Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Scottish towns normally have four days of public holiday, which they allocate them-
selves; dates vary from year to year and from town to town. Most places celebrate St
Andrew's Day (30 November) as a public holiday.
General public holidays:
New Year
1 & 2 January
Good Friday
March or April
Christmas Day
25 December
Boxing Day
26 December
Telephone
The famous red telephone boxes are a dying breed now, surviving mainly in conservation
areas. You'll mainly see two types of phone booths in Scotland: one takes money (and
doesn't give change), while the other uses prepaid phonecards and credit cards. Some
phones accept both coins and cards. Payphone cards are widely available.
The cheapest way of calling internationally is via the internet, or by buying a discount
call card; you'll see these in newsagents, along with tables of countries and the number of
minutes you'll get for your money.
Mobile Phones
Codes for mobile phones usually begin with 07. The UK uses the GSM 900/1800 net-
work, which covers the rest of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, but isn't compatible
with the North American GSM 1900. Most modern mobiles, however, can function on
both networks - check before you leave home.
International roaming charges can be prohibitively high, though, and you'll probably
find it cheaper to get a UK number. This is easily done by buying a SIM card (around £10
including calling credit) and sticking it in your phone. Your phone may be locked to your
home network, however, so you'll have to either get it unlocked, or buy a pay-as-you-go
phone along with your SIM card (around £50).
Pay-as-you-go phones can be recharged by buying vouchers from shops.
Phone Codes & Useful Numbers
Dialling the UK
Dial your country's international access code then 44 (the UK country
code), then the area code (dropping the first 0) followed by the telephone number.
