Join the Ffestiniog Railway Society to get the following benefits:
Please note that this is a voluntary organisation and confirmation of membership will take up to 14 days
The Ffestiniog Railway at present allows Society members the following travel privileges:
Life Members: Free – First or Third Class travel on the Ffestiniog Railway.
Ordinary Members: Ten free Third Class return tickets.
Welsh Highland Railway (Caernarfon to Porthmadog): Ordinary and Life FRS Members pay the privilege rate. If FRS members are also members of the Welsh Highland Railway Society or hold a sponsor’s pass, they may prefer to use the privileges available on those cards.
Talyllyn Railway: Reciprocal privilege rate travel facilities exist. One friend may accompany a member by paying the privilege rates. Ordinary members are limited to three occasions and should have a P-series number cancelled from the membership card.
When utilising privileges, members are asked to avoid busy trains whenever possible, and to obtain travel tickets before boarding trains at manned stations. Members’ privileges may be modified on special occasions such as Galas and Santa trains.
Gift Aid is claimable on all membership types allowing the Society to claim 25p on every £1 if you are a UK tax payer.
We are now looking forward to the train services for 2023, and it is important that these services generate as much income as possible, so that the Company has a secure financial position, and we can all enjoy the Railway for a long time to come.
In order to maintain the Railway’s income stream, we have, in cooperation with the Company and the WHR Society, looked at what travel concessions are given to FR Society members, as it is clearly no longer possible to give unlimited free travel to members when the cost of travel for non-members has had to rise significantly in order to deal with the rapid cost increases that the Railways face. For example, coal is now four times more expensive than it was pre-pandemic.
However, the Company does recognise the considerable support it receives from the FR Society and, therefore, wishes to show its appreciation of this by still granting concessions to members. Therefore, for the 2023 season, there will be an allocation of 10 free tickets per member of the FR Society to travel free of charge on the FR, or at privilege rate (50%) on the WHR. This will only apply to fully-paid-up members. Please remember that instant membership does not grant instant travel privileges. If a person makes an application to join the Society it does not grant them instant concessions, they must wait for their membership card to arrive and for their details to be programmed into the system. This process can take up to two weeks to be fully implemented. This also applies to renewing members. The additional concession for friends, relatives, etc., that was in place during the Covid-restricted services will no longer apply. The previous facility to take accompanied persons at privilege rate on three occasions has also been withdrawn. Privilege rates are not available after the allocation of 10 free tickets has been used up.
Bookings must be made ahead of travel and members MUST check in and show their membership card when they arrive at their main station departure point. Bookings can be made on-line or at the booking office at Porthmadog or Caernarfon, quoting your membership number.
Any tickets booked but not taken up will be deducted from the allocation of 10; if you decide not to travel then you MUST inform the booking office as soon as possible in advance of the train’s departure for your allocation to be restored. Once the train has departed it will count as part of the allocation and cannot be restored.
If you decide to travel from an intermediate station or halt this will be at the discretion of the guard as it will not be possible to book on-line. A membership card will need to be shown to the guard, who will allocate a seat if one is available. Currently such trips will not be deducted from the allowance of 10 free tickets.
Records show that the vast majority of members make less than 10 free trips per year, so will not be directly affected by these changes. At the present time, Life Members will continue to receive unlimited first-class travel (though without the guest facility). We would ask Life members to be sensible in their use of this benefit – for example, please don’t book multiple trains simply because you are unsure on which one you will travel.
The travel concessions that are now on offer remain generous when compared with similar heritage railways, and we are sure that members will understand the necessity to make these changes to help ensure the continued viability of the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways. Thank you for your continued support as we strive to negotiate what may be difficult times ahead.
Graham Cole, on behalf of the Board of the Ffestiniog Railway Society
| Full member | £37 |
| Associate (Member Spouse) | £33 |
| Junior | £22 |
| Full Time Student and Volunteer | £22 |
| Senior Citizen (65+) | £36 |
| Family (Parents & children under 18) | £70 |
| Life (Payment in Full) | £1020 |
| Life (First of 10 Payments) | £102 |
Life Membership is available to UK taxpayers making ten annual payments by Bankers Order and completing a Gift Aid Declaration.
Download Gift Aid Declaration (PDF)»
Subscription rates subject to change.
Annual membership expires on 31st December. New member on or after 1 October receive membership to 31st Dec the following year.