Travel From Uk To Parthenay By Train

[horseshoes]

Buenchico, please help. I'm not a seasoned traveller AT ALL. I've only ever been on the Eurostar to Lille, once. Please can you tell me, a rough idea of a route and cost to get from UK to Parthenay. Thank you.

[Buenchico]

Parthenay railway station closed down many years ago. However there's a bus service from Poitiers that's integrated into the rail system. (i.e. you can book through tickets to Parthenay, inclusive of the bus fare). Total journey times from St Pancras International are in the order of 6½ to 7 hours, with fares typically around a hundred quid in each direction.

e.g. based upon a random choice of date (15 June), the following is one possibility. (There are other options available as well):

Depart St Pancras International 1131
Arrive Paris Nord 1456

Take Metro line 4 to Montparnasse Bienvenue and follow the signs to the main Paris Montparnasse station.

Depart Paris Montparnasse 1604
Arrive Poitiers 1740

Depart Poiters (bus from the rail station) 1810
Arrive Parthenay 1905

Journey time 6h 34m
Single fare: £99

You can get times and fares here:
https://uk.voyages-sncf.com/en/#/

[Buenchico]

PS: Although the bus fare to Parthenay is included in the £99 I've quoted, you'll have to buy a separate ticket for the cross-Paris Metro journey.

[horseshoes]

Oh thank you Chris. I don't know about the train station closing:-( The worst part of this, is that it will cost is just as much to actually get to London! I just CAN'T bring myself to get on a plane again and it's not fair on OH to drive all the way there. Thanks again.

[jno]

there are buses and trains in the UK, after all - the buses are usually rather cheaper but you can sometimes get bargains by booking train tickets in advance.

[horseshoes]

Yes thanks jno, that's a thought too. Also, note to self, get a railcard!

[Buenchico]

Thanks for your post, Horseshoes.

I've got two suggestions for reducing your UK rail costs:

1. As Jno points out, you can often get (relatively) cheap 'Advance' rail tickets. On my sample date of 15 June, you can get from Bangor to London Euston, on a direct service, for £89.00 (leaving at 0618, arriving 0941). You'd then just need to use a contactless debit card to pay for the one-stop journey, on the Northern Line, to St Pancras International. (Alternatively you could take a taxi or, if you're fit, walk it. Euston is only just down the road from St Pancras). Search here for cheap fares:
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/

2. (Quite possibly better). The Eurostar rail site allows you to book through fares from principal UK rail stations to major stations in France. (i.e. you can book from Bangor to Poitiers and then just pay for the bus for the last bit). On my sample date you can leave Bangor at 0618 and arrive in Poitiers at 1740 (combining the information I've provided across two posts here) for a total of £127.90
http://www.eurostar.com/uk-en
You can still book the last section (by bus), on my SNCF link above, for a tenner. So that gets you from Bangor to Parthenay for a total of £137.90 (plus your London Underground & Paris Metro travel).

Remember that you need to book early to get the cheapest fares though!

[Buenchico]

Crossed posts!

A Senior Railcard would reduce the £89.00 fare I've quoted above by 34%, down to £58.75. It's not valid on the Eurostar website but (on my sample date, anyway) booking directly with Eurostar still seems to be your cheapest option.

[horseshoes]

Thanks Chris, your info has been invaluable.