Cindy

I am wondering about the pros and cons of traveling from London to Scotland on a train or by car. We're (2 adults, 2 children) spending a lot of time in Scotland, and will have a rental car there, but just plan a couple of days in London. How long would it take to drive to Edinburgh from London? What about to Oban from London? Which route would you recommend? Is it a fun drive? Is there lots to see? Or should we just take the train?

janis

It mostly depends on what you want to see along the way. A car gives you much more flexibility - but a train trip is fun and relaxing. If your Kids haven't done much train traveling the train might be an adventure. But the train will be more expensive.<BR><BR>Unless you have done a lot of UK driving I wouldn't try to do London to Oban in one day. It can be done - I've done it but I travel to the UK a couple of times a year. <BR><BR>If it were me I would drive to Edinburgh, either straight thru or with an overnight in York or Northumberland. Spend a minimum of 2 days in Edinburgh (4 would be better) and thendrive over to Oban. There is a LOT to see between the two places (Stirling, Doune, Lake of Mentieth, the Trossachs, beautiful parts of Argyll, many Lochs and waterfalls, etc.) so you might want to take your time getting to Oban. A few days even. But if you need to get there in a hurry it would take 4 to 5 hours from Edinburgh (including rest stops and meals)

Cindy

Janis:<BR><BR>Thanks for your help. I hope you check this again so I can ask you for more specifics. Is there just one main route to Scotland, and how long does it take by car? If there's more than one, which would you recommend? Also, I mentioned Oban because I was thinking that we might want to go there first, and then end up in Edinburgh. Would that make sense? (I am obviously in need of a good map!) Thanks for your help.

sylvia

I'd certainly buy a good road map, you can get one in Smiths or Menzies but the RAC route planner is very good at http://www.rac.co.uk/plan_route

Philip

If you are going by train, you may want to get seats with a table in the middle. The British trains have some seats where there are two seats riding forward and two seats riding backwards around a table. This is great if you want to play games or have something to lean on during the trip.

Don

I don't know if you have considered--or maybe already ruled out--travel by plane. From Luton, easyJet serves Edinburgh currently at &pound;22.50 one-way midweek, tax inclusive. For return, Ryanair from Prestwick to Stansted is currently only &pound;12.10 one-way midweek, tax inclusive.

janis

Cindy - there are two primary routes between London and Edinburgh. East goes mailny up the M1 / A1 through Yorkshire, Northumberland, the Borders and Eastlothian. The western route goes via the M6 near Liverpool, the Lake District, towards Glasgow and on to Edinburgh.<BR><BR>The eastern route is a little more straightforward once you are in Scotland. The west route entails some to-ing and fro-ing and extra navigating. The main advantage of the east route is being able to see York, Bamburgh Castle, Lindesfarne, St Abbs Head, North Berwick and some of the borders along the way.<BR><BR>As for going to Oban first - at lot depends on why you want to go to Oban. It is primarily a british seaside resort and jumping off point for Mull and some other islands by ferry. Not too much to actually see or do IN Oban itself. I usually only hit Oban when I am taking a ferry elsewhere. <BR><BR>I would do some sort of loop - yes do get a map to see the relationships between the various sites. But doing a counter clockwise or clockwise loop starting and ending in Edinburgh makes most sense. <BR><BR>Counterclockwise would go thru Fife (St Andrews etc.) up the east coast, across Banfshire, down Loch Ness to Skyes to Glen Coe thru the Trossachs and back to Edinburgh. Clockwise would just go the opposite direction ending up in Fife and back to Edinburgh,

janis

Oops - forgot to answer ho long the drive is. London is a big area so it is hard to say the distance - but from the Greater London area it is 400 miles give or take 20 miles. Plan on 8+ hours driving time plus meal/rest stops. You can do it faster since the motorways are fast. But it isn't a good idea to push it. <BR><BR>If you plan on breaking your journey for an overnight I'd choose York. It isn't right on the route but is a very short detour and it is a fabulous place. Lots to see and do and the kids would enjoy the Jorvik Viking Centre and the York Museum.

steve

Stick to the motorways. Most of the other roads are 2 lane, narrow and curving. If you can get the airfares listed above, I would fly

JOdy

Try using<BR><BR>www.theaa.com <BR><BR>Then click on travel watch, they give best and shortest routes . For Greater london to Oban it is 511 miles in 9 1/2 hours going the eastern route. That's with no rest stops or meals and with 2 children I think you'd need both!<BR><BR>If I could get those flight prices I'd be on the plane to edinburgh, then rent a car if you want to drive to Oban.<BR><BR>The drive from Edinburgh to Oban passes thru lovely scenery , I certainly wouldn't just jump in the car and miss stopping to enjoy it.

janis

Clarification - my mileage/time was for London to Edinburgh - not to Oban. If I didn't have a lot of experience driving in the UK I would definitely not try London to Oban in one day - Especially while jet lagged. Even London to Edinburgh in one day might be biting off more than you'd like. <BR><BR>Also - a LOT depends on the time of year -- weather and short daylight in the winter makes the train or plane by far the best alternatives. If you are talking about June you will have daylight until 10PM and that makes a huge difference.

Tony Hughes

Disagree with Janis. Western route FAR easier.<BR><BR>From London: M1-M6-M74/A74-A702-Edinburgh!

janis

Tony - I often take the Western route - but you have to admit for someone not used to driving and navigating in the UK the London M1/A1 Edinburgh is a lot easier. Basically get on the M1, stay on it as it becomes the A1, arrive Edinburgh. And the scenery is wonderful on the A1 portion.

Kathy

Just FYI's-- If you decide to take the train, be sure to have luggage that is easily moved on and off the train, and get into a car first so you have plenty of room to stash your things at the end storage area. If you decide to drive, rent your car on the outskirts of London so you don't have to drive through much of the city. You might also consider how much driving you really want to do... do you want to "save" it for Scotland? Driving on the left can be exhausting if you're not used to it.

Mel

Just want to say that I absolutely love Oban. It's a lovely Scottish seaport town that has a lot to offer at the right time of the year. Some good restaurants, lovely shops, a great stroll through the town and along the water, very nice people and friendly pubs. They are also known for their distillary. There are also wonderful little towns and villages to explore in that area. I'm trying to remember the name of a little town about five miles away that has the little bridge over the Atlantic and a pub where the men from the Isle used to stop to change out of their kilts before being stopped by the British several hundred years ago. Wonderful story that I'm telling badly because I don't have info in front of me!