the relevant train companies before travelling.
Do I need to book a ticket for all the children even if they’re under 5?
While the National Rail Conditions of Travel state that children aged under 5 years old travelling with an accompanying fare-paying passenger can travel free of charge, they're not guaranteed their own seat on busy services. In order to guarantee a seat, we recommend under-5s are included as part of the overall number of people travelling with the LNER Family Return, but the decision is entirely at your discretion.
What is considered a family when purchasing a Family Return?
A family is defined as being between a minimum of 1 adult and 1 child (aged 5-15 years old inclusive) up to a maximum of 2 adults and 4 children (aged 5-15 years old inclusive). The group size must be specified when you buy the ticket. All tickets required for travel must be bought at the same time. By the way, you don’t all need to be related!
Booking a Family Return ticket is exactly the same as booking any other type of ticket. Choose where you'd like to travel from and to, what date you'd like to travel and how many adults and children are travelling.
Then choose from the available travel times in our journey planner and don't forget to reserve your seats!
A family is defined as being between a minimum of 1 adult and 1 child (aged 5-15 years old inclusive) up to a maximum of 2 adults and 4 children (aged 5-15 years old inclusive). The group size must be specified when you buy the ticket. All tickets required for travel must be bought at the same time.