Travel to Scotland

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Travel from England & Wales

When it comes to getting to Scotland from the rest of mainland Britain it’s really very easy indeed. With the great range of rail, air and road options, you could be in Scotland in time for dinner, or even lunch!

BY TRAIN
FROM LONDON

Glasgow and Edinburgh are both served by frequent direct train services from London, and are easily reached from other main English towns and cities, though you may have to change trains en route.

  • LNER (formerly Virgin Trains East Coast) depart from London King’s Cross and run up the east coast via Peterborough, York and Newcastle to Edinburgh, with some continuing on to Glasgow, Aberdeen or Inverness.
  • Avanti West Coast run up the west coast from London Euston via Crewe, Preston and Carlisle to Glasgow.
  • Overnight sleeper services from London Euston also operate to a number of Scottish cities via the west coast route.
SERVICES FROM OTHER AREAS

There are a number of long-distance direct services to Scotland that begin from outside London:

  • Avanti West Coast runs services from Birmingham to Edinburgh or Glasgow. 
  • CrossCountry services link Cardiff, Paignton, Penzance, Bournemouth and Brighton with Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen, via Birmingham.
  • First TransPennine Express operate direct services to Edinburgh and Glasgow from Manchester Airport via Manchester, Preston, Lancaster, Oxenholme Lake District and Carlisle.
TIMETABLES AND UK FARE INFORMATION
BY PLANE

Flying to Scotland from elsewhere in the UK is the generally the fastest travel option. This is particularly true if your ultimate destination is beyond the major cities or on any of the islands.

In addition to regular carriers such as British Airways and BMI, Scotland is well served by the budget airlines operating from airports around London and from other area hubs on routes to Scotland’s major city and regional airports.

To find flights and fares to Scotland’s major airports, search on comparison sites such as:

BY CAR

The two main driving routes to Scotland from the south are via the east of England on the A1, or via the west using the M6, A74 (M) and M74.

The A1, which passes by Peterborough, Doncaster, Newcastle and Berwick-upon-Tweed, gives you the option of branching off onto the A68, which takes the hilly but scenic route over the border at Carter Bar and adds an hour or so to the journey time.

The M6 route, which goes around Birmingham, between Manchester and Liverpool and on to Carlisle, offers at least dual-carriageway driving the whole way.

As you travel into Scotland look out for scenic driving routes that include plenty of great attractions to stop off at.

If travelling via the M6 consider taking the Borders Historic Route to Edinburgh, following the A7, or the Galloway Tourist Route, which begins on the A75 and travels to Dumfries before carrying on to Ayr.

From the A74 you can also join the South West Coastal 300, which travels in a beautiful circular route around the Dumfries & Galloway and Ayrshire coastline, or travel on towards Glasgow via the Clyde Valley Tourist Route.

Find more driving routes in Scotland.

TRAVEL INFORMATION

Plan ahead – think about your route planning and get live traffic updates.

BY COACH

You can easily get to Scotland by road from the rest of Britain. Coach services duplicate many train routes, often with much cheaper ticket prices.The frequency of service is often similar to that of the train, although longer distance journey times are usually much longer by coach.

  • Coach services to Scotland are operated by National Express, which runs routes to Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness.
  • Megabus and Megabus Gold cover some routes including Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Perth. On some overnight services, passengers have their own berth as well as a standard seat for greater comfort during their journey.
  • Full details of coach routes and timetables of services running to Scotland can be found on the Traveline website.

From Overseas

Scotland’s international airports – Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Glasgow Prestwick and Inverness – are all served by flights from a growing number of European and long haul destinations.

Many European airport hubs also provide fantastic onward connections to Scotland, including airports in London, Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, Reykjavik and Frankfurt.

FLIGHTS FROM THE USA AND CANADA

Fly direct to Scotland from North America 

Services by British Airways, KLM, Icelandair, WOW Air and Air France – amongst others – fly to many main European hubs, which can then be used for onward travel to Scotland.

DIRECT FLIGHTS

Please note; some of the above flights are operational on a seasonal service. Please check with the individual airlines.