The Caledonian Sleeper Train to Scotland: How to Get from London to Edinburgh
When getting from London to Edinburgh, my favorite way has to be the Caledonian sleeper train to Scotland!
I know it's incredibly old fashioned to say this, but there's just something so romantic about traveling by train. I could be a countess in hiding or a fashionable (but discreet!) spy.
The possibilities are endless.
If you’re curious about the London to Edinburgh sleeper train, I’ve got a full guide for you on what the experience was like, what the Caledonian sleeper berth layout is like, and how to book tickets for your own journey!
NOTE: We took the train on the Edinburgh Waverley to London Euston station, but it runs both ways. I’ll refer to the journey both as the Edinburgh to London train and the London to Edinburgh train since you can use these tips going either direction.
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Why You Should Ride the Sleeper Train to Edinburgh
It’s Convenient.
When my husband and I did our UK Extravaganza trip, we flew in and out of London, and then took trains to and from Edinburgh for the Scotland portion of our trip.
On the way up to Edinburgh, we drowsily took the standard express train, of which I remember very little since I was operating on about an hour of sleep after our overnight flight from Charleston, South Carolina.
On the way back, however, we decided to go in style and take the Caledonian Sleeper. It leaves every night but Saturdays from Waverley Station in Edinburgh and stops in London Euston.
There are also several other routes (which I’ll cover below) including Aberdeen to London Euston and Glasgow to London Euston.
Our hotel in Edinburgh, the Jurys Inn Edinburgh, which I highly recommend for its location and pricing, is literally steps from the train station. We knew that we could use the Caledonian Sleeper and not miss out on anything.
It Can Be Less Expensive than a Hotel and Train Ticket Combo.
You’ll need to do a cost benefit analysis here depending on the types of hotels you like to stay in and the number of people staying there.
Since it was only the two of us, we could book a Standard Class cabin for the journey that was less than what we’d pay for a night in a hotel.
We, of course, got our train fare included in this, so it was a no brainer to use the overnight train from Edinburgh to London.
The Caledonian Sleeper has changed ownership in the last few years, and Serco now operates it.
If you took the sleeper train to London or Edinburgh before then, you might be familiar with the Caledonian Sleeper Bargain Berths which made this trip SUPER affordable.
Sadly, the change in operations shut the bargain berths down.
Still, it’s generally cost-effective, and it’s just plain fun so any extra cost was worth it to us for the experience.
What to Expect When Riding the Caledonian Sleeper Train
We got to Waverley Station in Edinburgh around 9:30 p.m. and proceeded to do the following at the train station: discuss why we’d gotten there so early, hang out with our luggage, and drink wine from a plastic cup that we bought from the convenience store.
I know--we're so classy we can't stand it.
By the time 11 p.m. rolled around, Landon and I were standing on the platform outside of the sleeper train, ready to jump in our pjs and go to bed in our luxurious twin berth room.
We showed our tickets, hauled ourselves down the minuscule hallway and found our room.
We’d really been looking forward to the novelty of the sleeper train, and the time to see what it was all about had arrived!
The Caledonian Sleeper Berth Layout
I know that train rooms aren't going to be spacious, but ours was so teeny tiny as to be Hobbit-sized.
Landon and I took turns sitting on the top bunk while the other used the sink for tooth brushing and face washing.
There wasn't an en-suite bathroom--just the sink--so be prepared to put on your slippers and use the bathrooms at either end of your train car.
There is space for luggage storage, but it isn’t huge. We were both using carry-on sized pieces, and they fit nicely in the big shelf about the second bunk. Anything bigger is going to have some issues.
Overall, the beds weren't too bad for twin bunks on a train.
They certainly weren't down comforters and Egyptian cotton sheets, but we were there for the experience and not the luxury accommodations. It certainly wasn’t anything worse than I’ve slept in at a Travelodge.
The thing that I couldn't get used to was the train moving: I'd fall asleep and then wake up with the foot of my bed about six inches higher than the head when we'd go around a corner. That was a strange feeling!
In the morning, a porter comes around and knocks on all of the doors. You put an order in the night before for your breakfast if you’re in one of the fancier sleeper berths, and there’s day-of sales for those in the seated areas.
The Caledonian Sleeper breakfast is pretty decent for train food, and there are options for every palatte from bacon rolls and a full-Scottish breakfast inspired dish to smoothies and porridge. When you get into your berth, you’ll see that there is a card with the most updated food options.
Sounds like a good morning to me!
How to Book the Edinburgh to London Sleeper Train
I would highly recommend that you book your Caledonian sleeper tickets early as you plan the rest of your vacation as it can be quite popular. Plus, it’s not like a hotel, where there’s another right around the corner!
First, know where you want to go.
While we took the sleeper train from Edinburgh to London, the overnight train has a couple of options. Note the Caledonian sleeper stops on some of the routes as this will make the journey longer. I am a light sleeper and I would wake up every time the train slowed down, so keep that in mind, too.
