Travel often with children? Buy the Friends & Family railcard to save 1/3 off travel.
- Up to four adults and four children can travel on one card.
- Save 1/3 off most rail fares across Great Britain, children get 60% off
- At least 1 railcard holder must travel with a child*
- Not valid for most journeys fully inside the Network Railcard area during weekday morning peak (except on bank holidays)
*Children under 5 years old travel for free on our trains, so if all the children are below the age of 5, you'll need to buy one of them a child ticket to use your railcard discount.
What is a Family & Friends Railcard?
A railcard is a membership you pay for to get access to discounted train tickets. It’s a great investment because if you use your discount a few times, you can easily make your money back in savings.
A Family & Friends Railcard is a national railcard, meaning you can use it to travel with other train companies in the UK. With it, a total of four adults travelling together can get 1/3 off travel and four kids under 16 get 60% off. No relation necessary!
Is this right for me?
This railcard is for people who travel with children, as at least one of the railcard holders must be travelling with a child for the discount to work.
How much does it cost?
It costs £35 for a one year membership, and £80 for 3 years.
What train tickets can I get discount on?
You can get discounts on many fares across Great Britain, but it's not valid with GroupSave.
There must be a minimum of 1 railcard holder travelling with 1 child for the discount to work. And, up to four adults and four children can travel on one card! Passengers receiving the discount must travel together for the entire journey.
Children under 5 travel for free on our trains, so if all the kids are below 5, you'll need to buy one of them a child ticket to use your discount.
The minimum fare for Anytime Day Travelcards is £22.60. If your journey includes travel with a bus or ferry, the railcard discount may be smaller than 1/3.
Are there any time restrictions
There's no restrictions on weekends and bank holidays. However, you cannot use the railcard during the morning peak on weekdays for journeys fully inside the Network Railcard area.
Some UK stations do allow travel on selected services in the morning peak.
Day trips
Enjoy 1/3 off Standard Anytime, Off-Peak and Advance tickets, which means the earlier you book, the more you can save.
Advance tickets are the cheapest of the three. They’re first come, first served, all you need to do is just search your journey and we’ll show you our cheapest available ticket.
Frequent trips
This can’t be used with season tickets.
How to use your Family & Friends Railcard
Booking
When you book UK train tickets on our website or app, choose the Family & Friends Railcard option and we’ll tell you if it applies a discount to your journey.
Plus, you’ll save more on top as we don’t charge booking fees.
Travelling
You’ll need to have your railcard with you to show to staff. If you don’t have it, you may be charged a fine.
How to buy a Family & Friends Railcard?
Read full terms and conditions.
Download the National Railcard app from the Apple or Google Play app store
Enter your download code into the app (code is sent separately, after your order confirmation email).
If you haven't received your code, please email [email protected]
If someone else bought a railcard for you on our website, you can register it under your name online.
Yes, you can buy National railcards and the Club 50 Railcard at our staffed ticket offices.
Yes you can, but it's risky as you will need to ensure you have your railcard with you on the day of travel, otherwise you'll be liable for a penalty fare.
You can book train tickets for other people with group railcards (Family and Friends Railcard, Network Railcard and Two Together Railcard) but there are restrictions. If you book for someone else with your own solo railcard, they might be charged a penalty fare for travelling with a discounted ticket without a valid railcard.
- Family and Friends Railcard - at least one of two named railcard holders must travel with group
- Network Railcard - named railcard holder must travel with group
- Two Together Railcard - both railcard holders must travel together
The only national railcard you can use to buy monthly season tickets, is the 16-17 Saver Railcard, which gives 50% off travel.
Yes, you can use the following railcards on peak trains:
- 16-17 Saver Railcard - no restrictions
- 16-25 Railcard - minimum fare £12 before 10am on weekdays
- 26-30 Railcard - minimum fare £12 before 10am on weekdays
- Veterans Railcard - minimum fare £12 before 10am on weekdays
Yes, you'll need to show your railcard when we inspect your train ticket on the train.
You'll need to cancel and rebook your train ticket to apply your railcard discount.