LondonMidland / Virgin Trains combo

Thanks to LondonMidland's ParalympicsGB promotion, I was able to travel to London yesterday on the 0753 from Birmingham New Street First Class for the princely sum of £11.90 (Advance First Single with 34% discount). I wrote in August on the pros and cons of using LondonMidland and yesterday's journey was as good (and had the same weaknesses) as ever. As a way of getting to London before 1030 at a very cheap price, the 0753 cannot be beaten - just remember to take work or a good book!

The ParalympicsGB promotion runs until Sunday. Towards the end of October (20th - 4th November), LM are doing the Great Escape promotion once more: First Class Off-peak journeys for £25 using a voucher available from Monday.

Of course, one of the weaknesses of the LM service is the journey time, especially in the evening (who wants to sit on a train for over 2 hours after a long day?). Fortunately, Virgin Trains offers low-price First Class Advance fares on the 21.03 back to Birmingham from Euston. At £23.50, this fare is a veritable bargain compared to the ridiculous walk-on First Class fare of £92.70 (don't forget if you do walk-on to split the fare at Birmingham International), and, of course, offers so much more in addition to speed than LM's normal Advance First of £16 (free wifi, refreshments, First Class lounge).

Despite the low fare, First Class last night was virtually empty. Tim O'Toole is going to have his work cut-out to raise the patronage level of the WCML Pendolinos from the current 35% to his planned 50%...