The start of Skegness Summer: Customers urged to book in advance to guarantee their space to the seaside

East Midlands Railway (EMR) is advising Skegness customers to book in advance if they want to guarantee their space on a specific train as the busy summer season begins next Monday, July 9. 

The seaside resort is as popular as ever with EMR customers, and the train operator is expecting another bumper year as beachgoers head for the coast.  

Due to its growing popularity, the train company is urging holidaymakers to book ahead this year - especially between July 9 and September 9 - with the busiest days being Friday, Saturday and Monday. 

Queuing systems will be in place at Nottingham and Skegness to help manage the increased number of customers. However, those customers who have pre-booked will be able to join a fast track queue which guarantees their place on the train. 

Customers at Nottingham who choose not to book in advance may face delay, as they will only be boarded on trains where space is available.  

Capacity has been managed in a way that will mean there should be some space on the train available for customers at stations between Nottingham and Skegness.

Season Ticket holders should immediately join the booked space queue if travelling from Skegness or Nottingham. At other stations on the route they can simply board the train.

EMR also acknowledges that in the past, by the time the Nottingham to Skegness service reaches Grantham and Boston the service can sometimes be full.

This year to help passengers from these locations, on selected days and times, EMR will additionally provide a direct bus service to Butlins and Ingoldmells - more information on times can be found on EMR's website. 

As in previous years, EMR will also run a number of Skegness Summer Special services which will start at Derby. 

Neil Grabham, Customer Services Director at East Midlands Railway, said: "Skegness remains a very popular destination for holidaymakers and this year will be no different. 

"We want our customer's holiday to start as smoothly as possible and that's where booking a place beforehand comes in.

"Booking ahead allows customers to have peace of mind and guarantees a place on board.

"Likewise, customers from Boston and Grantham will be able to take advantage of a direct bus services to the coast on selected days  - helping them to quickly get to those big holiday resorts.

“As in previous years, holidaymakers should also keep an eye out for some special treats we have organised for families travelling on this route this summer.

"Customers can also take advantage of our free vacuum packs which will enable them to shrink wrap their clothes and bedding - meaning more space for everyone on board."

More information about EMR's Skegness Summer services can be found on its website here: Train travel to Skegness this Summer is different.