Dundee (original) (raw)

Dundee is an industrial city and port, historically part of Angus county in northeast Scotland. It stands on the north bank of the River Tay, which here broadens out into the North Sea, and in 2022 had a population of 148,000. Dundee's prime visitor attractions are the polar sailing ship RRS Discovery, the Verdant Works jute mill, and the V&A design museum. It's also a good base for nearby major golf tournaments, and for exploring Deeside and the eastern Highlands.

RRS Discovery

Dundee used to be a grubby, rough town famous for its three J's: jute, jam and journalism. Jute (see "Verdant" below) still marks the landscape: the mills have closed but many still stand as offices and apartments. Jam was made from fruit grown nearby. Journalism refers to the D C Thomson publishing empire, whose renown was less for their journalism than for their stable of comics and cartoon strips. These include the Sunday Post with "Oor Wullie" and "The Broons", the Dandy with "Desperate Dan" and the Beano with "Dennis the Menace". Of course that wasn't all the city had to offer: delicacies such as Dundee Cake, studded with sultanas and almonds, was probably what your Great Aunt Morag enjoyed for Sunday tea along with some Dundee Marmalade to top it off. And then there was the railway bridge that infamously collapsed. And Dundee's great cultural icon was William McGonagall (see info box), surely the world's worst poet.

But the industrial grubbiness is gradually disappearing, enabling the city to shine in its attractive natural setting. There are major visitor attractions already and more appearing. There's a student buzz from the universities, and a friendly feel to the place. It's definitely worth a day or two to visit.

Dundee has its own dialect: the vocabulary is much the same as Lowland Scots (see Scotland#Talk) but pronunciation is distinctive. "T" is often dropped in a glottal stop, but the signature sound is the short "eh" (phonetic: ɛ) replacing ay, ae, e, i, ie, uy, y and more. So a pie is a "peh"; "eh" can mean I, yes, what? or hmmm... Dundonians can conduct entire conversations by just saying "eh".

Visitor information is available online, the physical Tourist Office has closed down.

Dundee City Council posts info on city public services.

Map

'"`UNIQ--maplink-00000002-QINU`"'

Map of Dundee

Edinburgh Airport (EDI IATA) is usually the most convenient and economical. The "Fly Dundee" bus travels from right outside Edinburgh Airport to Dundee city centre (Union Street) in 1 hour 20 minutes. The service is operated by Xplore and can be booked online using the fly Dundee website. If you arrive and get through baggage-claim significantly earlier than your booked bus ticket, it is easy to rebook online before boarding. An advanced return fare is £22 per adult.

Ember also provide a bus service that calls at Edinburgh Airport and Dundee Railway Station.

Alternatively, take Stagecoach Bus Jet 747 to Inverkeithing in Fife to catch the hourly train to Dundee, or to Halbeath for the hourly Stagecoach Bus X54. Otherwise take the tram or bus from the airport to Edinburgh Haymarket, or Edinburgh Gateway for trains and buses to Dundee.

56.4525-3.01751 Dundee Airport (DND IATA) is 2 miles west of city centre on A85 - with light baggage you could walk it in 30 min. There are no public transport connections at the bus stop. If the taxi rank is empty when you exit the airport building, then you will need call or use an app (see Getting Around).

Loganair is the only commercial operator, providing scheduled flights to/from London Heathrow (LHR) twice per day weekday and once on Sundays. Loganair also fly Dundee to Kirkwall (Orkney Islands) and Sumburgh (Shetland), and previously provided a service with Belfast City. Booking flights from other cities, with a connection at London Heathrow, are possible but may not be the best choice compared to flying to Edinburgh Airport.

Scotrail trains run hourly or better from the other major Scottish cities, all taking 80 min: from Edinburgh via Kirkcaldy and Leuchars (for St Andrews), from Glasgow Queen Street via Stirling and Perth, and from Aberdeen (for ferries to Orkney and Shetland) via Stonehaven and Arbroath. Change at Glasgow from Inverness, Aviemore and Oban (for ferries to the Hebrides).

From London King's Cross, three daytime LNER trains take 6 hours via York and Newcastle, but it's usually more convenient to change in Edinburgh. From the Midlands and Southwest, take the CrossCountry train, winding all the way from Penzance via Exeter, Bristol, Birmingham, Sheffield and York.

