• long running

Melbourne to Adelaide, Melbourne to Canberra Train Fare $30.60 ($15.30 Concession / Seniors) @ V/Line

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Melbourne to Adelaide, Melbourne to Canberra Train Fare $30.60 ($15.30 Concession / Seniors) @ V/Line
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park on 11/12/2023 - 16:12 vline.com.au (7977 clicks)
Last edited 11/12/2023 - 16:41

Not a new one, but just posting so more people realise.

Dirt cheap inter-city transport between Melbourne and Canberra, and Melbourne and Adelaide. Victorian state government halved regional travel fares a couple of years ago and Canberra and Adelaide are included as regional Victoria for… reasons.

Highlights include no SkyBus / airport security / phones in flight mode / baggage scales / sniffer dogs / price hikes during school hols.

Also these fares include free suburban public transport in Melbourne to get to/from Southern Cross, no need to involve your Myki.

Travel ACT Adelaide Canberra Public Transport South Australia Train Fare

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Comments

  • stuffandthat on 11/12/2023 - 16:16
    +8

    Still not cheap enough to entice me to Canberra.

    • park on 11/12/2023 - 18:09
      +72

      I would imagine that you're the person in the room who yells "taxi" when you hear a glass hit the floor

        • PopCounty on 12/12/2023 - 12:53
          +1

          GoingDownHillfast ??…. Name Checks out mate.

      • 0hYeah on 11/12/2023 - 21:28
        +2

        Spoken like a true resident

    • YRT on 11/12/2023 - 16:22
      +13

      Tax payer subsidised transport, much like Holden and Toyota in their last days. I'd say any tax concession / benefit is a great deal ;)

  • realaaa on 11/12/2023 - 16:20
    +5

    how long does it take actually, overnight? I've always wondered how are those inter city trains, must be an interesting (at least) experience

    • financialminimalism on 11/12/2023 - 19:07
      +14

      10 hours between melbourne cbd to Adelaide cbd.
      Compared to about 8.5 hours driving (but dependent on traffic).

      Would save a fortune in fuel just paying $30 for the train. Not to mention potentially safer avoiding fatigue / accidents driving.

      • sween64 on 19/12/2023 - 22:40
        +1

        How long for Melbourne to Canberra?

  • BargainsGrabber on 11/12/2023 - 16:20
    +3

    Didn’t realise this existed, took a Greyhound previously :(

    • Ifndefx on 11/12/2023 - 16:25
      +1

      I looked up greyhound earlier this year and the prices were similar flight prices.

    • xyzzyxyzzy on 12/12/2023 - 00:04
      +1

      In my case I took the overland…

      • boomlogical on 12/12/2023 - 02:49
        +1

        How was the overland?

        • xyzzyxyzzy on 12/12/2023 - 09:19
          +2

          A nice experience but not necessary

  • beigehornet on 11/12/2023 - 16:21
    -1

    I just looked up first week of Jan Melb to Canberra, 2 services both are Train + Coach… whats the point…

    • Ifndefx on 11/12/2023 - 16:24
      +4

      What do you mean, another option to travel ?

    • BargainsGrabber on 11/12/2023 - 16:26

      That’s how they do it to maintain competitive
      If you prefer only 1 mode of travelling, Greyhound is direct

      • park on 11/12/2023 - 16:35
        +15

        Also not a big hassle to step off a train, stretch your legs for a few mins, have a wee, then step onto bus parked out the front.

    • DaTa on 11/12/2023 - 19:12

      And a 10 hour travel time

  • 6079 Smith on 11/12/2023 - 16:26

    Seems to be that price from anywhere in Vic? Just tried Ballarat to Canberra (which admittedly is 2 trains and a bus) and was the same price

    • park on 11/12/2023 - 16:33
      +2

      Yeah maybe that's the upper limit for any fare

    • JohnHowardsEyebrows on 13/12/2023 - 08:06

      The Vic component is capped.

  • kin1106 on 11/12/2023 - 16:39
    +2

    took both for free while I still worked for one of the transport operators and got free travel pass.
    Current price not too bad in high seasons compared with jacked airfares. Before, the price was over 100 one way, which has no competiveness.

  • Burger R on 11/12/2023 - 16:39
    +1

    Very slow. Only if you have too much time to kill

    • Wombat cave on 11/12/2023 - 23:11
      +7

      Or get killed on the road. I will take the train.

  • rambutann on 11/12/2023 - 16:47
    +3

    $10 to Mt Gambier also.

