Scotland Is Getting Too Dear.

[Jughead]

I regularly tour round Scotland in the decent weather and tend to use hostels and camp. I am amazed at how expensive things are becoming. It's still manageable for me but God knows how a family copes with eating out, attractions, ferries plus a car, expensive supermarkets, et al...

[eileithyia]

I have not been recently but have thought Scotland expensive before now. Back in the 80's a group of 7 of us toured north Scotland and we each put £1 in the daily kitty for food shopping, at Tongue everyone had to put an extra £1 in cos it was not enough... 1 of the party bought a packet of biscuits which cost over £1 (early 80's remember). Scotland was the first place I paid over £1 a gallon for fuel. More recently we could get B&B in Oban cheaper than we could in the hostel.

[rabmania]

I regularly tour round Scotland in the decent weather and tend to use hostels and camp. I am amazed at how expensive things are becoming. It's still manageable for me but God knows how a family copes with eating out, attractions, ferries plus a car, expensive supermarkets, et al...

in the same sentence!

[iviehoff]

I am amazed at how expensive things are becoming.

I doubt that this is anything specific about Scotland, I think it more likely that because you visit only occasionally you are more aware of the price increases from year to year. It is common to suffer from money illusion - this is failing to correct prices for inflation in your mind. It is the mindset that goes "I'm sure I used to pay half that 20 years ago", whilst overlooking that because of inflation general prices have approximately doubled in 20 years (RPI has doubled from 1990 to 2013). Moreover incomes have increased by much more than that, so actually for the average person things are more affordable than they were 20 years ago.

However incomes have fallen behind prices over the last few years, because of the recession, so leisure activities are indeed a bit less affordable than they were 5 years ago for the average person, because a higher proportion of your income is going on necessities.

The price difference between hostels and other forms of accommodation has fallen, because hostels have had to upgrade as people became less willing to accept such spartan accommondation, precisely because incomes were rising. So I think it is possible that hostel prices have increased faster than inflation.

[Edwards]

I doubt that this is anything specific about Scotland, I think it more likely that because you visit only occasionally you are more aware of the price increases from year to year

He lives in Scotland and could become the forum foreign correspondent.

Is there not some sort of tax thing for fuel in Scotland if you live a long way from the refinery?

[BeeKeeper]

Getting there can also be expensive. I was idly thinking about some walking on the west coast and checked the price of a return train ticket Plymouth to Mallaig - £500 give or take in April. It may be possible to get a cheaper ticket but knowing when to buy them is the problem. My understanding is they only release a set number of cheap tickets for each station. If I go I'll drive.

[feefee8]

Is there not some sort of tax thing for fuel in Scotland if you live a long way from the refinery?

Yeah, 5p a litre in the islands and remote mainland areas. Given that in some cases the fuel prices were at least 10p more than on the east coast, the fuel cost still isn't cheap. And there's another thread somewhere explaining the necessity of a car due to the poor public transport so you can see how the squeeze is being put on the locals. That and the monopoly of the not-so-cheap Co-op. The definition of a Scottish town is whether it has a Co-op or not!

[irc]

Getting there can also be expensive. I was idly thinking about some walking on the west coast and checked the price of a return train ticket Plymouth to Mallaig - £500 give or take in April. It may be possible to get a cheaper ticket but knowing when to buy them is the problem. My understanding is they only release a set number of cheap tickets for each station. If I go I'll drive.

The cheap seat are released 12 weeks ahead. Even then you need to split the journey. An enq for Plymouth - Mallaig in early March on Trainline gets £250 single. But a Plymouth - Glasgow (no changes) single is £98 and a Glasgow - Mallaig single £15. Still not cheap but for one person perhaps worth it to avoid a 700 mile drive. Two people going the a car wins it for me.

The train could maybe be found cheaper with more changes but the journey time would be increased as well.

[iviehoff]

It is inevitably the case that in remote and thinly populated places you have to pay more for stuff because of the increased distribution costs and lack of scale economies. Then there is also the problem that there may be reduced competition between suppliers in a thinly populated place if it can't support multiple suppliers. This has not changed, it was like that before too.

[LollyKat]

It is inevitably the case that in remote and thinly populated places you have to pay more for stuff because of the increased distribution costs and lack of scale economies. Then there is also the problem that there may be reduced competition between suppliers in a thinly populated place if it can't support multiple suppliers. This has not changed, it was like that before too.

Exactly. I grew up in the north of Scotland and it was always the case that prices were noticeably higher than in the south.

[stephenjubb]

It is inevitably the case that in remote and thinly populated places you have to pay more for stuff because of the increased distribution costs and lack of scale economies. Then there is also the problem that there may be reduced competition between suppliers in a thinly populated place if it can't support multiple suppliers. This has not changed, it was like that before too.

Exactly. I grew up in the north of Scotland and it was always the case that prices were noticeably higher than in the south.

certainly for most things.

Strangely I have found camping cheaper in the far north.

In the south west of scotland, campsites were noticeably more expensive than the north.

[pedalsheep]

Back in the 90s I worked in a Spar shop on Mull (Salen). Tesco in Oban was selling bread for less than we were paying for it wholesale!

[mrjemm]

This Brewdog ain't cheap either... the free wifi helps...

But my time in Scotland is mostly Scab and Embra, so not good examples.

[jezer]

I've cycle toured in Scotland a number of times in recent years. It was always more expensive than France, and the weather was worse. What will happen after September when the Scots vote for their future. Will the tourist trade go elsewhere

[Mick F]

Having lived as a family for many years in Scotland interspersed with periods in England, we have many memories of paying for food and how it was much more expensive in Scotland.

Lived in Rosyth near Dunfermline first in 1974. When we were first there they built a Fine Fare. Very modern! Prior to that, it was the town centre shops.

We lived on Lomondside in the mid 80s and we shopped in the Vale of Leven - Fine Fare and general stores, and in Dumbarton - Prestos and general stores. Prior to that, we lived in Helensburgh for six months WM Lowes supermarket - they opened a big supermarket later - Tesco?

When we moved south in 1985, Mrs Mick F was in floods of tears in the isles of the supermarkets because of the "cheap" prices. We'd struggled to make ends meet in Scotland and it was hard to balance the budget. 1974 to 1980, then 1982 to 1985.

In the early 90's, I had a job on Clydeside for a year and left the family down south, we were given lodging allowance to find our own accommodation and food. Yet again, it was very expensive.

I'm taking of up to 25% more for basic foods compared to here down south. Bread, meat, veg.

Heard on the radio the other day that Tesco charge the same all over the UK. They certainly didn't in the past!