I have travelled down to London from Scotland a good few times in my life and did so most recently for a quick visit. What’s worth mentioning is that these options are getting to London from Glasgow or Edinburgh as these cities are the places in Scotland with the best transport options. I have tried all 3 of these methods and I will tell you about the merits of them.
Option 1: Flying
The first option is simply flying from either Glasgow or Edinburgh airport as there are plenty of flights which go to the many airports that London has and vice versa. One of the advantages of this option is that it is the quickest, a flight from Glasgow to London is only an hour, however you should also take getting to and from the airports into account. Flights to London can be easily found on Google flights and are mostly with Ryanair or Easyjet.
In terms of prices, you can expect to pay something in the region of around £30 which I believe to be fair, however the London airports are mostly far from the city centre and you have to take into account paying for transportation into the city. Furthermore, it’s important to remember that flying can be, hassle and Easyjet and Ryanair can sometimes have delays.
Option 2: By Coach
This option is the cheapest, but by no means is it the best. A coach ticket can be purchased on Omio for no more than £20, but I can sure you that you would want to spend a little more to avoid this option. This is because taking the bus takes the longest time, when I last took the bus, it took a torturous 10 hours.
I can also say that taking the bus is the least comfortable option, the busses themselves aren’t that bad, but remember you are going to be sitting there for 10 hours. Not only that, but these busses tend to make tedious stops and sometimes the driver will insist on you getting out and waiting in the bus terminal they’ve stopped at. On my last journey I had to spend a torturous 30 minutes at the Birmingham bus terminal, one of the worst places I have ever visited. The views from the window are not much to write home about as it’s mostly motorways and you’ll get caught thinking that the UK is the most depressing country in the world.
Option 3: Taking the Train
I would say that although the prices can be steep, going by rail is the best option. If you book on Trainline, you can find the best prices and expect to be paying at least £40 for the ticket. It’s even cheaper if you have a railcard, although it’s important to book your ticket well in advance. A train from Glasgow or Edinburgh to London takes about 6 hours which isn’t too bad and it is also the most comfortable option. The best part of taking the train is that you’ll most likely be arriving at Kings Cross, which is right in the centre of the city.
The Bottom Line on Transport to London
It’s important to know that the UK can’t pride itself in having decent public transport expected in other European countries. This means that getting from Scotland to London seems like much more of a chore and needs some planning in advance so that you save money and stress.