Upvote:4
I would recommend one of two options:
- Go to the ticket window at the station, not a machine. The machines are quick if you know exactly what you want, but the ticket office staff know the system much better than anyone and are able to help if you're not sure exactly what you need.
- Buy (or at least search for) your ticket online. You can say exactly what train you want, and see the price, and usually also see what other trains you can travel on with the same ticket.
Regarding "no times were shown on the machine I bought it from", there is usually a "more information" button on the more modern machines that brings up a screen showing the restrictions on one particular ticket, but this is still not necessarily easy to interpret.