arctan

Help! My wife and I are planning a trip to Scotland (we will be flying there from Paris) in early August. We thought we had a nice little plan, and then I started reading more of the threads on the forum...

Here was the original plan:
-- 2 nights in Edinburgh, and then take the train out to Dunkeld or St. Andrews for a relaxing two nights in a smaller place with more of a village feel to it (we are not planning to drive.

But: 2 things are coming through from the earlier threads:

-- August seems to be a very bad time to be in Edinburgh. Should we completely ditch that part of the plan...? Do you think it's too late to get acco there now? (was going to book this week after finalizing plans).

-- Some of the longer train journeys sound fantastic! And we both love train rides. So, we were thinking of reworking the trip to build in one such journey. The two options we are thinking of (again, this is with Edinburgh as the start point):

a. Edinburgh-Glasgow-Oban; and then spend a couple of nights on Mull.

Would you recommend this train ride (is it quite scenic?)

b. Edinburgh--Glasgow--Fort William.

The Glasgow-Fort William journey seems to be particularly good -- would it make sense to continue on to Mallaig given that we don't have too much time?

If we do this route (ending at either FW or Mallaig), could you please suggest a place to stay at for a couple of nights... should we go across to Skye? (what I've read of Plockton also sounds marvellous)

Also, with this route, how much time for train travel should we allow, going and coming?

Any thoughts on these (or other) options would be very very welcome -- as the subject says: am feeling thoroughly confused right now; and also wishing I had a month to travel the country!

huge thanks in advance,
j

Ackislander

Unless you already have reservations in Edinburgh, August there is a very bad time to visit because of the Festival (yes, the Festival would be great, but you have to plan ahead).

I love the journey from Glasgow to Mallaig. I would take the train to Fort William on day 1, passing by Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor, the mouth of Glen Coe, and Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the UK.

On day 2, I would go on to Mallaig by train, crossing the great viaduct in the Harry Potter and the silver sands of Arisaig to take the CalMac ferry to Armadale on Skye. I presume the busses still meet the ferry, and you could go on to Portree.

You can spend day 3 in Skye, taking a tour and looking at scenery, OR, if you really like trains, you can get a bus to Kyle of Lockalsh and take another scenic train along Loch Ness through more gorgeous scenery to Inverness.

Day 4, you can take the train back to Edinburgh, stopping perhaps in St Andrews.

This lets you see a lot of the more scenic parts of the Highlands, and you can do Edinburgh another time.

stfc

Scotland is a big place, about 60% the size of England, which is not criss-crossed with multi-lane highways and a few days isn't enough for all of it. With your limited time I would just select something to give you a taster.

If you like scenic train journeys, and beautiful scenery, the Highlands railway journeys sound ideal. I agree with the previous poster, steer clear of Edinburgh in August unless you already have reservations.

bardo1

<i>August seems to be a very bad time to be in Edinburgh.</i>

Huh?

Quite the opposite, IMO.

Yes, it's more crowded and hotel rates in Edinburgh go up in August.

Precisely because August is a GREAT time to be Edinburgh. Supply and demand. Go. See the sights. Check out some of the shows at the festival. You'll have a blast.

ccrosner

I would not ditch your plans to be in Edinburgh in August. We went there last year and I was able to find accommodation for four of us in mid-June. It's a beautiful city which is easy to get around on public transportation. With the exception of the Princes St. area, we did not find Edinburgh to be too crowded. And the street performers are fun to watch and add to the experience.

I found our accommodations on www.scotlandby.com. We stayed at the Ravensdown Guest House which was a 10 minute ride from the center of town by bus. Small bathroom but clean and comfortable.

I think 2 days in St. Andrews is more than you need....but it is a lovely little town.

bardo1

I was assuming arctan and wife have already a hotel reserved in Edinburgh.

If not, they can at least get on the phone and try (good luck) before re-arranging plans.

arctan

This forum is just brilliant! Thanks a lot: all of you -- the panic is now rapidly being replaced by excitement... it helps as well that I've been having a wee drop of whisky in the interim

Based on what you all said, we are extending the Scotland part of the trip to 6 nights instead of 4: hopefully, that will allow us to do both the Highlands by train as well as a couple of days in Edinburgh. Also, just discovered that the festival starts on 8th August; so am hoping that 6th and 7th should be a bit easier there.

