As cities go, Edinburgh is pretty well connected.

Train

The nearest train station is Edinburgh Haymarket, which is a 5 minute walk from St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral.

Edinburgh Waverley is connected directly to most major British cities by train. Trains run on the London King's Cross to Edinburgh Waverley line every 30 minutes or even more often. Edinburgh Waverley is a 30 minute walk, or 5 minute bus/tram, or 3 minute train to Edinburgh Haymarket.

Plane

Edinburgh Airport is directly connected to most major UK and European cities with multiple flights per day. For those joining us from overseas, there are also direct connections to the Middle East, China, and North America.

Chennai/Bangalore to London then London to Edinburgh may be the best option from South India.

Frankfurt, Basel, and Stuttgart fly directly to Edinburgh for options for those in Germany and Switzerland.

For guests living in Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, and Italy - there are direct flights from Valencia, Amsterdam, Brussels, Vienna, and Venice - which we think are your local airports!

For those in North America - there are direct flights from your local airports in New York, Montreal, and Toronto!

There is a direct bus (Number 100) or tram from the airport to Edinburgh Haymarket. They leave to/from the airport every 15 minutes.

Car

If you are brave enough to face the M6 or A1, there is quite expensive paid parking on almost all of Edinburgh's streets near St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral.

At Hopetoun House there is free parking available for up to 50 cars. Until 1600, there may be members of public using the car park, too.

Most of the streets outside of the very centre of the city are free to park on Saturdays after 1800 and all day on Sundays.

Wedding to Reception

We have organised coaches with enough capacity to take all wedding guests from St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral to Hopetoun House.

Carriages at Midnight

Hopetoun House is a 25 minute drive from the centre of Edinburgh. We understand guests may wish to leave at different times in the evening, and some may wish to stay in picturesque South Queensferry, while others may wish to stay in the historic centre of Edinburgh.

Please note it is essential that you book your travel back to your accommodation as early as possible. Taxis may not come out to Hopetoun House to pick you up at the last minute!

City Cabs (book via the app) is Edinburgh's most popular taxi service.

Uber (book via the app) is also ubiquitous in Edinburgh.

To travel from the UK to Chennai, your best options are:

London to Chennai direct:

This will be your most convenient connection direct to Chennai. Reasonable prices when booked months in advance are £450-£550 return per adult. Chennai Airport is well connected to the city centre by a new metro system.

London to Bangalore direct:

Bangalore's new Kempegowda Airport has become South India's hub for international travel. There are then multiple flights per day on to Chennai, or you can take a modern high speed train from central Bangalore to Chennai, or brave the traditional Indian Railways overnight sleeper train! Intercity Uber is quickly becoming India's go to road transport option - costing often around £50 for a private taxi for 6-8 hours along the modern national highways between major cities. Beware the world famous congestion in the city centres though!

London to Delhi direct:

Air India flies to the major North Indian cities multiple times per day.

Flying to Delhi may provide you the opportunity to explore North West India's Golden Triangle of Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur by modern high speed train prior to heading down to Chennai for the wedding.

12go.asia is the most user friendly way to book train tickets in India. Please note Indian Railways is one of the world's busiest railway operators so tickets need to be booked a minimum of a month in advance to avoid disappointment!

Unlike the simple First vs Second Class offered on the UK's National Rail, Indian Railways has numerous classes. Select wisely!

https://www.railrestro.com/blog/1a-2a-3a-sl-cc-complete-guide-to-indian-train-classes

Germany to India:

All the flights above also exist from Frankfurt to Delhi/Mumbai/Chennai/Bangalore!

Indian Cities to Chennai:

If you decide to fly to another part of India to enjoy some sightseeing / adventure prior to arriving into Chennai, there are usually multiple flights per day from major Indian cities to Chennai Airport including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Kochi, Goa. Internal flights tend to be relatively cheap and convenient.

The equivalent train or night train will also exist but beware the journey time from Delhi to Chennai can be up to 36 hours!

The Andaman Islands:

The only commercial airport on the Andaman Islands is in the city of Port Blair (recently renamed Sri Vijayapuram). There are multiple flights per day to and from Delhi. Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, and Bangalore.

There are ferries to connect the various islands to the main islands which should also be booked in advance. The best website for this is go2andaman.com. Often customer service in India is by Whatsapp rather than by email.

If you decide to join us in the Andaman Islands after our Chennai wedding, we can organise internal travel together.