What are my London to Leicester train options?

It’s pretty simple! There’s one route that links London to Leicester, and it has one operator, which is East Midlands Railway. There are usually four London St Pancras to Leicester train services every hour, and they have the following stopping patterns:

• • Non-stop to Leicester (2x per hour)
  • Kettering, Market Harborough and Leicester (2x per hour).

The typical journey time is between 60 and 70 minutes. In the early morning and late evening, some trains also stop at Bedford and Wellingborough. Here are the fares that you can expect to pay on the day:

• • Anytime Return - £202.50 
  • Off-Peak Return - £117.20
  • Super Off-Peak Return - £77.70.

You can use the outward part of the Off-Peak Return to leave London between 08:47 and 16:35 and after 18:47 on weekdays. When you return, you can arrive in London after 10:01. There aren’t any restrictions on weekends or Bank Holidays.

The outward portion of the Super Off-Peak Return is valid between 10:05 and 15:36 and after 18:47 on weekdays. On the return part, it’s valid to arrive in London after 11:30. There aren’t any restrictions on weekends or Bank Holidays.

How do I get the best London to Leicester train fare?

You can find the best London to Leicester train fare with Railsmartr! Just pop your journey details into our website, and we’ll show you what’s on offer. Let’s see what there is if we book two weeks in advance:

The one thing that we can take from this is that the trains bound for Nottingham are a little cheaper. These trains leave London at 05 and 35 minutes past (subject to change during engineering works).

What are the trains like?

All of the London to Leicester train services are currently Meridian trains. They have five, seven or 10 carriages. You’ll find a power socket at every window seat and there’s WiFi on board, too. Seating in Standard Class is in a 2+2 layout:

Meanwhile, First Class has seating in a 2+1 layout: 

Is there anything else I should know?

The final thing we’d recommend is using the Railsmartr website to book your London to Leicester train tickets. We’re completely independent, so we’re happy to ‘tell you like it is’ when it comes to rail fares!

Don’t forget that we don’t charge any fees, either. That includes if you change your mind and want to travel on a different day. If your ticket is refundable, we’ll refund it fee-free, too.

_{^{All fares stated on this page are for ONE adult with no Railcard discount and were correct at 13:00 27/09/2023. All information is issued in good faith. Flexible fares correct at September 2024. They’re subject to change at any time and Railsmartr are not responsible for any loss or disappointment incurred as a result of the information provided.}}