My boyfriend and I are planning an April trip to London and Edinburgh (hence the ever-so-creative title) for about four days in each city respectively. Does anyone have advice as to the best sites to see and the best modes of transportation? So far, we're interested in the British Museum, the Tower of London, and the Edinburgh Castle...but I know there has to be a lot more to see (even on a constrained budget)! Any advice is appreciated.

RE: constrained budget. Walk a lot. Edinburgh is good for that. So is London. To cover broader distances in London take the tube; don't pay as you go, get passes. There's tons of info here (http://www.thetube.com/).<BR><BR>Just an opinion . . . From Heathrow, take a cab into town from the airport, you'll see more than if you take the tube and if you are lucky you may get a friendly, informative cabbie. From Gatwick, take the train.

I'm becoming boring on this, but there's piles of stuff on here about both. Do a search. If that's too much hassle email me and I'll send you stuff about Edinburgh in a Word document<BR>[email protected]

Snoopy's suggestion of taking a cab from Heathrow has merit for a feel of west London as seen from the motorway - not very nice - office blocks and grey backs of houses, even though much of west London that it goes near (eg Kew, Richmond)is nice. And then you slow down as you hit Hammersmith etc. Further in fine - but hen you wil see areas like Cromwell Rd when you go to museum territory at South Ken. But cost when you are on a budget? Talking 50 quid by black cab. You could get a minicab company to pick you up for maybe 25 - type in search on this site for a few suggestions. Get the tube if you are on a budget - 7-8 quid, (Heathrow Express for 2 of you will be about 30 quid).

From London, travel to Edinburgh by train. It is good value, takes about 4.5 hours from station to station, with the added advantages of being able to see the scenery and being able to get on and off in the city centre. <BR>Go to www.thetrainline.com or www.gner.co.uk for information and bookings. <BR>Trains leave from London Kings Cross and go to Edinburgh Waverley. <BR>Expect to pay about &pound;40 for a round-trip (we call them return) ticket. It is cheaper if you hit on a good deal, especially on the gner.co.uk site. <BR>You cannot get them posted abroad, but you can get them posted to a UK address or you can pick them up with the PIN they give you from a station. <BR>Don't simply turn up and go! Train fares are complicated and expensive. If you need more information, ring the number on the websites. <BR>Sometimes, you can get return trips as cheap as &pound;30, all taxes included (as is the custom here.) <BR>Or, if you want to fly, check out www.ba.com or www.easyJet.com or www.iflybm.com. The disadvantage of flying is cost (not all frill-free flights are cheap) and getting to and from the airport at both ends. This adds up to a fair bit of money. <BR>As for getting to London from the airport, fix up a car service. Search this site for Ray Skinner or Swiss Cottage Cars. Cheaper than a cab.

We are flying into London and taking the train to Edinburgh on April 25 (arriving the moring of the 26th) We've done this before and enjoyed the train ride so much we're doing it again. Some suggestions that worked for us...we purchased a Brit Rail pass before we left the states, found out in the past that is the best deal. You cannot get the same deal in the UK. I was a little disappointed in Edinburgh, but not too much,Sheila that responded is a wonderful help on Scotland. Tower of London is great, but give yourself most of the day for it. Covent Gardens in London is certainly worth a stop, also Portobello Road Market if you will be in London on a Saturday. Whitehall Street, Parliment, Westminster Abbey and Big Ben is right there also. I went to London for the first time 10 yrs ago and became so hooked I have been back almost every year. Extended my trips to the Cotswolds, Wales and Ireland. Found early Spring (April-May) or early Fall (Sept-Oct) great times to go. Enjoy

Go to www.gner.co.uk and look at the Superapex savers to take the train fro London to Edinburgh. If you book at least 3 weeks out you save a great deal of money.<BR><BR>I use the train frequently and it is a lovely ride. I found the times I wanted to travel on the Web site then called and booked over the phone. I'm taking that route in late February for $32 (yes, dollars) return. They'll take your credit card and hold the tickets for you to pick up that day. <BR><BR>Have a great trip!

Thanks to all who replied- I know there's a lot of postings that are related to my questions, but I was just too lazy to sort through them all! We already booked a flight from Gatwick to Edinburgh- I wanted to take the train like some have suggested, but couldn't find a fare that worked out with our schedule.