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Manchester to York by train
How to take a rail journey from Manchester to York
When the usual TransPennine Express timetable is operating there will be two options available for taking a train from Manchester to Newcastle.
(1) The faster and more frequent services which use Manchester Victoria station
(2) A newer service of slightly slower train from Manchester Piccadilly station.
There is also typically a third hourly service which calls at Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Oxford Road stations, prior to departing from Manchester Victoria.
So this other service is obviously the best option if your journey will be commencing in the area around Oxford Road station.
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Routes
Option 1: From Manchester Victoria station to York
Journey Summary
1hr 18min
Daily
Travel Information
Final Destination: Newcastle or Redcar (or Saltburn) or Scarborough
All trains also call at: Huddersfield and Leeds
One of these hourly services, the trains heading to Redcar, commence their journeys in the station at Manchester Airport and after departure from Piccadilly station they also call at Manchester Oxford Road station
3 x trains per hour
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 in usual circumstances on this route 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 (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
The new and rather smart Nova 1 trains are usually used on the trains heading to Newcastle, the 185 trains are typically used on the departures heading for Redcar.
The trains on the Liverpool to Newcastle route often arrive in Victoria station more than 10mins before they are due to depart, so keep the departure time front of mind, if the train is already in the station when you arrive, you may not have to rush to board it.
The railway which takes the fastest route between Manchester and Leeds crosses The Pennines, so if the weather is playing along, there are inevitably some very nice views to be enjoyed from the train, particularly between Stalybridge and Huddersfield.
Option 2: From Manchester Piccadilly to York
Journey Summary
1hr 34min - 1hr 39min
Daily
Travel Information
Final Destination: Newcastle or Redcar (or Saltburn) or Scarborough
All trains also call at: Huddersfield and Leeds
2 x trains per hour
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 in usual circumstances on this route 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 (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 | * |
On this journey
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
TransPennine Express has introduced an additional new hourly service of trains from Manchester Piccadilly to York, they will be heading on to Newcastle or Scarborough.
These trains commence their journeys at Manchester Piccadilly, so they use the platforms in the station they are right by the main concourse. so offer easy step-free access to these trains.
Though they are slightly slower than the trains that depart from Manchester Victoria, because they make additional station calls between Manchester and Leeds.
Other trains, which will be header to Redcar or Saltburn, typically leave Manchester Piccadilly around 28min later, but they use platform 14 in the station, which is some distance from the main concourse.
They are also around five minutes slower.
Once these trains from Piccadilly station pass Stalybridge on the outskirts of Manchester they follow the same route to York.
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