Bindery

My wife and I plan to take the Caledonian Sleeper to Edinburgh arriving on Saturday May 6.
It arrives at 7:21am. I plan to rent a car in Edinburgh and drive back to Heathrow Airport, arriving for a 1pm flight on Friday May 12. We will drive around Scotland and England.
The Hertz rental counter does not open until 9am. My plan is to have some breakfast upon arrival and then get the rental car. We would have our luggage so I believe it would be best to get the car early, put the luggage in the trunk, then drive into Edinburgh and see the Edinburgh’s Royal Mile and Castle before leaving on to Sterling.
Now here is my wish list on what to see on our drive-you may notice we like castles. We also enjoy visiting old churches.
Edinburgh Castle
Stirling Castle
Doune Castle
Drummond Gardens/Castle
Culloden Battlefield, Inverness
Balmoral Castle
Dunottar Castle
Hadrian's Wall & Housesteads Roman Fort
Warwick Castle
Chepstow Castle
Bath
Stonehenge
Winchester
Heathrow Airport
I realize this is a lot of driving, the Scotland part is 11 hours of driving and the England part is 12 hours of driving. We have 6 full days to get to Winchester.
I would appreciate any thoughts and suggestions.
Remember, this is our wish list, and with any wish list you can’t always get what you want.

tom_mn

This appears to be more like a 3 week itinerary than 6 days.

Start by planning your first 2 days in 15 minute increments including checking out, finding restaurants and eating meals, driving, parking, queuing for tickets, hours needed to appreciate attractions, finding hotels, checking it, etc. You are probably greatly underestimating some drive times also.

bilboburgler

Days are getting longer in May
If you use Google to give you time put 30% on it, or use the AA website.
You missed Salisbury (but have to drive past it)

Gordon_R

Agreed this wish list would take more like 2 to 3 weeks to see properly. in six days you'd spend nearly all your time just glimpsing things from the car window as they pass buy in a blur. Quite apart from the unrealistic itinerary, your plan in Edinburgh makes little sense. If you arrive in Edinburgh on the Caledonian sleeper, you will arrive at Waverley station, so you'll already be IN Edinburgh. Picking up your car immediately is pointless - driving in central edinburgh is not for the inexperienced (I drive there but I know way around and have daily experience of urban driving in Britain). Much better to put your luggage into left luggage at Waverley, we the city on foot, then pick up a car at the airport when you are ready to leave.

Gordon_R

"SEE the city...."

Bindery

I didnt realize there were left luggage at Waverley. I will consider your plan.

janisj

Your plan makes no sense whatsoever. You don't have time to see even half of the places on your list.

Take the train to Edinburgh (assuming you have already booked your sleeper tix), leave your bags at the station, explore Edinburgh for 5 or 6 hours, head out to EDI to collect your rental car -- spend 5 days exploring a wee bit of Scotland, Drop the car at EDI, fly to LHR, fly home.

>>I realize this is a lot of driving, the Scotland part is 11 hours of driving and the England part is 12 hours of driving.<<

In a pig's eye. Your drive times are easily 40% or 50% more than that.

OR -- if you haven't booked tix on the sleeper train -- drop Scotland altogether. Use your 6 days to see Warwick Castle, Chepstow/Tintern, the Cotswolds, Bath, Stonehenge/Salisbury and Winchester.

Either of these 'half trips' will be quite rushed.

historytraveler

janis has just made the recommendation I intended. Either do Warwick Castle, Cotswolds etc. or train directly to Edinburgh and do a bit of Scotland. Certainly not both since quite honestly that's impossible.

ESW

Janis's suggestion of leaving your bags at the station makes a lot of sense as there is no parking at the castle. That way you have time to have breakfast, wander the Royal Mile and be at the castle when it opens. Then pick up your car.

Although day length is long in May, you are still going to be tied to the closing time of properties which is usually 5pm with last admission either an hour or 30 minutes before.


I don't know where you get the drive times from which are completely unrealistic. I'm assuming you are actually intending to go inside the castles rather than just admire from the car as you drive past? Have you factored time for this into your calculations?

You could do the Scottish bit in three days but that really is pushing it. Getting from Culloden to Heathrow is a couple of days driving and that is without any sight seeing!

historytraveler

Please note that left luggage charges can get expensive depending on number of bags and time.

