Getting There By Air:Edinburgh International Airport (EDI) Tel: (0870) 0400 007. Fax: (0131) 344 3470.
Website:
www.edinburghairport.com Scotland’s, and one of Europe’s, fastest growing airports is located 12km (8 miles) west of Edinburgh. A new multi-story car park and control tower were completed in 2005 with plans mooted for a second runway and massive expansion program to cater for spiralling demand. Edinburgh International Airport serves over eight
million passengers and over 60 destinations worldwide. There are more than 30 flights to London’s five airports every day, with regular flights to other major cities in the UK and overseas. Since summer 2004, direct transatlantic links have been available from Edinburgh.
Major airlines: British Midland (tel: (0870) 607 0555; website:
www.flybmi.com) and
British Airways (tel: (0870) 850 9850; website:
www.britishairways.com) are the main scheduled carriers. Low cost carriers with rapidly expanding routes from Edinburgh include
Flyglobespan and
Easyjet with other carriers using Edinburgh including
Air France,
Air Scotland,
Continental,
Flybe,
KLM,
Lufthansa,
Ryanair and
Scot Airways.
Approximate flight times to Edinburgh: From London is around 1 hour and from New York 8 hours 30 minutes.
Airport facilities: Facilities include bureaux de change, information desk, Edinburgh Tourist Board office, hotel reservations, left-luggage; lost property, shops (including a newsagent and gift shops), duty-free shops, first aid, bars, restaurants and car hire from
Alamo,
Avis,
Budget,
Europcar,
National and
Hertz.
Business facilities: British Airways,
British Midland and
Servisair (tel: (0131) 344 3304; website:
www.servisair.com) all provide executive lounges with telephone, fax and computer facilities.
Departure tax: Included in fare.
Transport to the city: Lothian Buses (tel: (0131) 555 6363; website:
www.flybybus.com) run an airport shuttle service from the terminal forecourt to the city center terminus at Waverley Bridge (situated above Waverley railway station) via Haymarket station (journey time – 25 minutes). These buses operate every 8 to 10 minutes, 0650-0020 Monday to Saturday (then less frequently 0020-0650), 0925-0020 Sunday (then less frequently during the night). A single fare costs £3. Taxis are available from the taxi rank to the east of the terminal or by calling
Airport Taxis (tel: (0131) 344 3344). A trip to the city center (journey time – 20 minutes) costs approximately £20. Access to the city by car is along the A8.
Getting There By Water:The nearby
Port of Rosyth (tel: (01383) 413 366; fax: (01383) 414 499) is overseen by
Forth Ports Plc (tel: (0131) 555 8700; fax: (0131) 553 7462; website:
www.forthports.co.uk), situated across the Forth Bridge at Rosyth in Fife, approximately a 35-minute drive from the city center. There is a terminal building, with passenger check-in facilities and a lounge. Many visiting cruise ships, including in 2005 the
QM2, moor off South Queensferry by the Forth Bridge and ferry passengers ashore from there.
Ferry services: Superfast Ferries (tel: (0870) 234 0870; website:
www.superfast.com) operates a service to Zeebrugge, Belgium, from Rosyth. This runs daily. The overnight ferry departs Zeebrugge at 1800, arriving at Rosyth at 1100. Outward bound ferries depart Rosyth at 1700, arriving at Zeebrugge at 1200.
Transport to the city: Rennies Coaches (tel: (01383) 620600; website:
www.renniesofdunfermline.co.uk) operates bus X2 to the city center (journey time – 45 minutes). The service runs daily, to link with the arrival of the ferry at around 1100, costing £3 for a single or £6 return.
Getting There By Road:British road designations are ‘M’ for motorways, ‘A’ for major trunk roads and ‘B’ for minor trunk roads (followed by up to four numbers). Traffic in the UK drives on the left and overtakes on the right. The speed limits are 113kph (70mph) on motorways, 97kph (60mph) on single-lane main roads and 48kph (30mph) in built-up areas. Seatbelts are compulsory for drivers and front-seat passengers and for rear-seat passengers if fitted. Motorcyclists must wear helmets. The maximum legal alcohol to blood ratio for driving is 0.08%. Non-British national driving licenses and International Driving Permits are valid for driving in Britain for up to one year and drivers must be over 18 years. Insurance is mandatory. Overseas visitors bringing their own cars should bring registration documents and check with their insurance company as to whether a Green Card is needed.
