Edinburgh to Dublin - How would you get there by train?
 

Spring 2015 I will be traveling with some friends in Europe and what has come up in my planning is a challenge of getting from Edinburgh to Dublin.

Originally I was thinking of just flying but my one companion is very nervous of planes and also has trouble packing light. I basically ruled it out when I read the under 22# limits for carry-ons and checked bag fees. This combination means trains.

I've done my research and know that the best routes are either through Holyhead or Belfast. I'm leaning towards Holyhead just because I think I'll have a fight on my hands over the bus connection between Glasgow and the Belfast ferry. Plus I wouldn't mind seeing a bit of Wales.

However, I think that makes for a really long day and would like to propose a 1 day stop over in England or Belfast (if I can get past the bus issue). What town would you suggest on the train route between Edinburgh and Holyhead as a good place to spend an afternoon and morning overnight?

Thanks.

Chester -which is on the train line between Edinburgh and Holyhead whether you route via Manchester or Crewe, or Conwy if you want to be in Wales.
However you CAN do it in a day from Edinburgh to Dublin on this route. In Spring though you will still be subject to the vagaries of the weather on the Irish Sea and delays are more likely than further into the Summer. This means that a long day becomes an even longer day.
What would you be looking for in your overnight stop?

Your post title is going to draw some comments. It makes it seem that you are unaware that Dublin is in Ireland, and that there's a sea between Ireland and Scotland.

But reading your post, it does seem as though you are still a tad geographically confused. I'm not sure, for example, how Wales got tossed in there.

So we can help you better, let's take a few steps back.

Indicate your starting point, your desired ending point, your overall length of time you will be traveling, and the routing you think you have come up with.

We WILL help. Promise.

It's very rare indeed for there to be weather-related delays on conventional ferries between Holyhead and Dublin/Dun Laoghaire. And it IS only 13 hours these days from Edinburgh to Dublin by train/boat

The faster catmarans can be delayed or even cancelled altogether, leaving you to get a subsonic ferry - especially around the spring and autumn equinoxes.

Heavy winds can't ever be ruled out on Irish Sea ferries, and even with modern stabilisers crossing the Irish Sea by boat is far more likely to be upsetting for most people than flying.

A bad voyage will almost certainly frighten away your companion's fear of flying for life.

City centre to city centre schedules at nationalrail.co.uk

AlessandraZoe - Wales makes perfect sense. The ferry to Ireland leaves from Holyhead, which is in Wales.
OP has also considered the ferry to Belfast and has eloquently stated her reasons for not wanting to take that or to fly.

Frances makes two good suggestions for places to stop off. Indeed if you were to stop in Conwy I would add a day (or two) to see something of north Wales while you are there.

I have done it the other way, Edinburgh to Dublin, by train and fast ferry in spring 2009. Consider the train from Edinburgh to Glasgow, change to a train to Stranraer, ferry to Belfast, and train to Dublin. Belfast would be a good place to overnight, maybe for two nights.

My old Thomas Cook Timetable also shows a P&O fast ferry from Troon to Lame, from which you could train to Belfast.

There are no longer any Irish ferries from Troon or Stanraer.

Or trains to Cairnryan, the nearest ferry port to Troon. It requires a bus between Ayr and Cairnryan to get from a major Scottish city to Ireland without travelling to Wales, and the poster's made it clear the fussy travelling companion is as opposed to buses as to planes.

One of the problems the anti-plane brigade have to deal with in the British Isles is that cheap flights and the crippling cost of security mean there are very few ferries any more from the island of Britain that accept foot passengers. Apart from a few ferries entirely within England or Scotland, only ferries from Holyhead and Fishguard now run from docks with a rail link.

Buy your friend a drink - get her on the plane, and fly. 13+ hours to avoid a 1 hour flight is crazy even for the most air-phobic. Presumably she will have flown from 6 to 15+ hours getting to the UK - right?

