Michilander

We have a trip coming up to Dublin and Edinburgh. Have rented apartments in both, but left one day between the rentals. Part of the group would like to spend the extra day in the Highlands and I was looking for recommendations for a destination that could be reached easily by train from EDI. Some place where they could see a little history and some scenery while on foot or public transportation. Thanks.

lwildernorva

I assume you're talking about spending the night wherever you go, meaning you should have a 24-30 hour window for your excursion. Inverness is 3.5 hours by train from Edinburgh, has its own castle, and is walkable and very pretty along the River Ness. You'll probably catch more scenery on the trip up and back, but if you want to double your train time, I've been told that the train from Inverness to the Kyle of Lochalsh (about two hours each way) is one of the most scenic trips in the British Isles.

Shorter trips could be made to Stirling, Pitlochry/Edradour, Glasgow, St. Andrews, or North Berwick. Stirling is about an hour by train from Edinburgh and also has a Castle, a University, and tons of (bloody--think William Wallace) history. Pitlochry/Edradour is about two hours away, gets you just into the Highlands, has shopping and restaurants, plus a whisky distillery in Edradour. Glasgow has frequent train service from Edinburgh, is about an hour away, and has a number of attractions, shopping, and restaurants but is in no way scenic.

St. Andrews is about an hour away (with a short, easy connection by bus), takes you across the Forth River Bridge, which is spectacular, and is much more than just a place for golfers. The ruins of the Cathedral and Castle there are amazing, a stroll through the University area can be nice, there are a lot of shops and restaurants, and the vibe in and around the Old Course, including the pubs clustered there, can be a lot of fun even if no one in your group plays golf.

I'm somewhat partial to North Berwick, if for no reason other than it's a quick 30-minute trip from Waverley with frequent service. North Berwick is a small, walkable town with some shopping and a decent number of good restaurants. The Seabird Centre there was more than I expected, and if you don't mind a short walk outside town plus a short and relatively easy climb (no rappelling required), Berwick Law is a good use of a couple of hours--the views from the top, about 600 feet up, can be wonderful unless the fog rolls in from off the coast. And even with fog, you'll see wild horses that live and graze up near the summit as well as the synthetic whalebone (replacing the original, real one) that sits atop the Law and that was a landmark for sailors in the days before more reliable maritime aids became available.

All of these towns/cities have plenty of accommodations available.

farci

I imagine the OP's definitiion of Highlands involves countryside rather than a city. In that respect 'a day in the Highlands' might be as realistic as a desire for 'a day in the Appalachians' to represent a whole culture.

Nevertheless may I recommend a bus operator called Rabbies whose award winning tours come as close to that aspiration as humanly possible. Other tour operators are available

alanR

You could fly Dublin to Inverness then make your way down to Edinburgh

HIDDY

That would be the best way to do it. If the DUB-EDI flight is already booked then I'd probably just pick Pitlochry as it's that bit quicker to get to giving more time to wander.

lwildernorva

Although this could be true, the OP's request for a destination served by train as well as the specification of walkable, with history, and possibly public transportation, led to my suggestions. My absolutely favorite trip in the Northern Highlands was driving the one-track road from Helmsdale to Reay, but that's a couple of hours beyond Inverness, which is already a fair hike from Edinburgh, and would require a car or cars since the OP talked about a "group."

Your suggestion of the Rabbies tour is excellent, but if the OP wants to stay in the area they travel to rather than doing a full day tour with a return to Edinburgh, since they have one day between the end of their rental in Dublin and the beginning of their rental in Edinburgh, I'd agree with HIDDY that Pitlochry is the most sensible option to reduce the amount of travel time while still getting into the Highlands. Many of my other suggestions don't get into the Highlands at all but might make sense if the OP's group remains open to other suggestions.

ExitRowOrElse

I suggest flying into Inverness You can check out some local site, such as Ft. George and the Culloden Battlefield. You will need a rent a car or taxi to get to these. You can then take the train south. I suggest the line that stops in Dahlwinie and Blair Althol. Attractions on this route include the Dahlwinie Distillery, Blair Castle ( a must see) and nice shopping is available near Blair castle.

