Aberdeen

Aberdeen is set in fertile lowlands and is the natural regional centre, becoming a city in 1179 when two villages grew into each other. Old Aberdeen is north, by the mouth of the River Don, and home to the University since 1495. New Aberdeen developed from 1136 two miles south near the mouth of the River Dee: this has a much better harbour and became the city centre. It was bashed about in conflicts until 1745, but then followed a long spell of peace and prosperity. Aberdeen was rebuilt in its signature grey granite along the broad axis of Union Street east-west, which intersects the historic coast road then at Castlegate turns north along King Street. So grand and confident were these buildings, they bankrupted the city in 1817, probably a civic first. Aberdeen recovered through its traditional industries based on farming, fishing, knitware and paper, but by the late 20th century these were in decline. The city was out on a limb, a long way from markets, materials and labour... and then they struck oil.

In the 1960s the North Sea was shown to have commercially exciting reserves of gas to the south and oil to the north, and the quirks of international frontiers awarded Britain the lion's share. This transformed UK politics and the economy, nowhere more so than in Aberdeen. The oilfields lay many miles offshore, but in a relatively shallow sea, and technology advanced to exploit them. Oil was brought ashore at Sullom Voe in Shetland and at Grangemouth on the Firth of Forth. It never came through Aberdeen: the city's role was as a support base for the oil platforms, and centre of industrial innovation as the quest for new fields moved into deeper darker waters. The skies were busy with the chatter of helicopters ferrying workers to and from the rigs. The city was a boom town and property prices soared.

By plane:

There are flights to Aberdeen from Amsterdam, Bergen, Burgas, Copenhagen, Dublin, Esbjerg, Gdansk, Geneva, Groningen, Haugesund, Paris CDG, Riga, Oslo, and Stavanger, plus seasonal flights to the Mediterranean.

There's a wide range of UK flights, as Aberdeen is far to reach by rail or road. These include London Heathrow (with BA), London Gatwick and Luton (with easyJet), Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Durham, Humberside, Kirkwall on Orkney, Leeds, Manchester, Norwich, Newcastle, Southampton, Stornoway on Lewis, Sumburgh on Shetland, and Wick.

Aberdeen is also a hub for transfers to the weird sounding destinations of Apache, Hurricane, Ineos, and Nexen. These are the names of oil and gas rigs out in the North Sea, served by helicopter from here.

1 Aberdeen International Airport (ABZ IATA) is at Dyce, 7 miles (11 km) northwest from city centre. There are car rental desks here but their stock is limited, best book in advance.

Between airport and city centre, take the bus. Jet 727 is a big blue Stagecoach bus, running every 10-30 min to the main bus station in Union Square, next to the railway station and ferry terminal. It runs daily between 3AM and midnight, taking 30 min. In early 2025, a single ticket costs £3.70 and a return (good for 28 days) costs £6.50. The former direct buses to Stonehaven, Montrose and Peterhead have been axed.

Dyce has a railway station, but it's wrong side of the runway from the terminal, a 45-min walk with no public transport. You could take a taxi there: you'd only do this to pick up a northbound train without going into city centre. The Aberdeen to Inverness trains stop at Dyce, Inverurie, Insch, Huntly, Keith, Forres and Nairn.

A taxi to town costs about £25, and to Dyce £15.

By train:

Wikivoyage has a guide to Rail travel in Great Britain.