I found a BritRail Flexipass (4 days in a month) cost-effective for a trip to the UK last summer, so maybe it's not just for the "incessantly training" (& ever helpful!) PalQ. I paid something like £170 and just my first trip from Gatwick to Sheffield was going to be well over £100 for a flexible ticket. I thought it was worth adding my tuppence-worth as nobody else seems to have mentioned a possible risk when starting from an airport - what happens if you book a cheap ticket valid for only one train and your flight is late? I didn't want to either run the risk of missing a train & having to pay much more to travel immediately, or build in a possible of wait 2 or 3 hours at the airport to try to avoid the problem.

And my answer to a full train is also to wait for the next one, unless you're travelling somewhere with only a couple of trains a day. When I got to Euston for the Sheffield train just a few minutes before one service left I didn't even bother looking at it, I sat on a bench and relaxed with my book until the next one arrived so I'd have plenty of time to find my ideal seat.

Having said that, if I were visiting the places you are visiting, I would also fly straight on to Edinburgh which is much easier. (I lived in Edinburgh for 18 years until early last year & nearly always flew between there & London.) The officially recommended time to allow for transfer at Heathrow is 75/90 mins (I think it changed from one to the other a couple of years ago) & I always found an hour and a half comfortable, although I wouldn't allow any less.

with an ass you just hop on the next Heathrow Express to Paddington and then the next train out.>>

they have passes for donkeys?

makes me wish we still had outs just so I could show up with them and try to get on a train!

Does the Heathrow Express serve Clovelly?

Does the Heathrow Express serve Clovelly?>>

sadly not, Pal. and the donkeys have been replaced by Land Rovers.

<I>PQ -- there is no train station at EDI - on the periphery or otherwise</I>

Or trams

Weird that trains trundle right by the airport so I though from some station there would be buses to the airport but since it is such a short bus ride directly from Edinburgh I can see why.

Pal - the new trams were supposed to go to the airport but the project [like the Scottish Parliament] went way over budget so they stop well short.

somewhat ironic given the reputation of the scots for being careful with their money.

I don't fancy being their Chancellor of the Exchequer if they go for independence.

caroline edinburgh mentions how useful a pass can be for folks arriving by plane and taking the train out of London - hop the Heathrow Express to Paddington for example and blast out of there to the west or north - and a 4-day flexipass - four days of unlimited travel - hop on any train anytime costs $335 in Standard Class or about $84/day or about 50 pounds a day - for fully flexible travel - leisurely travel - just get up - pack up and head to station and hop the next of zillions of trains - for long trips 50 pounds may be what you'd pay for restricted discount tickets you often must book months in advance to get - so if doing four longish train trips the BritRail Pass may be a great deal - if just in England the BritEngland Pass is cheaper and from Nov thru Feb all BritRail Passes are reduced about 20% - meaning 40 pounds a day for a 4-day flexipass for unfettered hop on any train anytime travel - to me a great deal IF you are traveling say up to York - Scotland - down via Lake District to Bath and back to London - to me a classic train trip around Britain.

Pal- wonderful information I'm sure, but have you never heard of PARAGRAPHS?

If you buy individual tickets advance (from USA), where would one pick those up? Edinburgh to Liverpool, Liverpool to Ludlow, Ludlow to London. I understand the BritRail pass is not purchasable within UK, but what about the individual tickets? Thanks.

Sorry - I should have clarified - is there a way to pick up all advance purchase tickets at HEATHROW without exiting the airport and subjecting ourselves to additional check-in/immigration issues? We'd like to get all our tickets before flying to Edinburgh if possible. If unable to do this at Heathrow, can we get all our tickets at Edinburgh's train station? Would there be any issue if a US credit card was used to purchase tickets? Thanks.

>> is there a way to pick up all advance purchase tickets at HEATHROW<<

I haven't tried at the HEX station but I seriously doubt it. But the station is landside so you would have to go through immigration/customs/security and then security again to get airside for your flight to EDI So even IF you could - it wouldn't make any sense.

Just collect all your tickets at Waverly station after you are settled in Edinburgh.

No issue re credit card -- just make sure you have the same credit cars w/ you when you collect the tix.

oops >>have the same credit card . . . <<

. I understand the BritRail pass is not purchasable within UK, but what about the individual tickets>

Of course you can walk up and buy tickets but at full price or maybe a bit of a discount within certain restrictions but probably not the deep discounts possible by booking online months in advance.

perfect, Pal - we thank you!

annhig - thanks for your parenthetical advice - sometimes one just gets typing and... thanks for reminder.

What is the minimum amount of time you would allow for a tourist to transfer trains en route from Edinburgh to Liverpool James Street (transfers are either Preston or Manchester Oxford Road and Liverpool Lime Street), Liverpool to Ludlow (transfer is likely Chester), and Ludlow to London (transfer is likely Crewe). I input that we'd like at least 1/2 hour between transfers - does that seem reasonable or is it literally a hop, skip, and jump from one train/platform to another at these particular stations and you truly need just a minute or 2?

Thanks.

The connection time is given for you on the operators' website. It's not something you have to think about. If you're buying a through ticket with a connection time of 5 minutes (or 2 hours) then that's what you have.

<<is it literally a hop, skip, and jump from one train/platform to another at these particular stations and you truly need just a minute or 2?>>

quite possibly - yes

And Liverpool James St is the local commuter station - do you really need to go there rather than just get off at Lime St??

"What is the minimum amount of time you would allow for a tourist to transfer trains en route from Edinburgh to Liverpool James Street"

Longer than it takes to get a taxi at Lime Street. For most people, to most Pier Head area hotels: longer than it takes to walk from Lime Street. It's often very difficult to get taxis at James St, BTW, and it's a longer walk from the platform to the exit than from Lime St to the taxi rank.

<<is it literally a hop, skip, and jump from one train/platform to another at these particular stations and you truly need just a minute or 2?>>

Well British trains are notorious also for being a few minutes late - build as much time as possible in if you have a non-refundable ticket - if not just hop the next train.