rail to edinburgh from london
Dec 3rd, 2004, 02:03 AM
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rail to edinburgh from london
We are travelling to London in August 2005 and my husband isn't too keen to drive in London. We want to do a couple of days in the Cotswolds. Is it feasible to catch a train or bus to say Bristol and get a car there and travel around the Cotswolds or can we bus it around the Cotswolds. We are going to Edinburgh for the tattoo. How much is the train trip up to Edinburgh and how long does it take. Is car hire very expensive over there.
We are really new at this. Any help would be appreciated.
We are really new at this. Any help would be appreciated.
Dec 3rd, 2004, 05:05 AM
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There are frequent fast trains (called 'intercities"
from London to Bristol. They go about every 30mins and take about 1hr 45mins.
Use www.nationalrail.co.uk to plan your journey, or www.trainline.co.uk, where you can also book tickets and reserve seats (a good idea).
From there you can hire a car for your tour of the area.
The train runs from London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads (in the centre of town) or Bristol Parkway (just outside town). There are, of course, many car hire companies you can choose from but I'm not sure, from memory, whether any of them are actually based at the train stations. However First Great Western (the train company that runs the London-Bristol line) has a link up with Avis cars, and you can arrange for the car to be waiting for you at the station: http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/o...s_car_hire.php
Please note that whilst the train to Bristol Temple Meads may be faster, it WILL mena you have to negotiate with traffic in the centre of town when you pick up your rental car, so Bristol Parkway may be an easier way out of the city if you are at all nervous about first time driving in ther UK (remember - we drive on the left!).
As for Edinburgh, will you be travelling from London or Bristol? You're right in thinking that it's a rather gruelling drive from either location, so train is a better option.
The train from London is from a different station across the city: either Lodnon Euston or London Kings Cross. It usually takes about 4.5 hours, although I've just checked nationalrail.co.uk and it looks like there may be engineering works on the line that means making changes. Can anyone else confirm this? Amazingly, it's often cheaper to fly: look up fly-BMI.co.uk to check out flights from London Heathrow to Edinbugh. They're not a no frills airline, but are often as cheap, and have the convenience of flying from Heathrow rather than one of the more outlying London airports.
If you're travelling from Bristol, then there are direct trains once an hour from Bristol Temple Meads to Edinburgh. I think you can also get a train from Bristol Parkway, though you may have to change. Journey takes about 6.5 hours.
Hope this is useful
Kate
London
from London to Bristol. They go about every 30mins and take about 1hr 45mins. Use www.nationalrail.co.uk to plan your journey, or www.trainline.co.uk, where you can also book tickets and reserve seats (a good idea).
From there you can hire a car for your tour of the area.
The train runs from London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads (in the centre of town) or Bristol Parkway (just outside town). There are, of course, many car hire companies you can choose from but I'm not sure, from memory, whether any of them are actually based at the train stations. However First Great Western (the train company that runs the London-Bristol line) has a link up with Avis cars, and you can arrange for the car to be waiting for you at the station: http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/o...s_car_hire.php
Please note that whilst the train to Bristol Temple Meads may be faster, it WILL mena you have to negotiate with traffic in the centre of town when you pick up your rental car, so Bristol Parkway may be an easier way out of the city if you are at all nervous about first time driving in ther UK (remember - we drive on the left!).
As for Edinburgh, will you be travelling from London or Bristol? You're right in thinking that it's a rather gruelling drive from either location, so train is a better option.
The train from London is from a different station across the city: either Lodnon Euston or London Kings Cross. It usually takes about 4.5 hours, although I've just checked nationalrail.co.uk and it looks like there may be engineering works on the line that means making changes. Can anyone else confirm this? Amazingly, it's often cheaper to fly: look up fly-BMI.co.uk to check out flights from London Heathrow to Edinbugh. They're not a no frills airline, but are often as cheap, and have the convenience of flying from Heathrow rather than one of the more outlying London airports.
If you're travelling from Bristol, then there are direct trains once an hour from Bristol Temple Meads to Edinburgh. I think you can also get a train from Bristol Parkway, though you may have to change. Journey takes about 6.5 hours.
Hope this is useful
Kate
London
Dec 3rd, 2004, 07:54 AM
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In summer in the Cotswolds there are double-decker buses run by firms like Guide Friday that run around the Cotswolds wool towns frequently. so you don't really need a car - i did it by bus a few times and the view from the top deck over the garden walls of the near stone cottages was great. The type of rail travel your doing warrants investigating a BritRail Pass - actually a great resource for you if going by rail is Budget Europe's free European Planning & Rail guide, which has an excellent section on rail travel in UK and outlines all the various passes. Compare pass prices with online tickets bought thru www.nationarail.co.uk. but with the way the dollar has fallen BritRail Passes, whose price has been static for the past three years are becoming a better and better deal. Keep in mind that the discounted tickets you can get online are often not changeable or refundable and can only be used on the one train you reserve for. BritRails however allow you to travel on any train at any time, no advance planning needed. If you want reservations between edinburgh and London they are free with BritRail Passes if you do them by 6pm the night before. York, 2 hrs from Edinburgh and 2 hrs from London on the rail line is a fantastic city and a nice stop between the two. Even with the cheaper online restricted fares the BritRail may come out on top.
Dec 3rd, 2004, 10:42 AM
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How long is the total trip? If you have enough time, then driving north to Scotland could be lovely - there are masses of wonderful things to see enroute. But if your time is limited then flying from London or taking the train are both good choices.
Not to worry about driving in London - no one needs a car in London. But, even though there are bus tours of the Cotswolds, you can see much more and at a better pace on your own by car.
I wouldn't take the train to Bristol to hire a car for the Cotswolds. Go out to LHR, pick up you car there and in an hour you will be in the Cotswolds - whereas if you go to Bristol - you have a 2 hour train ride and then another hour into the Cotswolds.
After you have visited the Cotswolds area (including possibly Oxford, Stratford and Warwick) you can easily drive to Edinburgh in in a day (or w/ stops enroute if you have enough time). Once you are in Edinburgh you don't need a car in the city - but you would if you wanted to take day trips outside the city. So either keep the car - or turn it in and then fly or take the train back to London.
Not to worry about driving in London - no one needs a car in London. But, even though there are bus tours of the Cotswolds, you can see much more and at a better pace on your own by car.
I wouldn't take the train to Bristol to hire a car for the Cotswolds. Go out to LHR, pick up you car there and in an hour you will be in the Cotswolds - whereas if you go to Bristol - you have a 2 hour train ride and then another hour into the Cotswolds.
After you have visited the Cotswolds area (including possibly Oxford, Stratford and Warwick) you can easily drive to Edinburgh in in a day (or w/ stops enroute if you have enough time). Once you are in Edinburgh you don't need a car in the city - but you would if you wanted to take day trips outside the city. So either keep the car - or turn it in and then fly or take the train back to London.