Breakdown service and general motoring information is available from the
Automobile Association (tel: (0870) 600 0371; website:
www.theaa.com), the
Royal Automobile Club (tel: (0870) 572 2722; website:
www.rac.co.uk) and
Green Flag (tel: (0845) 246 1557; website:
www.greenflag.co.uk).
Emergency breakdown services (toll free): AA (0800) 887 766
Green Flag (0800) 590 590
RAC (08000) 828 282
Routes to the city: Edinburgh is linked to Glasgow by the M8 motorway and from there to England and Wales by the M74 and on to the A74 and M6 further to the south (toward Manchester). Edinburgh is also directly linked to London by the A1.
Approximate driving times to Edinburgh: From Glasgow – 1 hour; Manchester – 4 hours and 15 minutes; London – 7 hours and 30 minutes.
Coach services: National Express (tel: (0870) 580 8080; fax: (0121) 622 6526; website:
www.nationalexpress.com) operates regular daily coach services from both London and Manchester to Edinburgh.
Scottish Citylink Coaches (tel: (0870) 550 5050; fax: (0141) 332 8055; website:
www.citylink.co.uk) is the largest provider of express coach services in Scotland, with a comprehensive network of destinations. There are frequent services to Glasgow (journey time – 70 minutes) and Aberdeen (journey time – 3-4 hours). All the coaches leave from the bus station on St Andrew Square. New operator
Megabus sell Internet-only tickets (website:
www.megabus.com) between Scotland’s cities and have led to a recent reduction in fares amongst all operators.
Getting There By Rail:While long distance services are fairly reliable (especially the award winning GNER service to London, Aberdeen and Inverness), domestic First Scotrail routes are often dogged by delays and cancellations, especially on the ‘flagship’ Edinburgh-Glasgow route. The major rail service provider for routes to and from England is
Great North East Railway –
GNER (tel: (0845) 722 5225; website:
www.gner.co.uk), while
First Scotrail (tel: (0845) 755 0033; website:
www.firstscotrail.com) operates all services within Scotland, as well as a London-Edinburgh overnight sleeper link.
National Rail Enquiries (tel: (0845) 748 4950) provides 24-hour timetable and fare information for all train companies.
Edinburgh has two main train stations –
Waverley station (located right in the heart of the city, at the East End of Princes Street) and
Haymarket station (at the junction of Dalry Road and Haymarket, in the West End). Facilities at Waverley include a food mall, a newsagent and a pub. There are also small stations at Newcraighall, South Gyle and at the new Edinburgh Park.
Rail services: First Scotrail (see above) operates a train service from Glasgow to Edinburgh every 15 minutes (journey time – 50 minutes).
First Scotrail’s handy but underused
Caledonian Sleeper, between London (Euston) and Edinburgh, runs every night except Saturday (journey time – 6 hours and 45 minutes).
Virgin Trains (tel: (0845) 722 2333; website:
www.virgintrains.co.uk) operates a direct service between Manchester and Edinburgh, three times a day (journey time – 3 hours).
GNER operates a direct half-hourly service between London (Kings Cross) and Edinburgh (journey time – 4 hours and 30 minutes) with award winning on-board catering in the restaurants it provides with its premium services.
Transport to the city: Both Waverley station and Haymarket station are within walking distance of the Old Town and the New Town. The stations are also served by numerous bus routes and taxis.
Getting Around:Public TransportTraveline (tel: (0870) 608 2608), provides information on all bus, coach and train routes within the Lothians. The office is open from Monday to Friday 0830-1700 (telephone lines operate until 2000). There is no light rail or tram system within the city and Edinburgh commuters rely on the frequent bus services, though plans for a tram system are currently under consideration.
Lothian Buses, 27 Hanover Street (tel: (0131) 555 6363; website:
www.lothianbuses.co.uk), provides
bus services within the city and to outlying districts, as does
First Edinburgh (tel: (08708) 727271; website:
www.firstedinburgh.co.uk). The Council ‘Greenways Scheme’ makes it illegal for drivers to park on the city’s main arteries and gives buses exclusive, green tarmac lanes. As a result, the bus service flows fairly freely 0600-2400, after which the
night bus service comes into operation.
