Transfer from GLA to EDI in Scotland
February 22, 2023 2:32 PM Subscribe
How to transfer two people from Glasgow Airport (GLA) to Edinburgh Airport (EDI) on the Monday after Easter?
I’m travelling from Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, to Frankfurt, Germany on April 10, which is the Monday after Easter Sunday. I’m flying from Stornoway to Glasgow Airport (GLA) on a Loganair flight and arrive in GLA at 9:30am. I was supposed to be on an afternoon flight to Frankfurt Airport on Lufthansa, but Lufthansa has canceled the flight and is offering me an earlier flight which leaves Glasgow at 6am, which I’m obviously not able to make. They probably don’t care about my flight from Stornoway to Glasgow because it is a separate booking. (There is no way to book a flight from FRA to Stornoway in one go, otherwise I would have done that.)
Before I call the Lufthansa customer support hotline, I’d like to know what my options are. Of course I’m going to read the fine print before calling, but I also want to research possible solutions on my own so I’ll be armed with a good suggestion in case they don’t have any.
Lufthansa offers zero later flights home from Glasgow that day, but there are at least two flights in the afternoon from Edinburgh Airport, which is only about 50 miles away. If I’m able to re-book the return flight from Edinburgh instead of Glasgow, I might need a transfer from one airport to the other for two people plus luggage. Google Maps suggests a bus connection: take the 926 to Buchanan Bus Station, then Megabus Air to Edinburgh Airport. This might be a cheap option, but a cumbersome one, and it might also be stressfull if the bus is late.
Are there any more comfortable and/or reliable modes of transport? Taxi? Shuttle service? Car sharing? I’d love a personal recommendation. Thank you!
I’m travelling from Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, to Frankfurt, Germany on April 10, which is the Monday after Easter Sunday. I’m flying from Stornoway to Glasgow Airport (GLA) on a Loganair flight and arrive in GLA at 9:30am. I was supposed to be on an afternoon flight to Frankfurt Airport on Lufthansa, but Lufthansa has canceled the flight and is offering me an earlier flight which leaves Glasgow at 6am, which I’m obviously not able to make. They probably don’t care about my flight from Stornoway to Glasgow because it is a separate booking. (There is no way to book a flight from FRA to Stornoway in one go, otherwise I would have done that.)
Before I call the Lufthansa customer support hotline, I’d like to know what my options are. Of course I’m going to read the fine print before calling, but I also want to research possible solutions on my own so I’ll be armed with a good suggestion in case they don’t have any.
Lufthansa offers zero later flights home from Glasgow that day, but there are at least two flights in the afternoon from Edinburgh Airport, which is only about 50 miles away. If I’m able to re-book the return flight from Edinburgh instead of Glasgow, I might need a transfer from one airport to the other for two people plus luggage. Google Maps suggests a bus connection: take the 926 to Buchanan Bus Station, then Megabus Air to Edinburgh Airport. This might be a cheap option, but a cumbersome one, and it might also be stressfull if the bus is late.
Are there any more comfortable and/or reliable modes of transport? Taxi? Shuttle service? Car sharing? I’d love a personal recommendation. Thank you!
Scottish Citylink also run a bus; take a taxi or the bus to the city center (Buchanan bus station) then take their service to Edinburgh airport -- circa 1.5hr roughly door to door (from Buchanan station to Edinburgh airport is about an hour, so if you grab a cab to Buchanan it'll probably be faster than dealing with the additional bus).
NOTE: I have not done this since Covid, so check the Citylink site!
posted by aramaic at 3:24 PM on February 22, 2023
NOTE: I have not done this since Covid, so check the Citylink site!
posted by aramaic at 3:24 PM on February 22, 2023
You’re coming up against a Sunday/public holiday schedule on Easter Monday. If all else fails you could do a one way car hire. I just had a look on a comparison website and they had plenty of options for half a day from about 10 am for about £90.
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:03 PM on February 22, 2023
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:03 PM on February 22, 2023
I’d probably go for a taxi to Buchanan Street bus station and then the 900 bus (scroll down for timetable) to Edinburgh airport, and get on the later of the two Lufthansa flights from Edinburgh for safety. Bear in mind when looking at timetables that it’ll be a bank holiday.
