Trip to Scotland! Help please.

[Magic Mom]

This summer dh and I are planning a trip (just the two of us!! give me my bad parent award now please LOL). I would like to go to Scotland. He isn't so sure. I need some travel ideas/tips/itineraries/must sees from people in the know. That's you! So tell me about vacationing in Scotland. A little bit about us, we are pretty flexible, like to eat out, enjoy outdoor activities, like museums and the symphony, but not the opera, feel more at home in casual places. I would like to go pony trekking.


hhmm this sounds like a dating ad.

 

[plutotek]

FWIW, we spent 2 days in Edinburgh as part of a tour and really enjoyed it. The older part of the city is very tourist/walking friendly. If you are going in the summer, you may want to consider August, as they have the Military Tattoo that occurs at the castle. We haven't been, but it's one of the things on our wish list.

Of course, no trip to Scotland would be complete w/o trying Haggis, but make sure you have it served w/the Whiskey Sauce!!

http://www.edintattoo.co.uk/

 

[chrissyt27]

You should visit Stirling Castle. It's pretty cool. They have a lot of info about William Wallace.

http://www.stirlingcastle.gov.uk/

Stirling Castle is a great symbol of Scottish independence and a source of enduring national pride. The castle’s long, turbulent history is associated with great figures from Scotland’s past, such as William Wallace, Robert the Bruce and Mary Queen of Scots.

 

[DSNY4ever]

We spent 6 days there last year as part of a month long trip in the UK. It was incredible! We loved it so much we want to move there. We did 3 days in Edinburgh and then 3 days touring the highlands and the Isle of Skye. Next time we hope to do Glasgow, Oban, and the Aran Islands (I could have spelled that wrong, I can't remember).

No need for a car in the big cities and you can go back and forth to Edinburgh and Glasgow by train. You need a car if you are going to drive out and explore the highlands and smaller cities.

In Edinburgh we stayed at Adria House B&B, and I would highly recommend it- our room was fabulous, the breakfast was fabulous and we were able to easily walk to everything in the city from there. We loved the Holyrood House Palace, Edinburgh Castle, The Edinburgh Museum, The Royal Mile, St. Giles Cathedral...we pretty much loved everything and wished we had more time. Oh and don't miss the Princes street gardens- so pretty, great view of the castle from the fountain there. We ate at some wonderful restaurants and a great fudge shop.

In the highlands we went all over and made our home base for a few nights on Portree. The landscape was beautiful, the little villages were nice to stop in. We went to Eileen Donan castle which was beautiful and Loch ness which was fun, but no we did not spot Nessie!

Try getting Rick Steve's UK book, it was a huge help in our planning. I liked his tips and suggested itineraries. You will have an absolutely fabulous time. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

 

[Bonnie151]

I live in Scotland! I stay about 15 miles west of Edinburgh now but I lived in Edinburgh for over a decade. It's a fantastic city. How long are you going for? If it's a fairly short trip, I'd make Edinburgh your base and then you can do all sorts of day trips from it - e.g. the previously mention Stirling Castle plus Linlithgow Palace, up to Pitlochry, over to Loch Lomond. The Pentland Hills are on your doorstep which are fabulous for walking (or you can take a bus to Peebles, a cute little town amongst gorgeous scenrey) and I'm sure you can do pony trekking there as well. Arthur's Seat is an extinct volcano right in the middle of the city and is great for walks/panoramic views. There's the Meadows as well which is nice to walk across during summer evenings, especially if you end up at: http://www.golftavern.co.uk/golf-tavern/golf-history-scotland.html

In Edinburgh there's the Castle, "Royal Mile" with various museums, the Botanical gardens, Princes St & Princes St Gardens (great for a picnic), Grassmarket and cute little areas like Stockbridge & Marchmont with little shops to potter about in.

I'd highly recommend doing a tour of Mary King's Close: http://www.realmarykingsclose.com/ which was boarded up (with people inside! ) during the plague.

 

[Magic Mom]

Thank you all! There is so much information out there that this helps me start to fine tune the planning a little bit.

 

[Amelia Peabody]

Oh gosh - I could type REAMS of opinion! And I am so jealous....

But agree with PP's, in Edinburgh use a B&B. I stayed on Kings Street right down from the theater, same place twice. It felt like home. Best time to go but will be a tad crowded is during the Festival in the summer. We saw the London Symphony, a play in the "auld" language and a play with Glenda Jackson and Eli Wallach. The weekend we left Rudolf Nureyev brought the Paris Ballet to town and I missed it!!! The Royal Mile, Holyrood Castle, Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh Castle - we walked to it all. We considered the "flat" route to Princes Street Gardens as the long way. We climbed up and over the castle "hill" every day.

Rented a car, stopped at Cranston then headed for Perth and Stirling. Stayed in a B&B near Braemore while they had the highland games. Saw Princess Diana at her first public appearance after William was born. Headed through the highlands to Inverness - LOVED the B&B there. Went to Culloden Moor while. Came back down Loch Ness to Oban. Then went to Glen Coe and back to Edinburgh.

