Getting There
Aberdeen is served by a number of airlines, including British Airways, British Midland, Easy Jet, and KLM. For flight information, phone the Aberdeen Airport at tel. 01224/722-331. The airport is about 11km (7 miles) away from the heart of town and is connected to it by a bus service costing £1.50 ($2.85) one-way. Taxis cost about £13 ($25).
Aberdeen has direct rail links to the major cities of Britain. SuperSaver fares, available by avoiding travel on Friday and Saturday, make the price difference between a one-way fare and a round-trip ticket negligible. Another efficient way of saving on fares by another £10 ($19) is reserving through the booking agency, Apex. For fares in Scotland, call tel. 0845/755-0033 with at least 48 hours' notice. For fares from London, call tel. 0845/722-5225 with a minimum of 1 week's notice. The prices here are for tickets bought on the day of departure, excluding Friday, when prices are higher. Nineteen trains per normal weekday arrive from Edinburgh; a regular one-way ticket costs £18 to £21 ($34-$40). Trip time is about 3 1/2 hours. Another 19 trains per day arrive from Glasgow, costing £34 ($65) one-way or £48 ($91) round-trip. Some 12 trains per day arrive from London as well, with a one-way fare of £72 ($137) and a round-trip fare of only £98 ($186). For rail schedules, call tel. 0345/484-950.
Several bus companies have express routes serving Aberdeen, and many offer special round-trip fares to passengers avoiding travel on Friday or Saturday. Frequent buses arrive from both Glasgow and Edinburgh, costing £25 to £31 ($48-$59). There are also frequent arrivals from Inverness. For bus schedules in Aberdeen, call tel. 01224/212-266.
It's also easy to drive to the northeast. From the south, drive via Edinburgh over the Forth and Tay Road bridges and take the coastal road. From the north and west, approach the area from the much-improved A9, which links Perth, Inverness, and Wick.
Visitor Information
The Aberdeen Tourist Information Centre is in St. Nicholas House, Broad Street, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire AB10 1DE (tel. 01224/632-727). July and August, it's open Monday to Friday from 9am to 7pm, Saturday from 9am to 5pm, and Sunday from 10am to 4pm. All other months, it's open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm and Saturday from 10am to 2pm.