Here's the tentative itinerary we are thinking of now (and Ackislander: thanks a ton for the detailed train suggestion):

-- 6th Aug fly into Edinburgh from Paris around noon.

-- 6th and 7th in Edinburgh

-- 8th head out to Fort William by train (this has to be via Glasgow, I guess?).

-- Is it possible (without making it too hectic) to go on by train to Mallaig the same day instead of stopping the night at Fort William?

-- If yes, we'd like to do that, and spend the night of the 8th in Portree... I also remember reading good things about Plockton somewhere? Would that be a good option to spend the next day (9th)?

-- On the following day (10th), would like to follow Ackislander's suggestion and take the bus to Kyle of Lochalsh; then the train to Inverness and back towards Edinburgh on the 11th. This involves spending the night of the 10th somewhere enroute.... would welcome suggestions (Inverness?)

-- The big question is whether we will get a hotel for the night in Edinburgh on the 11th (am trying right now); flying out to Paris on the 12th...


As always, would greatly welcome comments and advice... it's already been very, very helpful.

cheers,
j

Nikki

There are several festivals in Edinburgh. The Festival Fringe, which is possibly the largest, starts the beginning of August. I am planning to be there from August 3-August 8, and I am overwhelmed with the choices of theater, comedy, music and art. My plan is to attend at least two performances a day, maybe more depending on logistics.

I have never been to Edinburgh but have wanted to go to the festival there since I was in college, so I am quite excited. It did not put me off that I'd be going during the festival, quite the contrary.

But if you want to be there, you should be looking for rooms right now for August 6 and 7, since the festival will have begun.

rogeruktm

Just another thought... The train to Ft. William is the same train that goes to Oban from Glasgow's Queen Street station, it splits up the line with the front 2 cars going to Ft. William and the last 2 going on to Oban. I much prefer Oban over Mallaig and would spend time either in Oban or Mull. Bowman's in Oban have a great deal for ferry, bus, ferry to Mull and Iona. For a bit of different ride and a great view think about taking the Citylink bus from Oban to Ft. William. It picks you up right across from the train station. from Ft. William you can train back to Glasgow or continue by train to Inverness. Then train to either Edinburgh via Aberdeen or via Perth. Both are great train rides. Let us know if you need more information.

pittpurple

There are still tons of options available for the beginning of August - my inlaws just booked FF tickets to visit us here and there are a surprising number of options. Check out www.edfringe.com for a taster of what you'll see here! The first weekend is a preview weekend so most shows are half price - we tend to go to 6-8 shows that weekend and go from there.

The street performers are my favourite though! I love, love, love the Festival, it's my favourite time of year. There are tons of people everywhere though so if you don't like crowds (like my mom) you might not like it here.

6 nights is better. I don't know enough about the different routes you are talking about to give a good opinion, but I'd say the weekend we spent in Skye was one of the most lovely experiences we've had since moving here - it's such incredible scenery.

Good luck!
PittPurple

janisj

just one quick comment:

&quot;<i>Also, just discovered that the festival starts on 8th August; so am hoping that 6th and 7th should be a bit easier there.</i>&quot;

Nope. It is not ONE festival, but several plus the Military Tattoo (which starts Aug 1). It is not just tourists who fill up the hotels - but the hundreds of performers/staff. Places start filling up by the middle of July.

Edinburgh is a fantastic place to be in August, but it takes advance planning. Things will be booked up, crowded, and very exciting. But you need to arrange accommodations immediately - like this very minute.

If you can't find a place - skip Edinburgh and start your trip in Glasgow instead . . . . .

Ackislander

A couple of points.

Ft William is eminently skippable unless you want to tour the surrounding country or climb.

By all means go on to Mallaig.

The Oban-Mull trip is an interesting alternative. The lines split at Crianlarich, so the first part of the trip is the same.

