England/Scotland Transportation Questions

Heathrow to Ebury Street is an easy journey by coach (bus). Go to either coach (bus) station at Heathrow, buy a ticket, that coach will take you into Victoria Coach Station, which is one block from Ebury Street. If your hotel is The Lime Tree, it's an easy walk from the coach station.

Your carry on luggage goes onboard with you. Any large luggage will be put in the hold under the coach by the coach driver before you begin your journey.

If you want a car service for either trip (Heathrow or Gatwick) look at Blackberry Cars. Book ahead of time.
https://www.blackberrycars.com/
I am not a big fan of Rome2Rio. I sometimes find incorrect information there. Better to rely on the Rick Steves forum for advice.

In Edinburgh, there is a tram out to the airport.
You won't need a taxi.
https://edinburghtrams.com/
One way fare: about 7 pounds.

Taxis are generally fine and reasonable. IMO, a town car is a limo. Larger and more expensive than your taxi. I don't think Uber operatives in the same manner as in the US. But have not tried to use Uber in Europe.

You can take the coach to Ebury St. Tube will be quicker and maybe cheaper. For that option take the Piccadilly line to Hammersmith or Baron's Court and change to a District line train to Victoria. The change is just across the platform, about 10 feet so very simple. The tube will be £5.60pp, using a contactless payment card or phone or smart watch pay ideally.
You can use Uber, but you have to find the Uber pick up point at LHR and then the road journey will be slower than the tube, as well as a lot more expensive.
Don't even think of a road transfer of any sort to Gatwick. There are trains from Victoria Station just by your B&B that take 35-40 minutes. Avoid the expensive Gatwick Express and just take an ordinary Southern train, which just takes a few minutes longer.
Avoid RometoRio, at least in the UK - it's useless.

At Inverness you could take the train or the airport bus into Inverness, then local taxi.

At Edinburgh there is the tram for £7.50 or the airport bus for £5.50- both are very frequent and fast.

Normally the coach is as cheap as the tube from Heathrow to Ebury Street, and is as fast (if not faster), but as it's a strike day Nat Ex have doubled their prices. The Coach Station is also closer to the Lime Tree than the Railway Station.

Wow, thanks so much for this extremely helpful information and I especially appreciate the embedded links! Now that I know the coach is the bus, is the tram the train - looks like it is, but not sure if a subway or above ground (not that it really matters.)

We will each be carrying a wheeled duffle (not light travelers and have hiking gear/boots, poles etc to carry) as well as backpacks (more like large day packs). Will the bus/coach and tram let us take these on board? Or underneath for the duffles would be fine.

Does it change anything to know that we couldn't get into The Lime Tree (sad face here) so we booked the B&B Belgravia. I will see if I can find the distance between them but am guessing they are close and both are the same stop (Victoria Station?)

Lastly, do I need to reserve the train to Gatwick ahead of time, like we did for Inverness to Edinburgh? Oh and much appreciate the warning about Rome2rio.

You all are such a great help.

Terminology-
a coach in this country is what you call a bus (like Greyhound, but far, far nicer)
a bus in this country is what you call a citybus
a tram in this country is what you call a streetcar or light rail
the tube or underground in this country is what you call the subway

The duffles on the coach go in the bus hold, on the bus just take them with you (the Edinburgh airport bus has huge luggage racks), loads of room on the Edinburgh tram.

The B and B Belgravia is 2 or 3 minutes walk down the street from the Lime Tree, so a wee bit closer to Victoria Train Station, but it changes nothing. By the way a great place to eat and drink around there is the Eccleston Yards (just behind your B and B, next to the Nat Ex coach arrivals yard)- look it up on Google maps.

No there is no point in buying tickets for trains to Gatwick-ahead- there are no reserved seats and there are several trains an hour- turn up and go- you should never be waiting more than 15 minutes. Quite unlike INV-EDI which are every 2 or 3 hours. They will often be 8 or more cars long (some as long as 12)- jump on anywhere that suits you. INV-EDI will be between 2 and 4 cars long.

THANK YOU, isn31c! This is perfect and I even just printed directions for walking from Victoria Station to the B&B. Love having the definitions and practical luggage tips. Very excited to visit your wonderful country.

AND.... also appreciate the recommendation for where to eat! We know nothing about any of this!

When I was leaving Edinburgh, I wanted to get to the train station so pulled up Google maps, put in my hotel for the departure and Waverley Train Station for the arrival destination, then chose the Public Transportation option.

If you then scroll down towards the bottom, you will find several ride services with estimated prices and times of arrival. I think they offered Bolt, Gett and Freenow (all similar to Uber or cabs). I used Gett, as that would get there the fastest, and it worked very well. Very easy and you pay on the app.

Thank you, Mardee. I've never heard of any of those but am printing all these replies for reference on our trip! My husband has the Uber app so will let him know it may not be Uber in Scotland but one of these others.

