You don't need/want a car in Edinburgh but will have a much easier time of it if you have one for the Northumberland and Highlands parts of you trip. There are buses tha travel along the Wall, but navigating the Wall + Alnwick using public transport is not easy/efficient.

One week is not very long for Northumberland (Hadrian's Wall, Alnwick etc), Edinburgh and the Highlands.

2 days in Northumberland and 2 or 3 days In Edinburgh doesn't leave much time for touring the Highlands and travel time to/from the north back to EDI or GLA to fly out.

Scotland and NE England are big places.

Can you add a few days to the total trip?

You might think about England's East coast. Take the 2 hour train to York, then check York out. It has some fascinating history, its own walls to walk on, and a great custural museum. It's an old Roman and Nordic site, so that history is there too.

Rent a car in York, drive up to Edinburgh, maybe stopping at Durham, a lovely old city, and then on to Hadrian's Wall.

If you want to keep your car, you can park it down by the train station in Edinburgh, as I did, for a couple of days, and then use it to head up to the Highlands.

If you don't want to drive, then turn your car in at Edinburgh and look at www.rabbies.com for some tours of the Highlands. Rabbies has been recommended by numerous readers of the forum.

All good suggestions -- but you will definitely need more than a week for York/Durham/Hadrian's Wall/Alnwick Castle/Edinburgh/the Highlands. That is 10-14 days worth.

Hadrian's Wall takes a minimum of 1 full day, and Alnwick Castle/Gardens takes another FULL day.

Thanks Rasta and janisj for your replies! I read your most recent trip blog janisj and it made me want to see so much- too much for this one trip. I think we will have to give up the Wall and Alnwick. I would love to take another week for this trip, but my pocketbook says no . We are of scottish descent so we want to spend as much time there as possible looking at ancestral locations and we LOVE the outdoors so the highlands are calling. And Skye is on the list so the west coast it is. We have more tweaking to do on the Scotland end so I'll likely be back here for more help. Thanks again for the reality check!

Which part(s) of Scotland is your family from?

Um, you may need to add a week to your Scotland portion.

Driving in Scotland isn't like driving in the US (disregard the wrong-side factor) - in Scotland a road with two lanes in each direction is a major thoroughfare; in the US, it can be a frontage road near a real highway. So that means small distances (200 miles) are longer trips (pushing 5 hours, not 3.5). And going through the Lowlands to Edinburgh to the Western Highlands and the Isle of Skye means a good bit of driving.

Budget accordingly too - UK petrol is riotously expensive.

If you go open jaw, that's easy enough. If you use frequent flyer miles, beware British Airways flights - those SOBs charge the per person fuel separate from the "seat" such that an American or United flight that would be $200 per person for taxes and fees and $0 for the flight due to miles will be $650 per person on BA (all figures representative, not exact) because BA charges fuel use as a "fee." Just random environmentalist nonsense from the European ruling classes that fly on private jets on taxpayer expense.

My original plan (before considering the Wall and Alnwick) was to either take the sleeper train or fly from London to Edinburgh. No plans on driving in England now. We'll stay in Edinburgh a few days and head west to Skye seeing what we can of the highlands along the way. Not sure if we will rent a car in Edinburgh or take a train to Fort William and get it there. So glad I've read more than once on these forums about how slow the driving is so we will be prepared. Recommendations are welcome! Flying out of Glasgow seems to make the most sense as it's closer to the west coast (and we have no frequent flyer miles as we never travel so we get to pay full freight). Janisj, my paternal grandmother emigrated to Canada from Dundee. We will take a train there one of the days we are in Edinburgh and see where she lived. My mother's ancestors are Dewars and emigrated to Canada from Glenelg. Handy, since that is in the vicinity of Skye. Honestly, Scotland is more important to all of us, so if we need to, we'll take time away from London. I will make sure we have a minimum of 7 days in Scotland and may be able to stretch it more as my budget comes together. I know, only enough to scrape the surface, but better than not at all! Your input and expertise is much appreciated

". . . or take a train to Fort William and get it there."

