How to take the rail journey from Glasgow to London

Final Destination: London Euston

All trains also call at: Carlisle and Lancaster and Preston

Some trains also call at: Motherwell and Penrith-North Lakes or Oxenholme - The Lake District

On Board These Trains:

More information is available by clicking the 'Train Guide', but the key things worth knowing when taking the Pendolino trains used on this route, are:

(1) These trains achieve their high end-to-end journey speed by tilting around curves in the railway line.
So if you are prone to motion sickness, taking preventative medication prior to boarding can be a good step to take.

(2) Also once the train has commenced its journey, if you have a seat reservation, you don't have to spend the duration of the train ride in the seat(s) you have been assigned, for your ticket to be valid.
If for any reason you want to move seats and the train isn't exceptionally busy, check whether alternative seats haven't been reserved during your journey - and if that is the case, you can transfer to them.

(3) Coach C on these Pendolino trains is usually set aside for travellers without reservations and this coach can often be less busy than the other coaches on the train.

The alternative overnight trains:

Travel by these daytime trains and you won't arrive in London until after 11:30, but the overnight train is scheduled to arrive in the capital just after 07:00.

The overall journey time will be around three hours longer, but you will be travelling on Europe's newest overnight train.

Book Early and Save: Yes

Tickets Available From: 24* weeks ahead for travel on Mon-Fri; up to 12 weeks ahead for weekend travel.
*This booking ahead period is longer than that offered by the majority of British train operators.

If you want to travel at the cheapest possible price, look for the 'Advance' tickets - though be aware that this type of ticket can't be refunded if you subsequently change your travel plans.

Though something to be aware of when booking tickets, particularly for journeys by Avanti West Coast with its extended booking periods, is that the more expensive Off Peak and Anytime type of tickets can be placed on sale before the Advance tickets will be available.
If that is the case, it won't mean that the 'Advance' tickets have sold out, instead you won't see them, because they haven't have been placed on sale yet.

Though you won't typically have to book months in advance to obtain the cheapest possible price for a London to Glasgow train journey, particularly if you won't be travelling at business hours.

Choosing a Departure:

There are likely to be significant differences in prices between departures on your travel date, it's often possible to save more than £30 by taking an earlier or later train.
When heading south, the trains which depart Glasgow in the middle of the day tend to be cheaper.

If you can be flexible with your travel times and dates, it's a good idea to use the Best Fare Finder service on the Avanti West Coast website.

The potential to save by splitting tickets on Trainline

It can be worth looking up this journey on Trainline.

It can be possible to save money by using split ticketing, with the booking process being no more complicated than booking conventional tickets - find out more.

Travelling on Saturday-Sunday

Maintenance work on the railway is periodically undertaken, particularly at weekends and if it is scheduled on your travel date, it can affect when tickets will be released for sale.

If you're looking up a journey less than around 10 - 12 weeks ahead and the cheaper 'Advance' tickets aren't available, it can be a good indication that works will be impacting on your travel date.
It can be worth checking this on the Avanti West Coast website.

Making an end-to-end journey will still be possible, though you MAY ultimately have to take a substitution bus service for part of the trip.
It's the confirmation of these alternative travel arrangements which can hold up the release of the tickets for sale.

Reservations:

When you book an Advance ticket for a London to Glasgow journey by Avanti West Coast trains journey online, you will be automatically assigned a seat(s) - because you will have to travel by that specific departure.

Because Off-Peak and Anytime tickets (usually) allow the freedom to choose between departures, you can request complimentary reservations when booking these tickets - find out more about this.

However, if you buy Off Peak or Anytime tickets just prior to boarding at the station, seat reservations won't be available; though Avanti West Coast now Advance tickets off sale only an hour prior to departure.

Receiving Your Ticket(s)

If you book with Avanti West Coast, you will have up to four options for receiving and using your ticket(s) are:

(1) Using e-tickets:
Book a ticket online and you will receive an e-ticket attached to your confirmation email, which you can print off or download to your mobile device..