  • dorydae on 11/12/2023 - 16:48
    +3

    I never knew this 😮

  • mwblink86 on 11/12/2023 - 16:52
    +29

    How long is the trip? Cheaper for me to sleep on a train then rent a house

    • wavesgreen on 11/12/2023 - 16:58
      +4

      ~11hrs to ADL, ~9hrs to CBR

    • BluebirdV on 12/12/2023 - 13:23
      +1

      Also interestingly some cruise ship deals work out cheaper than renting and food and entertainment are included.

  • bonezAU on 11/12/2023 - 16:52
    +2

    Any cheap flights from Perth to Melbourne? I wanna go to Adelaide.

    Wait a minute…..

  • JohnHowardsEyebrows on 11/12/2023 - 17:01
    +13

    Because Victoria takes it upon itself to provide South Australians with services their government won't.

  • HDay on 11/12/2023 - 17:14
    +1

    Are direct trains running for mel-adelade route?
    Where do you check and book tickets?

    • bazaarbargain on 11/12/2023 - 17:21

      The Overland

    • boomlogical on 12/12/2023 - 02:51

      You can get an overland V/Line subsidy for the Victorian leg, saves a tiny bit of money

  • DivZero on 11/12/2023 - 17:17
    +12

    Eugh, finding this fare on their site is harder than finding airline deals.

    Seems you have to go from Southern Cross in Melbourne, to Franklin Street in Adelaide, not the train station because most of it is a coach.

    If this was V/Line train the whole way it would be an awesome deal. But 9 hours in a coach is a hell-no from me. For any price.

    • MrGareth on 11/12/2023 - 17:31
      +5

      I got excited thinking it was the V/Line train on a straight run between Adelaide and Melbourne….. as my parents are in Adelaide and I'm in Melbourne and my mum struggles to walk. Would only cost her $17 to make the trip!

      Turns out it's two coaches (Franklin street, Adelaide, swapping coaches in Dimboola), then a swap to a train in Ballarat.

      • park on 11/12/2023 - 17:33

        The random date I put in had train from Melbourne to Bendigo, then switch to coach for one leg to Adelaide. Maybe try some different dates and see what you see.

        • kin1106 on 11/12/2023 - 22:00

          that route takes 1 hour longer

          • park on 12/12/2023 - 00:18

            @kin1106: Maybe worth it for someone with mobility issues though

    • pharkurnell on 12/12/2023 - 11:50
      +1

      But 9 hours in a coach is a hell-no from me. For any price

      Agree.

  • NateRiver on 11/12/2023 - 18:06
    +18

    Another alternative to bus/train is carpooling:
    bushride.com

    I set up the site to connect people who need to travel with drivers who have empty seats :)

    Trains and buses always had their issues for me personally. And flying during the holiday season was always too expensive!

    • CereaL on 11/12/2023 - 20:49
      +1

      damn I love the idea … interesting name though .. but I guess if you're going to Music Festivals :D

      • NateRiver on 11/12/2023 - 21:19
        +1

        Proudly Australian made! Hopefully a memorable name though? 😁

        • bilb123456 on 11/12/2023 - 23:00
          +2

          I love this!
          Would be great if you could search without destination but just a starting point :D
          For when I am looking for holidays somewhere, but I don't know where yet and I just want to see what's available for the next months:)

          • NateRiver on 11/12/2023 - 23:16
            +2

            @bilb123456: Thanks! Yeah, totally get you. Has been a highly requested feature and is already in the works. So keep an eye out 😉

    • movieman on 12/12/2023 - 07:49
      +1

      Seems like an Aussie version of BlaBlaCar.

      Well done!

      • NateRiver on 12/12/2023 - 10:25
        +1

        Thank you! Precisely. I spent 6 months backpacking around Europe and it was great to get around. Was a big fan and thought Australia was missing out!

        • movieman on 12/12/2023 - 21:12
          +1

          Blablacar was excellent in Europe, as it was quite competitively priced, and offered routes that weren't easily covered via public transport.

          Have you used Geev? It's a free "sharing" app, to donate and pick up free goods, without any cost. Would be excellent for Australia if you're looking for your next project (-:

          • NateRiver on 13/12/2023 - 19:07
            +1

            @movieman: Wow thanks, have not come across Geev yet! Great concept. Bushride will keep me busy for now but definitely noted… 😁

            • movieman on 13/12/2023 - 21:47
              +1

              @NateRiver: No worries at all.

              My IT skills are quite limited, but if you have the "know-how", happy to partner up to get an Aussie "Geev' going… Let me know if I can help?

