Buses
The Borders are served by an extensive bus network that links the major towns in the region including Hawick, Pebbles, Selkirk, Coldstream, Bonchester Bridge and Eildon.
Local bus services and timetables are shown at: Scottish Borders Buses
Trains
Trains in Edinburgh serve a number of routes across the centre of Edinburgh and the surrounding areas. Edinburgh Waverley station is the largest station in Edinburgh and is used for services on the East Coast mainline to Birmingham New Street and London Euston. The service is operated by East Coast. The approx journey time from London to Edinburgh is 4 hours 30 minutes.
ScotRail operates an overnight sleeper service between London Euston and Edinburgh with a journey time of approx 7 hours 30 minutes.
There are services from London Euston station to Carlisle with a journey time of 3 hours 40 minutes. There are also services from London King’s Cross station to Newcastle with a journey time of 3 hours 35 minutes.
Visitors to the Scottish Borders region can use buses from Carlisle, Newcastle and Edinburgh stations to get to the area including Hawick.
For more information including timetables, connections and tickets please see Scotrail
Bicycle
The Borders region is a place that can be explored by bicycle via a number of cycle routes where cyclists can see the city and its various attractions up close. The environment with its wide open spaces, hills, forests, woodlands and lochs present cyclists with a wonderful opportunity to enjoy exploring the scenic area meaning using a bicycle offers a viable alternative to using a car or public transport.
There are a number of established cycle routes visitors can explore including routes around Hawick, Jedburgh, Melrose and Pebbles. For more information please see: Borders Cycling
Public Transport Safety Tips
Most journeys on public transport in the Scottish Borders go ahead without incident, in order to minimise the chances of any incidents, passengers may wish to consider the following safety tips:
- Be aware of your belongings at all times.
- Do not leave your bags and belongings unattended at any time.
- Stay alert and aware of your environment and those around you.
- Do not show valuables including money and jewellery in public.
- If you are carrying a bag/handbag, ensure you use a bag that has a strong good quality strap and wear it across your shoulder (not on your shoulder), with the pockets closed facing towards your waist. Carrying the bag on your shoulder makes it much easier for criminals to snatch the bag or cut the strap.
- Be careful and cautious in crowds and beware of pickpockets, do not leave anything valuable showing in public including wallets in back trouser pockets.
- Sit in carriages with other passengers do not sit in carriages with no/fewer passengers.
- Try not to use smaller/isolated stations especially at night.
- When waiting for buses, trains, boats and taxis stand with other passengers in an area that is well lit, do not stand/wait in isolated areas.
Car
There are a number of car hire firms in the Scottish Borders that offer car rental services for both short and longer term car hire offering a range of vehicles from small budget cars to family cars to larger mini-buses and luxury cars.
The Scottish Borders have good road connections to other areas in Scotland and to England. The area is connected to the road network via the A7 and A68. London to Hawick by car via the A1(M), A1 and A606 is a drive of approx 6 hours to 7 hours depending on traffic. Edinburgh to Hawick is a drive of 50 miles via A7. Other major roads around the area include the A68, A697, A73 and A703.
Drivers should be aware there are some winding, narrow and hilly roads in the Scottish Borders areas especially in more rural areas.
Parking in Hawick town centre includes a number of pay and display and pay on exit car parks. Major car parks in and around the town centre include Beaconsfield Terrace, Health Centre, Garfield Street East, Garfield Street West, Mansfield Square, Mart Street and O'Connell Street.
For more information please see: Borders Car Parking for more details on Scottish Borders parking and car parks.
Coach
Jedburgh is accessible by coach with coach services from a number of UK towns and cities including from London where there are regular coach services from London Victoria coach station to Jedburgh with a journey time of between 8 hours 30 minutes to 10 hours depending on the service. Both National Express and Megabus offer coach services from London to Jedburgh.
There are also coach services to Selkirk and Galashiels from London and Edinburgh.
Sea
There are no direct passenger ferries to the Scottish Borders, however visitors from Europe can use the service from Amsterdam to Newcastle which is approx 90 minutes drive from Hawick. Services are operated by DfDS Seaways. In addition there are services from Rotterdam and Zeebrugge to Hull, provided by P & O Ferries. Hull is approx 4 hours drive from Hawick.
From Larne and Belfast in Northern Ireland there are services to Stranraer and Cairnryan in Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland, located approx 3 hours drive from Hawick. Services are provided by both P & O Ferries and Stenaline.
Air
Edinburgh Airport is located approx 55 miles from Hawick via the A720 and A7. The airport is used by approx 40 airlines serving over 100 destinations around the world.
Newcastle Airport is located 55 miles from Hawick, there are regional and international flights operating at the airport.
For more information on public transport in the Scottish Borders region including travel information on public transport and timetables please see: Scottish Borders Transport from Scottish Borders Council
Disclaimer: The information given in on this website is given in good faith and to the best of our knowledge. If there are any discrepancies in no way do we intend to mislead. Important travel details and arrangements should be confirmed and verified with the relevant authorities.
