London to Harwich Normal Schedule on Sunday

[flutepilot]

We are planning on the Infinity T/A cruise leaving on October 13. We would like to stay in Harwich on Sunday night to make things easier. What is the normal Sunday schedule for London to Harwich on the train?

 

Dan & Audrey

[turnip eater]

Perhaps this would be better on the Ports of call forum, under Britain. John Bull posts on there and he is a mine of information.

 

 

However Sundays is the day when any engineering work takes place on the railways......and you may end up on a replacement bus service. I'll check and see if anything is planned.

 

Where are you planning to stay in Harwich?

[John Bull]

It's very broadly an hourly service, current fare £31.20.

http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/

 

Your date is not yet available, so for planning purposes pick any sunday up to the end of July. Double-check nearer the time, but timetables don't change a lot.

 

Your departure point is London, Liverpool Street station. NB Not "Liverpool station", which is about 200 miles away.

For the ship your destination is Harwich International, for a hotel it may be Harwich Town but it's the same trains, same times, same fare, just one station further (and it's the end of the line).

The journey involves one change, at Manningtree (the cruise specials are direct). You have to change platforms - there's no elevator so you need to go down one flight of stairs, under the tracks, & up to the next platform. No problem unless you have physical difficulties - or twelve tons of luggage. ;)

The trains from Manningtree are generally timetabled to connect with the trains from London, don't worry too much if the timetable only gives a couple or three minutes grace - if the inbound train is a few minutes late, the outbound train will wait.

 

Be aware that planned engineering work to the track is usually done on sundays, by far the quietest day of the week. So although it's unlikely, it's not unusual for there to be a break in the service between a couple of stations, with shuttlebuses ferrying passengers between the affected stations. Generally only causes a short delay & I'm guessing you have no deadline, and there will be help for your luggage if needed.

 

Harwich is a very quiet little town, with not a lot to see or do.

But CC members seem to have been happy to overnite there.

 

JB :)

[John Bull]

Perhaps this would be better on the Ports of call forum, under Britain. John Bull posts on there and he is a mine of information.

 

 

However Sundays is the day when any engineering work takes place on the railways......and you may end up on a replacement bus service. I'll check and see if anything is planned.

 

Where are you planning to stay in Harwich?

 

Just checked, my vegetarian yokel friend ;)

It's too early to know about engineering work in October - but info will appear on that web-page.

 

And yes, I agree. It tends to be only Brits who look in here occasionally. You'll find a wider audience on that Britain/Western Europe board,

 

JB :)

Edited May 7, 2014 by John Bull

[Twickenham]

We would like to stay in Harwich on Sunday night to make things easier.

 

I'm not sure staying overnight in Harwich would achieve your aim. The train from London arrives right at the cruise port, plus any Sunday train would have the change at Manningtree, whereas you have the option of taking the direct cruise train on departure day. Add the aforementioned possible engineering works, and staying the night in London may end up being the easiest option.

[turnip eater]

http://www.abelliogreateranglia.co.uk/travel-information/journey-planning/service-alterations/details?ew_id=1038

 

Is this info any use for you,Flutepilot. It's a list of cruise trains operating. When it arrives at Harwich International, you couldn't be nearer to the ship.:D

[turnip eater]

Just checked, my vegetarian yokel friend ;)

It's too early to know about engineering work in October - but info will appear on that web-page.

 

And yes, I agree. It tends to be only Brits who look in here occasionally. You'll find a wider audience on that Britain/Western Europe board,

 

JB :)

 

 

Oy...less of the yokel!:D

[flutepilot]

We had already booked a hotel in Harwich, and we will leave the hotel relatively early in the day on Monday. Neither of us likes to be hurried at the last minute. It sounds like many are doing this, as we got the last room at this rate and two others were already booked solid. The hotel is the Hotel Continental, which is apparently a short walk to the cruise port. It was quite inexpensive (for UK) and got quite good reviews on TripAdvisor. Probably much less than an extra night in London.

 

We will get Senior rail passes which will get us from Heathrow to London and London to Harwich Town for less than the ticket to Harwich alone.

 

Getting the actual Sunday schedule helped a lot. Thanks much! We will keep tabs on things when the date comes closer.

 

CC is a great resource that everybody planning a cruise should use.

 

Dan

[John Bull]

We had already booked a hotel in Harwich, and we will leave the hotel relatively early in the day on Monday. Neither of us likes to be hurried at the last minute. It sounds like many are doing this, as we got the last room at this rate and two others were already booked solid. The hotel is the Hotel Continental, which is apparently a short walk to the cruise port. It was quite inexpensive (for UK) and got quite good reviews on TripAdvisor. Probably much less than an extra night in London.

 

We will get Senior rail passes which will get us from Heathrow to London and London to Harwich Town for less than the ticket to Harwich alone.

 

Getting the actual Sunday schedule helped a lot. Thanks much! We will keep tabs on things when the date comes closer.

 

CC is a great resource that everybody planning a cruise should use.

 

Dan

 

Hi Dan,

 

I'm no expert on the overly-complicated ticketing systems on Britain's railways, but I wonder whether you may have misunderstood how a Senior's Rail Card works.

It's not a "pass", it doesn't give you free use of the trains. It's effectively a discount card. You buy the card for £30, and that card gives you about a third off regular rail fares for a year.

Broadly-speaking, if over the course of a year you plan to buy tickets costing a total of about £100 each then Senior's Railcards are worth the outlay.

 

For example, without a RailCard going to Harwich ten times within a year costs a person 10x£30.20 = £302.

With a rail Card it costs 10x£20.60 = £206. Plus £30 for the card, total cost £236, a saving of £66.

 

But for your one journey that card, costing £30, will bring discounts of just £9.40 on the train to Harwich and £7.14 on the Heathrow Express. So you'll be £13.46 worse off by buying a Seniors Rail Card.

 

And just to add to your confusion, you could alternatively buy a "Two-Together" Rail Card - which also gives discounts of about a third on journeys that the same two people take together.

Also valid for a year.

That card also costs £30 but only one card is needed for the two named people.

And is available to anyone over 16.

But for your journey the net saving with a TwoTogether Rail Card is just £3 - and that's if the TwoTogether Rail Card is valid on the Heathrow Express, which it may not be.

 

http://www.railcard.co.uk/

 

JB :)

[turnip eater]

If you are staying at the Hotel Continental , Dovercourt, Harwich, it's almost a 2 mile walk to the Port. Quite a walk with baggage.

[turnip eater]

Plus there are 3 stations in 'Harwich'

 

Dovercourt,

Harwich Town,

Harwich International(cruise terminal) previously know as Harwich Parkstone Quay.....sometimes still is!

 

Also, have you seen the photos of The Hotel Continental, the rooms are small....even by 'our' standards.