Fast, comfortable and above all cheap – that’s how you get to Scotland by plane. Here are the cheapest routes and entry points.
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In principle, there are only two interesting airports in Scotland: Edinburgh and Glasgow – Aberdeen and Inverness can only be reached via connecting flights. There are also a number of smaller airports, such as Kirkwall, Stornoway or Barra, which are not flown to directly from Germany. That’s why I’ve deliberately left them out here. Anyone interested can look into Loganair.
Below I try to work out the pros and cons of the destinations and airlines. Even though that’s difficult, since prices keep changing.
Tip: For piecing together flight routes, Easyjet has worked best for me. So we like to fly first to London with a few days’ stay, then to Inverness, and finally back from Edinburgh. Our total price for the three flights for two people was around 500 euros. And starting in Inverness puts us right in the middle of the Highlands for our tour.
Note: All information as of February 2019. This information was all collected BEFORE BREXIT. What will happen to air traffic from 29 March was not yet clear at the time. Nor whether any flight cancellations would be refunded, for example. All prices are samples I gathered subjectively. They are only meant to give a rough estimate for trip planning and may turn out quite differently in places.
Flying to Edinburgh: capital and starting point for the heart of Scotland
Advantage: Worth-seeing capital, not far to the Highlands, centrally located in Scotland.
Easyjet practically suggests itself, flying regularly to the Scottish capital from Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Basel/Freiburg or Berlin. Sample fare for Munich in summer 2019, departure Friday evening, return Sunday evening, 23 kg luggage: around 250 euros per person. Prices can be correspondingly lower for midweek flights or less luggage. They can also be higher, for example for Saturday-to-Saturday flights, with seat reservations and other extras booked.
Eurowings has meanwhile become a serious competitor to Easyjet. The airline flies to Edinburgh from Hamburg, Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Cologne/Bonn, Munich, Zurich and Vienna. The sample fare Munich to Edinburgh in summer, Friday to Sunday, came to around 310 euros with 23 kg luggage; Saturday to Saturday would cost around 400 euros.
Flybe flies from Stuttgart, Munich, Hanover, Düsseldorf and Berlin. However, irregularly and often expensive on these routes. Sample fare for summer 2019, Friday to Friday (no return flight Saturday or Sunday) from Munich to Edinburgh with 23 kg luggage: around 500 euros for one person. Flybe’s flights to Edinburgh usually go via a stopover such as Cardiff in Wales.
British Airways, KLM and Lufthansa also regularly offer alternatives worth checking – although rarely direct, usually with a stopover. It’s also worth comparing whether Glasgow might be cheaper. As a rule of thumb with almost all airlines: the earlier you book, the cheaper it gets.
Ryanair flies to Edinburgh from Hamburg, Berlin Schönefeld, Frankfurt Hahn and Memmingen; sample fare from Memmingen, Saturday to Saturday in summer with 20 kg luggage, around 200 euros.
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Flying to Glasgow: gateway to the west coast and the islands
Advantage: An ideal starting point for visiting the islands of Islay, Mull and Argyll & Bute, i.e. Scotland’s west coast. Also a worth-seeing city with a completely different flair than Edinburgh.
Easyjet only flies to Glasgow from Berlin Schönefeld or from Geneva in Switzerland. The sample fare from Schönefeld in summer with 23 kg luggage came to around 290 euros.
Eurowings has no direct flights to Glasgow but comes with good prices. The airline flies from Hamburg, Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Munich, Zurich and Vienna.
KLM and British Airways have very competitive prices – though both require a stopover, either in Amsterdam or London. There are repeated special offers for cheap luggage allowances too. For both, luggage came to 23 kilos as well.
Flybe also flies from Düsseldorf daily except Saturdays, with a stopover in Birmingham.
Ryanair flies direct from Schönefeld to Glasgow.
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Flying to Inverness: straight into the heart of the Highlands
Advantage: Drops you right into the Highlands, small airport, Loch Ness and co. reachable in 30 minutes, a good starting point for the classic east coast loop.
I personally find the option of flying with Easyjet via London and then on to Inverness quite appealing. Combined with a return flight from Edinburgh, for example.
Flybe also flies from Düsseldorf on weekdays for prices around 110 euros one way to Inverness – though with a stopover in Birmingham.
Flying to Aberdeen: to the castles and distilleries
Advantage: A good starting point for the castle trail and the whisky trail in the east of Scotland. The Grampians are right around the corner. Also suitable as an entry point for an extended east coast tour.
Flybe flies to Aberdeen from Düsseldorf via a detour through Manchester, London City or other British airports, daily except Thursdays.
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