The Caledonian Highland Sleeper to Aberdeen runs Su-F from London Euston, departing after 9PM and ejecting you onto a chilly Dundee platform at 6AM. The southbound train picks up around 11PM to reach Euston towards 8AM. You might prefer to take the Lowland Sleeper from Euston towards midnight and change to a day train in Edinburgh. Going back, you need to leave Dundee around 10PM to join the southbound sleeper at 11:30PM from Edinburgh.

A local train from Arbroath takes 20 min via Carnoustie, Monifieth and Broughty Ferry.

56.4576-2.96942 Dundee Railway Station (just south of city centre, close to Discovery). The station has ticket offices and machines, a Tescos Express, and a SleeperZ hotel on its upper floors. Down the escalators, and beyond the ticket barriers is "Dundee Coffee House" (operated by WH Smith) and a Costa Coffee. There are 4 platforms which all have step-free access with the street-level concourse. Platform 1 on the south and platform 4 on the north have through-tracks, while platforms 2 and 3 are for trains terminating from the west. Platforms 1 and 4 narrow at their eastern end, where the building between them has ticket barriers and access to the station concourse above. Dundee railway station on Wikipedia Dundee railway station (Q3096420) on Wikidata OSM directions (updated Mar 2025)

Invergowrie is a station halt at the west edge of town, which might be more convenient for Ninewells Hospital area, although there are not direct bus links. Trains from Perth stop there twice an hour on their way to Dundee.

Caird Hall and Desperate Dan

City centre and the area within the A991 Inner Ring Road is a Low Emission Zone, with penalties for entering in a non-compliant vehicle. Those built after 2015 generally are compliant, but check online.

From Edinburgh and the south follow M90 / A90 north, about 55 miles (90 km) or just over an hour's drive. A slow scenic route is to branch off onto A92 towards Kirkcaldy then wind along the Fife coast and through St Andrews.

From Glasgow follow M80 then M9 / A9 to Perth, and then swing east onto A90. It's 75 miles (120 km), about a 90-min drive.

From Aberdeen follow A90 south: it's 67 miles (105 km) and will take about 80 min.

A90 skirts the north of Dundee, where it's called Kingsway. The speed limit of 40/50 mph is camera-enforced.

Citylink buses run hourly from Glasgow Buchanan station (1 hr 40 min) and Aberdeen Union Square (1 hr 20 min) as the M90 route, and every two hours from Edinburgh St Andrews Square (90 min) as the M92 route. Megabus competes on those city routes (M9 and M92 routes), and also runs direct from Manchester (6 hr). National Express coaches take 11-12 hr from London Victoria and continue to Aberdeen. FlixBus are a newer operator with routes from Glasgow (UK091), Edinburgh (UK092), and even London (UKN11).

Ember Electric Buses are based in Dundee, gliding quietly from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen:

- From Edinburgh they run every 30 min daytime, plus four night buses. They take 2 hours via Haymarket, the zoo, Ingliston P&R (for trams), Edinburgh Airport, Rosyth P&R, Kinross P&R, Bridge of Earn and Perth Broxden P&R.

- From Glasgow Buchanan Station they run hourly daytime, with four night buses. They take two hours via Cumbernauld, Stirling Castleview P&R, Dunblane and Perth Broxden P&R.

- From Aberdeen they run hourly daytime (two starting from Aberdeen Airport), with four night buses. They take just under 2 hours via Brechin and Forfar.

The world's worst poet

William McGonagall (1825-1902) was a Dundee hand-loom weaver inspired to take up poetry, which he recited publicly. His “Poetic Gems” were lengthy doggerel that often championed noble values, e.g. for female emancipation, and against the evils of alcohol:

"... after spending his earnings foolishly he beats his wife-

The man that promised to protect her during life-

And so the man would if there was no drink in society,

For seldom a man beats his wife in a state of sobriety....

His talent ranged over battles, shipwrecks and the Scottish countryside. His most celebrated works were those extolling the "Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay! With your numerous arches and pillars in so grand array...."

