ledvoramomster

We are a family of 9 (don't ask) and are going from London Heathrow to York to Edinbourgh to London in July. We are looking to see the best way to do this and think it is via train. But I must admit to being very confused on how to see what prices are. I think we have to wait until we are four months out to see real prices. I also think we are better with regular tickets and not a BritRail pass (because we are just doing point to point). I am also confused (now you know why we have so many children) as to how we get from Heathrow to the train that takes us to York. Are we better off going from London to Edinbourgh and then back via York? Finally, are train tickets bought in advance non-refundable? If yes, what happens if our flights are delayed.

Thank you all for your help.

alanRow

You should book to fly from home to Edinburgh then travel down to London via York on the train. If you have already booked and can't change your tickets consider buying a separate flight with 5 hours between landing and takeoff.

There's no need to buy a railpass for what is effectively two journeys - tickets from Edinburgh to York and York to London start at around £15 per person per journey. Book when the booking window opens which is typically 12 weeks before date of travel

http://www.eastcoast.co.uk/

janisj

What is set in stone?. . . because what you want to do is quite a slog.

If possible would rearrange things thus: Arrive LHR. Fly to Edinburgh 3 to 4 hours later. Visit Edinburgh. Train to York. Train to London. Fly Home.

But there are other ways to fix this - so tell us what you've booked and what is firm.

ledvoramomster

Both replies are very helpful and where I was coming out myself. We booked with miles, so we are flying into London arriving at 8:30 a.m. on the 13th. We are flyiing home from Berlin 2 1/2 weeks later. I know we kind of lose that Saturday of the first day, so maybe we are better off flying. I am just worried about flight delays or immigration delays and the like. The other thing we were thinking was to spend one night in London, then fly to Edinbugh, and train it back to London 5 days later via York.

ledvoramomster

And we are flying United, so we can't fly from london to Edinburgh (well, we can but we have to go through Brussel or Munich or some such nonesense). We could fly from Heathrow to Edinburgh on BA or Virgin pretty cheaply though.

sofarsogood

Are you actually visiting London or just passing through on your way to Edinburgh or York because travelling into London and then straight out again is a pain and not always necessary.

So flying via Brussels to Edinburgh isn't necessarily a bad idea. Then you could take the train to York (and even fly out of Manchester to Berlin).

But if you have to travel via London then for a party of 9 consider a car service such as justairports.com to take you direct from Heathrow to Kings Cross for your train.

As for your ticket being non-refundable, well there are different types (see the eastcoast website mentioned above) and if you buy this type, well yes you have to travel on one particular train.

EuropePJV2011

My group ( 6 of us ) is going to London and Edinburgh in July too. After considering all the input from this forum I choose to fly up to Edinburgh and take the train back.

If you use BA and Virgin you can ask them to inlcude the leg LDN to EDI without much hassle.

There is a Jazz Festival in Edinburgh from 19 to 28 July I have encounter difficulty in finding reasonable accomodation. For example a room for 2 in an ordinary hotel cost GBP 230-250 per night on 19-July. I am still searching for my option.

ledvoramomster

we have already booked our flights out on united and united doesn't really get us to Edinburgh. So I think I am stuck flying into London. The other half of my party is going to fly direct to Edinburgh because they are flying Aer Lingus and can do that. I think we have no choice but to either fly or train it, and pray that we don't get delayed. It has me worried though. Maybe I should just spend the night in London before heading up on an early Sunday train.

maxima

If you intend to spend some time in London, you can go to London first, then take the train to York, spend some time in York and take the train to Edinburgh. From Edinburgh you can take a cheap flight to Europe.. Germany or where ever else you are planning to visit.

If you are not planning on staying in London, you can fly from Heathrow to Edinburgh the same day you arrive. If you are worried about connections, book for the early afternoon. That way you will have had time to pass through passport control, collect the luggage, and then go to the correct terminal. Since you booked into Heathrow without a connecting flight you will probably have to collect the luggage and check in. As you only booked into Heathrow on your UA flight, the next flight is not a connector that will forward the luggage.

janisj

You need to answer the question - are you actually visiting London, or just flying through?

"<i>and united doesn't really get us to Edinburgh. So I think I am stuck flying into London.</i>"

That is OK-there are several carriers that can get you from LHR to Edinburgh.