I'll just add that if you take the National Express Coach from Heathrow to Victoria COACH station that comes in a different place than Victoria Train Station but it is even closer to Belgravia B&B. And literally 1/2 a block on from the Lime Tree.

Here is the walking route from the Coach ARRIVALS to your B&B.

https://goo.gl/maps/cSB8juqqjcHFM5UW9

You'll probably walk thru Victoria Train Station a number of times when you take the tube from there so you can scope out which tracks the Gatwick trains leave from.

In the neighborhood....Peggy Porschen on the corner of Ebury and Elizabeth streets had wonderful cupcakes. I have to hold myself to one per visit. They are horribly expensive (8GBP or something) but delish. The Thomas Cubitt Pub on Elizabeth ST has good fish and chips. I also like the food at Sicily which is right next to the Coach Arrivals station although this last visit it seems to have really escalated in price. No reservations needed if you are there early.

If you will have a data plan on your phone I recommend the CityMapper app. It gives great directions in London although not sure about whether it will have your locations in Scotland.

Note that there are two Victoria Stations. One is Victoria Train Station, with access to three tube lines there (District, Circle and Victoria lines) plus train lines going to many destinations.

The other station is Victoria Coach Station. This is where your coach will come in from Heathrow if you decide to use that method of transportation. Victoria Coach Station (which is small) is one block south of the train station (which is very large). From Victoria Coach Station, you would walk north out of that station onto Elizabeth Street, walk west along Elizabeth Street, turn right when you come to Ebury Street at the corner. Walk north along Ebury Street to your hotel.

When you come out of the coach station onto Elizabeth Street, if you were to walk north up Eccleston Place, you would come to the Eccleston Yards isn31c was telling you about. Lots of places to eat there. Explore the "Food And Drink" tab here:
https://www.belgravialdn.com/eccleston-yards/

Well, Pam and I were posting at the same time, but I took a long time to write out my post and edit it a couple of times before posting! LOL!

Well, Rebecca, I should have added to Peggy that you are the one that first got me started taking the Coach in to town from Heathrow and it is pretty darn easy if your hotel is nearby!

Yes it is! And you see a lot more from the coach than when using the tube.

Now that you've mentioned it, I'm going to have a hard time passing by that Peggy Porschen bakery without getting a cupcake!
https://www.belgravialdn.com/brand/peggy-porschen-parlour/

Rebecca and Pam - toooo funny you are!! This is all so helpful and omg, the pictures of tea at "Peggy's" (Hmmm, a good name?) are mouth-watering. Also loved the link to other restaurants. I have printed directions now from both the bus and train Victoria Stations and appreciated the comments. The bus is more scenic and closer? Might have to choose that option.... what is this about a strike though. I'm sure we'll figure that out once we are there and at least we have another option. I am literally copying every comment here and pasting it all onto one page to take with me. (Can you tell I am still a paper-based person.... read: old!)

Again, many many thanks to all!
Peggy

Peggy, about your strike question - England and London are not in a happy place with industrial relations. Very high utility bills and high inflation on supermarket prices and everywhere else mean that people are poorer and many have fallen so far that they depend on food banks and some are starving.

Pay days have not kept up for most people and public services have kept up least because they depend on government money and government dug their heels in and refused to give more than a nominal pay rise with the determination to destroy the unions (they are a Conservative government).

So doctors, who have had a 34 percent real terms pay cut, strike. The Consultants, the most senior doctors are now planning to strike too. Lawyers have been striking, teachers (now settled) strike. University lecturers too, and refusing to grade papers. Civil servants too. The Nurses had many days of strikes and have now mostly settled.

All these affect the daily lives of folks who live here but to a degree are invisible to tourists unless you come across a picket line or demonstration. London has more demos than elsewhere in the country. Nothing to be scared of but you might give them a miss.

More obvious to tourists are the transportation strikes, the Underground (Tube) strikes and train strikes which are both long running disputes, not only the salaries but even more important are the job changes that government are trying to force through via the operating companies which are supported by government, such as shutting all ticket offices and removing on train staff who the passengers turn to for help. These strikes are frequent and require tourists who can adapt and use plan Bs.

Keep an eye out for strikes but understand that Unions are required to have the backing of the members before calling a strike, and strikes or actions short of a strike must be announced publicly at least 14 days before a strike day.

I hope that a knowledge of how these things work help you.

please wean yourself off Rome2Rio. So much of their information is way off. They can give a general idea but beyond that please use the actual websites of the providers, and use the huge hive brain here on the Forums. They will guide you right.

The expression "town car" will never be seen or heard around here...

Much appreciated, Nigel. I didn't realize how bad it was with the strikes/unions etc and feel for the workers. It is always good to understand a place before going and travel helps further that as well, even if a hassle. Talking to someone who lives there (like you, online) also very helpful. And I'll avoid Rome2rio - it was recommended to me by someone at a RS group meeting I went to in person but several people in this forum have advised against it and you all are more experienced.