And so on, and on, and on, until tragically

"... the train mov’d slowly along the Bridge of Tay,

Until it was about midway,

Then the central girders with a crash gave way,

And down went the train and passengers into the Tay!"

He published some 200 poems of similar brilliance. He was mocked, he was pelted with eggs, he endured practical jokes (most famously the hoax award of the Siamese Order of the White Elephant), he was chronically poor. A true artist: nothing and nobody could stop the flow of his poetry.

The main sights, shops, and restaurants, are all within walking distance.

Getting around the larger city and its residential areas can usually be done with the bus routes provided by Xplore Dundee. Single tickets can be bought on the bus with exact-change or using contactless card. Savings are easily made by buying bundles or day/week tickets using their phone app.

Other bus routes are operated by Stagecoach, usually originating from other towns in the region. Moffat & Williamson run a few services for local villages.

Cycle Hub for bike rentals is by the V&A, 100 yards from the railway station.

Taxis can are regulated by Dundee City Council and set the Taxi Fares of the meters and these should be followed unless you booked through an app (which may charge about £1-2 more). It is etiquette in the UK to round up to the nearest £1 as a tip, but is not required. Most taxi drivers accept contactless card payments, but some require cash. A ride within the city shouldn't exceed £9. From Ninewells Hospital to Broughty Ferry you can expect to pay £20.

Taxi faresupdated: Dec 2024 Tariff 1Daily 6AM-10PM Tariff 2M-Th 10PM-6AM Tariff 3F-Su 10PM-6AM Tariff 4Festive Period
Initial hire0.4 miles or 169 seconds £4.20 £4.62 £5.04 £5.88
Each additional 0.1 mile or 42 seconds waiting time 22p 24p 26p 31
Extra - each additional passenger: 50pExtra - each parcel carried in luggage compartment/boot/rack: 50pSoiling charge: £25-50

The national/international taxi booking services, such as Uber and Lyft are not available in Dundee, although Uber plan to be present in the future. Some of the companies have their own app, although it may be quicker to phone their office.

You can hail licensed taxis (there will be a small "For Hire" light in the windscreen, find them at the front of a taxi rank, phone one of the companies, or use an app. As Dundee is so small and there are plenty of taxis you will usually wait no more than 5 minutes. Booking is recommended if you have a train or coach to catch, especially if it's not during the daytime.

There are several taxi ranks in the city but you may find them empty.

McManus Galleries

The first rail bridge collapsed on 28 Dec 1879

Broughty Castle

Carnoustie Links in 1910

The city has two professional soccer teams, with stadiums almost adjacent:

From the Tay Estuary, Dundee is a great base for all abilities to do some hiking. The Sidlaw Hills wrap around the North of the city, beyond which is the Caingorms National Park and Cairngorms mountain range.

Machine for carding jute, Verdant Works

ASDA have a big store on East Kingsway and a smaller one on Gilburn Road.

Morrisons are on the Forfar Road, north of A90 Kingsway.

HMS Unicorn

V & A Museum next to Discovery

Pubs are dwindling, as in other cities, but there's no shortage. Most are along Hawkhill, Perth Road or West End of the city, with another strip along Nethergate. See also the eating places above.

Breweries are 71 Brewing, St Andrews Brewing and Holy Goat.

Distillery: Verdant Spirits make gin.

St Paul's Cathedral

Carlungie Earth House near Carnoustie

As of March 2025, Dundee and its approach roads have 5G from all UK carriers.

The local police is Police Scotland and the main office is in the town centre at the end of West Bell St beside Dundee's Sheriff Court. In the UK, '999' is the number to call the emergency services, and 101 for less urgent calls to the police. The pan-European emergency number 112 also works.

Dundee has an extensive CCTV system, covering most of the city and the entire city centre. This is owned by Dundee City Council and run by Tayside Police and has helped reduce crime significantly.

Dundee, like any other major city, has its anti-social problems, mainly drugs. The area round the rear of the Wellgate centre (Hilltown) and Stobswell have a bad reputation and care should be exercised on The Law at night. Overall the city has a good reputation.

Dundee has a dual carriageway going through it, the Kingsway, which almost splits the city in half. Be aware of speeding cars, as in any other busy city, as accidents are common.

This city travel guide to Dundee is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.