Of course this was 1981 and I don't remember all the details...

Research, research, research!!! And use B&B's!

 

[can84]

Scotland is awesome! Without a doubt it is my favorite country to visit--and I'd move there in a heartbeat! I stayed in Edinburgh and Glasgow and then rented a car and went to the Highlands. So beautiful and the people were really warm and friendly! I will say this--I never believed in ghosts before visiting, but now I do!

 

[NCRedding]

I loved St. Andrews for a day trip! Easy to walk. Nice aquarium, pretty downtown area, a castle and a cathedral.

We stayed in Edinburgh for 3-4 days; wonderful city. I loved hearing tour guides saying things like "This is the "new" church. Is was built in 1600."

 

[Magic Mom]

Has anyone been pony trekking?

 

[Catananche]

I'll sing the praises of Edinburgh as well (but I'm biased).

There's no shortage of museums and if you come during the Festival you'll have a great choice of music as well as all sorts of drama, comedy, dance (and some bizarreness). There's a buzzing atmosphere then (August) but early reservations are a must. If crowds aren't your thing then come earlier in the summer. This is a good website with the dates of the different festivals, inc the Tattoo, in Edinburgh during the summer:
http://www.edinburghfestivals.co.uk/festivals

Eating out is a pleasure now, particularly in the towns: avoid the chains and look for bistros that use local ingredients. I can recommend a few. And if you have fish'n'chips you have to try your chips with salt'n'sauce (it's an Edinburgh thing).

You can do pony trekking all over the country, I did it on the Isle of Islay. I've never visited the Isle of Arran but it's often described as Scotland in miniature and you can trek there too. I love the west coast and my favourite beach is Uig Sands on the Isle of Lewis. Lots of ferry crossings, check out the CalMac website. In general you can get around quite easily with public transport, but I would hire a car if exploring the Highlands. Oh, and don't miss Glen Coe.

 

[DIS_MERI]

You should visit Stirling Castle. It's pretty cool. They have a lot of info about William Wallace.

http://www.stirlingcastle.gov.uk/

Stirling Castle is a great symbol of Scottish independence and a source of enduring national pride. The castle’s long, turbulent history is associated with great figures from Scotland’s past, such as William Wallace, Robert the Bruce and Mary Queen of Scots.

I agree with this, although I was a bit startled to see how much the statue resembled Mel Gibson.

 

[Catananche]

The Mel Gibson / Wallace statue has gone now, thank goodness.

 

[rwdavis2]

Take a look at a map of Scotland. I've done touring at the lower areas from Edinburgh to St. Andrews and then headed north west to Kenmore and Stirling, over to Dumbarton then drove back down to England and Wales. During this trip we did a bunch of walking trails which were amazing. Go look up some books on the walking trails in Scotland.

The second trip we went north along the east coast (some amazing castle ruins of which I forgot the name) then cut NW along the Whiskey Trail and more castles (of the Cindarella style) and then drove the length of all the Lochs southwest.

Scotland is a beautiful place. We just went town to town and found B&Bs at each place with no reservations.

 

[kirbydog48]

Go to tripadvisor.com and check out the Scotland forums, which include accomodation and restaurant reviews.

 

[BrerMom]

Scenic Train Journeys in Scotland

http://www.suite101.com/content/scenic-train-journeys-in-scotland-a66690

http://www.scotlandrailways.com/index_scenicroutes_west-highland-line.cfm

http://www.scotlandsforme.com/main_attraction.php?id=79

 

[DarrenSpriing]

This summer dh and I are planning a trip (just the two of us!! give me my bad parent award now please LOL). I would like to go to Scotland. He isn't so sure. I need some travel ideas/tips/itineraries/must sees from people in the know. That's you! So tell me about vacationing in Scotland. A little bit about us, we are pretty flexible, like to eat out, enjoy outdoor activities, like museums and the symphony, but not the opera, feel more at home in casual places. I would like to go pony trekking.


hhmm this sounds like a dating ad.

Hi,

First post! I hope you don't mind me saying, it only sounds a little like a dating ad

Edinburgh and Glasgow are great places with great shopping, vibrant nightlife, really prominent Victorian architecture, and they are very easy to go between with the great train links! The journey by train is roughly just over an hour!

As a Glasgow boy (I am obviously biased) I can tell you some great places to go and see! Glasgow is the 3rd biggest city in the UK behind London and Birmingham, it is the next best place outside London for shopping!

The shopping 'Style Mile' runs down Buchanan Street and into Argyll street, a fantastic gem to head to is Princes Square - princessquare.tv, lots of restaurants, amazing architecture and restaurants in one hidden place!

Phew! I think for my first post I have perhaps chatted too much! I'll be happy to tell you some info if you like

Best
Darren