Travelling with a FIRST CLASS train ticket can be CHEAPER than travelling in standard
MOST of us don't even consider booking a train ticket for the first class carriages - we all know there's a price hike for the nicer seats, right?
Wrong. This is not always the case because we've found that on some journeys it's cheaper to travel first class than it is to travel with a standard ticket.
This can be super useful to know if you're planning to book your train tickets home for Christmas.
We took a look at what's on offer at train ticket retailer the Trainline and found that you can make some seriously good savings.
A standard train ticket from Leeds to Edinburgh via Lancaster on October 21 will set you back £101 but if you opted to sit in the posher carriages it would cost you just £61.50.
That's a saving of £39.50 for the single journey.
A standard train journey from Newcastle to London at the end of November will cost you a pricey £131.70 but a ticket in first class is £37.70 cheaper and costs just £94.
And it doesn't just affect long, cross-country train rides.
A train from York to Doncaster takes about 22 minutes and if you buy a standard ticket, will cost you £15.50, but it will cost you £14.50 if you bought a first class ticket, saving you £1.
There doesn't seem to be a predictable pattern as to when the deals might appear but you should keep an eye out for early morning and late evening trains.
How to save on your rail fare
HERE'S how you can make sure you're getting the best deal on your train ticket.
Book early - Train companies release advance tickets up to 12 weeks before you travel at discounted prices. If you're organised take advantage of the cheaper travel.
Get a third off with a railcard - National Rail offer a range of railcards that give you a disount on you travel. Not everyone is entitled to one though so it's best to check if you're covered.
Split your tickets - Book tickets for individual legs of the journey rather then one overall ticket. MoneySavingExpert found that spliting the fare could save you hundreds of pounds. Don’t worry if you’re bad at math because apps and websites like and will do the number crunching for you.-
You should also double check any travel prices when your journey falls out of peak time.
The Rail Delivery Group which is made up of all of the train companies in the UK, e.g. Virgin Trains and South Eastern, puts some of the price differences down to the release of cheaper 'advance' tickets.
Train companies release discounted tickets up to twelve weeks before you travel where passengers can scoop early bird deals.
Jeremy Acklam from fare saving website told the Sun Online: "Sometimes first class offers don’t sell as quickly as second class and can appear to be cheaper as offers sell out.
"Train ticket prices are hard to predict so it’s best to head to a split-ticketing website like ours that find all advance fares and multi-ticket options automatically.
"Customers can easily pick up all the tickets at once from the kiosk at the station, having saved money on an advance or last-minute purchase."
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A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group explained that the advance ticket discounts affect first class tickets too which is why some of them may be cheaper than the standard fares.
A Virgin Trains spokesperson said: “Our standard and first class advance fares are extremely popular because they offer customers great value for money."
The Sun Online contacted the train providers who run each leg of the journey.
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