The major rail service provider for routes to and from England is National Express East Coast (tel: 0845 722 5225; website: www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com), while First Scotrail (tel: 0845 755 0033; website: www.firstscotrail.com) operates all services within Scotland, as well as a London-Edinburgh overnight sleeper link. National Rail Enquiries (tel: 0845 748 4950) provides 24-hour timetable and fare information for all train companies.

Edinburgh has two mainline train stations - Waverley station (located right in the heart of the city, at the East End of Princes Street) and Haymarket station (at the junction of Dalry Road and Haymarket, in the West End). Facilities at Waverley include a food mall, a newsagent and a pub.

Rail services: First Scotrail (see above) operates a train service from Glasgow to Edinburgh every 15 minutes (journey time - 50 minutes). First Scotrail's handy but underused Caledonian Sleeper, between London (Euston) and Edinburgh, runs every night except Saturday (journey time - 6 hours 45 minutes). Virgin Trains (tel: 0845 722 2333; website: www.virgintrains.co.uk) operates a direct service between Manchester and Edinburgh, three times a day (journey time - 3 hours). National Express East Coast operates a direct half-hourly service between London (Kings Cross) and Edinburgh (journey time - 4 hours 30 minutes) with restaurant cars on some services.