Fares range from £0.80 to £1.00 – night buses charge £2 and exact change is required. There are a number of
passes allowing reduced fares. Lothian Buses sell a
Daysaver ticket that gives unlimited travel on its routes (including those outside the city) for £2.30. Lothian Buses also sells weekly (£12) and four-weekly (£36) passes, which allow unlimited travel on Lothian Buses within these time frames. The
FirstDay/FirstWeek and
FirstMonth ticket covers travel on First Edinburgh buses in Edinburgh and the surrounding region with prices dependent on zones and duration of the pass.
All Lothian Bus passes can be purchased at the
Waverley Bridge Ticket Center, Waverley Bridge (tel: (0131) 555 6363), open daily 0830-1730 (summer) and 0830-1600 (winter).
TaxisEdinburgh’s taxis are mainly black hackney cabs and can be safely hailed in the street. All are licensed and have meters fitted. Some form of driver ID should be prominently displayed. Taxi companies include
City Cabs (tel: (0131) 228 1211; website:
www.citycabs.co.uk) and
Central Radio Taxis (tel: (0131) 229 2468; website:
www.taxis-edinburgh.co.uk). Rates are fairly expensive at about £1.80 per kilometer (£2.30 per mile). A tip of 10% is expected.
LimousinesLittle’s Chauffeur Drive (tel: (0131) 334 2177; fax: (0131) 316 4688; e-mail:
reservations@littles.co.uk; website:
www.littles.co.uk) has a fleet of Daimlers, Mercedes, people carriers and Volvo limousines. A ride from the airport to the city center costs around £50 (plus VAT), while hire for eight hours and 60km (40 miles) costs £190-£390 (plus VAT).
WL Sleigh Ltd (tel: (0131) 337 3171; fax: (0131) 346 8335; e-mail:
info@sleigh.co.uk; website:
www.sleigh.co.uk) hires out Mercedes and people carriers. Eight hours hire in the city center costs £224 (plus VAT), hourly hire is from £28 in the city center, £36 outlying areas and airport transfer costs from £48.
Driving in the CityDriving around congested Edinburgh is increasingly more hassle than it is worth, so the general advice to visitors is to walk, cycle or use public transport. Visitors who do bring a car should be aware that parking is particularly problematic. Metered parking (in force Monday to Saturday 0830-1830) is restricted in the city and a resident’s parking permit is required in many areas. In central locations, such as George Street, parking can cost up to 55p for 15 minutes. Failure to comply with parking regulations can result in a costly fine and the offending vehicle being towed away. The easiest option is for drivers to use one of the
NCP car parks, such as at the St James Center or Castle Terrace.
Car HireRegulations vary from company to company, however, in all cases, drivers will require a valid driving license to hire a car in the UK. In most cases, this can be a national driving license, although an International Driving Permit may be preferred if the license is not in English. Separate proof of address is often required. A credit card is also essential. It is important for visitors to check what level of insurance is included in the price of car hire. In general, drivers have to be over 23 to hire a car.
Avis (tel: (0131) 337 6363
or (08700) 100 287; website:
www.avis.co.uk) charges from £45 per day, including unlimited mileage, collision damage waiver, theft protection and tax.
Hertz (tel: (0131) 556 8311
or (0870) 846 0013; website:
www.hertz.co.uk) charges from £40 per day, including unlimited mileage, collision damage waiver, service charge and tax.
Arnold Clark Car Rental (tel: (0845) 607 4500); website:
www.arnoldclark.co.uk) charges from £19 per day, including a free 400km (250 miles) – drivers must have held a license for over a year.
Bicycle HireBike Trax Cycle Hire, 11 Lochrin Place, Tollcross (tel: (0131) 228 6633; fax: (0131) 228 3686; e-mail:
info@biketrax.co.uk; website:
www.biketrax.co.uk), hires out a wide range of bicycles. The standard rate (including helmet and lock) is £12 for half a day and £16 per day – a £100 deposit and photo ID are also required.
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