Is there any price difference in buying VIA rail tickets online vs. at the station?

I'm considering a long distance journey by train in Canada this summer. I don't have a Canadian credit card yet and my financial institution's debit card is not supported for VIA Rail Interac Online payments. If I go to the station to buy a ticket (I assume I can pay by debit card there), will I pay significantly more compared to tickets available online, or is the price (nearly) the same?

Best Answer

I believe you will indirectly pay more, because you can't buy in advance. I just tried to book tickets online from Toronto to Montreal for tomorrow, and the cheapest price was $135 in economy. enter image description here

I switched to the first Thursday in June, and the cheapest price was $39 in economy, $89 in business.

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Looking further ahead did not make it cheaper. If you can get to a station and buy your ticket with cash a month in advance, I don't think you'll pay more. But if you want to walk up and buy it on the day, you will pay about 4 times as much for your ticket. As well, there may be even more discounts on some Escape fares that are available only on the web. The wording isn't clear, which isn't unique to Via - Air Canada used to sell some web-only fares that were impossible to change over the phone, but weren't labelled as such. I think you could get an explanation over the phone if you wanted to use a discount you see on the web but go into a station to do it.

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Is it cheaper to buy rail tickets on the day?

Is an Advance On The Day ticket cheapest on the day? An Advance On The Day ticket (when available) is cheaper than both the Off-Peak and Anytime tickets brought on the same day.

Is it cheaper to buy tickets on Trainline?

Train passengers may think they are saving money by booking their tickets through thetrainline.com, but the website admitted today that tickets are no cheaper than when booked directly through train operators' websites.

Do VIA Rail prices change?

Prices go up closer to the date of the departure. Unlike plane tickets, Viarail tickets do not usually go on sale. The best price is usually the advance price, and they get more expensive closer to departure, and the better prices often sell out.

Do train tickets get cheaper closer to departure?

Choose your date \u2013 most Advance tickets go on sale 12 weeks before the date of departure, so the earlier you book the cheaper your tickets could be.

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