But before we confuse you . . . what is your actual itinerary??? Are you staying in London at all, have you booked hotels in Edinburgh/York/London, have you arranged getting to Berlin?

help us out here.

ledvoramomster

Thank you all. I finally called United and changed my flight to fly into Edinburgh and bit the bullet on the change fees. So here is our itiniary:

Edinburgh 3 nights
York 1 night
London 8 nights
Berlin 5 nights.

We fly home from berlin

alanRow

<I>h (well, we can but we have to go through Brussel or Munich or some such nonesense</I>

What is nonsense about it? It is what many folk in the north do to avoid the need for passing through LHR. By connecting through a non UK airport they avoid immigration checks until they reach their final destination and hence can have shorter connections

janisj

Your new plan is very good. A lot easier than crossing London to get to the train.

But to follow on from alanRow - when possible I'd always prefer connecting to GLA/EDI somewhere on the Continent than through Heathrow. For various reasons most of my connections have been through LHR - but I've also gone via Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and even Madrid once.

PalenQ

a family of nine may want to look at a BritRail Pass simply because kids under 16 go free and with the Party Pass the 3rd thru 9th adults on the same pass pay ony 50% of what the first two adults do - and you can hop any train anytime - good for arrivials by plane - head to the London station and hop on the first of about two an hour or so trains to York and ditto from York to Edinburgh - plus you can use the pass on the Heathrow Express train the same day if going to York straight away.

Normally only two train trips would not warrant a look at a pass but if you have kids under 16 and with the Party Pass this could be a great deal - check normal fares at www.nationalrail.co.uk - fully flexible fares can be dauntingly high - and yes the pass lets you hop on any train anytime.

for lots of great info on British trains I always spotlight these fine IMO sites - www.seat61.com (click on this site's commercial link to RailEurope for pass prices) and http://www.budgeteuropetravel.com/id11.html and www.ricksteves.com.

ledvoramomster

@alanRow: It would not be nonsense except it would have to be an add-on to an existing flight to London. So after a long night, it would mean waiting 4 hours in the airport (to take account of delays) and then flying to Brussels in order to change planes yet again to fly to Edinburgh. As you can imagine, that would have been a very long two days.

As I had already booked with miles to London, I was trying to avoid changes fees and additional mileage. I finally just broke down and paid the extra fees and the extra miles and went direct to Edinburgh. Saves me hassle and a full day of our vacation.

Mimar

Your revised plan looks good. But consider giving another night to York. If you take the train in the morning and leave the next day. You'll have at best 2 half-days in York. And they will include finding your hotel, checking in, orienting yourself, then checking out the next day and getting to the train station. There's a lot to see in York: the Cathedral and its undercroft, the Shambles, the walls, the Castle Museum, the Railway Museum, other museums.

I'd take the extra night from London. (Aaargh! Pruning someone else's itinerary is almost as bad as pruning one's own.)

If you do stay only the one night in York, you can get a later train to London on the next day. Your hotel should store your luggage while you finish sightseeing in York.

I assume you're planning on taking the train from Edinburgh to York and from York to London. If you buy your tickets early (3 months out or so), you can get considerable savings. Buying early, we paid about L36 for 2nd class tickets York to London; the full price was more like L130. Here's a useful site for train travel info: www.seat61.com/UK-train-travel.htm.

Nine people move more slowly than, say, a couple. Are any of the family children? Depending on their ages and interests, children may need special planning. And it's much harder to find rooms for more than 2 people.

I'm sure you'll have a memorable trip.

PalenQ

York yes so so much to see and do - to me the best city in England along with Bath. Lots of neat day trips as well.

ledvoramomster

So we have taken everyone's advice (difficult as that sounds). We are three nights in Edinbourgh, 2 nights in York, and 6 nights in London. Then off to Berlin. I am so thankful for everyone's very helpful (and not too contradictory) suggestions.

janisj

That is a very nice itinerary - enjoy your trip.

PalenQ

With 6 nights in London I'd consider a day trip or two - like to nearby Windsor and the castle or to Hampton Court - Henryt VIIIs Versailles in suburban London and easily reached by train as is Windsor or to Oxbridge - either college town is a great day out from London - I would think either of these day trips would be in the end more memorable for you than anything else you would have done in London with that sixth day.

Salisbury and Stonehenge are also easy day trips by train/bus or excursion.