It’s been a while since I used Great Western Railway and it was a bit of surprise they’re still using offline, swipe only handheld terminals. I think they date back to BR days and I know the East Coast trains got rid of theirs in 2007.
Apparently they had a new system but it had problems so they’re still using their old terminals.
So has anyone used their Monzo card on GWR and how long did it take it to appear on your account? I’m wondering if it takes a similar length of time as it does for on-board purchases on airlines (which use more modern card machines but are also processed offline) or do they take longer?
One useful feature may be to be able to block a certain part of your balance to cover offline transactions. As I had a meal in their Pullman restaurant it is a relatively high amount for an offline transaction (the ones on the plane were all under £20) so if I don’t watch my balance there’s a chance that the payment would bounce.
That said despite the antiquated payment methods Id certainly recommend the Pullman restaurant if you’re travelling GWR on one of their Pullman trains. It’s not cheap but it’s good quality dining on the move. https://www.gwr.com/plan-journey/journey-information/on-board/pullman-dining