Railways are considered to be the lifeline of our nation. It is the fulcrum of connection between people of varied regions, communities and cultures within the country. It is through trains that people from all sections of the society get to reach out to their near and dear ones who dwell in a different state or region.
Unlike, other modes of transport, railways are meant for comparatively longer travel distances and hence people often tend to save a little from their railway expenses since they usually have to opt for an additional medium of transport such as a cab or an auto for landing on to their desired destination from the railway station.
Moreover, with the implementation of additional hike in railway ticket fares, it has become an alarming problem for particularly the weaker sections to afford travelling through trains. Also, with the increased availability of trains with modern and classy amenities, people find it difficult to make up their minds upon booking tickets for such trains as it seems to be tempting as well as highly overpriced at the same time.
In addition, those unplanned and sudden railway journeys require instant bookings which cost double the value and contribute adding to your woes.
However, in true sense, we are literally helpless in this matter. But a little prior effort from our part may help in diminishing this problem to a considerable extent. Want to learn those tips? Well, here are some easy and familiar tips on how to make train journeys cheaper.
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Early Booking
This is one of the best and safest way if you really wish to make some cost cutting on your upcoming train journey.
Cheaper train tickets are being released normally around 12 weeks prior to the journey as the timetable for any specific day is usually confirmed 12 weeks in advance. Hence, this is the perfect time to book your tickets so as to avoid the last minute rush as well as higher ticket rates.
In some cases, it might not be possible to book tickets 12 weeks in advance. In such a condition, train operators would offer the range of discounted advance tickets from a later date. All you need is to regularly keep an eye on it, but keeping sufficient number of days in hand prior to the journey date.
So, if you are well aware of your journey dates beforehand, then it’s always better to check for the ticket availability and prices at the earliest. It would definitely be a very silly idea to wait unnecessarily, as the longer you wait, the higher the fares would be.
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Flexibility in travel plans
It’s always better not to be so rigid in planning your travel dates. A little change in plans according to the ticket availability would not cause any harm, instead it can provide you a cheaper and fruitful journey ahead.
So you should consider searching for cheaper trains on different dates and times, without sticking to a particular one. This little flexibility would prove to be a great decision for your journey.
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Checking alternative routes
It is surely a smarter job to check on alternative travel routes to the desired destination as, a lot of times it has been observed that cheaper train tickets are available on different routes, or where on board service is less extensive. This is so because of the ongoing healthy competition between the railway ticket operators on various routes.
So, you must have a look at all possible railway routes for any targeted destination and search for availability of tickets for each of them and finally opt for the cheapest and convenient one.
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Avoiding peak hours
This is another way to prevent rising ticket fares. You must avoid travelling at the peak hours unless it is too urgent since train operators find it advantageous on their part to reduce the cheap train ticket quota in the busiest hours.
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Avoiding weekends
Weekends have always been the most popular and ideal time for travelling since people tend to enjoy their day offs at the end of a tiring week. However, this may prove to be a bit taxing as the operators tend to grab the opportunity by pushing up the ticket prices.
Hence, if you drop your travelling plan on weekends, you may be an exceptional one but also the smartest amongst all.
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Getting yourself a rail card
This is another good way to make good savings from your railway expenses. However, it comes with certain criteria that may not be applicable for all. Hence, you need to check your eligibility for a rail card and get it in advance of your railway journey for pronounced benefits on ticket prices.
CONCLUSION
All these little things can be really helpful for you and can help reduce your incessant complaints about your unnecessary spilling of money on railway transactions. It is important to understand that saving money is a mingled thread of your knowledge and its proper application.
Now you can make your train journey more convenient by checking PNR Status live online before starting your journey.