Oldest Friends Wedding - Travel NIGHTMARE

[JARM]

My oldest friend is getting married on 7th July.

She lives in scotland, we live in East Anglia.

She is getting married in Dingwall on the 7th and is having a small dance afterwards.

Her official wedding dance is being held in her home town of Thurso on 21st July.

I dont really know how to go about doing this. We are all invited, to both "do's" but it is turning into a travel nightmare.

Do we drive up on the 5th, staying overnight in glasgow area with family and complete first stage of trip on 6th, pay for B&B in dingwall for 2 nights and then drive up to Thurso on 8th, find somewhere to stay up there until 22nd and drive down again, breaking it up with an overnight stay with family in glasgow.

or do i....

fly up by myself for the wedding only

or

all go up to thurso for 3 weeks, travel down to dingwall for the wedding staying one night?

the logistics are driving me insane - as are the costs! We cant afford to go at all really, but I really want to be there. She is the oldest friend I have, she is a great person and I want to share her day.

Any help/advice would be appreciated!

Which bit do you most want to attend? Personally I'd prefer to go to the actual wedding. I don't think I'd stay for three weeks... Awful long time to be away with kiddies, don't you think?

Could you afford to fly to the wedding on your own, then drive with kids two weeks later and see your family etc?

Flights can be pretty cheap to the scottish regional airports, if you shop around - particularly if you don't fly out of a major London airport.

thats what i was wondering, maybe flying to the wedding by myself (or if dad would watch the girls for 2 nights, with DH) and then maybe take the girls for a week up north to attend the dance.

Personally, would rather be at the wedding itself, I can always catch up with her properly later in the year (she lives in Edinburgh)

its just so hard, because i know she would love to see the girls but it seems too much expense!

I would only go to one- with the distances involved she must understand, surely?

Personally, I would want to be present for the wedding itself, so I would travel up to Dingwall, taking as long as you need to (family included), attend the wedding and small dance, and then stay a few more days in the area, turning this into the family holiday this year. I would not go to the "offcial" do- presumably this one is to appease friends who are not invited to the smaller do, which you are, so no need to go to both!

I'd agree completely with tissy.

she will understand, of course she will, i guess its just me that wants to be there lol

I might look into how much it would be for all of us to go up for the wedding itself, driving.

We wont be staying in Tulloch Castle where the wedding is - not at £110 a night!!!