Britrail pass?

[Firetacoma]

I'll be headed over to the UK for my honeymoon in early May and I'm trying to decide if the Britrail pass is a good idea and if so, which version.

We are flying in and out of London. We intend to spend most of the trip in Scotland but not all in the same place. So that right there is 2 long train journeys. I was thinking perhaps buy a 4 day flexpass and then for shorter day trips just pay cash.

Any advice or thoughts? It's quite a chunk of change!

Also, does the Britrail pass allow you on trains from any company? Virgin for example?

[Jock Scot]

I can't help but feel that you will be better to hire a car. It will certainly be more versitile to do that and I suspect, would cost about the same.

[Phil]

I don't know anything about the Britrail pass but presumably it covers all the train companies. I would suggest you try here as well - http://www.thetrainline.com/ - you can book tickets there and just buy what you actually need and it may also give you a comparison with the Britrail costs.
Trains don't go everywhere but if you just want to go to Glasgow, Stirling, Perth, Dundee, Aberdeen or Inverness then you can from Edinburgh. There are also plenty of bus routes - http://www.stagecoachbus.com/region_2.html -from Edinburgh for the places the train doesn't go. And if that doesn't get you where you want to go then, as Jock says, hire a car.

[Firetacoma]

You think hire a car in London and keep if the entire time?

Or train to say, Edinburgh and then rent a car for the time in Scotland? The wrong side of the road thing scares me a tad...

[Phil]

You think hire a car in London and keep if the entire time?

Or train to say, Edinburgh and then rent a car for the time in Scotland? The wrong side of the road thing scares me a tad...

I would take the train to Edinburgh then hire a car for outings from there. Much less stressful. You will have to adapt to road features like roundabouts, no turns on red lights under any circumstances, slow lanes on the left, road signs that tell you where you are going not just a number and direction and, of course, a gearstick among other things. Oh, and one other thing. Edinburgh is virtually closed to traffic at the moment with many roads dug up as they work on laying tramlines. Even the locals find it difficult getting around the city so be warned.

[JS Sanders]

Why not take a train from London-Edinburgh? British trains are 1st class, comfortable, and reasonably quiet. Driving in and around London is nightmarish for most anyone, even natives.

Once you reach Scotland, by all means hire a car. Better yet, either bring your sat-nav or request a vehicle with it installed. These are well worth the small expense and will save you much aggravation behind the wheel.

Also, purchase this book entitled Driving In Britain - A North American's Guide to the Ins and Outs and Roundabouts of Driving Over There.

It can be found here: http://www.amazon.com/Driving-Britai...7309724&sr=1-1

It'll make matters far less stressful - especially when you hit your first roundabout. I recommend it highly.

Slainte,
steve

[M. A. C. Newsome]

When I looked into getting a Britrail pass back when my wife and I honeymooned in Scotland in 2000, it was highly recommended to me by a freind who frequently visits England.

I looked at the map of locations on their web site, though, and I could see why. It literally criss-crossed the entirety of England, but in Scotland it pretty much just hit the major cities (Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness, Aberdeen, etc.)

My wife and I planned on spending a lot of time in more rural areas, so we decided to hire a car through bluewheels.com. It was a great service and very reasonable rates.

This was almost ten years ago, mind you.

[Firetacoma]

Thanks all!

I am looking at rental car prices and am stunned by how cheap it actually is... though I know gas is almost $5 a gallon!

Thanks for the tips about Edinburgh traffic Phil. I was curious if many hotels there had their own parking or would we have to worry about that as well?

[Jack Daw]

Thanks all!

I am looking at rental car prices and am stunned by how cheap it actually is... though I know gas is almost $5 a gallon!

Thanks for the tips about Edinburgh traffic Phil. I was curious if many hotels there had their own parking or would we have to worry about that as well?

Perhaps, but make sure you understand the auto insurance charged foreigners on a daily basis. It adds up.

[Phil]

Many hotels do have parking but, if not, street parking is scarce, expensive and rigidly enforced by a set of neo-nazi traffic wardens called locally the "Blue Meanies" from their uniforms and intransigent attitude towards parking infringements. Street parking is controlled far beyond the city centre so even some suburban areas are involved. Also new legislation is the pipeline to stop people leaving the country if they have unpaid traffic fines - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...overnment.html.