Anybody ever been to Scotland???

[kimbac3]

My family and I really want to visit Scotland. I've never been out of the country before so needless to say I'm nervous!! Should I use a travel agent for this or try to put things together myself? Has anybody ever priced out the difference? Anyone have any tips specific to Scotland? We want to definetly do Edinburgh (Is that spelled right???).
Thanks!
Kimba

 

[bicker]

We've never been, but we're also interested in making such a trip. However, based on previous great experiences traveling abroad, we're inclined to do it with Globus Tours. We're specifically looking at this tour:

http://www.affordabletours.com/search/it/?t=GE

Hopefully, the economy will eventually improve enough that the money will be there. <sigh>

 

[golfgal]

I would use a travel agent if you are unfamiliar with the area, especially if you can find one that has been there. Think of it like going to Disney for the first time, you don't know good places to stay, how the dining plan works, the whole deal about refillable mugs/poolhopping , you just show up at Disney and try to find your way around. It isn't the best plan, right?

My BIL has been there several times, he is an architect and had a project over there. They were going to go again this year for a family vacation for Christmas, BUT, oops, they are pregnant, their youngest will be 8 when the baby comes.

 

[Geoff_M]

My wife and I went there in 1990 with only a couple of well read travel guides and a BritRail pass. It was a real "seat of the pants" trip. The cities there had nice tourism offices near transportation centers that were very helpful. If you wanted a good B&B to stay at, they'd call around and find one with a vacancy for you. I will, however, add that we weren't there in "high season" so we weren't too concerned about "no vacancy" signs... so keep that in mind. We basically travelled from London to Edinburgh to Inverness to The Isle of Skye and back. It was a blast.

 

[mickeyminnie]

I've been, we went around the Glasglow/Edinburgh area. We did venture up to Inverness as well. We had the best time. We mainly walked around the cities with a Fodors guide and decided what to see. Make sure you take plenty of time to visit the pubs, they are so cool. We really enjoyed Sterling and visiting a number of the castles around that area. Next time we would like to visit the south areas as well.

 

[escape]

I went to Scotland for 10 days with a friend about 12 years ago. We stayed at a Hilton (I think) on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. We made all of our own arrangements....and without the Internet. We relied on guide books and had no problems at all. However, if you would feel more comfortable, as golfgal mentioned, you might consider a travel agent for your first International trip.

A couple of things I wanted to let you know about that happens every August (and only in August) in Edinburgh are the Edinburgh Military Tattoo and The Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The Tattoo is the largest gathering of bagpipes, drums, and other other talent and is a big International event. It is a very AMAZING show and was one of the highlights of our trip. I wanted to learn to play the bagpipe after this show.

The Fringe is a little hard to describe. I guess you can say it's a festival showcasing talent from all over - comedy, musicals, drama, concerts, etc. There are over 1500 different shows - some as big as broadway productions, most others in smaller venues that can hold 50 or less people. Tickets to the bigger productions (with well known stars) should probably be purchased in advance - all others you can just about get the day of the show. Quite interesting and fun!

From Edinburgh, we were able to do a day trip to St. Andrews - home of Golf. Quite interesting town! I'm glad we were able to do this. I would have liked to do more day trips from Edinburgh but my friend really wanted to soak up more of the shows in the Fringe.

In addition to these two events mentioned, Edinburgh has a lot to offer. I'm sure you'll have a good time - we sure did! I hope to go back someday and see some of the other towns.

Good luck in your planning!

 

[kimbac3]

Wow!! Thanks everyone! Now I want to go even more!! We aren't planning on doing this for quite a few years yet. About 4 yrs I think - our youngest would be 13 then. But I know nothing about the area or prices so I need to get a ballpark and start some research. I'm taking notes on the thread too so if you have anymore advice PLEASE!! post away!!
Thanks Again,
Kimba