    • Trekky on 12/12/2023 - 09:04
      +1

      What a great idea! I'll keep it mind for future reference!

    • nomadspartan on 12/12/2023 - 11:33
      -1

      This is a great idea that I was actually thinking about for a few years (thousands of others probably had the same idea, but great on you turning into an end product). I was listening to the Ivan Milat episode the other day on the Casefiles podcast and the name reminded me of that. But great idea though!

    • paullovesbargains on 12/12/2023 - 13:53

      I prefer my rides to not have any bush.

  • Fredorishi on 11/12/2023 - 18:17
    +3

    TLDR all the comments in case anyone else pointed it out, but they didn't "halve(d) regional travel fares a couple years ago" - they capped regional fares the way they cap Metro fares. $10 to anywhere in Vic. Or a fiver concession. And they did it earlier this year. Source: trust me bro I'm a Metro employeee. :p

    • Fredorishi on 11/12/2023 - 18:20
      +3

      Here you go. Just in case you have a disturbing lack of faith. :p https://www.ptv.vic.gov.au/tickets/fares/regional-fares/

      • park on 11/12/2023 - 18:23

        Right you are. Though the routes I mentioned in my original post used to cost about double what they cost now.

        • Fredorishi on 11/12/2023 - 20:00
          +2

          Well yeah. You only get the Vic component of the journey for a tenner. Still a good deal though, I agree. We get tons more people just taking day trips to random, country locations these days. :)

  • GTR12 on 11/12/2023 - 18:36

    It only seems to take southern cross to Adelaide for me, I tried several more country locations, Warragul as an example and nothing is available?

    Is the a bug?

    • park on 11/12/2023 - 18:37
      +1

      Might have to browse/book it in separate chunks

      • GTR12 on 11/12/2023 - 18:40

        Please edit the description at the top then, as this will add to the cost for people.

        • park on 11/12/2023 - 18:41
          +4

          Warragul isn't Melbourne

          • GTR12 on 11/12/2023 - 18:45
            -1

            @park: Oh FFS, Dandenong IS Melbourne and it doesn't work.

            • unifex on 11/12/2023 - 19:14

              @GTR12: I agree nothing really works on there. I assume the adelaide melbourne train is not included.

            • HamBoi69 on 11/12/2023 - 19:26

              @GTR12: Take a Pakenham or Cranbourne train

              • GTR12 on 11/12/2023 - 19:55

                @HamBoi69: So Pakenham is "Melbourne", but the next suburb closer to the city (Berwick), isn't Melbourne…?

                Also I asked for the description to be edited as it is confusing at times (as above).

                The final price is also incorrect for some, as you need to factor in the price of the extra travel.

                • callum9999 on 11/12/2023 - 22:38
                  +2

                  @GTR12: Obviously it's Melbourne, but it's completely irrelevant as the fares being quoted are fares from almost anywhere in Victoria to Adelaide/Canberra. It is the $10 Victoria fare cap plus the interstate surcharge.

                  There is no price for extra travel. Even before the fare cap, V/Line tickets included travel in zone 1/2. I have no idea how the cap works in practice if you need to book two separate reserved services that won't combine in one transaction on the website, but all the advertising on this implies that $10 effectively provides unlimited travel across the state. The service websites don't seem to provide any detailed explanations on the policy though, so I couldn't say whether that's true or not.

                  The misinformation by well-meaning but wrong people on here is a perfect example of why you should say "I don't know" if you don't know something instead of just making up an answer (something an annoyingly large proportion of the population choose to do - from relatively trivial things like a train ticket price all the way to deciding who to vote for etc.).

                • brbgrcgukdhreuin on 13/12/2023 - 23:23

                  @GTR12: The vline website can only book vline services. Vline (inbound) picks up at Pakenham, doesn't even stop at Berwick, and is set-down only at Dandenong.

                  As already mentioned, suburban travel is included in the ticket, but can't be booked explicitly on the ticket.

            • park on 12/12/2023 - 00:11
              +3

              @GTR12: Oh for heaven's sake, can you stop sooking and read the bottom line of my original post.

              Book the fare from Southern Cross, and your connecting suburban trip to get to/from Southern Cross is included. Dandenong is on the suburban network. You need only show any ticket inspectors your V/Line ticket and you're in the clear.

              As for Warragul not being in Melbourne, I have no solutions for you there.

    • DivZero on 11/12/2023 - 23:00
      +1

      Southern Cross to Franklin St Adelaide. It's mostly a coach not a train journey.

