I like going to the lake district without a vehicle, because i hate driving and i feel like im away from it all more if its just me and my tent, rather than me my tent and my work van. But this year i want to take my bike so can i take it on the train? Anybody with any expierience?

yes, but you have to avoid peak times, buy a ticket for it and reserve space on some (but not all) services.

best bet is to work out exactly what services you want to book and go to a ticket office to get it sorted.

you may end up with a number of tickets;

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/thank-you-virgin-rail-for-your-contribution-to-our-integrated-transport-policy

This guide is useful for details for different train companies: http://www.atob.org.uk/bike-rail/uk-bike-rail-restrictions/

Note you can book bike spaces online if you use the East Coast website (it should work for any train company). http://www.eastcoast.co.uk/

Buy a ticket for your bike?
I have traveled with and taken my bike on Virgin, Northern, Arriva, Cross Country, First Capital Connect, and Transpennine express and never had a problem where I had to buy a ticket for my bike or book in advance.
I just avoid peak times when I can (not always) and be polite to the train guards and other passengers.

I think every time I’ve traveled by train in England I have reserved, but I’ve done plenty of travel with no bike reservation in Scotland and got away with it. Equally though, I have been the cause of somebody getting asked to leave because the train was full and I had a reservation.

I frequently take my bike on trains with no problems – the only ones I’ve ever had problems with are Virgin – they often (although not always) insist on a bike reservation.

great info guys, is there a special bike rack or something? i proper suck with trains it once took me 5 1/2 hours to get to leeds from nottingham

anyone had their bike stolen from the train?

Not had any real bike problems in the past except once when the bike carriage was full. Never booked tickets and always avoid peak times which are normally an issue anyway.

Not stolen but a train nearly left the station before I was able to retrieve my bike. It was a weird one with a seperate cargo carriage instead of racks in the normal carriages.
Depending on the company there are different systems. Some have a luggage rack that you can tie your bike to, some have little cubicle things, some just use the wheel chair area. usually there is a bike symbol on the carriage where you can put your bike.

As has been said above massive variation between train operating companies and even guards and routes. My two local TOC’s are generally brilliant for taking a bike on regional routes even at rush hour. The other night coming home there were 6 bikes in the 2 bikes only area and 2 or 3 more in most carriages.

Guard muttered something about not really allowed so many and then evicted the people sitting on the cycle storage (there were lots of other seats free) to make sure we had room and stopped for a chat!

I won’t name the TOC’s in case their management have a change of heart!

Sorry OP not much direct use.

Yup, no problem. Trained it from Euston to Oxenholme and then a different operator from Oxenholme to Windermere. Had to book a bike reservation with virgin for the first leg(free – just had to make booking at the station ticket office), and just turned up for the second leg (First TransPennine, again free). Bike fully assembled, no issues.

I use the train all the time. Often visit the Lakes for the day from Hull. The Lakes are not that accessible by train. Windermere is the best bet. You can also get in from the Cumbrian Coast and Penrith.

Bike carriage on all trains is free, but you must reserve on some. On most local trains there is no reservation facility. There are some restrictions mainly in the London Area on the carriage of bikes at peak times. Your profile tells me you are from Nottingham. That would involve an East Midlands train to Sheffield or Manchester and then Transpennine Express to Windermere, most changing at Oxenholme as well. Neither of these companies require bike reservations, but space is limited so it would be advisable.

If you book on line East Coast is the only company that offer bike reservation. You can book any tickets on their site. For short journeys you can buy day returns. If you are staying away advanced purchase is your best option. Be aware that if you break your journey down into parts you can often get better fares than booking it as one through journey.

Hope that helps

Travel to/from London all the time outside peak hours. Didn’t book it on the trains for my recent LEJOG, but there were guards vans on the London-Penzance and Inverness-London trains. Mind, they weren’t Virgin, so might be tougher.

IIRC a few years ago getting a bike on the West Coast mainline it should have been booked, but I never used to bother. Just avoided peak times as others have already suggested.

Sound advice from you all,especially as I’m going to windermere, cant wait.