

You’ll have to be quick though as the earlier you buy, the less you’ll pay, says Helen Wylde, Managing Director for Lumo. It was bigger than the ones you get on EasyJet, so there's a plus.While there is no first class, there will be USB sockets, tray tables and comfy headrestsĬalling at Stevenage, Morpeth and Newcastle, the journey takes just over four and a half hours, which makes it a speedy alternative to flying when factoring in lengthy airport waits and security checks.įares will remain low, say Lumo bosses, with tickets available for less than £20 until December 12 while 60 per cent of single fares will be available for under £30. Like LNER, the toilet cubicle was spacious but nothing new or special. I annoyingly waited in a queue behind three passengers before being able to empty my bladder. There were other companies such as Upper Crust and Pasty Shop also on offer.Īt some point I did have to use the train toilets, which in the past has always been a nasty experience. I was shocked to see that I could have ordered Marks & Spencer products right to my seat. Having been cost-efficient and brought my own lunch, I only browsed online to see what options were available. Moving onto the food, passengers can order from Lumo's food and beverage pre-order system.
Lumo train london to edinburgh tv#
It was not initially great to begin with, as I couldn't connect to my Spotify or even read WhatsApp messages.īut it offered passengers the chance to watch Hollywood movies and TV shows without having to download and stream, which helped pass the time nicely. The train journey was incredibly less than £20 for her to get home from London
Lumo train london to edinburgh free#
Like any British commuter, I immediately logged onto the Lumo free WIFI to save on my 4G. I was very lucky to have the person next to me swap to a different seat, so I had double room for a standard class seat. Once the doors opened, it was very much a scramble for your seat.

The bright colour of the train stood as a stark contrast to the grey, bleak surroundings of Kings Cross, and it was clearly a sign that Lumo wanted to save the planet.īoarding was quite chaotic as the train was completely sold out, which caused a lot of crowds gathering outside the train doors. On first impressions, the carriage was very, very, very blue. That's correct: a single journey cost me only £13.10.Īlready, this Lumo experience was off to a surprisingly excellent start.įast forward to my departure day, I was excited to finally try out something different from LNER, which I have continually used for years.Īt around 15 minutes before leaving, the platform number appeared for my Lumo train service to Edinburgh.Īlready I knew it was going to be a packed journey, as hundreds of passengers walked towards the same platform. I was staggered to see the total cost of a return journey amount to £26.20. Using an 18-25 discount railcard, I managed to get one third off the price. I decided to head home for a weekend at the start of November and immediately went onto the Lumo website to book my tickets a month in advance. It aims to compete with airlines on the London to Edinburgh route by offering low fares and a high-quality train service. The Lumo trains will sell ticket on the budget services for £30 to sixty per cent of their customers Labelled as an 'affordable' and 'green' option for travellers, the launch of Lumo coincided perfectly with the COP26 Climate Conference in Glasgow. So, when new train operator Lumo announced cheap journeys from London to Edinburgh, my air-travel weary body begged me to try. READ MORE: Edinburgh hospital to be converted into hotel, housing, swimming pool and school However, I was getting bored with these short-lived flights where I'd be sitting for hours in the airport beforehand and spending too much money on over-priced sandwiches. Lumo promise that 60 per cent of the tickets on their new low-cost trains will be sold for £30.Īlexandra was heading home from work at the start of this month and decided that would be the perfect time to take the plunge.Īs a Scot living in London, travelling from home to the capital city can be rather exhausting.įlying domestically from London to Edinburgh was often considered the easiest option in terms of cost, with a short flight time of 1 hour and 20 minutes. However, when train operator Lumo announced cheap journeys from London to Edinburgh, Alexandra thought she would give try out the new service. What's On Writer for our sister title My London, Alexandra Bullard, regularly travels between Edinburgh and London but usually takes a flight home to cut down on the time she is travelling. A Scottish journalist explains why she has decided to ditch expensive flights home to Edinburgh from London in favour of a budget train journey.
