Savings On Train Tickets

2024 Author: Bailey Albertson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 12:53

8 ways to save on train tickets

Train tickets can now be bought not only at the box office, but also on the Internet, spending a minimum of time. Those who travel frequently are trying to save on travel documents and for this you can use the following tips.

Buy in advance

It is always more profitable to plan a trip in advance, as carriers often offer discounts on tickets, more often it concerns popular destinations. Russian Railways has a special pricing policy, which implies a gradual increase in ticket prices closer to the travel time and with a high occupancy rate. This does not apply to all trains and it is worthwhile to first study the background information on the company's website.

The tariff application depends on the day and time of the train departure, its category, distance. Company employees analyze the demand for tickets and periodically recalculate their cost.

When traveling to countries of the Near Abroad, such as Belarus, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Estonia, you can save up to 10 to 15% if you buy tickets early.

Seasonal odds

Seasonality also applies to rail transportation, so the company has a certain coefficient system. The price will be higher on holidays and pre-holidays, during the summer holidays.

Therefore, if there is an opportunity to go out of season, then you can save a lot.

Discounts and promotions from Russian Railways

To attract a stream of customers, carriers arrange various promotions. These can be discounts on the upper seats of compartment cars when buying a ticket 45 days in advance or earlier. They mostly spread to unloaded routes and are held out of season.

In winter and spring, you can buy travel documents to cities such as Kislovodsk, Anapa, Adler and others with a discount of 30 to 50%. On popular routes, for example Moscow - St. Petersburg, Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod, there are often promotions for day trains with seating.

In the autumn and spring months, you can save a lot by choosing seats in the last compartment of a reserved seat carriage. On some routes, special prices apply when buying tickets in both directions and on condition that the passenger travels to the final stop.

Benefits for pensioners and people with disabilities

People with disabilities can travel in specialized carriages that are equipped with a lifting mechanism and have widened openings. For them, there is a discount on travel - up to 50% of the cost of a full ticket.

The accompanying person has the right to travel in the same carriage and for the same money. Travel to the place of treatment for such categories of citizens is free.

The tariff applies to disabled persons of the 1st group and their escorts, participants of the Great Patriotic War, veterans of military operations, liquidators of the Chernobyl accident.

Children's tickets

For children, there are special fares and discounts on train travel. Schoolchildren over 10 years of age are entitled to a discount of up to 50% when traveling in shared and reserved seat carriages at any time except summer holidays.

Also, parents can take 1 child under 5 years old without a seat for free. For children from 5 to 10 years old, a special fare is offered - 35% of the cost of an adult ticket. When issuing a travel document for a child, it is necessary to confirm his age at the time of the trip.

Roadmap for "Sapsan"

Holders of business passes for the Sapsan trains have a number of discounts and bonuses. They pay a fixed cost of the ticket, regardless of the time and date of travel, as well as the category of the carriage.

They do not need to pay extra for reissuing a ticket and they can do it an unlimited number of times during the validity period of the pass. Bonuses are credited to such cards, which can later be used to buy tickets for long-distance trains.

Special bank cards

Russian Railways has an agreement with VTB-24 Bank for the issuance of salary and credit cards, which have a bonus system of discounts. Also, Cashback service is provided for these cards, which allows you to return part of the money spent.

When buying train tickets on the official website or in the app, the return percentage will be higher. Any passenger can apply for a bonus Russian Railways card and receive points on it for each trip.

The amount of the reward will depend on the travel distance, train and season. The accumulated points can be spent on a ticket to a compartment carriage in domestic traffic or to Sapsan.

Aggregators on the Internet

Tickets can be purchased not only on the carrier's official resource or at the box office, but also on third-party aggregator sites. They often offer a lower price or have tickets for trains for which there are no official seats.

It is worth choosing a seller carefully and not trusting too low a cost, since fraudsters can act under the guise of an aggregator.