Not a great option unfortunately. Ft William is not a metropolis and there isn't much there - only small local rental companies. Plus taking the train to Ft William means you miss all the glorious bits in between (like Glencoe for example)

I'd collect a car at EDI (take the bus or a taxi out the airport and get the car there). Take 2 days to drive to Skye seeing the Trossachs and Glencoe enroute and Glenelg after leaving Skye. Then on to near Inverness and south to GLA or EDI. Or if you want to take a train, you can drop the car at Inverness and take a train to Glasgow or Edinburgh.

Last year we travelled from Invergarry to Glenelg (spectacular drive) then took the ferry across to Skye.

http://www.skyeferry.co.uk/

Oh to clarify my post just a bit: Take one night and about 1.5 days traveling to Skye, a couple of days ON Skye (or more if you can finagle the time) then hit Glenelg after leaving the the island.

You'd take the Mallaig ferry to Skye, then the Kylerhea ferry off the island to Glenelg.

OR - you could even do Glenelg as a day trip from a base on Skye. In that case, you'd take the bridge when finally leaving Skye.

You guys are awesome! Thanks. Now to fine tune where we'll stay. Most likely hostels so we can save enough money to stay LONGER. We don't mind roughing it My girls have never been on a ferry so I think we might have to do that.Speaking of hostels, there are 2 YHA (Hostelling International) hostels that look very well located in London. One is near Oxford and Regent Sts and the other is not too far north of there, closer to Euston. Good reviews for both, just wondering if one is better situated ie: transportation, eateries and such. Since we are of the female persuation, safety is important too (although the highly dangerous combination of 2 hormonal teenage girls and their pre menopausal mother should frighten off most criminals. We are our own gang- perhaps we will wear "colors") and we are not party animals. My 18 yo DD is looking forward to legally drinking a pint though!

Hello again fodorites. I'm needing some more advice as our travel planning moves onward. In looking at inexpensive housing options in London, I found the dorms at LSE which have triple rooms in Passfield Hall. Slightly more expensive than a YHA hostel, but includes breakfast. The problem is, there are no triple rooms available until mid-Aug. We would need to do Scotland prior to London so we could return home before college starts here. Two concerns I have about going in Aug- we'll be in Edinburgh during Festival and travelling during the UK school break, both adding to the crowds. Part of me says experiencing the Festival (and the Tattoo sounds spectacular) would be worth the hassle, but I don't want the crowds to inhibit our ability to see the castle and other sites. Should we expect more vacationers everywhere due to the school break? We can still travel in June, I just liked the rooms through LSE and am wondering if that alone is worth changing our plans to later in the summer? Can you tell I tend to get grumpy in crowds?
Also, m

Well, heck! Mid-sentence on my last post and the cat landed on my laptop and submitted for me! Not sure how to edit, so I'll just finish my question here We are really liking the idea of renting a campervan in Scotland after we are done in Edinburgh. We can be a lot more flexible that way and we are good at roughing it. Finding an outfit that rents automatics narrows the choices a bit (and no, I am not combining driving on the "wrong side" with a manual shift. While I can drive a manual shift here in the US, I am fairly certain everyone living in Scotland would vote for me NOT doing it over there!). Anyone have experience renting from Comfy Campervans? Any other recommendations for automatic campervan rentals?

The University of Edinburgh also has rooms available in their dorms during the summer vacation. I have not stayed in the dorms but its quite common in the UK to rent out the university dorms for accommodations for conferences and travelers.

Should we expect more vacationers everywhere due to the school break?

Yes and if you aren't interested in the Festivals Edinburgh in August is the wrong place to be - prices are far higher and it's EXTREMELY busy - this year around 2 million tickets were sold for shows in August

Thanks for your input alanRow. While I would love to experience the Festival, I think it is best done as a seperate trip (a reason to return!). I don't want the crowds to interfere with our ability to experience Edinburgh for itself. So, a June trip it will be.

