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Last minute train tickets can be eye-wateringly expensive and getting the coach instead can be a cheap and surprisingly pleasant alternative. If you’re travelling in the next week you might want to take a look at the £1.00 National Express coach tickets for travel to/from London.

To grab the cheap tickets you need to travel by 8th December between London and the following cities (either direction):

• Leeds
• Leicester
• Manchester
• Norwich
• Nottingham
• Sheffield

National Express runs regular sales like this and is well worth keeping an eye on (particularly for last minute travel), as is Megabus. In fact, while writing this post I’ve just discovered that until a few days ago you could have got free tickets and saved that extra £1 (doh!).

Even without these big sales, £5-10 tickets are often available when the train prices are well over £50+.

Coach travel might not be glamorous (you can always Bring Your Own Krug – BYOK!), but in recent years it does seem to have got better and on some routes now I’d actually choose the coach over the train, regardless of price.

Free onboard WiFi is becoming more prevalent too, and the introduction of the VUER entertainment system (in partnership with Now TV) should help make even the longest coach journeys more tolerable.

Conclusion

These are great fares if you need to travel on these routes and dates, and I really do think that coach travel is a bit underrated these days!

Terms:

• For purchase online only between 31 October 2016 to 8 December 2016, or until all £1 fares have run out
• Subject to availability for travel between 31 October 2016 and 8 December 2016
• A £1 booking fee for each transaction will be added during the booking process
• Not valid in conjunction with any other discount, promotion or Coachcard
• Not available on events or third party operated services
• Tickets are non-refundable
• Tickets are issued and all customers are carried subject to National Express’ General Conditions of Carriage, available online and at all National Express outlets

* journey time based on fastest journey between Leicester and London Victoria Coach station.