What is an Annual Seasonal Train Ticket?

Annual Season tickets are train tickets that give you unlimited travel between two stations for a year.

They can be used any day at any time, and you can hop off the train along the way and finish your journey later. Plus, with an annual train pass, you’ll save time as you won’t need to pay each time you travel!

They’re a good option if you’re commuting five or more times a week – and they’re cheaper than 12 monthly tickets as they’re priced at 40 weeks, so you get up to 12 weeks free!

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What are the benefits of an Annual Season Ticket?

Here are a few of the highlights of an Annual Season Ticket:

  • Unlimited travel between two stations for seven days.

  • Use it any day & at any time.

  • No need to buy a ticket every time you travel.

  • Available on Smartcard.

  • Jump off at any station on your chosen route.

  • Only pay the difference if you need to travel further.

  • No queuing for a daily ticket – you’ve got your weekly pass!

  • Fully refundable on unused days

  • Money back if you’re delayed*.

^At least 3 or more unused days remaining, refund dependent on the value of unused days. Find out more about refunds.

*Once claimed through the Delay Repay scheme.

Commuter

Annual Train Tickets vs Other Types of Season Tickets

Annual Season tickets are essentially the same as Weekly, Monthly and Custom-Length Season train tickets, as you get unlimited travel between two stations. They’re good for people who travel 4-5+ times a week.

The longer a season ticket lasts, the more free days of travel you’ll receive. Annual Season tickets are the best value as they give you up to 12 weeks’ free travel, and if your journey is in London & South East, you get a free Gold Card!

Flexi Seasons are slightly different to other Season tickets. They give you 8 days of unlimited travel between two stations, which need to be used within 28 days. They’re good for people who travel 2 or 3 times a week.

Annual Train Ticket Prices

The Big Rail Fare Freeze is here. Standard Season ticket prices have been frozen across England until March 2027.

Annual Season tickets require payment up front, so the cost can look steep at first. But they’re designed to save you money, as they can often be cheaper than buying four daily returns. You can see a breakdown of costs for your journey with a Season Ticket Calculator.

The cost of your Annual Season ticket will depend on your journey. If you book directly with us online or on our app, we won’t charge you any booking fees. You can find the cost and buy your chosen annual train ticket here.

If you are eligible, a Railcard can lower the cost of a weekly train ticket. Child discounts are not available on our website or app.

Are you looking for a Flexi or a Custom-Length train season ticket instead? See our full range of season ticket options.

Annual Gold Card

If your journey is in the London & South East Gold Card area, you’ll get a free Annual Gold Card, which gives you great benefits:

  • 1/3 off Standard and First Class Anytime and Off-Peak tickets anywhere within the Greater Anglia network and beyond

  • Up to three additional adults travelling with you (aged 16 or over) get 1/3 off as well.

  • Up to four children aged between 5 and 15 pay just 40% of the child fare (£1 minimum fare)

  • A third off Oyster off-peak pay-as-you-go single fares and daily price cap (the Annual Gold Card needs to be loaded onto an Oyster card for this discount and can be done at London Underground, London Overground, TFL Rail and some National Rail stations by a member of staff)

  • A one-year National Railcard of your choice for the price for only £10 (16-25, Two Together, Family & Friends, Network, Disabled Persons or Senior Railcard)

Annual Season Ticket Photocard

When you travel with a Season ticket, you’ll need to bring a valid form of photo ID with you.

Smartcard Season ticket: photo ID required e.g. driver’s licence, etc

Paper Season ticket: National Rail Photocard required. You can get one free of charge at a ticket office, just bring a passport-sized photograph with you. Please note that railcards cannot be used as a photocard.

Smartcard Season tickets

When you buy a season ticket directly online for GA routes, you’ll need a Smartcard. Log in or create an account to order one for free.

Smartcards are much better than ordinary paper tickets. They’re quicker to scan at the gates, tougher and a greener option too! They can be topped up easily at the station or with our app.

Find out more about Smartcards.

the smarter way to travel Greater Anglia smartcard and e ticket

Travelling in London

For London journeys, you may need to search for “London Underground Zone” if you’re going to or from a tube station. View the tube map to see zones.

On the ticket selection screen, London Terminals is the first major London station on your route, which is typically London Liverpool Street for Greater Anglia journeys.

If you want to go further, you may need to choose the Travelcard Season ticket option to finish your journey. Or you can use Oyster or Contactless pay-as-you-go ticketing.

Travelcards give you unlimited travel within the zone on nearly all of London’s public transport, including the Tube, DLR, bus, Elizabeth line, London Overground, and National Rail. If your Travelcard is valid in Zones 3, 4, 5 or 6, you can use it on all trams too.

Flexitime Seasons are similar to normal season tickets, but they cannot be used for trains originally scheduled to arrive at London Liverpool Street between 07:15 and 09:15 on weekdays.

How to buy an Annual Season Train Ticket Online & In-app?

If you’re buying a Season ticket for the first time, follow these easy steps.

You can buy Annual Season tickets for national rail services across the UK through our website and app. Plus, when you book direct, you won’t have to pay any pesky booking fees.

Before you can begin, you’ll need a Smartcard. Log in or create an account to order one for free.

  1. Open our booking form on our website or app

  2. Enter your journey details, select Flexi & Season as your journey type and hit search.

  3. Choose your season ticket, and if you want to collect on your Smartcard ticket through the GA app or at a station

  4. Buy your season ticket

  5. Load your season ticket onto your Smartcard

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Frequently asked questions about Annual Season Train Tickets

Yes, Annual Season tickets have lots of value. You'll get unlimited travel between two stations for one year. You can travel any day and at any time. You can also hop off the train along the way and finish your journey later. Plus, if your journey is within the London & South East Gold Card area, you’ll get an Annual Gold Card, which has lots of great benefits.

The cost of an Annual Season ticket will depend on your journey. It requires payment up front, so the price will be high, but you get up to 12 weeks' free travel. If you book directly with us online or on our app, you’ll save as we don’t charge any booking fees. You can find the cost and buy your chosen Annual train ticket here.

If you are eligible, a Railcard can lower the cost of a weekly train ticket. Child discounts are not available on our website or app.

Yes, you can cancel and refund an Annual Season ticket if you have at least 12 weeks remaining. Your refund is calculated using the fare that you would have paid if you had travelled. Find out more about refunds.

You can get 50% off with a 16-17 Saver Railcard.

Yes, you can cancel and refund an Annual Season ticket if you have at least 12 weeks remaining. Your refund is calculated using the fare that you would have paid if you had travelled. Find out more about refunds.

Yes, you can buy an Annual Season ticket from your local ticket office.