PULL the emergency cord! Train prices jumped an average 6.5 per cent this week, so you can't be blamed for wanting to get off.

Instead, scythe the cost down with sneaky trainspotting tricks. As a bizarre example, buying twice the number of tickets can more than HALVE the cost.

This isn't about logic - in fact, toss that out the window. To become a real cheap-fares anorak, you need focus on ticket anomalies.

Let me take you on a journey to do just that . . . all aboard!

STOP 1: BOOK EARLY, LATE

Everyone knows booking train tickets early is much cheaper . . . yet many think you must book days or weeks in advance . . . WRONG. For my TV show, I was challenged to make the biggest possible rail savings for a small businessman annually spending £10,000-plus on fares.

As he usually only finds out his destination the day before, he buys a ticket at the station on the day. So we focused on a peak-time London to Sheffield train for the next morning.

Done his usual way he'd pay £147 return. Yet as it was 5pm, I got him on the rail booking line there and then, and advance tickets were still available for just just £64. Doing something as simple as this, more than halved his costs saving thousands.

Always call as early as you can, never think it's too late for an advance fare. I've done it myself by calling up on the way to the station.

STOP 2: SINGLES OFTEN BEAT RETURNS

Returns should be better value than two singles, but train fares and logic go together like rabbits and algebra.

To make this easy, harness the web - www.nationalrail.co.uk or raileasy.co.uk list single and return fares together or look out for thetrainline.com 's "two singles could be cheaper" link. Alternatively, if telephoning National Rail enquiries ensure you ask.

Do note, Raileasy and TheTrainline are commercial booking agencies, so you'll pay additional fees buying via them. It's cheaper to book DIRECT with your train company on their websites or by phone.

STOP 3: SPLIT THE TICKETS, NOT JOURNEY

Let me explain with an example. The best I've ever unearthed was with a £257 standard London to Penzance return. The train stops at Plymouth - and by buying a ticket from London to Plymouth, and Plymouth to Penzance and vice versa for the return, the price shrank to £48 . . . an incredible £209 saving.

And remember this is the same train, same time, probably the same seat: The only difference is the tickets.

This split-ticketing technique, of buying separate tickets for different parts of a journey gives eye-popping savings on lots of routes. Want to know why? Me too, so if you find out do let me know.

Yet it does work. If you face an expensive journey, simply check where the train stops and try pricing it separately. And don't worry: It's totally legal providing the train actually stops at the station.

To help, I've a list of routes this works well on at moneysavingexpert.com/trains .

One tiny warning: If you split your ticket at a station where you actually change trains and your chosen service is delayed, leaving you at the mercy of later trains, you may need to pay extra if your second ticket's for a specific time.

STOP 4: FIND HIDDEN PROMOTIONAL DEALS

While most standard ticket deals are listed on train websites or National Rail enquiries, there's an ever-increasing range of hidden promotional fares. Take Virgin's "print-at-home" tickets for Manchester-to-London journeys: Every four weeks, a new batch is released for the following month, costing just £1 to £10 each way. But you must specifically visit its special website section to discover them.

It's just one of many similar deals across the country, including dirt-cheap fares from Megatrain and special website discounts. To keep on track with 'em, find the latest deals at moneysavingexpert.com/trainoffers .

STOP 5: ENSURE YOU'VE A RAILCARD

Fork out more than £72 a year for rail travel, even for just ONE eligible journey and you can start saving money now.

Railcards slice a third off ALL advance and standard journeys. Their usual cost is £24, so spend more than treble this and you'll make savings.

Cards cover the 16 to 25s, the over-60s and "family and friends" where up to four adults travelling with one to four children can bag discounts. Try local railcards too. Check out nationalrail.co.uk where you can also check if a season ticket's worth it.

STOP 6: TRAVEL WHEN ITS CHEAPEST

If you're flexible, thetrainline.co.uk has a nifty Best Fare Finder tool. Bash in your destination and date range, and it'll find the cheapest day and time.

Take a Glasgow-to-London return departing in a month's time. The cheapest Saturday fare was £204, yet a five-second search shows the Saturday before costs just £81, so changing weekend saves £123.

Your questions

Q I AM heading to Rome in March and after a good hotel for as little as possible. Is there a technique to this?

ADRIAN BINNS, via email

A There are scores of techniques, the obvious start point is comparison sites like tripadvisor.com, travelsupermarket.com and hotelcomparison.co.uk

There are also BIG loopholes. One is a work-around lastminute.com's heavily-discounted Top Secret Rooms section. Here you choose a star level but only get told what hotel it is AFTER paying, yet each hotel has a description, so try copying and pasting this or its key phrases into Google and you'll often discover the identity BEFORE paying.

Yet that's just a beginner loophole: A more complex technique allows some SERIOUS savings such as six nights in the Sheraton Times Square for £336 rather than its standard £1,200 price. See moneysavingexpert.com/cheaphotels .

GOT a question? Email notw@moneysavingexpert.com

TV Money Guru Martin Lewis, is the creator of the Consumer Revenge website MoneySavingExpert.comwhich is packed with info on how to get more money in your pocket.

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