clairefraser

We will be in Scotland and England during October. We are going to prebook our accommodation in Edinburgh (our first destination from Australia) but hope to do the rest on the way? Is this a good plan?

sheila

Yes, it'll work fine.

janisj

Absolutely doable in October. And if you don't want to spend time looking for a place (not that you'd have to look far in many places) most town and many villages have Tourist Information centers. You can book rooms through the TICs -- either in the same town for the same night, or where you plan on being the next day or two.

So say you are staying the night on Skye and want to stay the next night in Oban, or Callander or wherever - you can go into the TIC in Broadford or Portree and tell them what sort of place/price range you want and while you go away to sightsee or eat they will call ahead and book you a room through the TIC in that town. When you come back in an hour or so you will have a confrimed booking w/ directions on how to gett there.

LoriS

We always book ahead, regardless of the season, to ensure that we get accommodations at the particular place that we're interested in. No sense in spending lots of money and being disappointed and having to waste time on vacation looking for a place to stay. Just my 2 cents.

traveldawg

We have done it both ways. Booking ahead puts you in the place you want and on a schedule. If we are just driving around and exploring new places, finding a room on the fly is more convenient. We do this frequently in Germany in the fall/winter travel time. Have never had a problem. We will also take a guide book with us that has suggested places to stay if we end up in that town.

clairefraser

Thanks everyone. Your comments are much appreciated.

caroline_edinburgh

It may be worth checking, though, that you won't be here during the Scottish or English school half-term holidays when accommodation may be more booked up.

clairefraser

Thanks Caroline. That's a good tip. I hadn't thought of that.

schnauzer

When we travelled winging it, we would just go straight to the nearest Tourist Info office and ask for accommodation in the area. Always worked out, found some places with heaps of character. Always specify you want somewhere with character otherwise you could end up in some very ordinary B & B.Just make sure you arrive in the town before 4.30 - 5.00 otherwise they start to close and then you have to do the drive around, which can work sometimes!

ira

When we were young and winged, we ended up one night in a nice hotel booked through the VVV in Amsterdam.

We were the only people who used their room all night.

Quite a lot of traffic in the hallway.