Car Rental

You could rent a car from Edinburgh Airport to avoid driving in the city. I've driven in Edinburgh and didn't like it much, so can understand your trepidation.

Whatever you do, avoid a company called Green Motion when you do decide where to hire your car from. There are lots of horror stories about them all over the internet and they are to be avoided.

We rented ours from the airport and avoided driving in Edinburgh completely. We just took the bus from downtown to the airport to get the car. I rent through Avis and have always been pleased with the service.

Hire the car directly from Edinburgh Airport, then get on the A8 and head west out of town. The A8 will take you to the M9, which will take you to Stirling. You won't hit any city traffic until you get to Stirling. The A8 is a divided four lane highway; the M9 is a motorway (similar to an interstate in the U.S.).

The driver will be sitting on the right side of the car, and shifting with his/her left hand. The left lane is the slow lane. It takes anywhere from an hour to a day to get acclimated to driving on the left, and shifting with the left hand. If you think that you'll feel uncomfortable with left hand shifting (most hired cars in Scotland have five or six forward gears), pay the extra and hire a car with an automatic transmission. For ease of mind, the extra cost will be worth it.

I've been hiring from Avis in Scotland since 2001, and have always had good service and good luck.

If you feel comfortable enough doing so, you can avoid paying for insurance coverage by paying for the rental with a Signature Visa. You have to decline all of the coverages offered by the car hire company. Visa (not your credit card company) will cover you for damages for up to 31 days in Britain. I'm not sure whether MasterCard provides the same options. Never had one. :)

Once you get used to driving on the left, you'll have a blast! To give you advance warning, there is a huge roundabout at Stirling, where the M9 and the M80 meet. Just stay in the left hand lane of the roundabout until you find your exit. It's okay to go around twice. I've driven that roundabout more times than I've driven the Jersey Turnpike, and I still miss my exit!

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday! Enjoy the Highlands - the most beautiful place on Earth!

Mike (auchterless)

Thanks! Good idea about the airport instead of in the city. We all can/have had manual cars, but thing we might spring for automatic for one less new thing to deal with while driving. Appreciate the advice!

Do you live in a city now? Have you driven out of a city in a rental car in the US? If you have done that then, I really don't think it is as big a deal as everyone makes out. I have rented a car from the Hetz at Picardy Place and made it out of Edinburgh with some twists and turns, but nothing that is horrific. I did this as a solo traveler. If you have partner navigator, then honestly, you can do this. Now, if you are not comfortable driving in a city then, by all means, go to the airport. And BTW I am not saying comfortable driving in NYC, I'm talking about being comfortable driving in Milwaukee or Minneapolis. :)

So, why would you pick up a car in the city centre vs the airport? Well, it would be convenience. For me, I was staying in New Town and I could walk to Picardy Place with my luggage. I was headed to Dunfermline first. Here's the map. I made a wrong turn and ended up on Ferry Road--you can spot it to the North. I bet it added 10 minutes max to my trip. So it took me 42 vs 32 minutes to make the trip.

Now, let's look at the time it takes if you have to go to the airport. It's 35-40 minutes by public transit to the airport. Let's say you pop for a taxi and you cut it back to 20-25 minutes to get to the airport. Add the cost of doing this. Then you need to rent the car. Then you're another 25 minutes to Dunfermline. So, basically, you're looking at 25% longer plus additional transportation cost to get to the airport to rent the car there. It's not a humongous difference, personally, I prefer single step processes to multiple step processes. :)

BTW there is good parking at the Castle in Stirling. I drove right up the hill and parked there. The TI is at the bottom of the hill and there is a lot there as well. See this pamphlet. I would go straight up to the Castle. You can leave the car and walk to Argyll's Lodging. I drove to Wallace Monuement. You park at the bottom of the hill and walk up a bit unless they have made changes. I wandered a bit to find Cambuskenneth Abby. The views back to the castle were wonderful. Don't forget that Bannockburn is just outside of Stirling. It's very easy to spend a day here.

And north of Stirling is Castle Doune from Monty Python and now Outlander Fame. And then there are the Trossachs. It's very easy to get "trapped" in this area and quite enjoy yourself.

Pam

An automatic doesn’t cost that much more than a manual. We specify an automatic when we reserve the car, otherwise there may not be one on the lot when you go to pick the rental up. After all the times I’ve driven in the UK, I still reserve an automatic.

Hi, Pam,

You have reminded me of my first of many trips to Scotland. I had arranged to hire a car from MacKay Brothers on St. Vincent Street in Glasgow. (They're long gone.) I picked up the car (a Mini), and turned right out of their garage in to oncoming traffic. I don't know who was more surprised - me, or the driver of the car which I almost met head on!

Anyway, after I managed to get to the left lane, I was able to find my way out of Glasgow, and on to Aberdeen, which was my destination for that night. I beat that poor car to death! 4,000 miles in 28 days. I've rented cars in the past out of Glasgow city and Edinburgh city, but I have to say that I much now prefer renting from the airport, as you can get right on the M8.

I still enjoy driving in all of the Scottish cities - Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee, etc. - but I can appreciate not having a car if you're staying in the city proper. Parking costs a fortune, especially in Edinburgh, and if your lodging doesn't provide free parking, the cost can quickly add up.

I highly recommend that anyone who is over for the first time, and who has some trepidation about driving on the left, rent at the airport instead of in the city centre. Once you get acclimated to driving, then you can tackle the cities. And I should add that Glasgow (especially), Edinburgh, and Aberdeen have all added dedicated bus lanes, with closed circuit cameras overlooking them. Aberdeen has more CCTV than any city in Britain. The fines for driving in the bus lanes are outrageous, and have many residents up in arms. Moral: avoid bus lanes (unless you're in a bus!).

As the ESSO commercials used to say, "Happy Motoring!"

Mike (auchterless)

Thank you all so much! I think we’ll go with the airport to get our feet under us on the left side of the road.