Getting to Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt

It's easy to get to Edinburgh!

By air

Edinburgh International Airport is served by scheduled national and international flights. The airport is on the west of the city, just three miles from the campus. The journey by taxi takes about 10 minutes and a regular bus service links the airport and the city centre.

From within the UK British Airways; British Midland; EasyJet from London Luton (a budget airline with a small network who you have to book with directly);

From the rest of Europe Aer Lingus from Dublin; Air France from Paris; British Airways from Paris; British Midland from Copenhagen (codeshared with SAS) and Paris (one-stop); Crossair from Zurich KLM from Amsterdam; Lufthansa from Frankfurt;

The main hubs with good connections to Edinburgh are Amsterdam (used by KLM/Northwest as a hub), London Heathrow (British Airways and Virgin) and Brussels (SN Brussels). Alternatively you can travel to Glasgow (some more flights including some direct links to US) or Manchester (further but more flights) and travel on by rail or hired car. There is great competition on European air routes, particularly for Edinburgh/London, it is worth shopping around. Rail fares are not always cheaper than flights.

From Edinburgh international airport, the easiest is to take a taxi to the school site at Heriot-Watt University. Just ask the taxi driver to drop you at Heriot-Watt University, James-Watt centre. At James-Watt centre the reception is open 24 hours a day. The reception will direct you to your room (which will be around 3 minutes walk from the reception) and will give you a campus map directing you to the school site where the lectures take place. The taxi from the airport to Heriot-Watt James-Watt centre costs around 10 pounds and takes around ten minutes.

Instead of taking a taxi, you can take a bus from the airport to the city centre (cost around 4 pounds and takes around 45 minutes) and then a bus from the city centre to Heriot-Watt University James-Watt centre (cost 1 pound and takes around 30-45 minutes). See city centre bus details below.

Ryanair travelers flying from and to Glasgow Prestwick International Airport received an 1/2 price rail travel to Edinburgh with First Scotrail. Two train journeys (Preswick Intl Airport - Glagow Central, Glasgow Queen Street - Edinburgh Waverly) link Edinburgh to Prestwick International Airport.

By rail

The mainline rail network serves the centre of Edinburgh well. Edinburgh Waverley is at the east end of Princes Street and Haymarket station is at the west end. Situated one mile from the Edinburgh Campus. GNER which provides high speed inter-city train services along Britain's East Coast main line linking Edinburgh to England and North East Scotland along a route of almost 1,000 miles. Moreover, the West Coast main line connects Edinburgh with the west of England including the Lake District, Chester and Bath. Train services linking Edinburgh to destinations throughout Scotland are provided by First Scotrail. Lothian Buses 25 and N25 routes link Waverly and Haymarket stations to Heriot-Watt University Campus.

By coach

All national coach services to Edinburgh arrive at St Andrew Square bus station, situated at the east end of Princes Street. For more information try Citylink and National Express. Lothian Buses route 25, N25 and 34 link St Andrew Square to Heriot-Watt University Campus.

Traffic reports and car route planning are available from the RAC.

To Heriot-Watt By Local Bus from City Centre

Services 25, 34, 45 and N25 serve Heriot-Watt University. The journey to Heriot-Watt University by bus takes approximately 30 mins from the city centre.

The 25 departs from Princes Street (Waverley Steps) via Haymarket, Gorgie Road and Sighthill. The 25 is the most frequent bus to the Edinburgh Campus, leaving the city at least every 10 minutes during the day, every 30 minutes after 19:00 Monday to Saturday, and every 30 minutes from 8:00 until 23:00 on Sunday. The 25 runs until midnight, after which Lothian Buses operate Night Service N25 to the Edinburgh Campus from Princes Street (Waverly Steps) via Haymarket, Gorgie and Sighthill. The N25 operates hourly Monday to Friday mornings from 00:15 to 4:15 and every 30 mins on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 00:15 to 4:15

The 34 runs every 15 minutes Monday to Saturday during the day and every 30 minutes in the evenings and on Sundays.

The 45 departs from St Andrew Square via the Mound, Tollcross, Bruntsfield, Colinton and Currie. The 45 leaves the city every 30 minutes, Monday to Friday only, from 06:30 to 18:30.

Bus service schedules are subject to change and enquiries should be directed to the two main companies, Lothian Buses and First Edinburgh.

Lothian Buses Industrial Action

There is an ongoing Lothian Buses Industrial Action from 17 July 2005, information are available on Lothian Buses Service Changes web page.
Update (August 5th): Strike action due to commence on Wednesday 10 August has been suspended until further notice. A Saturday service will continue to operate from Monday 8 August until Friday 12 August with extra buses (especially at peak times). In addition, 20 & X47 will run a holiday service, and 45 will run a normal Monday to Friday service. From Saturday 13 August, full normal service will resume.
Update (August 3rd): Lothian Buses drivers plan a complete shutdown of Lothian Buses starting Wednesday, 8 August. If the strike goes ahead, you will still be able to get to Heriot-Watt for ESSLLI05 using First Buses, although the service is more limited. Note that Monday and Tuesday, 8-9 August, Lothian Buses will be operating.

Specifically, buses 27 and 28 on First Bus Edinburgh serve Hermiston daily. Ask the bus driver where to get off. From there, there is a short pathway to the university. This pathway starts in the middle of the road on top of the campus map, goes through the wood till the letter O and number 18 buildings.

The 27/28 buses leave from Waterloo Place (East End of Princess Street), via Haymarket and Sighthill. During the week, they run every 15 minutes from 7:45am onward until about about 6pm, when it becomes every 20 minutes and then every half hour. See First Edinburgh for more information.

To Heriot-Watt By Taxi from City Centre

There are a number of taxi services in the centre of Edinburgh including those at Waverley Station (rail) and St Andrew Square (coach station). The journey to Heriot-Watt University takes about 30 minutes. At the Edinburgh Campus, the taxis can be requested from the reception desk in the James Watt Centre.