      • orlimg on 12/12/2023 - 11:47
        +1

        Wonder why is that?

    • brbgrcgukdhreuin on 13/12/2023 - 22:46

      The website isn't great at booking complex journeys, but you can book over the phone or in person at many (used to be all?) staffed vline/metro stations.

      But if you have a booking for the main chunk of the journey with reserved seats (e.g. Southern Cross to Adelaide City Franklin St), when you go to a staffed station to collect your ticket you'll be able to make further bookings for the day and they can manualy issue free tickets because you've already hit the daily cap.

      If you want to get off the coach at any of the stops between the border and Adelaide, make sure you book that in or the driver usually won't even pull in to that town.

      If the coach is full, when you search for the trip you'll probably get the message "Online bookings are unavailable for this service. For reservations, please call 1800 800 007."

      Time for vline to take over the Overland and run it daily.

      • GTR12 on 13/12/2023 - 23:12
        +1

        The website is garbage, I could do it in year 10, in fact our whole year 10 class could.

        Its not "complex" at all.

  • April-Sky on 11/12/2023 - 20:11

    Thank you. I'm going to keep this in mind for Canberra.

  • Angelscrap on 11/12/2023 - 20:34
    +1

    Could not find Melbourne to Adelaide

    • DivZero on 11/12/2023 - 23:01
      +1

      Southern Cross to Franklin St Adelaide. It's mostly a coach not a train journey.

      • movieman on 12/12/2023 - 07:50

        And return is also mostly a coach service?

  • jmmjbb on 12/12/2023 - 09:20

    Any discount for Sydney to Adelaide? Or any recommondation for the cheapest mothed between Sydney and Adelaide? Thanks!

  • orlimg on 12/12/2023 - 11:48

    What are the dates for this special? Assuming it is a special.

    • Fredorishi on 12/12/2023 - 12:21

      Vic fares are capped at $10 until the Gvt change it back again. We'll see what happens when the new company takes over from Myki next year.

      • orlimg on 12/12/2023 - 16:53

        Many thanks

  • pharkurnell on 12/12/2023 - 12:01
    +1

    I've done Melb - Goulburn before on train.. cheap as dirt compared to driving… but holiday times its crowded, no spare seats :(

    • godofpizza on 07/01/2024 - 12:26

      was it a direct train ride without stops?

      • pharkurnell on 09/01/2024 - 10:27
        +1

        Na numerous stops along the way.. probably 5-10 stops.. but some were quite far apart

  • x x on 12/12/2023 - 19:15

    I checked Mel to Canberra in Jan 2024 for 1 week and it shows
    Adult $66.80
    Concession $33.40
    Child $33.40

    • park on 12/12/2023 - 19:20

      I just tried again. January 20, Melbourne Southern Cross to Canberra Jolimont Centre. $30.60

      • x x on 12/12/2023 - 19:25

        I'm still getting the same prices if i book return Mel-Canberra from Jan 20 to Jan 24
        https://www.vline.com.au/Plan-trip-buy-tickets?from=Melbourn…

        • park on 12/12/2023 - 20:00
          +1

          The prices I quoted in my original post and above are one way, btw.

          On the page you linked to above, if you click one way instead of return the price is $30.60.

  • Focus8 on 14/12/2023 - 08:56

    How's it compared to overland?

    Why I didn't know this option before … $30! Otherwise i'd rather not paying about $200 last time on ALD- MEL overLand instead ..

    • park on 14/12/2023 - 11:24

      Will be less plush and mostly bus, but at an 85% lower price I'm willing to do without wifi or whatever

  • lainey13 on 14/12/2023 - 16:08
    +1

    Heard lots of bad things about the overnight 'trains' between cities, random track closures ensuring an uncomfortable unscheduled coach ride with possible multiple changes, a track that is poorly maintained so its crazy rocky meaning no sleep, and its seriously slow so the arrival time is just a guess. Zero food or drink options with the catering car often out of service. Uncomfortable seating and no control over the a/c. If only it truly was a viable option to flying… but there's a reason most people fly!

    • park on 14/12/2023 - 16:14

      The V/Line services aren't overnight

  • payless69 on 20/12/2023 - 15:02

    How do QLD pensioner get there?

    • Food on 20/12/2023 - 15:04

      The same way a Tasmanian adult would?

    • park on 21/12/2023 - 00:35

      Just walk, buddy

  • payless69 on 20/12/2023 - 15:05

    I am scared easily: Any chance to have my trusty shopping trolley?

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