Bindery

I guess we travel different than most people. 2 years ago we drove from Seattle WA to Las Vegas NV in 5 days and had a wonderful time seeing the scenery and things along the way.
That trip the way we drove it was was 1500 miles, this one would be about the same miles and we would have 6 days and part of the 7th. We have also done Cologne to Outside of Lucerne in 5 days, thats 1000 miles
I do appreciate all suggestions and will take them to heart, but every time I plan a road trip, all some people say is you cant do that, and I do it. If we feel we are behind schedule, we will adjust and go on. Remember, that is part of the adventure.

historytraveler

As everyone with travel experience in the U.K. will tell you, driving in either Scotland or England is simply not the same as driving in the western U.S. As far as being able to adjust and go on, I will say that it won't be nearly as easy to do so as you think. This is not a matter of disagreeing with a certain style of travel, it is a matter of logistics and being able to actually see do the things you want to. Most here can offer a reasonable itinerary which you might be able to personally adjust a bit, but it does require you consider our advice and experience.

janisj

Historytraveler: we've tried on another thread but the OP just knows what he knows. (They were happy with one day per state so I honestly don't think we can help them very much - and no, I'm not being snarky, I just know when I'm not able to be of very much help)

Anyone who thinks driving in the wide open spaces of Utah is similar . . . Well, just good luck to them.

historytraveler

Seems we sometimes get a request for advice and, yet, when it's offered it is ignored because poster knows better, or thinks they know better. Always leaves me baffled. Wonder also why then even bother to ask for advice when they've already decided on what they're going to do.Wish they'd come back and report on how their trip went, but they never do.Surprise!

ESW

"I guess we travel different than most people."

Driving in UK is completely different to driving in the States. Distances may not look all that long on a map but they will take you a lot longer to cover than you expect. A tractor or herd of cows on the road can cause havoc with your itinerary. Then build in caravans, traffic jams, road works, speed restrictions through built up areas...I assume you are just planning to drive past all these places and tick the box. Problem is that many of them you have to get out of the car and walk to get to them...

jane1144

Although I am a Canadian, I too, am a road warrior in the US when I have to get somewhere. I regularly drive from 2 hours east of Detroit to Houston in two days. That said, it is with only gas and meal stops and one overnight. I enjoy the scenery I see on the way, but it is only what you see from an interstate.

Driving in Scotland is completely different. You may well find yourself on highways that are winding where the maximum you are able to go is about 30mph (and that is in between the curves where you have to slow down even more.) There are also single track roads with livestock to contend with. There are beautiful vistas at every turn and you will find yourself wanting to stop to admire/photograph.

The attractions you mention eg: Stirling Castle take several hours to go through.

Please pay attention to janisj and others who visit the UK frequently or actually live there. They are trying to help you have a reasonable trip.

tom_mn

Couple things:

Germany can be culturally very similar to the US, and well engineered roads is one similarly. Even in the 19th century Germans were building wide urban streets like in the US and no European country offers a driving experience more similar to the US.

Also, nearly all US highways are fully engineered with gradual curves and wide shoulders avoiding nearly all hamlets were an average speed of 65 mph can be achieved-- that's not realistic in Scotland and places like Hadrian's wall, really anywhere in the U.K. that's not a freeway.

If I dare to make comparisons, a lot of Vermont is like driving in Scotland, winding and going through every bitty town lucky to avg 45 mph and England like southern NJ, town after town with a lot of abrupt intersections, again lucky to avg 45.

ESW

"lucky to avg 45" Even this may be optimistic...

A lot depends on what sort of roads and your surroundings. The speed limit in built up urban areas is 30mph. That may be higher if it is on a ring road in a town. You won't actually achieve these figures as traffic congestion,road junctions, roundabouts, traffic lights etc will slow you down.


Max speed on single carriage way roads is 60mph and in places this may be lower. Also there are a lot of roads where you won't want to drive this fast either! Large or slow moving vehicles can also slow you down as you may not be able to pass them. On dual carriageways and motorways, top speed limit is 70mph. If the motorway is very busy, speeds may well be lower and some motorways have temporary speed restrictions shown on overhead gantries dwesigned to maintain flow of traffic when they get congested.

For figures look here.
https://www.gov.uk/speed-limits

BritishCaicos

I am struggling to see the point of the usual see saw battle of Via Michelin travel times.

Is the route doable in the time allocated.... Yes.

Would it be more comfortable if it were curtailed... Yes

I live in Scotland : is it possible on a Wednesday in October to drive 100 miles on country A roads at an average of 55 mph plus. .....Yes.

If it's a busy summer Saturday then can that average can be hammered down to 30mph due to American tourists driving slowly to prove a Fodors point... yes.

If the question was can we do this in 3 days, the answer would be No.

The rest is politics.

tom_mn

The bigger question is whether, assuming no eating or potty breaks, the itinerary can be squeezed into the fixed opening hours of the desired attractions?