Family trip in UK + Scotland summer 24

Hello! I think you are probably very wise taking the train on the London-York-Edinburgh section. From York to Edinburgh it also has great views.

Hiring a car it is worth coming from North America to look for an auto, of the countries that can transfer their licence to a UK one Canada is the only one with the stipulation 'automatic only', and given the size of our roads going for the smaller you'd be comfortable in. You can go onto manufacturers websites when they give an example to see what the sizes.

Self catering does save money and some of the fun of travel is another country's supermarkets and the products they sell. I'll leave some of the other recommendations for others, but it does look a good start.

How much time minimum would we need to have a nice trip in England and Scotland ?

I spent 3 weeks in Scotland alone this year and will be in England for 5 weeks next year. I realize you won't have as much time as I do but I would probably shoot for at least 4 weeks, since you are going to both England and Scotland. I don't know if that's doable for you, but it would be easy to split it up with 2 weeks in England and 2 weeks in Scotland.

A couple of things to know, especially since you are traveling in the summer. If you want to visit Skye and the Scottish Highlands, you will need to book that area early. And by that I mean start looking now. There is a dearth of accommodations in that area, and the law recently upped the taxes for smaller accommodations, so some people will not be renewing their license. I don't know how that affects Airbnb and VRBO, but it's worth considering.

If you rent a car in Scotland only (good idea but wait till you leave Edinburgh to book it), a good option is to rent from Celtic Legend, which brokers car rentals for Arnold Clark. The company has gotten rave reviews here and I used them myself and was very happy with their services. You do not need to pay anything up front - you go to their website to request a quote; they email it back and ask you to confirm. However, no payment changes hands till you pick up the car - they don't even ask for a credit card in advance.

Some of your destinations may require a ferry crossing and you can find more information about ferries at https://calmac.co.uk.

One thing you might think about is if you can't find anything at Airbnb, you might try looking at Premier Inns. They are very affordable hotels that offer family rooms, and are consistently clean, decent size and offer breakfast for a small fee. I stayed at 3 different ones in Scotland and was very pleased with them. The one in Edinburgh on York Place was in a great location, and I was very happy with my stay. They also have hotels in London and other areas of England. Next year, I will be staying at the Premier Inn County Hall in London, and saving a lot of money that way. :)

I have to leave now but will check later with some more ideas. 😊

To see the places you mentioned, four weeks would be ideal. More is always better, but would probably force you to up the budget. That would give you:
- A week in London with time to a couple of day trips
- 3-4 days each in Bath and York with the possibility of a day trip from each
- 3-4 days each in Edinburgh and Glasgow
- A week driving around the islands and Skye

That would give you a nicely paced trip. You could cut it back a bit and still hit the same places, but you’d have to travel at a faster pace and not see as much in each location.

Renting a car in the highlands and Skye will give you the most flexibility, but the challenge will be getting a car to fit four of you comfortably plus your luggage. Larger cars will be more expensive and harder to maneuver on narrow country roads and harder to park. Again, make sure the car you rent can accommodate all your luggage.

It sounds like a wonderful trip!

Hire the smallest car you are comfortable with, hence the recommendation of a small auto and checking the manufacturer. They suit our roads better, and reflect that fuel is about 30% more expensive here than in Canada. Just checked google we are about £1.50 a litre, Canada is averaging £1.09.

Also one thing we often see with tourists here is North Americans get too big a car as they are thinking in North American. A VW Golf here is a family car, not a small car.