Related Content
Content
Manchester to Penrith by train
How to take the rail journey Manchester to the North Lakes area of The Lake District
A day trip by train from Manchester to The Lake District is easily done, and this is the way to come if you want to holiday in Cockermouth, Kewsick and Ullswater
Share
Routes
From Manchester to Penrith by train
Journey Summary
1hr45min - 1hr 51min
Daily
Travel Information
Final Destination Edinburgh or Glasgow
Most of these trains also call at Oxenholme - Lake District
These trains commence their journeys in the station at Manchester Airport and after departure from Piccadilly station they also call at Manchester Oxford Road station
If you can book ahead of travel, so will have reserved seats, and Oxford Road has convenient access from the starting point of your journey, boarding the train there can be a a good option.
At Manchester Piccadilly the access to these trains is more convoluted, as they depart from the platform/track which is furthest from the entrance to the station.
Monday to Friday: =10 x trains per day
Saturday: = 11 x trains
Saturday = 5 x trains
Tickets
Book Early and Save: Yes
Online Bookings Usually Open: from up to 24 weeks ahead of the travel date (usually); TransPennnine Express (TPE) places its ticket on sale sooner than other UK train operating companies.
Saving money:
If you want to travel at the cheapest possible price, look for the 'Advance tickets', though the four key things worth knowing about booking and using 'Advance' tickets for travel by TPE services are:
(1) The ticket(s) will be valid for the specific departure you select when making a booking.
(2) The ticket(s) cannot either be refunded, if you subsequently change your plans or miss the train due to any circumstances not attributable to the train operator.
(3) They can be exchanged to another departure on this route prior to the departure you have booked - but the price difference with the new ticket will need to be paid (the price will likely have risen since your original booking will need to be paid.
(4) TPE doesn't take Advance tickets off sale until 15 mins prior to departure.
Reservations:
All types of ticket booked at least 15 minutes ahead of travel for TPE trains have complimentary seat reservation.
If you book and Advance ticket(s) you have to travel on the train shown on the reservation, which will be the specific departure you selected when making a booking.
Though on boarding, you won't have to occupy the seat(s) you have been assigned for your ticket to be valid.
If you book Anytime or Off-Peak tickets you will be provided with a reservation(s) on the departure you selected when making a booking, but are able to transfer the reservation to any other valid departure on your travel date.
You can do this by contacting the TPE social media team, or at a station ticket desk.
What is unusual about travelling with TPE is that these reservations can be arranged up to around 15 minutes prior to departure - which is a much shorter time limit than the norm.
Travelling on Saturday-Sunday
Tickets are usually available 12 weeks ahead of the travel date, but maintenance work on the route is periodically undertaken 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 12 weeks ahead and 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 National Rail website - enter TransPennine Express as the operator.
Booking at the station
As TPE doesn't take Advance tickets off sale until 15 mins prior to departure, if you will be booking walk-up tickets at the station try to avoid booking at the last minute.
Offers and deals:
TPE offers a group deal for when groups of 3 - 9 adults are travelling together and Advance tickets are booked online - make sure you see the 'G' symbol which indicates that the discount has been applied.
You can save 33% of the total costs of the tickets and no Railcard is required.
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| TPE | * | |
| National Rail | * |
On this journey
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
For an easy and glorious day trip from the Manchester to The Lake District by train:
- Take train to Penrith which typically departs Piccadilly station at 09:23 or 09:26
- Take the 508 bus on its glorious journey to Bowness-on-Windermere
- You'll have time to take a lake cruise; head across Lake Windermere to take a ride on The Lakeside Railway
- Take the trains to Manchester which usually depart Windermere between 18:55 and 19:05
After departure from Lancaster the railway passes through a glorious landscape for the remainder of the journey.
Around five minutes north of Lancaster, the West Coast Main Line, briefly lives up to its name with a fleeting glimpse of Morecambe Bay, the only sea view on the journey.
Between Lancaster and Carlisle the railway takes a route between The Lake District to the west and the Pennines to the east - so there are great views to be enjoyed from both sides of the train towards distant mountains.
Approximately 10 minutes north of Oxenholme comes one of the highlights of the journey when the railway travels through the Lune Gorge - though here the best views are from the right (when facing the direction of travel).
A beautiful landmark to look out for on the right, just before the train enters the gorge, is the spectacular sight of Low Gill Viaduct, on a now abandoned railway.
This second version of ShowMeTheJourney is exciting and new, so we are genuinely thrilled that you are here and reading this, but we also need your help.
We’re striving not to let anything get in the way of providing the most useful service possible, hence a facility has been set up with DonorBox which can be used to support the running costs and make improvements.
Instead of advertising or paywalls, your financial support will make a positive difference to delivering an enhanced service, as there’s a lot of ideas which we want to make happen.
So if you have found the info provided here to be useful, please consider saying thank you.
See if there’s a unique journey guide for your trip, featuring info on the trains, tickets & stations.
This is one of more than 100 train travel guides available on ShowMeTheJourney, which will make it easier to take the train journeys you want or need to make. As always, all images were captured on trips taken by ShowMeTheJourney.
