We are traveling to the U.K. in June, and we have an unusual itinerary (it's the family history tour) that requires us to fly from the U.S. to Edinburgh, where we will stay for 3 days and then continue via air to Exeter, England. It should be quite the adventure - it's a propeller plane. We plan to rent a car in Exeter and explore Devon for two days, continuing to Stratford-Upon-Avon where we will spend one night, return the rental car, and continue to London via train. We want to end in London, as we fly out of Heathrow. Has anyone done one of these short flights in a propeller plane? How hair raising is it? Do you see any red flags in our transportation plans? It looks very doable as I sit here at my computer, but it may be very different on the ground. For example, how crazy will the traffic be around Exeter, assuming we avoid rush hours?
Posted by
white plains, ny, usa
4164 posts
A couple of considerations about the car rental - Avoiding rush hours anywhere is a very good idea to start - Where is the rental agency located ? - center of town or outside edges ? - Maps to plan your routing are helpful , but the addition of a SatNav ( GPS ) and a good navigator next to you , so you can keep your eyes on the ROAD is best . Do you have any experience driving in the UK ? While this is usually defined as " driving on the left " it is a bit more involved than that , and there is a learning curve to it - it doesn't mean that you should be frightened of doing it , but be aware . Lastly if you don't know how to drive a manual transmission , this is not the place to get started , rent an automatic ( more readily available from larger rental locations , like airports ) and even if you do drive a stick ,shifting with your left hand might prove another potential issue . I love driving in the UK and the time I spent becoming accustomed to it was well worth the effort . As far as the small plane , if the ducks in the fuselage that provide the motive power are well fed , the flight should be fine ;-- )
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Edinburgh to Exeter is a long way, not a short flight (I would guess 1½ hours+), and Exeter is a (relatively) small airport. It is mostly used by holiday flights to southern Europe. I am not surprised Edinburgh to Exeter is a small propeller plane, I am surprised the route even exists! There will be no immigration (though you will need to show your passport as ID at check-in as a security check) or customs, so few airport delays.
The traffic around Exeter never gets very bad. The M5 motorway acts as a bypass to the city, the airport is just outside the M5.
Also consider flights to Newquay (a really small airport with limited car hire), or Bristol.
Exeter is worth a few hours stopover. It is a typical former medieval city, parts of the walls remain, plus some old medieval buildings (the ones that the WW2 bombs missed), plus an ugly 1950's - 1960's bit built on the bit the bombs didn't miss.
P.S. Only north Americans would say "Exeter, England", Exeter is in Devon (which is a county in England).
Posted by
OP
Colorado, USA
40 posts
Thanks for all your replies - The flight is about an hour and a half, but that is considerably shorter than the 7 hour train trip. My husband is in charge of car rental, but I believe he is arranging to have us met at the airport by Enterprise. We are aware of the driving challenges, but I think he's up to it. I'm sure he'll use GPS, as his co-pilot is not very good at navigation. There are 6 flights a week, leaving Edinburgh around 10:00 am, so it's pretty ideal. Of course, we're not going until June, so the schedule could change.
Any thoughts on the drive from Lifton, Devon to Stratford-upon-Avon?
Posted by
2599 posts
Are you going to Stratford-upon-Avon for family tree reasons? Nothing wrong with Stratford-upon-Avon but it does seem rather odd to fly from one end of Britain to the other and then start driving back north east. Devon & Cornwall are the most popular counties for holiday making Brits yet her you are, driving to Lifton - which is on the border of these 2 counties, and then, apparently not wishing to see anything else in this area.
Going from Exeter Airport to Lifton is easy. Leave the airport and join A30 going towards Exeter. On the eastern side of Exeter, join M5 to loop around the southern side of the city. Be very careful as you approach the junction where the A30 splits off from the M5. You will need to be in the left lane & it says Bodmin/ Okehampton on the signs. DO NOT BE IN LANE FOR PLYMOUTH (A38). You can see all this clearly on Google Earth along with Lifton - which you can also examine in Streetview by placing the yellow man in the village.http://www.visitdevon.co.uk
www.visitcornwall.com
Posted by
OP
Colorado, USA
40 posts
Thank you, James, very useful information. No, the Stratford-Upon-Avon leg is just to catch Othello at the RSC. I know that it's a crazy itinerary, but since it was possible to fly to Exeter from Edinburgh it seemed to make sense to do that and then travel back. (We have to fly into Edinburgh because of flight availability - another craziness.) We have allotted two days for Devon, which won't allow for a visit to Cornwall. It did come down to a choice between that and the RSC, and in the end I decided I couldn't go to England and not see Shakespeare in performance. We will be in London for 5 days, but I'm not sure we'll make it to a performance at the Globe. So much to see and do there, and I hope to do at least one day trip out of London, probably to Oxford. It's my first visit and my husband has only been there on business, but it won't be our last visit to England (I hope!). I'm already planning the next itinerary!
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
How about fly Edinburgh to Birmingham airport, pick up the car and drive to Stratford upon Avon (a short distance). Then onward to Devon (with intermediate stops if it takes your fancy), dropping off the car at Exeter, Plymouth, Torquay or some other station and getting a train to London.
Posted by
2599 posts
You could travel by train from Edinburgh to Stratford-upon-Avon - with 1 change in Birmingham - which does involve a walk of about 10 minutes from New Street Station to Moor Street. Looking 10 weeks or so ahead, it is possible to get a fare of £37 for the trip departing Edinburgh at 10am to arrive Stratford-upon-Avon at 16.21 (5hours 30 minutes). (Birmingham has some interesting Victorian buildings).
Having reached Stratford, you could then hire a car for touring the Cotswolds & do Blenheim Palace & Oxford. Then, you could drive down to Devon. Having done what you wish in Devon, you might like to take the train back to London, having returned to hire car to Exeter or wherever.
Looks like Chris & I have had the same idea at the same time!
Train schedules:> www.nationalrail.co.uk
Posted by
OP
Colorado, USA
40 posts
Good things to consider, Chris and James. We leave Edinburgh on Monday and I have tickets for the RSC on Wednesday. So it doesn't make sense to get to Stratford-upon-Avon earlier than that (although there are plenty of things to see and do, I have had to prioritize differently). The current itinerary is three days in Edinburgh (Friday-Sunday), two days in Devon (Monday, Tuesday), one day in Stratford-upon-Avon (Wednesday), and five days in London (Thursday-Monday). We will relocate from our central hotel in London to a hotel at Heathrow on Monday, flying out very early on Tuesday. So, unless I shave a day off of either Devon or London and do the Cotswolds for a day, I think my itinerary is set. Although, since I was going to do Oxford as a day trip out of London, we could spend a Thursday in Oxford on the way to London...