Storyline: A Glimpse of Scotland
We came to Scotland, in part, we wanted to experience some of the most highly-rated railway journeys in the world. In the next few posts under “Scotland by Rail” tag we’ll talk about our experience.
“No railway in Scotland is dull. They are truly one of the best things about this special country, and rail is the best way to enjoy the Highlands, by a long chalk.”, [ Benedict Le Vay, Britain from the Rails]
We wanted to do a loop where possible through the Highlands of Scotland. Our train journeys begin on the West Highland Line from Glasgow to Mallaig. This line is included in the top 15 railway journeys in the world, together with the Carlisle to Settle route that we did in the spring (and still intend to write about).
It’s possible to make the return trip in one (longish) day or go one way to Mallaig without changing trains.
We elect to split our one-way journey into two parts so we can experience the Fort William to Mallaig section aboard the historic Jacobite steam train. To take the next train in the (broken) loop we first have to cross the Isle of Skye, which has no rail service.
Many call the Kyle of Lochalch to Inverness route, also known as the Iron Road to Skye, the most beautiful railway in Europe.
From Inverness we head all the way north to Thurso, close to the most northerly point in the country.
We then return by the same railroad to Inverness and continue our loop onwards to Aberdeen. From Aberdeen we travel to Edinburgh, our last train fully within Scotland.
We bought all train tickets well in advance from Canada. This does require some thoughtful planning but that is Diana’s area of expertise. With the 33% discount on the senior’s railcards we had from our spring trip in England, and the advanced booking rates, we cross-loop Scotland (7 days in trains) for half of what we paid for 3 days to rent a car on Isle of Skye. There wasn’t any other convenient way we could have traversed Skye to our next train. And in any case, it didn’t make sense to cross the island without taking the opportunity for a visit. It is possible to use public transportation…there are some buses, and organised tours, but the higher prices of accommodations in locations accessible from public transportation would have exceeded the cost of renting a car and we would have been constrained in time and activities. Or so we thought when planning the trip from Canada.
All trains on our circuit to Aberdeen (except the Jacobite) are operated by ScotRail. The last two trains are with CrossCountry (From Aberdeen to Edinburgh and then to Leeds). All the research was easily accomplished using the UK national railway site. It is very easy to use and navigate. There are no additional fees (unlike many other recommended sites). Once you decide on your train, clicking “Buy now” will redirect you to the local site for the route’s operator. In our case ScotRail and subsequently CrossCountry. It may seem cumbersome, but it facilitates planning for trips that require a change in operator – because different companies have different booking systems and processes for sending you tickets or confirmations – but it really is easy. (Whole books have been written on the history and current state of operations of the British rail network; suffice it to say that it can be very messy, but for us at least it has worked well.)
ScotRail e-mails you the booking confirmation, but you have to collect your tickets at a train station. Make sure you have with you the same credit card that you used online to pay, because it is scanned for confirmation before the tickets are printed. Some small stations do not have ticketing facilities (automatic or attended), which again requires your attention during planning. You can actually pre-select a single train station for collecting all your tickets when booking online. Once you complete your online booking, ScotRail will e-mail you the booking confirmation. Instead of printing our tickets at every station we actually went to a service desk in Glasgow and the clerk did it for us. So, before we began our loop, all of the ScotRail tickets were already in hand. ScotRail also allows you to pre-select your seats, direction of travel (facing forwards or backwards), quiet coach, etc. If you are taking the trains for the scenery, reading the “Britain from the rails” may help select the best side (right or left) for the best views.
CrossCountry on the other hand, e-mails you the tickets shortly after booking. However, you have no say in the way your seats are chosen. If you are two, it makes sure you are next to each other, but the seats are pre-assigned and there is no seat chart to see or change them. These are much bigger trains and a bit more expensive. The trolley service is also more expensive, and in our experience is of a lesser quality. It was somewhat less clean than the ScotRail trains we took. And wifi on CrossCountry was paid, but free on ScotRail.
If you can, we would recommend that you choose ScotRail.
One important thing and it is valid everywhere in UK. Keep your tickets for exiting the train station. They are often checked multiple times: at the stations to open the platform gates on entry and exit, and on board by the conductor.
If you go… (travel tips)
- Plan ahead: If you are on a limited budget, it pays off it you plan your trip well in advance. Decide on your itinerary first. Then use the National Rail site to check prices and timetables. The site flags the cheapest options on the selected day. If you have some flexibility in your itinerary you may want to check a few dates and times around your date and compare prices.
- Book using the advanced fare (the National Rail site will default to Advanced if available). They are by far the cheapest ones. Usually the earlier you book the cheaper it is. Advanced tickets are for a specific train and time (use it or lose it!) and usually also allow you to book seats at no additional charge.
- If there is a connection on your trip also check the price of each individual leg, e.g. you are going from point A to point C via point B, where you change trains. Often, buying a ticket from A to C is more expensive than buying two tickets: A to B and B to C
- Use discount railway cards if you can. If there are two of you, you can buy one card for travelling together “Two together”, regardless your age. It pays-off very quickly and gives you the same 33% discount. It is the cheapest option in UK.
- Keep your tickets until you exit your destination station.
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