I hope things improve for the workers and that political change will come. Things here aren't as bad but then we have other issues that I'm sure you are aware of (especially with the last administration). I'll stop here since this isn't a political forum!

THANK YOU again for all the help and education.

It makes me very sad indeed to hear Nigel describe what the people in England and in London are experiencing. I had no idea. We watch PBS and the BBC News, but still did not know. Hoping things get better very soon.

Peggy, to answer something you asked above....."The bus is more scenic and closer? Might have to choose that option.... what is this about a strike though?"

As for "closer"....The coach (bus) station is much closer to your B&B than the train/tube station. As you exit the coach station, you are at most 1/2 to one block away from your B&B. You will be able to see the front of it when you take a right north onto Ebury Street.

As for "more scenic"....The coach (bus) takes a route in from Heathrow on the roadways (quite obviously) and you will see a variety of architecture along the way. On the left side of the roadway as you approach central London, there are rows and rows of old red brick Victorian townhouses, remnants of the past. When our coach exited the roadway, we went through several charming neighborhoods--Notting Hill, Chelsea, along the riverfront, where we saw little narrowboats docked.
As we got closer to the coach station, we saw interesting looking pubs and churches.
Riding the tube in from the airport, you see none of this. Part of the tube or train ride is down in a "cut" so you see dirt and bushes. Sometimes you are above ground, so you see industrial scenes, rail sidings, or concrete retaining walls. Then you are underground, so you see the inside of the tunnel.

About the strikes....they have mostly been happening with the trains. For example, I am going to be taking the train from London to York in several weeks, and then onward to Durham and Edinburgh. There may or may not be a strike calling for some of the journeys to be cancelled on that line. Tube strikes can happen, too. I have not yet heard of a coach/bus strike.
Strikes are regularly posted by members here on the forum, so keep checking back for those.

Thanks, Rebecca! That is exactly the kind of scenery I'd love to see - it sounds almost like a tour bus :) This has all been really helpful - much appreciated!

Peggy, you are welcome! We are all happy to help.

There is talk of an upcoming red London bus strike in September in North and West London. If it happens it may be indefinite. But it is still too vague to post anything here, especially if it gets resolved. Just over 100 routes will be affected, so there is every incentive to settle.

National Express own almost no coaches, and employ very few drivers. Almost all services (including all daytime services to Heathrow) are run by contracted companies who employ their staff. So it would be impossible to have a strike which closed National Express. For the most part the coaches are all in Nat Ex livery, so the casual observer or user would never know.
A handful of very early morning Heathrow services (between 1 am and 4am) are run by their own coaches but no visitor is ever going to be on such services.

Every time I come to or from Heathrow on Nat Ex we seem to take a different route depending on traffic, which keeps things interesting. I am doing that journey on Wednesday morning (on one of the Bath bound services) so as usual it will be interesting to see what route out we take.

EDIT- I have just been teaching a forum member off line about booking on Nat Ex. I noticed (as that was one of the test journeys) that if you book about a week ahead you can get Heathrow to Victoria for as low as £6 quite widely (basically the same price as the tube). If you are Over 60 or Disabled, and intend to do several journeys on Nat Ex you can get a coachcard for 1/3 off your fare (cost £18 for a year) which brings that advance fare down to £3.90- ideal if you are ending your vacation and going back to Heathrow.
The Coachcard also gives you a maximum fare of £15 on Tuesday to Thursday- single or day return.

Unlike buying railcards I am told that buying the coachcard on line is super easy, even from North America. But it does have to be mailed to you, or purchased at Victoria Coach Station.

We were doing this exercise as an insurance policy against train strikes.

Thanks, isn31c. I am guessing we'll just have to watch for news and will figure things out for sure once we arrive at the airport. Fingers crossed there won't be a strike! But at least we have the train as back-up. Hope you have a good trip!

I was 25 minutes early into London this morning on the coach from Glasgow, yet conversely missed an early morning Thames Cruise by 2 minutes. Too many red lights on the way into London.
So I checked some walking times and made it a gentle connection.
From the National Express arrivals hall it is 4 minutes walk to the Lime Tree, 6 minutes to the Belgravia B and B, and 8 minutes from the Belgravia to Victoria tube entrance, so say 11 minutes to tube platform level.
The Eccleston yards were open at 7am, and there is actually a back entrance which I found for the first time today, almost opposite the Belgravia B and B. I've only ever used the front entrance before.
Just used the yards to chill out before getting breakfast from Sainsbury's!
For the first time in ages the coach went out along the Thames along Chelsea reach, on a beautiful morning, to Earls Court then the great West road.
After a very long day I am on the train home now.

This sounds lovely, isn31c! And like you made the best of a long day. Also thanks for the walking times - very do-able! I need to check the weather now - very hot here, so looking forward to a bit of cooler UK weather!