Scotland trip....Suggestions?

[Tartan Hiker]

We've wanted to go to Scotland for the past 25 years. Never had the time/money/etc...you know the drill.

Well, in a fit of wild abandon my wife and I just ordered plane tickets to Edinburgh for the only time available to us this year..the week after Christmas. Got a very good price considering what they've been going for over the past 12 months.

My wife has friends in several cities (Edinburgh, Inverness) so we'll be seeing those areas. We also want to travel down the Great Glen to see the "old home place" (Invergarry Castle) southwest of Loch Ness. Yeah, I know those places are pretty far apart. We will have no set agenda and will do what we can squeeze in comfortably.

P1Malt...you're located in the opposite direction from our travel plan, but just in case...is yoiur fine establishment open that week?

I've searched the board and located many previous posts with general travel tips, for which I am very grateful.

The question is...considering the mid-winter timing, are there any suggestions for us? How's the rail service that time of year as compared to car rental (I know the petrol prices are off the charts). Are there any special events that fall in that week that we should consider attending?

Don't even try to talk me out of it..."the check's in the mail"!

[McClef]

Well looks like you will be there for Hogmanay - kilts galore!

You can use the online enquiry service http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ for train enquiries and if you plan to use them it is better to buy a railpass before you leave - it will save money and can not be bought here in the UK.

But you would be faced with limitations as to routes, especially on the west coast which could add bus and taxi costs to your itenary.

For full flexibility car hire would probably be better and is less dependant on the number of people travelling - you pay for a car and petrol (gasoline) whether there are one travelling or five. Rail passes are individually priced.

When I visited the highlands in July car hire was a godsend.

There is a link to available car hire companies on the airport website http://www.edinburghairport.com/ so you will be able to compare prices etc.

Happy trip planning and have a good time!

[Pour1Malt]

guid oan ya and yur lassie!



if yur no used tae drivin in snaw an ice- ai dinnae think a car in the Hie'lans is a great idea a that time o' year... Scottish roads arr very narrow, twisty, an hard tae drive oan (fur 'mericans, at least) in dry conditions... they can bae quite tricky in snaw an ice...

an, aye we arr open... please come see us if ya can..

slainte!

[Randy]

Congrats Bill!

Things I learned this year.
Scottish airport security is much much nicer than the TSA.
In Scotland folks use the crosswalks and light signals, way more so than in DC.
Not hard to find internet connections. but why waste that tme while in Scotland. I emailed all important stuff to my website and accessed that way.
A car rental worked out great for us, never gave trains a thought.
Except in Edinburgh, we used the buses. very simple to get around and not worry about parking.

And the greatest thing in scotland was the i stores. when you come into towns there is an information shop with all the details for the area and they can call and book rooms for you, a very small charge for this. They can find you a room no matter what. There were five in our party.

And have fun.

[Freelander Sporrano]

The distances are not as far as you think. It doesn't take long to drive from Edinburgh to Inverness. Culloden and Lochness are on the doorstep from here.It's a nice drive to Drumnadrochit and Fort Augustus and Fort William.

Have a great trip

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I echo what Freelander said, Scotland's about the same size as South Carolina (to give you a comparison to something in your back yard), so distance is not that great between any two points.

I'll also agree with all who said rent a car. When my wife and I went over, the rail just didn't get to a lot of the places we wanted to see. Getting to them would have meant taking a bus, and I could just envision us hauling all our luggage from train staion to bus station and waiting in lines everywhere we went.

Nope, a car rental was required. Worked out great. Just threw our belongings in the trunk and went wherever the winding road led. We got a great deal using http://www.bluewheels.com/ which I highly reccomend to anyone.

I told them what kind of car we wanted (an automatic, so I didn't have to worry about driving on the other side of the road, and shifting gears with my opposite hand!), and a small car (best fuel economy). I told them when I needed to pick it up, and where, and when and where I planned to drop it off.

Within a few hours I had an email back that they had something for me. They handled all the arrangements. I didn't have to pick up a phone or pay them a dime (the car hire companies pay them for their service). It was so much easier than I anticipated.

I've reccomended them to anyone travelling to the UK ever since.

Aye,
Matt

[gilmore]

If only there were tours to second hand kilt stores....

[porrick]

The question is...considering the mid-winter timing, are there any suggestions for us? How's the rail service that time of year as compared to car rental (I know the petrol prices are off the charts).

Sounds like you are doing the right thing: going to Scotland

P1M is right re. driving conditions, as are those who rightly claim that you need a car to get to many of the interesting places.

Hehe, as for petrol prices I do not see much point of concern. You either fill petrol or you don't (no point comparing with the US, as you don't have a choice).

Hope you'll have a great trip, and we expect a lot of pictures posted!

[Tartan Hiker]

Thanks for all the input so far. The real stressor right now is that we can't find a room to book on Dec. 31 near enough to Edinburgh so that we can make an 11:30 AM flight. It's great to go to a location like Edinburgh when the big party is on, but finding a room at this late date is looking grim. If it was just my wife and I we'd manage, but my 16 and 13 year old sons will be there too.

Any suggestions or hot tips appreciated. Anyone have friends in Edinburgh that would be willing to lease some floor space?

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I guess I am going to be in the minority here and say that we have found the rail to be easiest way to go on all our trips across the pond.

I would also advise getting a BritRail pass and just using the train on any trip to England or Wales, but when my wife and I planned our iteneraty in Scotland, we found that the rail just didn't go to most of the places we wanted to visit. In England it looked like the rail went just about everywhere. In Scotland the coverage was not near as great.

Compare the coverage north and south of the border in this map:
http://www.britrail.com/maps/map_en.pdf