Getting from St Andrews to Glasgow Prestwick

[Principe]

I bought a ticket from Ryanair for a direct flight from Glasgow Prestwick to Portugal on the 21st at 10:00am. I usually go from Edinburgh, but there are no direct flights to Portugal and this one only cost me £30 (almost 1/10th of the cheapest one I found from Edinburgh [I only bought it last week ]). The problem is that I didn't know the airport in question is so difficult to reach. I am having a hard time diciding how to get there and was hoping someone might help me with this.

Basically the airport is about 30 miles south of Glasgow and transport is done either by bus, or by a direct train from Glasgow Central (usually free for Ryanair flights). The problem here is that on Sundays the first train only gets to the airport at 10:00am which is too late. And I don't believe there are any buses going there in the morning except for a special bus which leaves Glasgow at around 4:00am and arrives at 5:30am. If anyone has some experience with going to this airport I would much appreciate any help. At this moment I am considering going on the evening of the 20th and spending the night at the airport. I would just prefer not to do that seeing as I will be flying to Faro (Portugal) which is about 500 miles away from my home (Porto) and I have to get there on time for a High School reunion Christmas dinner at 21:00... :S

Thanks!

[Lid]

There doesn't seem to be any way, at least not according to Traveline Scotland.

I fear this is why the tickets were £30. That, and they're an awful airline.

[Lord Alisk]

Ordinarily it isn't too hard, it just takes a long time. Get a bus to Glasgow Bus Station, and there are buses from the bus station to the air port. Last time I did it (in the spring of 2007) it was around £15 round trip, which isn't too bad, but it did take around 3 and a half hours.

I'm not sure how late the buses to Glasgow leave St. Andrews, but if there was one at around 11 ish, that might be viable, abd sitting in Glasgow Buchanan for a few hours isn't too bad.

And yes, Ryanair is dreadful, and every time I go with them, I mutter 'never again'. But the next time I am planning a trip, I notice again it is about 1/3 the price of Air France, or some other civilised service, and I go hmmmmm....

[Thalia]

I think your best bet is just to stay at the airport overnight - it doesn't look like there's an easy way to get there from St Andrews in the middle of the night/early morning unless you can find someone who happens to be driving there around the same time as you need to get there.

The easiest, most hassle free way to get there, in my opinion is to get the bus to Glasgow and then hop on a bus to the airport, since that means you only have one change. Although i'm sure others would argue that trains are better, but that would require either getting a train into Dundee or Edinburgh and then another train out to Glasgow so in the end the trains probably take longer than the bus. The only real advantage in your situation is that the trains leave later than the buses.

The other option is to stay in a hostel or something in Glasgow, get some sleep and then take that early morning bus that gets you there for 5.30am, at least then you'd have had some rest. There are also hotels near Prestiwck if you have the money to consider that option.

[What?]

Certainly I don't think you can stay in Prestwick overnight. Having taken the first flights a few times on family holidays we have been caught waiting for the doors to be unlocked, especially as it's winter and there are fewer flights than in summer.

The airport website (www.gpia.co.uk) shows there is a bus service designed to help you meet flights that require check-in before public transport starts (http://www.gpia.co.uk/AirportInfo/HowTo/bus.asp). So if you can get to Edinburgh for 3.30am or be in Edinburgh then you should be fine, with a bit of a wait in Prestwick. But there's an extensive cafe beside the check in area.

I'd also look for a cheap room in central Glasgow - get a late bus down from St Andrews (£5.70 student single) and a room for c£30 (only go for G1, G2 or some G3 postcodes - they'll be within a 15 minute walk of Buchanan St Bus Station which would be a blessing for catching the Edinburgh bus when it leaves Glasgow at 4.45am.

It might cost you £50 or so to get to the airport but still a big saving compared to the other airlines!

[Principe]

Thanks for all the quick replies. I guess I won't be able to spend the night at the airport then. It was good that I asked otherwise I would get there and find the doors closed... :S I just thought of this because this summer I spent the night at London Stansted Airport (due to another Ryanair flight) waiting for a connection from Krakow to Porto and it was completely packed. There were even people sleeping on inflatable beds. I checked the bus timetable and I am guessing the best option would probably be to go on the last Stagecoach bus from St Andrews to Glasgow which gets to Glasgow Buchanan Bus Station at 23:00 and then I would take the 4:45 bus to Glasgow Prestwick (costs £9). I would prefer not stay at a hotel, or something of the sort. Does anyone know if it is possible to wait for a few hours at Glasgow Buchanan Bus Station, or is it outdoors in the open? I prefer the trip to be more or less direct since I've never been to Glasgow and don't want to get lost during the night... I can always get some sleep in the 3 hours flight and the 6 hours train trip in Portugal. Do you reckon I should buy the bus ticket to Glasgow Prestwick online, or is there generally no problem in getting it at the time? Thanks.

Guess this is the first and last time I will be going through this airport... At least my return is through London to Edinburgh.

[What?]

I'm not sure about Buchanan Street at night, certainly the rail stations in Glasgow close at night and there aren't any night time bus services. It's also not hugely pleasant in there - nothing really wrong with it, I wouldn't feel comfortable there through the night on a Saturday night (and I'm a Glaswegian!).

Don't be put off by Prestwick. I've been through there countless times and it's perfectly functional and is great for the cost. If you treat Ryanair as the bus service it tries to be then it's faultless.

[Freaker]

Seems like you can stay in the airport if you get there early enough, though:

http://www.sleepinginairports.net/europe/glasgow.htm

EDIT: Hehe, the reviews... "My first experience in an airport sleeping. It gave a very good first impression of Scotland!"

[Eagon]

I've stayed in Prestwick airport overnight before flying during easter 2007, so it is possible, not much to do there though. I would check before you went though as it wouldn't be much fun being locked out

[Principe]

That is exactly what I am trying to do, but I sent an email to the Airport informations thing a couple of days ago and had no response. I guess I will have to phone them tomorrow. Hopefully they will be open. I will not go there early if I am not sure though, since I don't want to stay on the street for several hours freezing to death. In terms of there not being much to do I know that and for that reason I just bought a new book today seeing as the trip will be quite long. And I always have my laptop for a few hours.

[Principe]

I phoned to all of the contact numbers that were on the Airport's website and couldn't get in contact through any of them... Any ideas on how I might find out if it is open during the night on Saturday/Sunday seeing as there are only two days to go. I have decided to go by bus and spend the night there, but I don't want to risk going there and being left outside. The bus I am taking to Glasgow is the same anyway which gets there at 22:50. The last flights seem to arrive at around 24:00 and the special early morning bus on Sundays gets there at around 5:20. I can't really see them closing for 5 hours, or would they?

[What?]

You wouldn't have thought so.

The only thing I would bear in mind is look at the schedules - Ryanair send all their flights out in groups so they have to pay for check in desks, baggage handlers, security and airside staff only for the hours they're needed. As soon as the plane is off the ground they aren't paid until the next passengers check in for the next block of flights 2 hours later. So if there are no flights I wouldn't put it past them closing.

It's the same reason the planes are manky - cabin crew are only paid for the time the aircraft is airborne - so quick changeovers and snarls are because they're doing that work for free!