Travel to Scotland

[azwildcat96]

Hi all,

I am looking into visiting Scotland next year. Actually, I will be competing in the Masters World Championship highland games in Inverness (September 2014). Already signed up for the competition...now the reality is setting in...I need to plan the trip! Airfare, where to stay, how to travel around once we're there, what else to do before/after the competion, do I want to travel anywhere else in Europe, etc...

I know some of you have travelled to Scotland, or live in or near Scotland.

Any tips are appreciated.

[Jock Scot]

Okay, give me a hand here. How long are you planning to stay in Scotland? How are you planning to travel? A clue on what your interests are, besides Higland games? Do you have any "must sees"? These details are really helpful when advising.

[guardsman]

Culloden right next door to Inverness, as is cawdor castle , loch ness . As Jock asks , how long you over for ? Lots going on in Scotland next year , ryder cup , in september . Other pertinent question is have you been before and if so what have you seen ? Hoping to go to ryder cup myself hope the games on about same date

[John_Carrick]

Left for Skye, Ullapool, Wester Ross, South for Cairngorms. Fort George to the right too.

Cities Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow (London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Madrid, Barcelona, Prague, Vienna, Dublin etc).

Two whole weeks in Scotland (or the wider UK) would be easily filled.

One word of warning is that this is the lead up period to the independence referendum, so it could be a fascinating or dire time to go depending on your interests.

John

[John_Carrick]

Referendum is 18th September

[cessna152towser]

If you are going to be based in Inverness there is plenty to see in the highlands alone without ever visiting central or southern Scotland. Loch Ness, Fort George, Culloden, the scenic train ride to Kyle of Lochalsh or the far north line to Thurso for the Orkney ferry at Scrabster etc.
Unfortunately there are no direct flights from USA to Inverness. I would think your best bet would be travel from USA to Amsterdam Schiphol airport then a connecting flight to Inverness. All the gates are within walking distance of one another. Avoid London Heathrow at all costs, its a HORRIBLE airport with rude staff and five different terminals and sometimes you can have a long wait for the train between terminals. On the map, travel via Amsterdam appears to be rather indirect as you would fly over northern Scotland on your way into Amsterdam from USA, yet the fares via Amsterdam can be surprisingly competitive. I've flown from Glasgow to Calgary via Amsterdam, and at the time that was the cheapest way of doing it.
You could of course get a flight direct from USA to Glasgow or Edinburgh but the connecting flights to Inverness from there are infrequent and use small aircraft. If you decide to travel via Glasgow or Edinburgh, the flights arrive in the morning. Best to spend the afternoon and evening sightseeing the city then stay overnight in Glasgow or Edinburgh then take a train to Inverness next day. The train journey is quite scenic.

[Liam]

Can anyone comment on whether one should rent a car or use public transit (train and bus)? My wife and I are contemplating a return to Scotland (our previous visit was in 1978) and are considering both a u-drive style or a bus tour and would also appreciate your thoughts too.

[cessna152towser]

Can anyone comment on whether one should rent a car or use public transit (train and bus)

If you don't mind driving a car then car rental is the best way to go if you want to see some of the remote parts of Scotland where public transport is limited. Bear in mind though that you can miss some of the best scenery if you need to concentrate on the road ahead.
You could hire a vehicle with driver but that doesn't come cheap.
If you are content to limit your travels to the main tourist routes then public transport is generally frequent and cheap.

[Stephan]

Oops...I didn't realize I could edit my previous post...done!

[Carlo]

If you don't mind driving a car then car rental is the best way to go if you want to see some of the remote parts of Scotland where public transport is limited. Bear in mind though that you can miss some of the best scenery if you need to concentrate on the road ahead.
You could hire a vehicle with driver but that doesn't come cheap.
If you are content to limit your travels to the main tourist routes then public transport is generally frequent and cheap.

Frequent really depends on where you want to go.
I remember that one nice sunday I was walking from Helmsdale towards Thurso because the first and only bus stopped at 1:30 pm or so.
And some time later there was only one train from Thurso to Inverness.

What I learnt was, plan ahead and check your timetables if you travel by public transport.