Cheap flights and cheap travel
Getting to and getting about Scotland economically and efficiently
You might know how to get a cheap flight into Prestwick but what about once you get there? Cheap travel at worst or FREE travel if you know where to look.
Prestwick Airport is fast becoming one of Scotland's busiest airports due, in the main, to the abundance of cheap flights provided by carriers such as Ryanair. The airport is also remarkably easy to get to and from with travel to the major destinations of Glasgow and Edinburgh being provided by the rail carrier S.P.T. (Scotrail) an express (fast) bus service provided by Stagecoach and of course the usual collection of airport based car rental companies, the visitor to Scotland can fly cheaply then travel within the country even cheaper. In fact you might even be able to travel for free if you know where to look.
As a visitor the other (and often overlooked option) is to spend a few days in the scenic Ayrshire Area which is perhaps best known to golfers as it plays host to Royal Troon and Turnberry.However, if you wish to make your way as quickly as possible to the final destination of Glasgow or Edinburgh then your options are threefold:
The first is to travel by train. The train station is very close (approximately 100 yards) from the main terminal and is connected by a covered walkway over the main road outside. The trains (to Glasgow) are every thirty minutes and you should be able to save 50% of your rail fare simply by producing your flight confirmation (if travelling with Ryanair) and some form of photo I.D. This discount is for ALL the members of the party who flew. In addition, a little known perk is that for new routes (less than 6 months) flying into Prestwick, the cost of the train fare is met by local government and the fare is completely free. Again you only require your flight confirmation and some form of photo I.D. to claim this. However, one slight change is that you need to obtain your voucher from the airport information desk first and then proceed to the train station. If you are travelling onwards to Edinburgh then you need to change trains(and indeed stations) in Glasgow going from Glasgow Central to Glasgow Queen street.
Your second option is to travel by bus. Due to the nature of the service, despite the speed limit on the road network being less than the train network, the actual journey time to Glasgow is more or less the same. One added benefit of the bus is that there is more flexibility in respect of your destination. As an example Stagecoach offer an express bus X16 which travels from the airport to East Kilbride and Hamilton whereas the X77 which travels directly into Glasgow. The main bus station (Buchanan street) that the X77 travels into, gives a wide variety of destinations for onward travel and you should consult the website travelline for options.
Your final option is to hire a car. Car hire in Scotland is similar to many countries across the globe in terms of documents needed and the car hire company should advise you of their requirements also. The major difference is that automatic cars are not standard and may have to be specially ordered (don't just turn up and expect them the company to have one to suit you). In addition Scotland, as with the rest of the United Kingdom, drives on the left hand side. In terms of route planning there are many good online route planners the most commonly used being the Automobile Association (A.A.) and the R.A.C. In addition, if you prefer a paper version, then the biggest tip is NOT to buy a road atlas at the airport. Use the online guide to get you to your initial destination and if this is in a city, seek out a bargain bookstore (often called bargain books, bookworld, banana books). They will have many road atlases, often by respected organisations such as the A.A. And R.A.C. ,for 20-30% of the normal cover price. It MIGHT be one year old (often not) but how often do road changes take place?
If you are looking for cheap travel into Scotland and then within Scotland you should consider using airports such as Prestwick and don't concern yourself with onward travel from a seemingly out of the way destination. Despite it being called Glasgow Airport Prestwick it isn't in Prestwick but might as well be so.
