Virgin Trains East Coast

Smells baaaaaddd edinburgh –london. Food selection is horrible, overpriced unhealthy and processed. I would have expeccted more from Virgin considering how nice their planes are

Beyond disgusting toilets. They stank before the train pulled out of Euston Station and got worse as we travelled on. Towards the end, some men even bypassed them. Unbelievably nasty experience — one I hope I don’t have to repeat.

Nice experience to London and back using Virgin Trains East Coast.
I recently had the pleasure of using their services for a trip to London. I booked a few nights in advance and everything was great in terms of the service and the actual ride down to England.
The train itself was comfortable, the seats were nice (I was in standard class), and the train ran on time as well. At Edinburgh Waverley, the train was super long and it does get crowded as it continues to London King’s Cross. My seat also had an electrical outlet, which was nice.
I would definitely go with Virgin again. They have nice trains, good service, and they seem to run pretty well on time. Can’t ask for more than that! My only gripe was that the free wifi time was limited to 15 minutes. They should offer it free for the longer train rides.
Anyway, 3-​stars overall still for me.

Virgin Trains are probably one of the biggest train companies in the UK, they operate many direct routes which other companies don’t including MAN to EUS (For folk that don’t understand the lingo of the trains that’s Manchester to Euston [ The route I went on to write this review ]
They was quite a lot of Virgin Staff trains around the platform, and the trains were about a mile long however no staff were going up and down the train to check up on passengers.
They is a shop in coach C, this isn’t wheelchair accessible, the shop has a small range including Nero Roasting Coffee, speciality tea and a small range of food, gluten free food is non-​existent, they do not have gluten free crisps, the main thing is cucumber and hummus (Who would want that for breakfast?) and a £3 grazing box (not available), the shop only stocked The Mail, which was quite poor, I’d of liked them to stock a wider range of newspapers rather than just tabloid garbage.
Both trains were on time, and departed on the exact time scheduled and the train was in, in in the station very early.
The seat reservations were confusing, they was seat numbers and sometimes name above the seats, but on both journeys in my coach, everyone seemed confused and to be sat in wrong places. It did look easy enough to notice, but it probably was started with me sitting in the wrong seats (I asked for a plug socket and a plug socket I shall have) — My original seat had no table, window, or plug socket which I requested and in the end I had 2 of the 3 as 2 seats didn’t seem to be taken.
The trains were smelly, especially towards the end of the later journey coming home, which gives me signs that they may only clean them once again, as the windows, as they were dirty at 08:35 and 19:40, and that is how I could tell it was the same train.
Most staff I spoken to seemed nice and helpful, however it would of been nice to see them bobbing down the train to check up on passengers.
Remember to use your Nectar card when booking online, they is always an offer for treble/​double points going on and the ticket prices are not bad, with a railcard I think it cost about £35 for 2 people.
3G/​4G as with all trains was very poor, however I think that was just my dreadful O2 signal as my friend on EE was all hunky-​dury (Thank goodness for personal hotspots! [ Just don’t tell my friend, I used all her wifi until the end of the month])
I liked how I received an email from Virgin Trains 2 days before traveling, telling me about the train, the temp when I get in London and offering me a 50p off voucher for my coffee, remember to use this as the coffee is not bad coming from Nero either! Do remember to bring your own food however, I got right on the train and didn’t have my breakfast, hence I had a long wait with only hummus and a macaroon (dreadful, inedible) to choose from!
Due to the seat and toilet issue, while also putting into consideration about the shop, I can only give Virgin Trains a 3 star rating, which I feel is a little generous still, as the seats were not extremely comfortable, with the rating being so «high» simply because of the pricing of the tickets and the speed.

I have used the Euston to Glasgow service several times. Both standard and first class when I’m feeling royal!
The trains are always clean, reliable and pretty much on time. The quiet coaches are great to avoid the occasional vocally challenged passenger. Much easier then flying.

As an American visitor I made the mistake of booking a train ride on Virgin Trains from York to London with my wife and daughter recently. The train was almost 90 minutes late into London due to a maintenance problem. The Train Operator announced that all passengers were entitled to a full refund as a result of their poor performance.
However, James O’Neil, head of customer relations wrote to me and said that there will be NO REFUNDS from Virgin Trains — Period. Instead he offered me a free train ride on my next trip to England. I am not sure why Virgin went into the rail business, and if they understand the concept of integrity and customer service. Given there are other operators running the same route, I would never book a ride with Virgin.

Get a rail card to get ¹⁄₃^rd of travel, upgrade to First Class for £15, get complimentary food and drinks, and wifi (which costs £5 an hour or £10 for the day in Standard Class).