Hakluyt

There are so many good recommendations in this post that I feel I can ask for some recommendations for our situation: We, 2 persons, will be in Scotland for ca. 18 days/June and cannot come to a conclusion what is best: to use train or bus and where to stop. Inverness, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Isle of Skye are definitely in; but what to include in between and which to use. Should we as foreigners get the train coupon for retirees?
I am afraid, we are indecisive and need some advice.

lwildernorva

Are you dead set against renting a car and driving? I agree that you would not want a car in Glasgow or Edinburgh. Although you won't see everything, I would suggest spending two days in Glasgow and three to four in Edinburgh, leaving 12 for the rest of the country. Driving in Scotland outside of Glasgow and Edinburgh is generally fairly easy, even for those who have never done driving on the other side of the road. Four quick rules: get the smallest car you can drive and more importantly, park in the scrunched areas that you'll find even in small towns (so accordingly, pack lightly), the favored turn is left turn on red rather than right, find a marker on your windshield to align yourself correctly in your lane (I generally find the windshield wiper has a good point of reference that lined up on the center line will allow you to get as far to the right as you can--my mistake tends to be moving to the left towards the shoulder), and understand always, either as a pedestrian or driver that while you drive left, look right!

Pick up the car at one of the airports--don't pick up in the car in the center of the city with your first experience being driving in heavy traffic through narrow city streets not originally designed for automobiles; instead, get the car on a city's outskirts with fairly easy access to a motorway--and then drive through the countryside and small towns on your own schedule, making more efficient use of your time because you don't have to rely on a train/bus schedule.

Let me suggest with your schedule that you could comfortably do a trip into the Highlands, Skye, maybe a day trip to Stirling or Dundee, and a two-day trip to one of the islands, such as Arran or Islay, the Mull of Kintyre, or the Lowlands around Dumfries. Cars will work much better for all of those areas.

If you're not driving for whatever reason, you'll actually find a hybrid of train/bus will work fairly well. Trains are frequent between Edinburgh and Glasgow. There are also lots of trains between Dundee and Aberdeen. North of Inverness, you may find bus service more reliable. Other than the Inverness/Kyle of Lochalsh train, the same is probably true for access to the Isle of Skye and other islands. Train service is again reliable from Glasgow down through Troon and points south.

Hakluyt

Thank you, Iwildernorva, for your very good reply. I believe driving, we would be on each others throats ALL the time. No relaxation there, even with good intentions. I'll go back to the map and figure out our connections. Your suggestions what to visit are very helpful.
After figuring out the various best connections, I should see if the train coupon for 2 is worthwhile for us.
Thanks again,
Hakluyt

antichef

Just for clarity - There is NO turn on red. Red means stop. Green means go. If you have a filter to left or right of the lane it will have a green arrow that illuminates showing which way. Some junctions have red light cameras to catch and penalise those who go through the red light.

Have a look at this:
http://www.drivingtesttips.biz/traff...-sequence.html

farci

For planning a trip by public transport please refer to this website which gives you all options
http://http://www.travelinescotland.com/node/19

HIDDY

There's no doubt hiring a car is the easiest way of getting around rural Scotland especially if you're carrying luggage. Using trains and buses is all very well however the logistics involved if you're moving on every day can be a nuisance.
One idea is to book a coach tour starting in either Glasgow or Edinburgh. For instance you can get a three night tour of Dunoon and Rothesay all inclusive which includes a day trip to Oban as well as other areas for around Ł140 each booked through David Urquhart Travel. I'm sure there are plenty others.

cardsqc

Can you tell me a little more about this? I'm going to be in the vicinity of Raey sometime this summer, and this sounds kinda intriguing, although I don't know that I'd have the time to drive that whole route. But it sounds exactly like the type of road I have a hard time resisting .

lwildernorva

It's the A897 which is to the west of Reay on the A836 and travels down to Helmsdale. It's a one-track road for most of the trip, and the road is empty for most of the way. Nonetheless, lorries use the road which will remind a driver of the importance of using the turnouts at the side of the road to allow a vehicle to pass. There are some tight twists and turns, but I wouldn't necessarily say that the road itself is fun to drive if you're a driving enthusiast.

There is no town of significant size between Reay and Helmsdale--make sure you have a snack and something to drink with you! I found the scenery dramatic with a brook running alongside the road for most of the way. If you do the entire drive, you can save time on the way back by taking the A9 at Helmsdale to Thurso and then the A836 back to Reay or if you're thinking of driving only part of the road, a good stopping point might be near Loch an Ruathair, which is a little over halfway to Helmsdale.