Agree with Janis. OTH, if you do this for her, she owes you several!

13+ hours to avoid a 1 hour flight is crazy even for the most air-phobi>

It's not nearly 1`3+ hours - the quickest rail/ferry grip to Dublin Ferryport is 7 h 05 minutes and a few at 8.5 hours and 9 hours - janis - where did you get that ridiculous 13+ hours from? (www.bahn.de shows me the 7 to 9 hour journeys throughout the day - all via Hollyhead.

But still at 7 hours it's a long long poke and perhaps would cost more than flying.

This is how you do it

http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/sailrail/
http://seat61.com/Ireland.htm

There is a coach option via Cairnryan to Belfast from where you can take the train or coach to Dublin

http://www.stenaline.co.uk/ferry/coach/
http://www.translink.co.uk/Services/...-Service-Page/

PQ,

OP has to get down to N. Wales from Edinburgh. Did you factor that in?

Thanks for all the comments.

I have considered the time and personally I like the option of coming down through Belfast. I love flying but I also love trains.

My companion doesn't drink although for the long flight she will be taking something (I forget what she said it is but it supposedly makes her very relaxed and sleepy). Not something I'd want her taking for an 1-2 hop.

She is also on a strict budget and can't pack light to save her life (problematic on these small planes). I've already warned her that if we are going to do this I'm going to help her pack.

I'll check out Chester & Conwy to start.

Tentative Itinerary is 24-26 Days covering Dublin, Edinburgh, Paris, Venice, London.

We do have some flexibility as Venice may get canceled and Bath added.

Venice and Edinburgh are her adds, Venice sounds lovely but if I were doing it I'd do an Italy / Greece trip and hit more sites.

Dublin and Bath are my adds.

London and Paris are must see for both of us as we are costume designers.

We are planning to by there roughly 5/1 - 5/24, 2015. My second biggest challenge is her husband will be joining us for at least part of the trip and I've got to find some "guy" things to do for him, but that's another post.

PQ,

OP has to get down to N. Wales from Edinburgh. Did you factor that in?>

Well yes I put in Glasgow in the From box and Dublin in to To box and you have many links 7-=8-9 hours so where did janis get the 13+ hours from??????? Am i missing something?

You can do the whole journey by coach from Glasgow in 9 hours.

https://www.citylinkonlinesales.co.u...=1362397183231

as an example.

Edinburgh to Glasgow is much quicker by train (45 minutes) and it's only a 5 minute walk to the bus station at Buchanan Street. It's a fairly quick journey from Glasgow to Cairnryan (M77/A77) to catch the Stenalink (just over two hours)and there is some stunning scenery to be seen south of Ayr. You can relax on the modern ferry - the crossing is 2 hours 15 minutes to Belfast. I've not travelled down to Dublin by road so i can't comment on that part.

ttt

PQ,

OP has to get down to N. Wales from Edinburgh. Did you factor that in?>

well www.bahn.de shows Edinburgh to Dublin from 8 h 4 mins to 9.5 hours on several daily links - I'm still wondering how janis got 13+ hours?

PQ -- since that seems to really be eating at you (you've only mentioned it <B>4</B> times) . . . if you would <i>read</i> the thread instead of just focusing on >>gotcha janisj<< you'd see where that came from.

nertz . . .

Oh I see you just copied it without thinking. Sorry for the mixup!

Come on children.

It takes at least 6 and a half hours by rail and will invlolve 2 or three changes depending onthe time of your train. The cost is currently showing as £115 per person one way. I'd guess that a plane will not cost much more, maybe less including paying for a few extra kilos of baggage.

The whole trip via this route will take at least 14 or 15 hours. Get a plane.

