We will be in England throughout the month of September. We want to spend a few days in Edinburgh before heading down to Port Isaac, where we'll lodge for 4 nights. My wife and I are trying to figure out the best way to get from up there to down there. She is not keen on spending a full day on the motorway.
Has anybody taken the train, at least from Scotland to Cornwall?
Any other ideas?
George
Have you looked at flights from Edinburgh to Newquay?
A train from Edinburgh to Cornwall would be purgatory and financially ruinous.
Fly from Edinburgh or Glasgow to Newquay https://www.flybe.com/
The fastest train connections from Edinburgh to Penzance take 11 hours. Some change at London, which also means transferring by taxi or tube between stations, so a better change point is at Plymouth. On weekdays, you can also go to Glasgow first and catch a direct train from there to Penzance, although that takes about an hour longer total travel time. On Saturday and Sunday mornings, however, there are a couple of departures that run directly between Edinburgh and Penzance.
British train schedules are back up again at www.bahn.com, or go to www.nationalrail.co.uk for the exclusively British version with advance-purchase ticket options.
You do not need to go to Penzance to reach Port Isaac! Get off the train at Bodmin Parkway (one hour before Penzance) and book a taxi to take you to Port Isaac, 30 minutes away. The journey from Edinburgh to Bodmin Pkwy is 9-9.5 hours and there is one train with no changes; others with 1-3.
We did this trip from Shropshire a few years ago in one day and it was fine. For you, it would be good to break the journey with an overnight stop on the way.
Or fly to Newquay as suggested.
Thank for your good advise and ideas, stuart.smith283, ramblin' on, Laura, Lola, and Frank! Lots of time and effort, to say nothing of the money. I think you've helped convince us to redesign this part of our trip. We'll either stick Edinburgh in a different leg or leave it for the next time, when we can spend even more time in Scotland.
George
Saving Edinburgh for another trip is a smart idea. It would be a shame to just see the city and miss out on the Highlands, the Islands, and points in between.
I'm finishing up three weeks in Scotland and this is not my first time here. A great place.