We have firmed up our 2013 dates for our trip to London and Scotland now and I am back so I can get a final go-over of the itinerary. We will be staying in hostels and the like(ieelf catering, budget)

Jun 6 arrive London (tickets not purchased yet, but arrival will be approx noon)
Jun 6-12 staying at the YHA Oxford St hostel. We will be taking at least 2 day trips- one to the WB studio for the Harry Potter stuff (we'll book an early tour so there will be time left in the day to do other things) and one to Cardiff for the Dr Who Experience (full day). I feel like we really shouldn't miss Stonehenge ("you went to London and didn't see Stonehenge?!"), but I'm not sure there will be time to fit in another day trip. Specific plans on what we will do/see in London itself are still fluid. We have friends who will be there at the same time and we will work out the London details as we get closer.
Jun 13 will be a full day in London (leaving at night on the sleeper train to Edinburgh)

Jun 14- arrive Edinburgh Waverly on sleeper from London. Bus to airport to pick up car then tour Falkirk/Stirling/Inchmahome Priory. Stay in Trossachs (haven't decided which hostel yet)
Jun 15- travel to Glen Coe- sightseeing and walks along the way-stay in Glencoe area
Jun 16- drive to Skye via ferry from Mallaig- staying in either the Glenbrittle or Skyewalker hostel or perhaps the Sligachan bunkhouse. Suggestions for which one has the most central location on Skye for touring/hikes would be appreciated.
Jun 17- Skye
Jun 18- we'll either drive over the bridge or take the little Skye ferry to Glenelg (ancestral connection there) then drive to Inverness. See Loch Ness/ Urquart Castle and stay in Inverness.
Jun 19 travel to and stay in either Pitlochry or Perthshire/Angus somewhere. Suggestions welcome! We want to see the Pictish stones in Meigle and Glamis Castle and we have another ancestral connection in the area (Guthrie Castle)
Jun 20- return car to Edinburgh airport
Jun 20-23 in Edinburgh (apt rental in Old Town near the Lyceum) with a possible day trip to Alnwick Castle and Melrose Abbey with Rabbies)
Jun 24 fly home
I'm hoping the Scotlnad portion gives us a "taste" of Scotland without trying to pack in too much. There's so much more we would love to see, but it will have to wait for another trip. Thanks to janisj and Indy_dad. Your input and trip reports on Scotland helped a great deal Suggestions for altering or improving this plan within the given time frame and any budget accomodation ideas for the areas we are visiting in Scotland are welcomed!

Sounds like a wonderful plan. A couple of comments:

"staying in either the Glenbrittle or Skyewalker hostel or perhaps the Sligachan bunkhouse"

Glen Brittle is beautiful and I think Skyewalker is out past Carboast. Both are on single track roads. Sligachan will be MUCH more convenient for your short stay on Skye. It is at sort of the crossroads/center of the island. I'd stay there for sure.

For your Guthrie Castle detour - I wouldn't go via Pitlochry. I'd go via Elgin/Huntly/Aberdeen and stay that night somewhere in southern Aberdeenshire/Stonehaven or south of there. That way you could visit Dunnottar, Guthrie and Glamis.

Thanks janisj. I think you had recommended the Sligachan Hotel to someone else and that's how I found the bunkhouse option. Good to know it's more central. Many of the hostels on Skye are pretty remote. I'll try to realign my trip south from Inverness to go through Aberdeen assuming I can find a hostel. They are pretty thin in that part of Scotland if I remember correctly.

Hi, rmmom
Chiming in late to say, you will have a great trip! Although DH and I grew up in England, we had never been to Scotland (crazy, right?) We decided to rectify that in 2006, and had a wonderful time.

We took the sleeper train from Euston to Inverness (also stops in Edinburgh) and save a LOT by using Bargain Berths:
http://www.scotrail.co.uk/caledoniansleeper/index.html
You have to purchase the tickets a certain number of days before your trip, but there are big savings if you keep track (not hard to do online). We like trains, and really enjoyed it. Very clean, cozy bunks, and a dining car where you can eat or chill or look out of the window. And you can't beat the price! From Inverness, we rented a car and drove to Durness (family connections) then down the beautiful west coast to Skye.

