Home Edinburgh to Newcastle
Moving from Edinburgh to Newcastle
About a hundred and twenty miles, out through East Lothian and down the coast past Berwick. A comfortable day, as long as the time at each end is booked properly.
The deposit is only a hold on your card until your driver confirms the job.
The route
The usual way is the A1: past Dunbar and Berwick-upon-Tweed and down through Northumberland to the Tyne. Long stretches in Northumberland are single carriageway, where a van keeps to 50mph, so it is slower than the map suggests. The A68 over Carter Bar is shorter on paper but hilly and narrow, and rarely quicker with a loaded van.
How long does a man with a van take from Edinburgh to Newcastle?
Allow about two and a half to three hours down the A1 for a van, plus the loading and unloading time you book.
Choosing the loading time
The price already includes the driving, so the figure you choose in the form is the time for loading in Edinburgh and unloading in Newcastle, added together. Be honest about both ends. A top-floor flat with no lift takes far longer than a ground-floor one, and if the job runs over, the extra time is charged at the driver's rate, which you see before you book.
Newcastle's Clean Air Zone
Newcastle and Gateshead run a Clean Air Zone in the city centre. Private cars do not pay, but vans that fall below the standard pay a daily charge, and the councils point drivers to the government's vehicle checker. Your price does not include it, so if your new address is in the centre, mention it when you book and ask your driver about it when they get in touch.
Do vans pay Newcastle's Clean Air Zone charge?
Only vans that do not meet the standard, which is Euro 6 for diesel and Euro 4 for petrol. Any charge is paid on top of your price, like parking.
What to sort out at the Newcastle end
Someone needs to be there with the keys when the van arrives. Check where it can stop: Jesmond, Heaton and Sandyford are rows of Tyneside flats and terraces with permit parking, and Newcastle City Council runs its own permits. If the building has a lift or a loading bay that has to be booked, book it for the time your driver gives you, and put the details in the notes.
Moving out of central Edinburgh? The van has to meet the standard at this end too: see the Low Emission Zone and your van.
Where this comes from
Checked on 22 October 2026. The council and the universities can change their rules and dates, and their own pages are the ones that count.