Visiting Midlothian and the Scottish Borders using the Borders Railway

alowlandhighlander

It's coming up to 2 years - yes I know where has the time gone, since the re-introduction of the Borders Railway making Midlothian and the Scottish Borders even more accessible to visit.

In this time, hundreds of thousands of journeys have been taken, the Queen enjoyed a journey to open the line on a steam locamotive, there has been a number of others Steam Trains trips much to the delight to onlookers and of course, lots of people have used the service to make a visit to places such as National Mining Museum Scotland in Newtongrange and Abbotsford - The Home of Sir Walter Scott, near Melrose.

There are so many great reasons to use the Borders Railway and would be good to hear other peoples experiences and places where they have visited.

ailsa

When visiting Midlothian, be sure to check out Stewart Brewing in Loanhead, an award-winning brewery. Even if you’re not a beer drinker like me, they give brilliant tours that let you learn about the beer making process and you even get to savour a few samples!

Lauramac

Hi alowlandhighlander,

How lucky we are to have the Borders Railway! My favourite thing is to get the train to Galashiels and go for lunch to the Grapevine which is opposite the station...the food is delicious. Then you can easily get the bus from there to Melrose Abbey or Abbotsford House home of Sir Walter Scott. The Scottish Borders has so much history and the Borders railway has made that so accessible to locals and visitors.

Travelling up to Edinburgh it is worth stopping off at Newtongrange and visiting the Mining Museum. They have a lovely café there and there is so much to see and do for all ages.

Thanks

alowlandhighlander

Lauramac said:

Hi alowlandhighlander,

How lucky we are to have the Borders Railway! My favourite thing is to get the train to Galashiels and go for lunch to the Grapevine which is opposite the station...the food is delicious. Then you can easily get the bus from there to Melrose Abbey or Abbotsford House home of Sir Walter Scott. The Scottish Borders has so much history and the Borders railway has made that so accessible to locals and visitors.

Travelling up to Edinburgh it is worth stopping off at Newtongrange and visiting the Mining Museum. They have a lovely café there and there is so much to see and do for all ages.

Thanks

So true many great things to see and do.  I love the new map the Big Houses of the Scottish Borders have created - lots of historic tales to learn about and stately homes to explore.

MogMJMR

@alowlandhighlander @Lauramac @ailsa

As a returner to the Scottish Borders after a 10 year absence, I love the convenience the railway offers in both directions :-) 

The Border Weaver Bus Service connects the railway station at Tweedbank and Galashiels Monday - Friday  to Melrose - a lovely scenic town with Gardens to visit, The Abbey, Roman Connections and fantastic cafes.

https://www.scotborders.gov.uk/downloads/file/218/route_964_border_weaver_newtown_-_bowden_-_melrose_-_gattonside

Even better, at this time of year this service is complemented by the Scottish Borders Hop on - Hop off service, - currently running every day - which covers Abbotsford House, Melrose, Dryburgh Abbey, Scott's View and the Leaderfoot Viaduct - it is possible to walk the viaduct each Sunday with the Trimontium Trust http://www.trimontium.org.uk/wb/ - a real hidden gem and one of my favourite places in the world. Walks are also available (leaving from Melrose) each Tuesday and Thursday, but on a Sunday you get on to the bridge!

http://www.citysightseeingglasgow.co.uk/media/1126/bordersv2.pdf

Into Midlothian the railway allows access both from the Borders and the City to some great family days out.

Get off the train at Eskbank to catch the number 3 bus or a 35 minute walk to Butterfly World at Lasswade; or the newly restored Dalkeith Country Park with Adventure Playground (small admission fee) - 30 minute walk or a number 40 bus.

http://www.dalkeithcountrypark.co.uk/
http://www.edinburghbutterflyworld.com/

#bordersrailway #hiddengems #familyfriendly #publictransport


 

spoots

My Dad and I are planning a weekend up to see some of the highlights of the Borders this autumn.

We'll travel up from southern England to Edinburgh, where we might pop in to Craigmillar Castle (English Heritage members so Historic Scotland properties are free for us), before meeting up with his mother who lives in Morningside.  We'll stay with her for a night, then get the Borders Railway to Tweedbank, visit Dryburgh Abbey, Melrose Abbey and Abbotsford before heading back to Edinburgh.  After another night with my grannie, it's back down on the train and bus to check out Jedburgh Abbey, Kelso Abbey and Norham Castle.  Then we'll bus to Berwick and stay overnight there.

On the last day of the trip we'll go to some of the places of interest in North Northumberland (a selection from some of Lindisfarne, and the castles at Bamburgh, Dunstanburgh, Warkworth and Alnwick) before getting the train from Berwick/Alnmouth/Morpeth/Newcastle back south.

That's the plan, anyway!

Cheryleb

I took the railway down to Tweedbank to visit Abbotsford House.  It was beautiful and the Visitor centre has a wonderful café! I then walked part of the Borders Abbey walking route down to Melrose and got some fantastic views right out over the Borders from the top of the Abbey there! From Melrose there is a bus which takes you directly back to Edinburgh, or you can jump of a Galashiels for the transport exchange there, with trains back to Edinburgh or buses on to various destinations across the borders.

VisitScotlandChris

If you travel on the Borders Railway and catch a bus to Hawick from Galashiels you can visit the newly opened Borders Distillery, the first Whisky distillery in the Scottish Borders in over 180 years. It is a working distillery and offers guided tours and a dram at the end.