Inverness Travel
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Getting there
There are daily flights to and from London Gatwick, Glasgow and Edinburgh with British Airways (continuing to Kirkwall and Sumburgh), and daily flights to and from London Luton with easyJet. There are also flights to and from Stornoway Mon-Sat with British Airways Express. The airport is 7 miles east of the town, at Dalcross (Tel. 232471). A twice-daily airport bus to and from the town centre connects with London and Stornoway flights. It takes 20 mins. A taxi to/from the airport costs around £10.
The bus station is nearby, just off Academy St (Tel. 233371). Left luggage open Mon-Sat 0830-1800, Sun 1000-1800.
The train station is at the east end of Academy St (Tel. 238924). There are regular services to Aviemore, Perth, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Kyle of Lochalsh (for Skye). Left luggage lockers at the train station.
Inverness is 109 miles from Aberdeen, 161 miles from Edinburghand 117 miles from Perth
Getting around
Inverness town centre is compact and easy to explore on foot, and most of the hotels and guesthouses are within a 15-min walk of the TIC. Loch Ness is not within walkable distance, so you'll need your own transport, or alternatively book a tour. Cycle hire Barney's Bicycle Hire & Shop, 35 Castle St, Tel. 232249. Open 0900-2100. Mountain bike hire from £7 per day. Also bikes for hire from Bazpacker's Hostel.
Tourist Information
The TIC, Tel. 234353, is on Castle Wynd, near Ness Bridge, 5-mins walk from the train station. It stocks a wide range of literature on the area, can book accommodation and transport and gives out free maps of the town and environs. Tickets for all the tours listed on the next few pages are available from the TIC. Open 2 Apr-27 May Mon-Sat 0900-1700, Sun (Easter and from 6 May) 1000-1600; 28 May-24 Jun Mon-Sat 0900-1800, Sun 0930-1700; 25 Jun-22 Jul Mon-Sat 0900-1900, Sun 0930-1700; 23 Jul-19 Aug Mon-Sat 0900-2030, Sun 0930-1800; 20 Aug-2 Sep Mon-Sat 0900-1900, Sun 0930-1700; 3 Sep-30 Sep Mon-Sat 0900-1800, Sun 1000-1600; 1 Oct-21 Oct Mon-Sat 0900-1700, Sun 1000-1600; 22 Oct-Apr Mon-Fri 0900-1700, Sat 1000-1600.
Transport Out of Inverness
Bus
There are regular daily buses to Glasgow and Edinburgh via Aviemore, Pitlochry and Perth with Scottish Citylink (Tel. 0990-505050). Change at Perth for Dundee. There are regular daily Citylink buses to Ullapool, connecting with the ferry to Stornoway; also to Fort William and Oban. There are daily Citylink buses to Kyle of Lochalsh, Portree and Uig (connecting with ferries to Tarbert and Lochmaddy). There are regular Citylink buses to Fort Augustus via Drumnadrochit and Urquhart Castle (also with Highland Bus & Coach, Tel. 233371), and to Scrabster, for the ferry to Stromness, via Wick and Thurso; also with Morrison's Coaches, Tel. 01847-821241. Click here for National Express bus tickets
To Ullapool via Gairloch and Aultbea, there are daily buses with Spa Coaches (Tel. 01997-421311), Bluebird Northern (Tel. 239292) and Westerbus 01445-712255). To Tain and Lairg there are daily services with Bluebird and Rapson's (Tel. 710555). To Tain and Helsmdale, via Dornoch there are regular daily buses with Citylink, Morrison's and Bluebird. To Lochinver via Ullapool there's a daily service with Spa coaches and Rapson's of Brora (01408-621245). To Durness via Lairg and Tongue, or via Ullapool (not in winter) there's a daily service with Royal Mail Postbuses (Tel. 0131-228 7407). To Grantown-on-Spey, daily service with Highland Country Buses (Tel. 233371) and Highland Bus & Coach. Inverness Traction and Highland Country
Buses have services to places around Inverness, including Nairn, Forres, Culloden, Beauly and Dingwall. Bluebird have regular buses to Aberdeen, via Nairn.
Car hire
Avis is at the airport (Tel. 01667-462787); Budget is on Railway Terr behind the train station (Tel. 713333); Europcar has an office at the Highlander service station on Millburn Rd (Tel. 235337), and at the airport; Thrifty is at 33 Harbour Rd (Tel. 224466). Expect to pay from around £30 per day.
Ferry
For details of connections to Stornoway (Lewis) contact the CalMac office in Inverness, Tel. 717681.
Taxi
Rank Radio Taxis, Tel. 221111/220222; Tartan Taxis, Tel. 233033.
Train
There are direct trains to/from Aberdeen, Edinburgh via Aviemore, and Glasgow. There are several daily services to/from London King's Cross, via Perth and Edinburgh, including a sleeping car service. There is also a regular service to Wick and Thurso, via Tain, Lairg and Helmsdale. The journey from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh (for Skye) is one of the most scenic in Britain. There are 3 trains daily (none on Sun). Phone Tel. 0845-7484950 for all rail enquiries. Check here for railway reservations and train tickets