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Unread 06-09-2008, 19:43   #1
insidiari
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Question Confusion: Can I get to Ennis with a Limerick ticket?

Dear all,

First of all, this website is fantastic.

I read the sections entitled "Intercity Tickets are valid for more than the printed destination!" and "Break of journey is allowed on Intercity tickets" hoping to find an answer to my question but I'm afraid I'll have to impose my ignorance on you here.

I bought (online) a return Dublin-Limerick ticket and subsequently realized I should have bought a Dublin-Ennis return ticket. Both tickets are exactly the same price.

Is it possible to buy an "extension" ticket in this case? Shouldn't this be free since the ticket price is the same?

If not, how much is a separate ticket between Limerick and Ennis? Since there is absolutely to sign of fare information for this journey on the website.

I'm posting this generally rather than in the Dublin-Limerick forum as it is really more an intercity ticketing question than one related specifically to that line.

Many thanks,
joanne
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Unread 06-09-2008, 20:15   #2
Mark Gleeson
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Sadly no clear answer, tickets sold online do not fall under the intercity extension scheme as they are not 'ordinary tickets' and are issued subject to totally different terms and conditions. If you paid the full standard fare of 52.50 online then things might be different. Normally with reserved tickets you have selected your journey on specific trains so the extension option never comes into play.

The intercity extension ticket is priced on the basis of the difference in price between the ticket you have and the ticket you need. If you book online a return could be only 26 euro but the normal face value of Dublin Ennis return is 52.50. The whole intercity extension ticket is a very grey area unknown to many ticket checkers and booking office staff.

Despite the same price you must have a ticket valid for the destination of your journey, traveling beyond the destination on your ticket even if the price is the same is an offense.

If you opted to collect the tickets at the station and have not collected them yet, you could ring Irish Rail at the number given with the booking confirmation email and they may be able to change the ticket there and then at no cost.

Day return Limerick Ennis is 10.80, or 15.70 monthly return. And can be issued by any booking office or intercity on train ticket checker. Whatever you do sort it out before leaving Heuston to avoid missing a train later. Sadly our fares calculator can't cope with the really weird fare structures in the Limerick area (Dublin Ennis should be 56.00 euro by the book).

Given the total grey area with the extension ticket it all depends on the staff you meet on the day. However if you get an extension ticket any further members of staff will not challenge its validity

Last edited by Mark Gleeson : 06-09-2008 at 20:21.
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Unread 06-09-2008, 20:51   #3
insidiari
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Thanks for your reply.

I think for the sake of an easy journey on the day (it's for a friend's wedding so I'm going to put prompt and presentable arrival over value for money) I think the best option is to cancel my reservation (even only with an 80% refund) and start from scratch.

In searching for the best alternative booking, however, I have come across something odd. My original booking was 2 return tickets at 26 euros each from Heuston to Limerick. Tickets for Heuston-Ennis were exactly the same price. But, when I tried to implement a gem of info I found on your site by booking from the "Dublin City Centre" instead of Heuston the price jumped to 42.60 per adult. In all respects the journeys are identical apart from the bus/luas connection to Heuston.

It seems it's worth comparing the price of your ticket with and without bus/luas in case they're charging you an extra 16.60 per person for a 5 minute connection.
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Unread 06-09-2008, 21:19   #4
Mark Gleeson
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The best thing is to ring them and see if the booking can be changed, thats the best option. If you cancel don't bet on a quick refund

From Dublin City Centre the fare should be 28.60 anything else is wrong if the fare from Heuston was 26.00. You have a case for 100% refund not the 80% crap if you booked that option

There is a problem with Irish Rail and the Luas add on, sometimes its calculated correctly sometimes not, we do check up on it and they have fixed a large number of the problems. In fact I think I was the (or one of the) first to ever book a ticket to Dublin City Centre, we got a tip off from inside IE that it was going to be possible
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Unread 06-09-2008, 21:37   #5
insidiari
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Thanks for all your advice.

I'll be on to them first thing in the morning (well...10am anyway) and try to stick to my guns as far as changing my booking. I'll post back about how I get on.

I shall not attempt to book irish rail again without consulting your website!

Thanks again,
joanne
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Unread 06-09-2008, 22:14   #6
Thomas Ralph
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Are tickets booked online to Dublin City Centre [a] readable by BÁC ticket readers [b] marked IFS or Luas?
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