Having read the Potter books, we wanted to take the Jacobite steam train from Fort William to Mallaig, and that was very enjoyable also. It's popular, so you have to book ahead.

We also have a family Dewars connection in Perth so stopped over there for a couple of nights, figuring that we would be able to learn a lot. Maybe we would be the long-lost heirs they had been searching for? Not so fast! We should have done WAY more research first -- but there are very good resources in Perth. There are very many Dewars, we learned.

We drove from Ballachulish to Rannoch Moor and Tyndrum through Glencoe. It is a humbling, grand and tragic landscape, as if to reflect the tragic events that happened there. (Must mention, we saw Skyfall, the new Bond movie, and James and M stop the Aston Martin to stand and look at that same landscape.)

Trust janisj when she says it will take longer to drive anywhere in Scotland, especially if you are on the single-lane roads in the Highlands. She's right!

I think we'll have to go back, and want to visit Guthrie Castle -- our daughter married a Guthrie earlier this year!

If you's like to see our trip report, here's the link:
http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/scotlands-the-best-or-looking-for-roots-and-finding-single-malts-and-midges-long-tr.cfm

Hi there rmmom!
We're planning a trip to Scotland, London, and Paris for my daughter's high school graduation present as well. This will also be the first time that my wife and I are traveling to the UK and France. We're going next July (2013). Like you, we have limited time and budget (thank heaven for frequest flyer miles and hotel points!). However, we wanted to pack in what we could in the time we have. Since my daughter has a fascination with the paranormal, she's always wanted to visit Chillingham Castle. We couldn't go to the UK without visiting that location. However, we found that it is more than a day trip from anywhere (as is Alnwick) and there are no excursions from either Edinburgh or Newcastle Upon Tyne.
So... we're flying into Edinburgh and staying two nights. I'll then be renting a car from EDI (unless someone on this board has other suggestions) and driving to Chillingham Castle (about 70 mi) for the "self-guided tour" during the daytime and for the "Ghost Tour" in the evening. I've already written to the Castle front office and they recommended an Italian restaurant in Wooler, just a few minutes away, where we can eat dinner in between the tours. However, after the Ghost Tour (10:00 p.m.) is where I believe the real adventure will start. We're driving to Newcastle Upon Tyne (another 70 mi), staying overnight, then flying to Paris the next day. We'll stay in Paris 4 nights, then take the Eurostar to London for 4 days/5 nights.
In Edinburgh and London, there is a company that provides a free walking tour and I've read excellent reviews about them; check them out here:
http://www.neweuropetours.eu/
Also, for Stonehenge, I believe I found a really good tour that covers Windsor, Oxford, and Stonehenge:
http://www.evanevanstours.co.uk/stonehenge-at-sunset.htm

Only other advice I'd have for Scotland when roaming the countryside is... stay off the moors!

asrubens:: Welcome to Fodors. Check out London Walks instead of New Europe. http://www.walks.com/ New Europe does offer a 'free tour' - but most of their tours are quite expensive. London Walks has been around for years and they offer a much wider choice and cost less.

Evans Evans has also been around for a long time - they are reputable but those tours are expensive and very hectic. You get very little time at each place.

rmmom: "I'll try to realign my trip south from Inverness to go through Aberdeen assuming I can find a hostel."

In rural Scotland IMO you really don't have to limit yourselves to hostels. Hostels are fine of course - but many country B&Bs have family rooms that don't cost much more (or sometimes - any more) than hostels.

Sure there are very pricey examples -- but lots are quite inexpensive.

You indicate your girls are Harry Potter fans - there are lots of locations throughout London used in the Harry Potter fans - so visiting them can be good fun - for example many people visit Borough Market but aren't aware of the Potter film location right next door: see http://wp.me/p2r6no-d7
there is full list of all the locations used at: http://www.the-magician.co.uk/harry-potter-film-locations.htm
Hope this gives a few other ideas - I think having reasons to explore London makes the exploration more fun.

