My friend and I will be traveling to UK in late July for 8 days. We're tempted to leave London and go to Edinburgh and Wales. Wanted to do Paris--cost is prohibitive. What's the best way to accomplish extensive travel? Are trains (as opposed to buses) worth twice the price?

Meg, <BR> <BR>If you're planning to cover England, Scotland, and Wales in 8 days I would definitely suggest trains, as they are usually much faster. <BR> <BR>Are you planning to buy a railpass? I've had Britrail passes for the past three years. Aside from being fairly cost-effective, I really like not having to plan where I'm going in advance. For info see www.britrail.com (I couldn't find prices on this website) or www.dertravel.com (showing prices). <BR> <BR>Is this your first visit to the UK, and do you plan on visiting again in the future? If so, I have a suggestion. Buy a Britrail Southeast pass (I think I paid about $150 for a 7 day flexipass for my trip this year). With the SE pass, you can visit lots of famous and interesting places like Dover, Canterbury, Windsor, Oxford, Cambridge, Salisbury, Portsmouth) - more than enough to fill a week. <BR> <BR>As another alternative, split your time between London and Edinburgh. Or if cost is important, consider staying in Oxford instead of London - you might find cheaper accomodations, and Oxford has good rail connections. It's only about an hour from London, so you can still see Big Ben, St Paul's, etc on a day trip. (Not the best way to see London, but still an option.) <BR> <BR>If you do insist on seeing England, Scotland and Wales in a week, let me know. I've done it myself (although it's crazy), so I have a few suggestions about fitting the most into a short trip.

Train travel definitely. Time is money! <BR>If you only want to go to a few places, its not worth getting a rail pass. Instead plan ahead, and book in advance. 7 day and 14 day advance tickets at off peak times (departure after about 9.30am) are much much cheaper than normal, and almost as cheap as a bus. Try this websites for some prices <BR>www.thetrainline.co.uk <BR>

Train is the best way, comfort, speed and thrift. Depending on what you want to do ....I have always gotten a Britrail pass and found it cost effective and convenient. I will be taking the train from Kings Cross in London to Edinburg in Sept. and was able to get train times and prices on the britrail website. The travel time from London is 4 1/2 hrs with no changes. We are renting a car in Chester and will be seeing some of Wales while staying at Combermere Abbey in Whitchurch. Happy traveling

Hello <BR> <BR>I would also recommend taking the train for your trip. I would also second buying a Britrail pass, as that would take a lot of the organisational hassle out of pre-booking tickets, which are not always available for one-way ('single') jouneys. Buses ('coaches') are good value and not necessarily all that slow, but if you only have 8 days speed should be of the essence.