What are the Newcastle to Leeds train options?

Whether you want to visit Geordie-land or live it up in cosmopolitan Leeds, you want to make sure that you're choosing the right train. Here's our guide to choosing the best Newcastle to Leeds train on your next trip.

We'll be taking a look at the direct Newcastle to Leeds train options here, which for most of the day are CrossCountry and TransPennine Express. On most days, you'll also find an early morning train from Leeds, returning late in the evening, operated by LNER.

CrossCountry runs a train every hour, taking around 1h25m. All of their trains stop at Durham, Darlington and York. TransPennine Express operates one train per hour. These trains stop at Chester-le-Street (not all services), Durham, Darlington, Northallerton and York on the way and typically take around 1h30m.

What are the trains like?

If you're travelling with CrossCountry, then you can expect to travel on a Voyager or Super Voyager train. They have four or five carriages, but they're often paired up to make an eight or nine-carriage service. In Standard Class, the seats are in a 2+2 layout:

If you're travelling with a lot of luggage, you should bear in mind that the overhead racks are extremely small. So, anything larger than a backpack will need to go in the stacks at the carriage ends. There's a large compartment for luggage in Coach D. Typically, you'll only find two tables per carriage as well, except in Coach B, where you'll find four.

Another thing to remember is that the windows on these trains have a film on them that makes receiving phone and data signals quite challenging. On many sections of the journey, you might find it difficult to do anything other than light browsing. In terms of power sockets, you'll find one at every window seat.

Meanwhile, TransPennine Express operates the Nova 1 on their route. These trains all have five carriages:

All of the seats in Standard Class are in a 2+2 layout. The overhead racks are a bit bigger than on CrossCountry, so they're able to store cabin-sized suitcases without a problem. You'll also find two three-pin sockets and a USB port under every seat. All in all, this is the best Newcastle to Leeds train for onboard experience:

There are also far more seats around tables than on CrossCountry, so it's a better bet if you're travelling in a group.

Who offers the best Newcastle to Leeds train fare?

So, when you're looking for a Newcastle to Leeds train, this is probably going to be one of the most important things on your mind. Let's take a look at a journey around a month in advance:

So, when you book ahead, there isn't a huge difference. As you can see, the best prices appear when you choose to use split ticketing. On Railsmartr, we'll enable this by default so that you can see the very best fares. Let's see what happens if we want to travel the next day:

So, it's a little cheaper to take TransPennine Express if you're going last-minute.

Is there a First Class option?

Both companies that run a direct Newcastle to Leeds train offer First Class. On CrossCountry, the map here shows that you can expect complimentary food and drink between 6am and 8pm. Typically, you'll receive snacks and drinks, but you should also ask if sandwiches and more substantial items are available.

TransPennine Express offers First Class catering between 07:00 and 18:30 on weekdays, and 09:00 and 18:30 on weekends. On a weekday, you can expect hot options all day, with breakfast sandwiches in the morning, snacks in the afternoon and hot sandwiches and wraps in the evening. On a weekend, snacks and drinks are offered.

On both trains, seating is in a 2+1 layout. Just like in Standard Class, you'll find a power socket at the window seat on CrossCountry, while every seat has access to power sockets and USB ports on TransPennine Express.

So, what's the best Newcastle to Leeds train?

While there might not be a huge difference in price if you book ahead, we'd say that TransPennine Express is the better option.

The trains are lighter, brighter and have more room to store your luggage. You're also guaranteed to have somewhere to charge your phone!

As of late June 2023, industrial relations have also started to improve. This means that cancellations are less likely than they have been for the past 12 months. That said, we'd still recommend checking the night before you travel (or the morning of) here.

Is there anything else I should know?

The final thing we’d recommend is using the Railsmartr website to book your Newcastle to Leeds train journey. We’re completely independent, so we’re happy to ‘tell you like it is’ when it comes to rail fares. Not only that, but we’ll show you the slower, but cheaper options that some websites won’t.

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 information on this page is issued without liability and was correct at the time of writing (16/02/24). All fares are for ONE adult without Railcard discount. Railsmartr is not responsible for any loss or disappointment incurred as a result of the information provided.}}