SB_travlr- yup there's loads of Dewars.I worked with one for years. Good thing we weren't related, he was NUTS, lol! And, unfortunately, the Guthries don't own the castle anymore. It is used for weddings/events and I hear the owners aren't all that friendly towards visiting Guthries. We were advised to call them when we are in country and see if we can visit. It can't be seen from the road either. The current Clan chief just sold the other family castle on Mull, so we Guthries are "homeless" Good for your daughter for marrying one- they are fine people if I do say so (my gran was a Guthrie).
Glad to hear the sleeper train was a good experience. I have the early booking on my radar already! I'll for sure check out your TR. I've gotten so many great ideas from the ones I've read so far. Thanks!

asrubens- My DDs love the paranormal too. We will be limiting it to the Mary King's Close walk in Edinburgh, though. I do second janisj's suggestion of London Walks. They come highly recommended by Fodorites. I would love to take the Evan Evans tour of Stonehenge at sunset, but too pricey for the 3 of us.

albionbythesea- thanks for the links! Yes, the DDs have already begun listing all the HP/London locations. London Walks does a specific HP walk, but it might be more fun for them to figure it out themselves like a scavenger hunt. We are "country" people, my kids have only been on public trans a few times in their lives. It will be an adventure for all of us to navigate around London!

janisj- you are right of course (you seem to be right a lot I find). We are staying in a B&B in Inverness because the price was comparable. I'll have a look see in the areas you recommended!

Rmmom...I always send our guests on the Stonehenge/Salisbury explorer day with London Walks www.walks.com it is affordable and a great day out!

Thanks for the recommendation jamikins. That's the trip we were looking at taking

bookmarking

If you are interested in doing family research while in Edinburgh you may want to visit the Scottish Peoples Center.
http://www.scotlandspeoplehub.gov.uk/scotlands-people-centre/visit-us.html

Getting closer to our trip and more excited by the day! Checking in to get advice about which city to hire a car from, Glasgow or Edinburgh (train or airport) for our Scotland portion of the trip. We can train in to either place, but we need to return in Edinburgh as that is where we finish our trip. Therefore, the price is a bit more (not terrible) if we rent in Glasgow. This being my first time driving on the left, I want the easiest exit onto the motorway I can get, so I am willing to sacrifice the extra money if Glasgow is easier to navigate for a first timer! I have heard that driving in Edinburgh is terrible, so we could get the bus out to the airport and rent from there rather than Waverly, but that's an extra step. We are visiting Sterling first, so either starting point seems to work. Suggestions from the more experienced? TIA!

Hi rmmom. Driving IN both cities ranges from bad-ish to downright terrible.

But collecting a car and driving from either GLA or EDI airports is flat easy. Especially GLA - less than 30 mins and you are to the bottom of Loch Lomond and on your route up to Skye.

There is good transport between the train stations in Glasgow and Edinburgh to their respective airports.

If it was me - I'd pick it up at GLA and drop it at EDI.

Thanks janisj, I knew you'd have good advice! I'm a confident driver and not overly worried about driving "on the left", but I'd like to limit the screaming from my passengers, at least at the start. Hopefully they will be more relaxed when we hit the single tracks on Skye

Hi rmmom
We had an unplanned visit to Stirling Castle, and thought it was a great experience -- we had a wonderful (and amusing) guide, and were very glad we not just driven on by. We were sorry to have just missed the long-sword fighting demo...

Our trip is getting closer, only a few more weeks before we leave for London and on to Scotland! The excitement is building at my house that's for sure. We have pretty much everything organized, but I have one question for those of you who know driving times in Scotand the best. We will be leaving Callandar on Sat Jun 15 and driving through Glen Coe, and on to Mallaig to catch the ferry to Skye. I made ferry reservations for 1620, but I am now wondering if we should take the later ferry at 1800. We have to drive to Portnalong once we get to Skye and I know that's a drive in itself (I know Portnalong is remote, but we have our reasons for staying there). Can we make the drive from Callendar in time for the 1620 ferry if we leave early? I want to be able to stop for a bit in Glen Coe and Glenfinnan and have time for photo ops without worrying we'll miss the ferry. The ferry at 1800 is the last one for the day. TIA for your help!