Not used the 900 myself for years, but AFAIK it’s still a well-used, reasonably efficient route. It’s the most direct option short of getting a taxi the whole way. If you tried to do it by train, it’d be something like taxi to Queen St station in Glasgow, about 40 mins to Haymarket Station in Edinburgh, then change onto a tram heading back out of Edinburgh to the airport (maybe half an hour for the tram?).
posted by penguin pie at 4:15 PM on February 22, 2023
Not used the 900 myself for years, but AFAIK it’s still a well-used, reasonably efficient route. It’s the most direct option short of getting a taxi the whole way. If you tried to do it by train, it’d be something like taxi to Queen St station in Glasgow, about 40 mins to Haymarket Station in Edinburgh, then change onto a tram heading back out of Edinburgh to the airport (maybe half an hour for the tram?).
posted by penguin pie at 4:15 PM on February 22, 2023
Response by poster: If I read the timetable of the 900 bus correctly, it only serves Edinburgh Airport between midnight and 5am, so that won't work for me. I think I need to take AIR instead, which runs every 30 minutes. The idea to take a taxi to Buchanan Street bus station is a good one, though.
A question for clarification: I looked up the Scottish bank holidays, and April 10 is not listed there. Is it correct to assume that buses, trains etc. run on their usual Monday schedule on the day after Easter?
posted by amf at 12:45 AM on February 23, 2023
A question for clarification: I looked up the Scottish bank holidays, and April 10 is not listed there. Is it correct to assume that buses, trains etc. run on their usual Monday schedule on the day after Easter?
posted by amf at 12:45 AM on February 23, 2023
Best answer: Ah yup, AIR looks to be the one.
Public holidays are complicated in Scotland: Some are nationwide, some are only in certain local authorities, some are holidays for Government employees but not other people. Easter Monday is a public holiday in some local authorities, including Edinburgh and Glasgow. So when looking at timetables, check the small print to see whether special services run on certain public holidays. Most usually, they'd run a Saturday or Sunday service on a public holiday.
All that said, on the AIR timetable, it has only one possible schedule, labelled 'daily' (so no variation on Sat/Sun) and there's no small print about public holidays. Being an airport bus rather than a regular service, I'd say you're pretty safe assuming it'll run it's regular (only) timetable on that day.
But you can also contact CityLink to ask.
posted by penguin pie at 3:11 AM on February 23, 2023 [1 favorite]
Public holidays are complicated in Scotland: Some are nationwide, some are only in certain local authorities, some are holidays for Government employees but not other people. Easter Monday is a public holiday in some local authorities, including Edinburgh and Glasgow. So when looking at timetables, check the small print to see whether special services run on certain public holidays. Most usually, they'd run a Saturday or Sunday service on a public holiday.
All that said, on the AIR timetable, it has only one possible schedule, labelled 'daily' (so no variation on Sat/Sun) and there's no small print about public holidays. Being an airport bus rather than a regular service, I'd say you're pretty safe assuming it'll run it's regular (only) timetable on that day.
But you can also contact CityLink to ask.
posted by penguin pie at 3:11 AM on February 23, 2023 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Loganair has a flight from Stornoway to Edinburgh, which might be easier?
From a quick scan it looks like you could fly LoganAir so as to arrive in EDI around 14:00 and then get a flight from the to Frankfurt leaving about 18:00 - if you have not already booked the flight to Glasgow (or even if you have and that was also via LoginAir with the possibility yo change) - that would be my suggestion.
Travelling between the two airports is quite possible - but not the easiest.
posted by rongorongo at 3:45 AM on February 23, 2023
From a quick scan it looks like you could fly LoganAir so as to arrive in EDI around 14:00 and then get a flight from the to Frankfurt leaving about 18:00 - if you have not already booked the flight to Glasgow (or even if you have and that was also via LoginAir with the possibility yo change) - that would be my suggestion.
Travelling between the two airports is quite possible - but not the easiest.
posted by rongorongo at 3:45 AM on February 23, 2023
Response by poster: I was able to re-book the flight from Stornoway to Edinburgh for a reasonable fee, and Lufthansa changed the flight to EDI -> FRA free of charge. This seemed like the easiest option because we will have enough time in EDI even if the first flight is delayed.
Thank you very much everyone for your suggestions! I also appreciated the explanation about the public holidays, which is going to be very helpful during our stay.
posted by amf at 4:42 AM on February 23, 2023 [3 favorites]
Thank you very much everyone for your suggestions! I also appreciated the explanation about the public holidays, which is going to be very helpful during our stay.
posted by amf at 4:42 AM on February 23, 2023 [3 favorites]
That sounds the perfect solution. This page has a dropdown to help you check public holidays by local authority, which might be useful if you're moving around.
posted by penguin pie at 4:55 AM on February 23, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by penguin pie at 4:55 AM on February 23, 2023 [1 favorite]
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posted by rd45 at 3:10 PM on February 22, 2023