Scottish Grand Tour pass vs. Edinburgh - Arisaig return

[endecotp]

I’ve just been from Edinburgh to Arisaig and back.

The original plan was to get a Scottish Grand Tour ticket for £92 and go via Skye. But that wasn’t going to work due to the poor bus connections; it seems there are now only two buses a day from Broadford to Armadale, only Monday to Friday, and the latter one misses the last train from Mallaig. I’m sure it used to be better than that.

So I went via the West Highland Line both ways. But this was going to cost £146.90! (For a morning departure.)

That’s even more expensive than an Anytime Edinburgh to Kyle of Lochalsh return, costing £139.50. I understand that an Edinburgh to Kyle ticket is valid via Mallaig thanks to a specific easement, so I guess I could use it to travel to to Arisaig - what do you reckon?

I didn’t pursue that though, because I realised it’s actually cheaper to buy a Highland Rover for £99, plus whatever for Edinburgh-Glasgow singles.

At this point I asked TrainSplit what it could find, and it got it down to £99 total, with splits at Linlithgow, Gairlochhead and Arrochar & Tarbet. That’s a huge saving, more than I’ve ever seen before (for non-Advance tickets).

Is this ticketing complexity going to be a permanent problem, or will it one day be simplified?

 

[drueberflug]

Is this ticketing complexity going to be a permanent problem, or will it one day be simplified?

ScotRail intend to scrap peak time fares, that'd at least bring the price for a return ticket down a bit.
However, it seems that ScotRail feel entitled to charge whatever they fancy, as there are barely any trains on the West Highland line.

 

[reb0118]

For some reason there's always been a steep premium for through tickets from Edinburgh to stations on the WHL.

 

[E100]

I’ve generally found a split at Dalmuir has been a significant saving in years gone by even from Glasgow.

 

[38Cto15E]

Back in the day Calmac used to run a couple of ferries per week from Mallaig to Kyle and back, I think it was Tuesday and Thursday.

 

[reb0118]

I've never understood why that ferry was removed. Albeit I only used it rarely, it always seemed popular with tourists and locals alike. It provided a useful link.

 

[Jan Mayen]

I've done Kyle to Mallaig by a bus a couple of times, including when the Kyle ferry was still going. Is it no longer a practical option to travel Inverness - Kyle - Mallaig - Fort William in a day?

 

[Hadders]

I've done Kyle to Mallaig by a bus a couple of times, including when the Kyle ferry was still going. Is it no longer a practical option to travel Inverness - Kyle - Mallaig - Fort William in a day?

I think it still can still be done in a day but only in summer. You do need to check the bus timetable very carefully as it does vary, as does tejh ferry timetable from Armadale to Mallaig.

 

[Jan Mayen]

If I have understood the timetables properly, today I could have left Inverness on the first train to Kyle, and made it as far as Mallaig. I wonder if it'll be different in July.

 

[Hadders]

If I have understood the timetables properly, today I could have left Inverness on the first train to Kyle, and made it as far as Mallaig. I wonder if it'll be different in July.

It is different in July. The bus timetable is different in July and there are more ferries but do check carefully as the farry timetable seems to vary by day of the week as well as tide!

 

[Snapper37]

I've never understood why that ferry was removed. Albeit I only used it rarely, it always seemed popular with tourists and locals alike. It provided a useful link.

Always packed when I used it. Great service

 

[StarCrossing]

Always packed when I used it. Great service

It was run using the Small Isles vessel and crew. The Small Isles now get a better service than they used to, so the vessel is rarely available for anything else. Looking at the current timetable, the only viable days would be Tuesday and Thursday, and it would need to set off from Mallaig at around 4pm, so probably wouldn't be that attractive to most people. Of course, you could potentially use one of the Armadale vessels during periods when they have a two-ship service, but those vessels are rather basic for what is essentially a cruise.

Waverley still sails between Armadale and Kyle of Lochalsh. In fact she did so yesterday, and will do again on Friday.