Hi rmmom,

We did just that drive. Left after breakfast (9?), stopped in Killin, Glencoe Visitors' Centre w/ a short walk, Glenfinnan with a 20-25 minute wait for the steam train to pass and a walk to/up the monument, plus a few photo ops.

We had the last ferry booked and pulled in just as the previous ferry was leaving (we were second in the queue). So, we killed time in Mallaig.

So, could you make 1620? I would think so. However, I didn't want to feel rushed at all, so that's why I selected the last slot.

We stayed in Portree which is probably a little easier to reach but you could probably reach Portnalong by 2000 (guessing)? Plenty of daylight left.

So, up to you. Either way should work. Hope that helps.

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/scotland-trossachs-skye-and-loch-ness-an-indydad-trip-report.cfm?26

Yes, you definitely could make the 1620 ferry pretty easily even with several stops. But I'd probably book the later one. Daylight won't be an issue since sunset is so late. Book the late one and take your time - and if you get there early, there may be space on the previous sailing.

Have a good trip. We will be over there at the same time.

indy_dad- your trip report helped immensely in our planning and was the inspiration for a lot of it. We are going to Inchmahone Priory because of you! Not sure we would have known about it otherwise. I reviewed it again recently and saw that the day your famiy did this drive was your longest day and it got me worried we would be rushed- hence prompting my question. I'm
grateful for your input and allowing me to "steal" some of your adventures and make them our own!

janisj- again, thanks for ALL your help! Couldn't have done the planning for this trip without it. Your reports inspired us too We are going to Dunnoter and I know to have cash to pay the B&Bs because of you! Good idea to plan for the later ferry and take the earlier one if we get there in time and there's room. Won't necessarily work the other way which was what worried me. Are you back from your trip to the UK already? I love your reports (no first class train travel for us, maybe next time)so please let us know how it went.

amelie- where are you going in Scotland? We can't wait and are hoping for some decent weather, but are prepared for the possibility of the reverse with proper rain gear. I'm hoping for the weather indy_dad had on their trip!!

rmmom

Glad the report helped (that is the point after all!)

In case it wasn't clear, we did have a long day on the drive but it was a very easy, relaxed day. Not a bit of stress and we saw all we wanted to see.

Good luck with weather. We are going back at the same time this year (i.e. in two weeks) but concentrating on the eastern side (Fife / Deeside) so I'm crossing my fingers too!

Glad I could help. Got back late Friday night and and am still buried in post-vacation 'stuff' (plus still a bit jet lagged) The trip report will have to wait tile later in the week.

Took my cousin out to Inchmahome (her first ever visit, my probably 15th) and it was maybe her very favorite place we visited in Scotland - Keys Ceremony was her fave in London.

We are going away for 20 days, family in Aberdeen. Our main area of travel this trip is The Borders. We had to cut out D&G, so will do things in Aberdeenshire instead. A weekend in Edinburgh to see friends also.

Thanks for the clarification indy_dad. We're Californians and raised on road trips so long days spent touring are fun to us. Knowing (from the many posts describing it) that the travel in Scotland will be much slower than we are used to made me want to get your advice on this particular leg. So, thanks again and enjoy your trip! I'm guessing you'll have a wee dram or two in Deeside. If you have good weather, tell it to stay until the end of June for us

I'm also a Californian - there ain't no I-5, 101 or 405 anywhere you are going

Plan on averaging 35-ish mph on average. In some areas you'll top 40mph but don't count on it.

Plus while the driving is GREAT fun - it also takes concentration so long spells behind the wheel really aren't that enjoyable. Don't even try to recreate a CA road trip experience . . . .