(2) Using m-tickets:
If you book using the Avanti West Coast trains app, you can activate your ticket within the app

(3) Collecting from the 'Fast-Track' ticket machines at the station.
You will receive a booking reference number on your order confirmation email and you can use this reference number to collect ticket(s) from a 'Fast-Track' ticket machine.
You will need to enter your reference number into the machine, so make sure you'll have easy access to it when you are using the machine.
You will also need to insert the specific credit or debit card you used when making the booking, so have that with you too.

(4) Opt to pay an additional charge to have your tickets posted to you.

More information is available here.

Final Destination: London Euston

The train also call at: Watford Junction
The daytime trains from Glasgow do not call at this station where connections are available into a train which serves multiple destinations in West London including Shepherd's Bush, Kensington Olympia, West Brompton (connect for Earl's Court) and Clapham Junction.

On Board - summary:

More information is available by clicking the 'train guide, but if you make this journey you will be travelling on Europe's most modern overnight trains.
You can opt to choose from three different types of sleeping cabin, one of which offers the opportunity to travel in a double bed, OR you can travel in reclining seats.

Unusually for UK train tickets, you can book journeys on the Caledonian Sleeper up to twelve months ahead.
If you want a full choice of accommodation in the summer months or around holiday times, it's best to book at least a month in advance.

When making a journey by these Caledonian Sleeper trains, you can choose from three types of sleeping cabin, or you can opt to travel in reclining seats - If you want to travel in the reclining seats, you will in effect only be paying the journey costs.

In common with how tickets are sold to travel in sleeping cabins on other European night train services, there are two elements to the total cost of the sleeping cabin ticket price;

• the cost of making the journey, and
• the accommodation costs of travelling in the cabin.

On these Caledonian Sleeper trains the sleeping cabins have a fixed price, so how the total costs are calculated is dependent on how the sleeping cabins will be occupied.

If you will be making an individual booking you will have sole occupancy of a Club Room or Classic Room - booking a Caledonian Double isn't an option for solo travellers.
Although the total cost per person is more expensive if you will be travelling individually, because if you travel solo you pay the cost for the Club Room or Classic Room, plus a cost for making the journey.
But two people travelling together pay the same charge for the Club Room and Classic rooms, and the additional cost comes from having to purchase two journey tickets.

Paying a higher price for single occupancy of a sleeping cabin is the norm on European night trains, but this particular pricing methodology makes the sleeping cabins on a Caledonian Sleeper service, a comparatively expensive option for solo travellers.

Travelling as a family group:

The costs of adults and children travelling together will be calculated during the booking process - here is the relevant information.

Using Rail Passes:

If you will be using a valid rail pass you can travel in a reclining seat at no additional charge, but you must reserve a place prior to boarding, by calling the Guest Service Centre on 0330 060 0500.

If you want to travel in a bed in a Club Room sleeping cabin, you need to pay a 'Room only supplement' of £170 if you will be travelling solo, or £200 if two people will be travelling together.
If you want to travel in a Classic Room sleeping cabin, the supplement is £120 for solo travellers and £140 if two people are travelling together.

These 'Room only supplements' can be booked online.

Final Destination:
London King's Cross
Note that the Avanti West Coast services arrive at a different station, London Euston

King's Cross is across the street from St Pancras International station for an easy transfer to Eurostar departures.
Unlike Euston station, King's Cross offers transfer to Thameslink trains and the Piccadilly line of the London Underground.

Lumo is a relatively new rail operator which offers a more-basic alternative to travelling on LNER's trains.
If you want to travel in Standard Class and...

• are happy to take your own food/drink on board with you
• want access to WiFi during the journey
• won't be travelling with more than one medium suitcase per person
• won't be taking a bike
• and aren't that bothered by seeing the view from the windows (comparatively few of the seats on Lumo trains line up well with the windows)
  ...then travelling with Lumo can be good option

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings usually open 24 weeks ahead of the travel date.

Lumo only offers two types of tickets for sale: Anytime and Lumo Fixed, which are its equivalent of discounted Advance tickets.
The prices of Lumo Fixed tickets will be cheaper the further ahead that they are booked and in common with Advance tickets they are departure specific, so include complimentary seat reservations.
They can be changed right up to the time of departure for any future without any admin fees, though any price difference to travel by the different departure will be payable.