chellep622

Hi Everyone,

I'm planning a trip for my husband and me to London, Edinburgh, and Paris from April 17th - May 3rd. I've listed our plan below.

April 18th - Arrive in London around lunch, get settled, and do a little sightseeing
April 19 - April 23rd - Sightseeing in London. We'd like to take one day trip to Bath. Take
the overnight train from London to Edinburgh.
April 24th - 28th Edinburgh sightseeing and a 3 day tour of the Highlands
April 29th - Fly to Paris in the morning and do a little sightseeing in the afternoon
April 30th - May 2nd - Paris sightseeing
May 2nd - take Eurostar back to London that night
May 3rd - Fly home from London in the morning

I was hoping for some feedback about whether this seems like a reasonable schedule. I realize the ideal situation would be to fly open jaw, but I used miles to purchase one of our tickets which required flying into/out of London. I'm trying to pin down our schedule so that I can purchase the rest of our transportation tickets.

I'm also looking for lodging suggestions for those locations. Our budget is approximately 100 -125 dollars per night. We're looking at the Edinburgh City Hotel but don't have any ideas for London or Paris yet.

Oh, here are a couple of final thoughts about us. Based on reading this thread for some time, I understand that this might be a lot for some, but we both enjoy fast paced vacations. We like a mix of nature, history, architecture, and really good food. I appreciate everyone's help and look forward to reading and answering responses.

janisj

Not bad at all considering the having to return to London.

But I'd consider doing it this way instead:

Arrive LHR, fly up to Edinburgh the same morning.

After your stay in Edinburgh, fly to Paris.

Eurostar Paris to London and finish up w/ your London visit.

Putting all of London at the end eliminates an extra packing/unpacking/checking out/in.

$100-$125/£65-£80/€90-€110 a night is pretty low ESPECIALLY for London. The £ and € are down but not down THAT much.

I just did a dummy booking at the Edinburgh City and it's basic rate, prepaid/non cancelable is £77.20 so just barely w/i your budget. Decent location not far from Grassmarket and the Castle.

chellep622

janisj, thank you for your response. We've actually considered doing what you suggested and flying straight to Edinburgh, but we were worried about the possibility of flight delays and missing that second flight. Also, my husband thinks it would be fun to take an overnight train. However, I like the idea of getting as much travel as we can out of the way on the first day.

Regarding hotels, we could bump our budget to $150 if need be. I just like to save as much money on hotels as I can, so we have more for other things. I've considered using Priceline's name your own price tool. I've used it frequently for our trips in the US, but I'm a bit nervous about using it internationally. Do you have any experience with Priceline?

janisj

Priceline isn't great for Paris -- the zones are drawn so most have inconvenient areas - where you are bound to 'win' your hotel.

It is much better for London - or at least it used to be . . . I haven't used it there for about 3 or 4 years. The best bidding zones are Mayfair/Soho, and Knightsbridge (both are pricier areas) then Bloomsbury/Kings Cross. Westminster used to be the best zone -- but I'd avoid it because they have re-drawn the boundaries and you are almost guaranteed to get an inconvenient property neat Vauxhaul Bridge. Kensington/Earls Court is OK but there are parts that are pretty far west.

Maybe try Hotwire instead because you can get more details about the hotels and by process of elimination can often figure out which is which.

chellep622

Thanks for the tip about Paris! I'll look for a regular hotel there, and I'll check Hotwire for London.

We are leaning toward your suggestion again, especially after looking at the overnight train prices. I haven't found any of the bargain berths for our travel dates. Our flight to London arrives at 11, and there is a flight that leaves for Edinburgh at 3 or 4. Do you think 4 hours would suffice to go through customs, collect our one checked bag, and proceed to the next flight. It seems like a long time but I'm not familiar with the London airport, and I like to leave a little room for delays.
Thanks for your help!

mamcalice

If you follow janisj's suggested itinerary, you gain a day for Paris which you really need to do this fabulous city justice. And you avoid the need for one extra hotel move. Good idea.

almcd

It is my understanding that there is a regular service between London and Edinburgh so missing a scheduled flight would not be a major problem. Bearing in mind the problem of jet lag, flying to Edinburgh would be my preference to doing some afternoon touring in London.

historytraveler

Yes, there are regular flights to EDI from LHR so shouldn't be a problem. A couple of considerations about the overnight train to Edinburgh. The train doesn't leave until 11:50, you will have to check out of your hotel about 11:00/11:30 a.m. though the hotel will probably keep your luggage for you to pick up later. That leaves you with some 12 hours to fill without the convenience of a hotel room. Sure it can be done, but a bit tiring and tiresome IMO. The train gets into Edinburgh about 7:20. That gives you at best about 6/ 61/2 hours of sleep. Is that enough for you? Once in Edinburgh, you can check into your hotel, but it's highly unlikely that your room will be ready. So once again you'll have about 8 hours to kill. Most sights don't open until 9:30/10.

If this works for you, fine, but I thought you should be aware of the realities. A flight from LHR to EDB on arrival just seems to make the most sense.

nytraveler

Just so you're aware - there is not one London airport - there are 4.

Assume you are landing at LHR - just be sure flight to Edinburgh also leaves from there. If you have to switch airports it will be a major PIA.

janisj

>>Do you think 4 hours would suffice to go through customs, collect our one checked bag, and proceed to the next flight.<<

Should be two hours more than you need -- but there are all sorts of variables like if your flight is delayed, which airlines. which terminal(s).

It isn't customs that takes ant time -- it is Immigration (passport control). Even IF they are separate tickets, you <i>might</i> be able to check your bag through to Edinburgh.

>>It is my understanding that there is a regular service between London and Edinburgh so missing a scheduled flight would not be a major problem. <<

True enough - but if these are separate tickets you wouldn't be protected. You'd have to book a new flight.

Which airline are you flying to the UK and which airline are you looking at to EDI? If it is all BA (or AA code shared on a BA flight) -- piece of cake since you wouldn't change terminals and would probably get your bag checked through.

But no matter the airlines/terminals, me personally - I'd be fine w/ 4 hours.

dotheboyshall

The other main change you could have made was to fly from Bristol to Edinburgh removing the need to return to London when you visit Bath.

Mimar

I assume you've already bought your air tickets. As janis said - obliquely - if you keep your first itinerary, it would be better to fly home from Paris. The change fee might be worth it. Open-jaws or multi-city tickets should cost about the same as round trip. However if you fly out of Paris, you save the big fee/tax charged on flights out of the UK.

I do think flying on to Edinburgh makes the most sense. Could you change your destination to be Edinburgh so you'd be guaranteed a connecting flight if you arrive late?

janisj

mimar: >>it would be better to fly home from Paris. The change fee might be worth it. Open-jaws or multi-city tickets should cost about the same as round trip. <<

Per the OP . . . >> I realize the ideal situation would be to fly open jaw, but I used miles to purchase one of our tickets which required flying into/out of London.<<

chellep622

Hi Everyone! Thanks so much for all of the feedback. We've decided to cut the whole overnight train idea and just fly straight to Edinburgh when we arrive at LHR. I know we'll be responsible for the second flight if we miss it, but we're going to take that chance because I can't change our final destination without incurring two separate fees - one for the miles and one for the actual change.

historytraveler - Thank you for pointing out the issues with our luggage. The logistics of taking the overnight train are just too much trouble.

janisj - We're flying United into London, and we're looking at Virgin Atlantic for flights to Edinburgh.

I'm super excited that we finally have the schedule worked out! Now onward to find lodging!