I bought a return ticket and wanted to get a refund for the return portion since I booked another ticket onward to somewhere else. At Euston station the staff member informed me this was possible but would need to call them and apply online (in other words make it as much hassle as possible). I’m standing in the main terminus for Virgin with loads of ticket windows open but no, I can’t simply walk up to the guy and hand my old ticket in and get a refund on the spot that would take 30 seconds. No, instead I will be subjected to the joys of navigating a phone menu, a call centre and no doubt have to post the ticket to some godforsaken place and 3 weeks later receive a coupon or something taking unnecessary time from me and also employees of Virgin trains.
Maybe I just won’t bother (this is what they are hoping).
3 stars since the trains are fast and usually on time although too cramped and hot.

Virgin trains are alright, trains on time etc, can’t really complain. However the first class lounge situation at Euston is awful. Absolutely full of people (can barely find a seat) dirty (sticky tables etc), noisy and not welcoming in the slightest. For an £100 first class ticket, it certainly isn’t worth it to score a mini Pepsi can or instant coffee. There isn’t anything else ‘complementary’. Honestly I think it is much nicer downstairs at Nero. A major let down.

For work I travel on many of the train operators in and around London, and Virgin is by far the best.
If you can afford it, I would travel first class. You get bottomless cups of tea and coffee (WINING), and snacks. During meal times, there are a selection of sandwiches and salads, and they all taste quite good.
You also get a lot more room, power plugs and internet. So it makes working your journey easier. And you get access to the first class lounge at the stations.
I have also traveled coach, and whilst the room is quite a lot smaller, its still very comfortable. Though I would recommend reserving your seat in advance, as the trains can get quite busy.

A great train company to use to get to Manchester in 2 hours and 9 minutes on there pretty cool pendolino trains, if you book in advance you can get one ways from £19 each plus you can upgrade to there plush 1^st class cabin for £15 at weekends, Virgin Trains staff seem friendly enough, Euston Station really needs a makeover though!

We decided to take the train from London to Glasgow on our whirlwind UK vacation. I had booked my tickets on Virgin through
and picked them up from Victoria Station (we were in the neighborhood) the day before the trip, which made things super easy. I had booked us airline-​style seats because I didn’t want to have any awkward interactions with strangers at the shared tables. To my disappointment, our assigned seats were at a table, but at least they were forward-​facing and we didn’t pick up our tablemates until about halfway to Glasgow. The seats were comfy and spacious too. I wish there had been more room for luggage on board, but we probably overpacked anyway.
The train ride through the English/​Scottish countryside was very scenic, with lots of rolling hills and sheep. They have bathrooms on board, though the rocky train can make that quite an adventure. There’s also a lounge with coffee and snacks, which was a great place to snag coffee and tea.
Overall, I was really happy with my first train experience.

I really enjoyed the train ride from London to Manchester. The trains are smooth and since I paid a little extra for first class I received a meal, roomier seat, a table and free wifi albeit the wifi is painfully slow! The train is fast and an efficient way to travel from city to city in the uk. It’s much more faster than driving. They should have more of these systems in Canada is all I have to say. 4 stars and would have been 5 stars if the internet was faster!

Sunday morning early train up to Glasgow at 8.30am, was pretty peaceful, until we got to Preston. Then all hell broke loose and also the need to use extra special hearing to hear what the scottish driver (they must have switched) was saying.
But let’s talk about Preston. No, not that silly dude from Celebrity Big Brother ages ago, who married Chantelle something, who was a Jordan wannabe and was actually the fake celebrity but then she won it. (I know FAR too much about this. Don’t judge.) Preston, the town, where Virgin had to get all the passengers off because they couldn’t find a train manager from the midlands to scotland. That’s right. ONE DUDE. HUNDREDS OF passengers. WTF. I’m not even sure everyone got back on, they told us to go to platform 4, then back on the train after half hour onto platform 3 and it all just got messy.
Also RIDICULOUSLY small luggage bays, in the middle of the carriage and the shelves on top which can only really fit a carrier bag.
But. I’ve been told, my friend has had really pleasant journeys with Virgin.

Second class is a cluster, with people taking over reserved seats without so much as a thought. It was a mess.
First class, however, is worth the upgrade, especially if you snag a good advance purchase deal. Travellers respect their own seat reservations! Full hot breakfast and dinners on offer, or, if you take a midday service like I did, light meals and snacks are complimentary throughout the journey. A full bar is also served in glassware and porcelain and includes all the standard spirits, plus three wine options. Access to the Virgin Lounges is also a plus if you have a long wait or need to make last minute bookings for your London arrival.
The ticket I chose cost only 4.50 pounds more than second class; worth it!

