train travel from London to Edinburgh

It is MUCH cheaper to buy the Advance fate tickets in advance on the web than to buy a walk-up ticket when you get there.

Looks like buying at the station would be 125 GBP. The day before, around 65 GBP, several months in advance, 30 GBP.

Where you are when you book doesn't matter, when you book does. The earlier you buy tickets the cheaper it is. But, when you buy the tickets you have to decide which train (date and time) you are travelling on. So don't book until you have a time plan decided.
Book tickets on the website of the company running the trains (in this case: https://www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/ ), not a reseller or travel agent site which may give you less choice and / or add a mark-up.

The best prices are to nominate the date and time of travel and book 12 weeks out. These tickets are non-changeable, so if you miss it, you have to pay again. Tickets valid on any train on a given date can be four or five times more expensive if booked on the day. Travel after 9.30 usually or weekends for the best deals.

"not a reseller or travel agent site which may give you less choice and / or add a mark-up."

Like the Trainline.

For all:

I live in Ireland and my husband worked in York, so i traveled extensively by train (I used to bring my bicycle!). The BEST train site ever is

Seat61.com

Started by a train fanatic, that over the years has become a huge resource of info on UK & European train travel. If you use his links to buy a ticket on, say, Virgin Trains or Pennine Trains, there is NO markup. I always buy through his site to give him a commission -- that does not make my ticket, more! He's got video tips and just a wealth of information!

That said - have you considered RyanAir? Many Americans don't know about it. I just searched London Stansted to Edinburgh for dates in May. It's 1 hour 20 minutes and costs 26 pounds round trip. Twenty-six! They fly from different London Airports than Heathrow. Stansted has a train stop in the terminal!

I flew Kerry, Ireland to Stansted last week - it was 20 euros roundtrip. The cab to my airport otel cost more!

Enjoy!

Susan

Also, I forgot to mention TIME:

If i trained London to York at 6:00 a.m. it was about 1/3 the price of London to York at 8:00 a.m. It takes longer to price out your trip, but do fool around with time as you explore sites!!

Susan