Bolton to Nairn - catering options?

[Howardh]

Planning a summer trip (longest day!) but using today's timetables and prices as a guide, so obvs things might change after the May t/t changes. However right now looks a decent deal at just over £100 with railcard - off peak return. Avanti have catering for the Preston - Edinburgh Haymarket leg, but what about Edinburgh to Inverness? Long journey and the connection times are a bit tight to go off and find food/drink at the stations.

 

[gnolife]

The only trains with catering between Edinburgh and Inverness at the moment are the Highland Chieftain (16:38 from Haymarket) (but I don't know what it offers for that part of the journey) and the 08:37 Edinburgh - Inverness (on Wednesdays and Fridays only) (and that's tea and biscuits as far as I know). ScotRail might put in a few more in peak season, but you'd have to wait and see on that.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

There's an M&S Simply Food outlet upstairs just past the ticket barriers at Haymarket station. Normally open 7.00 a.m. - 9.00 p.m. most days. Whether you get chance to visit same, obviously will depend on just how long the connection time at Haymarket on your itinerary actually is.

 

[Howardh]

Thanks, it sounds like you have to go prepared, not ideal. Watched a couple of youtube videos of the journey, and one pax complained that while the train, timing and scenery were just fine, they couldn't even buy a bottle of water. In another the usual Scotsrail "inter-city" (for want of a better term) was replaced by a two-coach standard diesel, packed and hot!

Think the key is to be able to vary my schedule to fit my needs, so advances aren't the best idea!

If I bought a return ticket Bolton > Nairn, would that allow a night's stop-over somewhere on the way, or has it to be done in that day? As per the other thread, singles at half return prices would allow BON > Perth (day 1) Perth > Inverness (day 2) and then the return all in one day!

 

[ainsworth74]

If I bought a return ticket Bolton > Nairn, would that allow a night's stop-over somewhere on the way, or has it to be done in that day? As per the other thread, singles at half return prices would allow BON > Perth (day 1) Perth > Inverness (day 2) and then the return all in one day!

There is apparently an outward break of journey restriction on the Bolton to Nairn via Lancaster so that would mean you could only have an overnight break of journey on the outward portion if it was not possible reasonably complete your journey in one day but it is up to the passenger to decide where to stop off (you don't have to go as far as possible on day 1). Staff knowledge of this might be patchy however!