WTF.
Why
is
Ticketing
Flawed?
Why Virgin. WHY? WTF.
I had a reservation + e-​ticket for my train from London to Glasgow. I’m getting my affairs in order Sunday evening and realize that I MUST print my e-​ticket and bring it to the station.
What? really? C’mon. There are NO ticketing stations/​machines where I can print my ticket? Bogus.
From website: e-​tickets (self-​print)
It’s yet another convenient way of getting your ticket to travel with Virgin Trains. Just book online and choose the e-​ticket delivery option, your ticket will then be emailed to you 2 hours after booking. Print it out and bring it along with the form of ID selected during booking for the simplest way to travel.
NO IT IS NOT IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A PRINTER OR ARE TRAVELLING. Which most people are doing if they are using a train.
The kicker? If you don’t print it out: «If you haven’t done all of the above, a new ticket at the full fare will have to be bought to travel.»
Really Virgin? Get a grip on reality. This is absolutely mind boggling. Not only do you not take smartphone tickets but the only way to board and travel is to print it old school at home and bring with? LAME.
Oh, and your wifi sucks.
I avoided a psychotic break but it surely didn’t make my Monday morning go very smoothly…

I have really enjoyed my recent ride from Birmingham to Glasgow.
I booked an advance 1^st on weekday for around 50 pounds, departing at 3pm. I arrived at the station 30 minutes prior departure. The lounge was small and provide simple drinks and snacks (and the free lavatory, which the station public toilet charged 0.3 pound …).
Aboard train, I’ve found myself in a coach with less than 10 people. I could use the whole 4-​seat compartment on my own. Sandwiches, muffins, cakes and juices were served with refills.
Around 5:30 the server came up with a dinner menu. I choose the venison and it tasted great! Much better than airline food. Followed with dessert and coffee.
I felt like I was seating in a café, working on my computer and ate a lot instead of «travelling». In all, I took a 4-​hr train, served with afternoon tea and a full meal, bunches of beverages and complimentary wifi.
I’m glad that I did not save my 20 pounds for 2^nd class. Really worth the bucks!

There’s little more depressing than futuristic technology with a bit of age on it.
Virgin’s an OK train company. They’re typically fairly on-​time, but I’ve had my share of late-​running trains with them and they have the worst compensation policy, most difficult and slowest turnaround time for dealing with it.
The trains are, to be honest, knackered. I go up to Glasgow & Mancs with some regularity — the nice entertainment systems have stopped working, the onboard wifi doesn’t work very well even if you pay for it, and most of the carriages smell of infamous blue water.
They’ve got something like 2 cycle slots for each train and it’ll take you a 20 minute call (at 10p/​minute) to find out if one’s free.
All stuff you sort of expect from British Rail, but Virgin’s sort of built their rep on not working like that.
Then again, they’ve got their own little mini-​monopoly, so they’ve little incentive to do better.

Virgin trains have such a good reputation that I was expecting to be wowed. I wasn’t. Usually I travel to Scotland on EastCoast, but this trip we were visiting a different area and took Virgin from Euston. A bit of a downer.
Cars with all but 4 REAR-​FACING seats? Not coo! I was a motion sick girl pretty soon into the trip. And since we had reserved seats in the quiet car (at the front), by the time we realized that our entire coach was backwards, and took a look around the train for front-​facing eats, we saw that there were few and far between — and they were all taken. I don’t understand why Virgin don’t do ½ and ½ like all the other train companies do. I know I’m not the only person who cannot handle a long journey travelling backwards.
My other grumble is the lack of electric outlets. These seemed to only exist on the tables. So that’s 4 people per car that can use electronics on a longer journey. Quite lame. Perhaps this is how they sell up their very popular 1^st class. But, to me, it was just a disappointment.
I can say that Virgin have more comfortable seats for a longer journey than Easty Coast, but other than that, I prefer other providers.

Better than average for a train company but when compared to the rest of Europe at best average. There is a lack of competition for the route so they pretty much have a monopoly if you want to go anywhere.
The trains are clean and new. The tilting isn’t for some but I find them fast and comfortable. the toilets are roomy but woe betide you if pick one of the seats near the door, it’ll smell like a dirty skunk for the whole journey! Something to avoid if you’re having a romantic weekend away!
There is on board Internet but its not the most reliable and is a premium unless you’re in 1^st class. To be honest I just stick it to the man and turn my iphone into a wireless modem, works just as well (or badly).
Overall its a fast pleasant trip (just over 2hrs to Manchester, 210 miles) that’s generally comfortable and the off peak return is cheaper than driving. The reason it doesn’t get more stars is that I’ve seen better and cheaper in Europe and the East.
The best of a bad bunch.
Also no wine in 1^st class! Horrific!