Wednesday, 12 October 2016

A funny thing happened on the way to York ...

Virgin Trains East Coast breakfast
I went to York a little while ago for a training course. It was well timed for arriving by train and when I went to book my tickets with Virgin Trains East Coast I was going to do as I often do, book First Class, but look up the standard fare and just claim that on expenses, but when I did all that I found that the First Class Advance fare was actually the cheapest available at the time I needed to travel! So that was what I both booked and claimed, and the included breakfast really was free ... and it was the new menu with better egg and a fresher feel to the whole thing.

Train home from York

For the way back I did have to pay a little more for First Class, but taking into account the included dinner with wine, the extra was well worth paying, quite apart from comfort, space and free wifi. I arrived at York station for my train home earlier than anticipated and had a while to wait for the booked train (with Advance fares I have to travel on a specific train, on which my seat is reserved) and looked in vain for a First Class Lounge, for in spite of York being Virgin Trains East Coast home city and having a famous great station there is no lounge. Plenty of seats on the platform, and that was where I awaited my train. The platforms at York are of enormous length and can easily take two inter-city train sets each, even the bay (terminal) platforms can take one full-length train. You do not feel cramped at York!

Dinner on the way back, a varying menu

And so home, with a change of train at Peterborough after dinner, an easy journey.

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