We are going to Scotland on vacation with our Prius PHV (that's the name of the Prime in Europe). For charging I've setup an account with 'ChargeYourCar.org.uk', they told me that charging in Scotland is free! Are there any other things to check or to think about when going to Scotland?
sounds fun, never been to Scotland but to England, Wales, Ireland ... the obvious, drive on the left side of the road, take some good rain/wind gear ... for the Prime, or PHV, just enjoy the drive and the scenery ...
Speed limits are displayed in mph in Scotland so hopefully the Prius PHV has a way to change the setting, you will want to check before your trip how to change it as it is likely buried in the display menu. If you can't change it from km/h then be sure to bring a conversion chart with you or even better memorize the conversions for the most common speed limits (20mph, 30mph, 40mph -> 70mph because speed limits are constantly changing as you move through cities and towns. And similar to Netherlands they don't always post the speed limit so you will need to know the national speed limits for highway, city, town, etc. Best to research this online before your trip. Also I don't think you can change the odometer setting to miles, since highway distance signs will be in miles you will need to be ready to convert if you will be using your odometer to track distance. But I'm guessing you will be using the built in Navigation system, be sure to also check if that can display in miles. If not then you probably want to use your phone GPS or a portable GPS, which is probably not a bad idea anyway as a backup in case the built-in Nav system is lacking some details about Scotland. (the rest of my post is a bit off-topic as it is not Prius specific so I will try and keep it brief) You didn't mention if you have driven in the U.K. before, or if so how long ago it was. Driving on the left takes some getting used to, be safe. On the highway it's not so bad as long as you keep reminding yourself what side of the road to be on, the most dangerous place actually is intersections or roundabouts where it's easy to accidentally look the wrong way for cross traffic, or turn into the wrong lane. So concentrate at all times and think ahead on turns, otherwise you will tend to lapse into habit which can be dangerous. Are you taking the ferry or the Chunnel train? The Chunnel (goes between Calais and Dover) is a bit expensive but it is quite a novel experience, I recommend take it at least one direction. If you just take it one way I recommend the Calais to Dover run because the Calais terminal is quite impressive, it's out in the countryside, and you feel like you are in a James Bond movie as you drive your car down into this sort of hidden valley and drive right onto a mysterious looking silver train with seemingly no windows (actually there are a few). Just before departure alarms sound and lights flash as the doors between the train cars close, adding to the James Bond feeling.
Thanks for all the good advice! There seems to be a settings for selecting km/h or MPH so that should not be a problem. We have been to Ireland once and had a rental car with stick-shift, but with the stick on the 'wrong side' it's rather clumsy..... We take the ferry from IJmuiden in the Netherlands to New Castle and from there we go visit Scotland. With our Dutch license plates they will probably know that we are from the continent and not used driving on for us the wrong side..... We have been told that the Scots are very friendly and know this very well. We have booked some B&B's so we are looking forward to meet the Scots. We also bought a small piece of land on an estate and can call ourselves now Lord and Lady. It's a nature conservation scheme!
Have you got the right Tartan for your estate? More important take some midge repellant, they can be very troublesome, especially if you go the traditional route of no pants under your kilt . Just did 3000 miles on the bike around the middle parts of Scotland, very friendly and beautiful scenery, if the weather holds. Watch out for the variations of temperature, going over Aviemore on a sunny day 23C at the bottom 11C over the top. It can be very hot 30C or very cold 10C if the wind direction is from the north. Have fun. Try the Haggis, but don't ask how it is made, or shot
You can buy a scarf/tie and such at the estate, so we will have a look. About the Haggis: know what goes in there, so not sure.........
Not enough material in a scarf/tie for a kilt though. Could start a trend with a Tartan G string. Haggis ! Be brave, it is quite tasty. Insect repellant, number one priority. Once your out of town the midges are small and will eat you alive.
I just come back from a short business trip in Northern Scotland (Aberdeen). There is not too much to add to what has been already said, besides the already given advise of a very careful drive due to the fact that the large majority of the drivers insist on keeping the wrong hand... the best would be driving whith a co-equiper which takes care of the navigation and provide directive like" keeping the left, make a left turn" or "keeping the left, take the rundabout and take the second exit, still keeping the left". Years ago in Edinburgh with my brother for a wedding we did exactly like so, it worked well but keen concentration was necessary, at least for the first two days of drive. Anyway countryside is lovely and the food is good (especially cakes, who whould have thought?) not to mention beers and whiskeys. And thanks to Brexit the pound is low so the cost of living is not too high.
Bring your clubs and visit the non Open sites like, Western Gailes, Prestwick (meaning current Open), Cruden Bay, West Links North Berwick, Dornoch, Nairn. Great links golf for a lot less dough. Enjoy the seafood.
My TomTom rider 400 offers right or left hand drive reminder. I drove for an hour in France on the wrong side of the road, what's that silly Frog flashing me up for driving straight at me!!! Moral Don't get the early morning ferry. Wait until the the natives are up and about and follow them.
I had a coworker in Australia (they drive on the left side there) who said that if they fly to another country that drives on the right, the company won't allow them to rent a car the first day, because the combination of jet lag, travel fatigue and driving on a different side of the road is too dangerous.
