janisj

kenav: Can't speak for Green Dragon - but lots of us spend a LOT of time on here convincing folks to not stay in Inverness (or Ft William)

I'ness is a fine place to live or work - it is the main business and commerce center for the North of Scotland. But there are a hundred better places for visitors to stay.

kenav

Thanks. I can understand that.

Thinking of also of going to the British tourist Board here in NYC to see what kind of itinerary they would give us. We figure 3 days in Edinburgh, pick up a car, go to Glasgow for 2 days and the rest (6 days?) wandering in the rest of the country (keep it towards north, and Isle of Skye?) Don't know enough about Scotland yet to decide where to go for those 6 days, and not spend all our time driving.

Return car to Edinburgh on our way home.

MissPrism

I'm sure that many won't agree with me, but I would avoid Skye.
Since the bridge was built, it seems to have gone down the tartan tat route rather badly.
IMHO Arran beats it into a cocked hat and it is easier to get to from Edinburgh.

janisj

VisitBritain (the tourist board) is certainly a valuable resource. But right here on Fodors we help folks w/ their itineraries every day. One difference - here you will find people who have been to every single place you might visit and maybe even stayed in the same B&B(s). The tourist board will give you general info - sort of like going to the AAA for help here in the States.

So get all sorts of the free - and some paid - brochures, maps and such you can from VisitBritain. But for detailed info, you will get more help here.

kenav

Where is Arran. Why do you like it so much?

Mimar

You don't need a car to go from Edinburgh to Glasgow. Take the train and pick up the car when you leave Glasgow. Then you won't have to pay for parking in Glasgow.

I liked Skye. It certainly didn't strike me as overly touristed. However, the Road to the Isles and the ferry to Mallaig are more fun than the bridge.

janisj

&quot;<i>Where is Arran.</i>&quot;

Arran is an island off the coast of Ayrshire southwest of Glasgow. It is a lovely place and some call it &quot;Scotland in miniature&quot;. But IMO, while Arran is nice - it is not in the same league as Skye - or even Mull. It is a nice day trip from Glasgow or Ayr though.

Anyplace will have changed over the years - but I do not find Skye very touristy at all. The bridge has made it more accessible - many visitors take the bridge one way and the Mallaig ferry the other so they see more country w/o backtracking.

kenav

I will be traveling at the very beginning of October. Do you think reservations for the ferry(ies) will be necessary? (with car)

sheila

If you must be on a certain boat, or on the last boat of the day, book. Otherwise don't bother.

JCBT

We returned to the US on 6/2/089 after spending 19 days in Scotland. We had a rental car for 13 of those days (didn't need a car in Edinburgh) and drove almost 1800 miles touring castles and looking at the beautiful scenary. Because it stays light out so late in the evening even when castles etc were closed with the car we were able to enjoy the natural beauty of Scotland. I think we would have missed much if we had not rented a car.(Just my opinion!)

We rented the car thru the American Express travel site for $380 and spend $450 on gas. It was worth every penny.

JCBT

Forgot to add, the price of the car rental did include the second driver and unlimited mileage. We have the Am Ex car rental insurance for $17.95 each time you rent a car so we did not pay Enterprise for any additional insurance. The $380 (USD) we paid was the total cost of the car rental.

frestonia

TTT, very informative thread as we are spending 5 days driving around Scotland this July.

kenav

JCBT -

Just looked up American Express for their car rental service. Only came up with manual cars. Is this what you got? We're picking up in Glasgow city, and dropping off at Edinburgh airport. We've already put in a reservation with AutoEurope for $278 (approximately) for 7 days, including taxes, for an automatic mid-size.

Did you use a compact or mid-size car? Hearing that the smaller car is better as some of the roads are one lane and it makes passing, or even just driving, easier.

JCBT

No, we got a mid-sized automatic. It was called a Vauxhall Zafira, apparently made by GM! We did not dare try a manual, driving on the other side of the road was enough to learn, we didn't want to shift with the left hand! We had no trouble with the size of the car, it was roomy and had enought storage for our luggage.

We picked the car up at the Edinburgh airport after we had spent time in Edinburgh and Glasgow. We were flying home from Edinburgh so it made it easier to drop the car off there.

There are automatics available, but if you reserve one make sure you call a day or 2 ahead of time to double check they have one ready for you.

kenav

Guess since we're renting out of Glasgow (we go there after Edinburgh), they have no automatics through AMEX.

janisj

Renting a stick is not that big a problem. Many folks just assume they have to get an automatic to cope w/ driving on the left.

But as long as you can drive a stick at home, you can drive one over there. You are going to be on small roads and in small towns/villages. You won't be pulling folks off the line or power shifting/drag racing

The biggest problem is finding reverse the first time!

I actually believe a stick helps. W/ an automatic it is easier to drift into &quot;auto pilot&quot; and forget where on the road you are supposed to be -- the gearshift over there on your left side is just another mental clue that things are different.

Plus they save you a lot. Not just the rental rates, but petrol costs too.

JCBT

Call American Express and they will find you an automatic. That is what we did. Everyone has automatics, you just have to pursue it! American Express is very helpful.

An automatic is just one less thing to worry about. Learning to drive the round abouts was tricky, but after a few it was no problem. Look up Scottish Round abouts on You Tube and they have visual lessons, they are a hoot, but actually helpful.

Have fun, it is a beautiful country, but very expensive, especially food with the lousy exchange rate. But regardless, I would not have missed the time we spent because of money!

milliieandbill

Hi,
Just back from 4 weeks in the UK. Rented cars in Scotland (1) and Ireland (2).
Enjoyed the previous entries. All three cars had a different method of engaging reverse - very amusing until you have to reverse and don't know how to do it. Make sure your car has instructions.

I'm right handed and found shifting with my left to be an advantage.

Roundabouts are fine as long as they have four exits. Edinburgh's often had five or six and that was a problem. Getting familiar with the location and importance of the signs is the key. If every thing else fails, keep going around until you are positive you have the proper one. (It didn't work for us, but it might for you.)

As for comparing costs, there is a very good website that lists all the competitors. The problem is that the fine print is ignored. So Budget scores well until you realize the drivers over 70 pay a daily premium. The site is &lt;travelsupermarket.com&gt;

Bill F

GreenDragon

Just back myself - rented 2 cars (6 people) for 20 days. They upgraded us to a minivan (Ford Galaxy) which was fine, it still made 45 mpg. The bad part was that my credit card wouldn't cover the insurance. Why? Because the value of the car (even if hadn't been upgraded) was &pound;26,000. Which translates to over $50,000, the limit of most rental car coverages for credit cards. Therefore I had to pay an extra &pound;14 a day insurance. Yikes! But there was little I could do. So be careful and check your coverages!

We drove 2300 miles in 20 days (the first three days were in Edinburgh sans vehicle). Petrol was &pound;1.34 a litre in the islands, and as low as &pound;1.22 per liter in the lowlands. There was a 4-day Shell strike just ending when we arrived, so some stations were out of petrol completely, and others drove their prices up. Saw one Shell station at &pound;1.66 on the 17th of June.

kenav

Greendragon -

So do you know what your price per liter translates into in price per gallon?

Wow - 2300 miles! We'll be gone for 2 weeks but just 7 days of that will be driving.

How was the trip, by the way?