Travel advice for Scotland
From travel safety to visa requirements, discover the best tips for traveling to Scotland
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The quickest, easiest and cheapest way to get to Scotland is by plane. Scotland has three main international airports: Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen. Glasgow handles most nonstop scheduled flights from North America; all three have a reasonable spread of European flights.
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Walking around vintage England and picturesque Scotland
Visit two traditional capitals, London and Edinburgh, and enjoy a trek through the Loch Lomond national park. This trip will let you discover peaceful Scottish islands by foot, with several days of detailed walking tours included in the trip.
customize ⤍With most airlines nowadays, how much you pay depends on how far in advance you book and how much demand there is during that period – the earlier you book, the cheaper the prices.
If you’re coming from elsewhere in Britain, from Ireland or even northwest Europe, you can reach Scotland easily enough by train, bus or ferry – it probably won’t work out cheaper or faster than flying, but it’s undoubtedly better for the environment.
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Flying may be quick, but the coach and train fares can be pretty competitive. If you book far enough in advance, train fares can cost as little as £40 for a London or Manchester to Glasgow return (journey time from 4hr 45min or 3hr 30min). A more flexible or last-minute fare will obviously cost two or three times that amount. Another option is the overnight Caledonian Sleeper run by ScotRail from London Euston (daily except Sat; journey time around 7hr); again, if you book in advance, single overnight fares cost around £20, though most return fares are more like £100 return. The coach takes longer than the train (journey time around 9hr), but costs less, with a London or Birmingham to Glasgow return starting for as little as £30.
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Figure on six to seven hours’ flight time nonstop from the east coast to Glasgow, or seven hours to London plus an extra hour and a quarter from London to Glasgow or Edinburgh (not including stopover time). Add three or four hours more for travel from the west coast.
Return fares (including taxes) for nonstop flights to Glasgow from New York are $700–800; for nonstop flights from Toronto return fares are Can$700–800.
The cheapest direct scheduled flights to London are usually to be found on one of the Asian airlines. Average return fares (including taxes) from eastern gateways to London are Aus$1500–2000 in low season, Aus$2000–2500 in high season. Fares from Perth or Darwin cost around Aus$200 less. Return fares from Auckland to London range between NZ$2000 and NZ$3000 depending on the season, route and carrier.
From travel safety to visa requirements, discover the best tips for traveling to Scotland
written by Lucy Kane
updated 2.06.2021
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