Depending on where and when you wish to travel there are a wide variety of railway tickets available. There are set railway fares between any two railway stations in the Highlands and indeed Britain as a whole.
While this means you know in advance what your ticket will cost, it also means the selection of tickets (designed to take account of quiet periods) can be confusing.
However, with a little thought you can make easy sense of them and get the best possible value. As a general rule if you can be flexible with your travelling times, you will usually be able to get a better value fare.
There are essentially three types of ticket that you need to know about:
Anytime:
These are the most expensive tickets, but also the most flexible. You can break your journey, travel on any train or any train company. They are available as single or return options. With return tickets you must come back within one month.
Off Peak:
Peak rail fares were abolished on Scotrail services in September 2025, so there are no longer Off Peak tickets available for ScotRail services.
However, they are still available on the LNER service between Inverness and London Kings Cross, other operators in Scotland, and are still in place in the rest of the UK.
These tickets may require travel on a certain route or train company. They are available as single or returns, and the return journey must be used within one month.
However, the main difference is that you must travel on off peak services, usually these are after 09.30 Monday to Friday and are sometimes restricted in the evening peak time also.
A break of journey is usually possible. Both Anytime and Off Peak are refundable less an admin charge.
Advance:
These are the cheapest tickets but have the most restrictions. Breaks of journey are not allowed and you must travel on the specific trains booked in advance, otherwise you lose your ticket.
These fares are not refundable. They are also only usually available on longer journeys between bigger stations.
The above tickets will satisfy most visitors.
Essentially you have to decide whether you will book tickets in advance on specific trains and plan your journey precisely, using advance tickets, or whether you want to be more spontaneous and buy tickets as you need them either any time or off peak.
It is a trade off between being able to go as you please or saving money.
There is another type of ticket that will probably be in of interest to a lot of visitors These are called Rover or Ranger tickets.
These fares allow unlimited travel within a specified area and are ideal for touring.
They can be useful for budgeting (you know in advance how much you will spend on travel), should be cheaper than buying tickets on the day of travel, and allow complete flexibility in travel plans.
For those wishing to tour, these are the ideal option. There are also international versions called BritRail for overseas visitors.
First class tickets are flexible and usually allow travel on any train at any time with the return journey within one month. They are available for all the above ticket types.
Within the Highlands, first class is only available on the Highland Mainline and Jacobite services.
Railcards:
All standard class tickets can be used with a Railcard to gain discounts of around 30% and qualify for child discounts also which are usually 60% for those up to 15 years old and free places for under fives.
If travelling with a family, the Family and Friends Railcard allows further discounts for both the adult and child fares.
Railcards that would be useful to a visitor include the '2. Together' railcard that's for two people travelling together, family as already mentioned, young persons (or students of any age studying full time) and the senior railcard.
It is possible for overseas visitors to buy them either here at ticket office, or online and then pick them up when you arrive.
Kids for a Quid:
ScotRail have a Kids for a Quid scheme where up to four children can travel for just £1 return each with an adult.
Single tickets:
Also look into single tickets. There are many new bargain singles and they can often work out cheaper than a standard return.
Delay Repay:
A more unconventional way of saving money is 'delay repay'. If your train is delayed or cancelled, you may be entitled to some or all of your money back. See Compensation and Refunds for more details.
We have personally found that if you're making quite a few train journeys, normally enough of them will be delayed, late or cancelled that you can actually make quite a saving if you consider the overall cost of all your fares.
Don't use the train!
Another way to save money that rail companies will probably not tell you is don't use the train!
For some journeys such as long distance routes where there's an air travel alternative we have often found the plane to be cheaper.
For a visitor to the highlands this could mean in practise flying from London to Inverness and then using the train to get around while you're here.
We have also often found long distance coaches to be cheaper than train. A lot of people don't consider the coach because they imagine it's slow and uncomfortable.
We have found them to be fairly clean and comfortable. It should also be noted that in the Highlands trains are quite slow, so the coaches are very competitive in terms of journey times.
Within the UK, tickets can be purchased from any staffed rail station or rail appointed travel agent.
You don’t need to buy the ticket from the station you intend to travel from and purchasing in advance or on the day of travel are both possible.
It is also possible to buy your ticket online either from National Rail or various rail companies' web sites.
For the UK traveller the main thing to keep in mind is to buy your ticket as early as possible to get the best value fares. Also by deciding which trains you will travel on, you get the best fares. If you do need to be flexible, it will cost a little more.
For overseas visitors to Britain, tickets can be purchased before you leave from BritRail and their international representatives. This probably represents the best value fares for the overseas visitor.
Page last updated 23 September 2025