But the trip across Rannoch Moor and ultimately to Mallaig is one of the world's great train trips, like the train over the Canadian Rockies.

rogeruktm

I should have said &quot;continue by bus to Inverness&quot; No train service between Ft. William to Inverness without backtracking to Glasgow.

Gardyloo

<i>But the trip across Rannoch Moor and ultimately to Mallaig is one of the world's great train trips...</i>

Agreed. Plus at Glenfinnan you may encounter kids on their way to Hogwarts.

arctan

ttt

crckwc1

If Edinburgh proper is booked up, look in the suburbs. We stayed in a nice guesthouse in Portobello, bus stop at the corner and 15 minutes into town. Easy way to get to the Tattoo, Festival, etc. www.stravenguesthouse.com

arctan

You guys (and Scotland) are addictive...! We had started out with only 4 nights; that got extended to 6 after your comments, and have now successfully convinced the missus that it has to be 7 nights...

Here's the rough itinerary now, and a few additional questions. Would greatly appreciate your feedback:

-- arrive in Edinburgh from Paris afternoon of the 6th; spend two nights there (we haven't booked yet, but an online search showed that we can still get in somewhere, and we really don't want to pass up on Edinburgh, though I did consider staying in Glasgow instead following Janis' advice)

-- 8th: start the train ride to Fort William and then Mallaig in order to get to Skye. (Rogeruktm: your comments on Oban and Mull were MOST tempting; but we finally ended up leaning towards Skye)

-- 9th and 10th on Skye (probably Portree; although Sleat looks very appealing as well)

-- 11th: take the bus to the Kyle of Lochalsh and then begin the train journey back towards Edinburgh via Inverness. Spend the 11th night enroute (where?) arriving Edinburgh 12th. Spend another day there and head back to Paris on the 13th.

The questions, for those of you who are still bearing with us
a. Any general reactions -- does the above plan sound doable?

b. We don't want to make it too hectic the day we head out from Edinburgh towards Skye; so had thought of spending the night enroute somewhere. Suggestions, please. Mallaig is one possibility (at the end of the train journey), but various posters here have said it's not a great place even just to spend the night.

c. Similarly, on the way back; instead of doing the whole Skye-Kyle-Inverness-Edinburgh thing in one day, would like to overnight somewhere in between. Again, would welcome suggestions; Inverness is a possibility but doesn't seem too attractive. (Dunkeld? Sheila had made some great comments on it on another thread I had posted).

d. Where to stay in Skye? We are essentially looking for 2 days of calm and relaxation, admiring the fantastic scenery and coming back at night to a picturesque hotel (and some good whisky by the fireplace). Won't have a car, which is why I thought Portree might be best. But Sleat sounds lovely too. So again... any advice re: place and then hotels in that place?


That's all for now, I think!

Again -- thank you all.

cheers,
J

arctan

PS: just looking through rogeruktm's post again about staying overnight in Oban on the day we leave Edinburgh -- if we did that, could we then just take the West Highland rail the next day to Fort william and on to Mallaig? If so, that would be perfect...

rogeruktm

Regarding taking the train from Oban to Ft. William...No direct service. You would have to backtrack to Crianlarich and then continue on to Ft. William and Mallaig. Again, I would just take the bus to Ft. William. It is a very good bus system and you will enjoy the ride. Then at Ft. William you could continue on by train. Please check the train schedules before your trip using National rail or Qjump. Another thing I would recommend is to arrange for a private driver to meet you after the ferry from Mallaig. We did and it worked out real well, even had him give us a tour and after a couple of days he drove us back to Kyle of Lochalsh for the trai to Inverness.

historytraveler

A few comments. The train ride from Glasgow to Mallaig is about 5 1/2 hours and it's a 50 min. journey from Edinburgh. No need to make a stop over but if so inclined, I suggest Rannoch. Not much there except the station and a B&amp;B,but it is special and they do serve meals. It is in the middle of nowhere if you like that idea. Check their website www.moorofrannoch.co.uk

I would not stay in Mallaig. Catch the ferry over to Armaddale as it's only a thirty minute trip. Do not expect a bus to be waiting for you. Your best bet would be to hire a taxi to meet you.

The train ride from Kyle of Lochalsh to Inverness is especially scenic too.