Does anyone have any experience with Viator tour Rail Trips from London to Edinburgh? I'm not familiar with the company and was hoping someone might have some information. They offer a day trip to Edinburgh from London with an unescorted bus tour of the city for less than a regular return train ticket. We leave on Friday so any information would be greatly appreciated.
Posted by
Yorkshire
1349 posts
Hi, for me edinburgh is too far for a day trip.Best part of 9 hours on the train plus getting to start station too, and you 'd only get 5/6 hours in edinburgh.Lots of citys have tour buses, they are about £6 .Big question how much do they want. I had a quick look at eastcoast railways travel out monday, back on tuesday is about£100.
Posted by
OP
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
98 posts
I agree, it's a bit of a long haul day but I can always sleep on the train on the way back. The tour can be purchased from the US in US currency for $175 which includes the return ticket, the big bus tour and entrance to Edinburgh Castle. We'll get a nice view of the country going on the way up. I was just a little hesitant as I had never dealt with Viator before.
Posted by
Yorkshire
1349 posts
Sometimes the tours sold over in US , are hugely marked up railfares. You got a good deal.
Yes, the neswpapers and watching the world slide by the window is appealing.
Have a great trip
Posted by
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
2775 posts
Karen, Normally, I would say it's crazy to go that far for a day trip, but since Edinburgh is my favorite city in the whole world, and since the price is so good, I say go for it.
Years ago, my husband and I took the train from London to Edinburgh, spent one night and then left for York the next day. We were there less than 24 hours. We loved it so much we went back the next year and spent an entire week in Edinburgh.
Posted by
OP
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
98 posts
Richard and Carroll, thanks for the encouragement! It was by chance that we had a day open up and we thought it might be fun to get a taste of Scotland. It does make for a long day but we can sleep when we get back to the states. :-)
Posted by
Charlotte, NC, USA
3428 posts
A "taste" of Edinburgh is nice as an extended day trip! That's how I got my hubby to consider Scotland as a destination (we'd been going to England for several years). Now I can't keep him away from Scotland! You can easily do this on your own- If you look you can get discounted tickets adn the Hop on/off bus picks up right outside the station on the bridge.But if the best deal is with them it should be ok. The train trip is a bit long but not bad- you get to see some of the coast area.
Posted by
Paris, France
81 posts
Just to make sure, you can check these competing sites: isango.com and city-discovery.com. The first site has a 1 day tour for 174 USD. The second for 194 USD.
It is a long day, you could also consider a day-trip to Paris!
Posted by
New York City, NY, USA
5678 posts
I had a work colleague who did one of these long day visits to Edinburgh from London. They loved it, but planned a separate trip to Scotland for their next visit.
Pam
Posted by
OP
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
98 posts
Dan - Thanks for the links to the websites - it would appear that a number of companies offer this type of unescorted tour so I'm feeling quite a bit better about Viator. Yes, we already have our tickets for a day trip to Paris! :-)
Posted by
OP
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
98 posts
Toni and Pamela - With just the little we've been reviewing about Scotland I can see we will want to return. We have musician friends that feel the same about Ireland and they travel there as much as they can. We only decided to take this trip about 5 weeks ago so I feel very fortunate that things are coming together so well..I hope it continues.