<i>The cost is currently showing as £115 per person one way.</i>

Sailrail for tomorrow is showing as £43 per person from Edinburgh to Dublin Port (Stena). It seems a little flaky for other bits of Dublin

http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/sailrail/

CityLink is £38 per person tomorrow

http://www.citylink.co.uk/index.php

Both take over 10 hours

My one piece of advice would be to get comfortable with two or more options, then lay them out for your friend and let her choose. I traveled a couple of years ago with a friend who dislikes flying, but also dislikes ferries. But we had to get from Spain to Morocco somehow... she picked a flight because it was shorter, and landed closer to where we wanted to be. She was not particularly happy during said flight (to say the least) but at least we could remind her she picked it!

Amy,
Traveling with someone who doesn't like to fly or ride a bus and can't pack light is going to make for a slightly miserable trip. At the least the husband should find his own entertainment, unless you are being paid for this ordeal.

alan, I made the error of looking on the National Rail website, what a joke our pricing is! However, the route you describe invlolves two changes and a train leaving Edinburgh just after 6 in the morning. Regardless of the price, I'd get a plane.

The OP should use the Mr T solution for her friend.

How about adding in an extra day and putting interesting Belfast in your itinerary - go to Belfast via train/bus or however you get to the ferry to Northern Ireland - stay in Belfast a day and then take the Peace Train the few hours to Dublin.

Just a thought if you have time. Belfast to me, given its turbulent history, etc was one of the most interesting cities I have been to and it is also a nice looking city in many parts.

<<Traveling with someone who doesn't like to fly or ride a bus and can't pack light is going to make for a slightly miserable trip. >>

Thinking you should fly and tell your buddy to take the trains/buses/ferries/donkey carts on her own so she doesn't waste one of your days of vacation.

<i>
BigRuss on Mar 6, 13 at 11:37am
Thinking you should fly and tell your buddy to take the trains/buses/ferries/donkey carts on her own so she doesn't waste one of your days of vacation.</i>

Speaking of donkey carts, a hilarious travel tome of Ireland is <b>Last of the Donkey Pilgrims</b> by Kevin O'Hara.

Thinking you should fly and tell your buddy to take the trains/buses/ferries/donkey carts on her own so she doesn't waste one of your days of vacation>

and then by flying you see nothing of the lovely England and Wales and Scotland in between as you do from the train, boat, donkey cart, etc. I go to Europe not just to see big tourist meccas but also the lay of the land in between - I do not consider it a day wasted - and flying takes a half a day as well with all the rigmarole involved in flying these days, including hiccuping Icleandic volcanoes!

Thanks guys! I'm not being paid to do this but the friend is well aware of my planning nature and I'm well aware of her many issues. Plus once I get her over there I can't wait to show her Paris and discover new places with her. There will just be a lot of compromise from everyone.

We have a large group trip to LA coming up and she is going to get the packing lesson for that 5 day trip to prepare her for my picky-ness with packing on the trip.

Once I have more details ironed out I'll be posting our itinerary for suggestions and ideas.

Your trip sounds a bit like ours ; ).... We are doing London, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Munich, Florence and finishing in Rome.

I was having trouble with the Edinburgh/Dublin travel too. I think we will stay with flying, we have three children, and I think we are better off flying across, instead of the rail and boat. It would be nice to see the scenery, but it becomes a long day!

<i>tenangels77 on Jan 7, 14 at 11:59pm
Your trip sounds a bit like ours ; ).... We are doing London, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Munich, Florence and finishing in Rome.
I was having trouble with the Edinburgh/Dublin travel too. I think we will stay with flying, we have three children, and I think we are better off flying across, instead of the rail and boat. It would be nice to see the scenery, but it becomes a long day!</i>

With that list I assume you are traveling for two months. I would drop Glasgow and add Cork and Belfast.

It may be too long a day for you but the kids won't get enough of it. They will love the ferry.

Yeah I have had ro cut quiet a bit out, from ideas from others on here, it's like we are cramming too much in. I've had some great advice and have dropped a few places off, so we can enjoy the trip a lot more with the children.

So we may have to plans a second trip next time around so everyone in my family is happy ; )

Thanks for the tips and ideas ; )