Lowland Route 1: Glasgow Central to London Euston (3 stops, one of which is Edinburgh Waverley)
Lowland Route 2: Edinburgh Waverly to London Euston (direct to London)
Highland Route 1: Fort William to London Euston (16 stops, one of which is Edinburgh Waverley)
Highland Route 2: Inverness to London Euston (14 stops, one of which is Edinburgh Waverley)
Highland Route 3: Aberdeen to London Euston (9 stops, one of which is Edinburgh Waverley)
Second, determine which type of accommodation you’d like.
Caledonian Sleeper Prices
As mentioned above, this is not the route to take if you’re going super low budget. If you want to take the daytime express train, you can expect to pay around $43 US (about £34 at the time of this writing, April 2022) for a single standard fare on a specific train.
Compare that to the prices below. Note these are general rates, and the actual rates may be slightly higher or lower depending on the day of travel and exchange rate.
Caledonian double
Average price: $500 (£410)
You’ll get a double bed, which is cozy for a couple traveling. It would also work for a parent and child traveling pair. This is the nicest of the sleeper train accommodations, and it comes with the highest price.
It also comes with an en-suite bathroom, which might be worth the splurge! If you book this berth, you have access to the station lounge, which maybe doesn’t have wine in a plastic cup.
Club room
Average price: $339(£260)
PIN ME!
The club room and classic room are fairly similar in that they both have twin bunk beds.
However, the club room has breakfast included and an en-suite bathroom. It also has access to the station lounge.
Classic room
Average price: $235 (£180)
This is the room we stayed in! It doesn’t have a dedicated bathroom, but the in-room sink was suitable for quick washing up before bed. Our berth was at the end of the carriage, so the shared bathroom was right outside of our door, and I didn’t miss an en-suite.
This option doesn’t come with a breakfast, but the porter will bring options around if you’d like to purchase.
We didn’t travel with our kids for this trip, but if we took them back, I’d re-book the classic room since it is the only room type with interconnected doors between suites. So, you can turn two classic rooms into a big room!
Comfort seats
Average price: $130 (£100)
This is literally what it sounds like: you’ve got a fairly large chair that doesn’t recline anymore than a plane seat.
I'd highly avoid the seated sleeper (even though it comes with the cheapest price) until you've got insomnia and really, really want to see what Scotland looks like at 3 in the morning. We knew we would have a full day of sightseeing before and after the sleeper train experience, so we weren’t willing to cheap out that much.
Plus, you’re still paying over a hundred dollars to sit upright. It’s well worth the extra upgrade to get in the cheapest of the bedrooms.
Above all, if you want one of the bed berths, make sure there's a bed icon by the price when you book. Otherwise, you just bought yourself a five to six hour journey sitting straight up.
Next, you’ll want to decide how you want to book.
You’ve got 3 options when it comes to actually booking your ticket.
1) Through the Caledonian Sleeper website.
PROS: Easy to use website, only Caledonian Sleeper fares, dates, and schedules to consider, can book 12 months out. Below, you can see that all fares are available across the berth categories when I’m looking 8 months out. I also like that there are pictures to help you choose the right fare.
CONS: No easy way to compare the sleeper train routes with everything else ScotRail has to offer.
2) Through the ScotRail website.
PROS: Easy access to ALL of the other routes that you might want to use before/after using the Caledonian sleeper train.
CONS: The website can be super confusing, especially if you’ve never booked a train ticket before. There’s no way to specially filter out the Caledonian Sleeper times, so you have to know when the trains leave to get them to pop up in your search results.
Also, you can only book 3 months out on the Caledonian Sleeper site. As you can see below, the vast majority of options are gone even when I’m checking the furthest possible date from when I’m doing the search.
3) Through a 3rd party travel website.
PROS: You can quickly organize and purchase your entire trip from airfare to rental cars to hotels and (of course) train tickets.
Of all of the third party travel sites, I like Trip.com for the sheer amount of options it has for all things travel.
CONS: These external websites don’t always have the full selection of berths available, so you either have to plan way in advance or take what is left. Also, there’s no way to filter just the Caledonian sleeper train schedules, so you again have to be really careful what you’re booking.
See the ticket for $95.57 below that says “Direct”? That’s the one you’re looking for. Because I was searching for berths close to the date I was updating this post, there were limited accommodations options here, too.
We had a blast on the Caledonian Sleeper Train, and we firmly believe it is THE. best way to get from London to Edinburgh (or vice versa).
It wasn't the perfect overnight accommodation, but it was a lot of fun!
Looking for ideas on what to do when you get to London?
Check out my complete first time visitors guide to London with suggestions on hotels, must-try foods, and attractions.
Don’t miss out on a reasonably priced and traditional afternoon tea at the British Museum.
Do you like traveling by train? Have you ever taken the sleeper train to Edinburgh or London?
