arctan

Hello, folks. Would appreciate your advice and suggestions re: a trip my wife and I are making to Scotland. Our first time; and alas, a very short trip (4 nights). We are spending the first 2 nights in Edinburgh. And would like to spend the other two in a small, rural(ish) town that's not too far by train.

Essentially, we're looking to spend a quiet, relaxing time in a small town or village that is very scenic. Scotland seems to abound in such places, so it's a difficult choice! Just from reading this forum (as well as a guide book), some names that have been suggested are: Aberfeldy, Dunkeld, Braemar, Perth, Scone, Blair Atholl.

Any thoughts regarding these or other places would be very welcome. (one constraint is that we're not going to be driving; so we're looking for a place where it's easy to get around on foot or bus -- and pretty walking trails would be a plus!)

thank you,
J

sheila

Weeellll, you can knock of Aberfeldy and Braemar, on the basis you can't get to them by train. Perth is big (by our standards) so I'd lose it too. Sone is a palace or a commuter village,and not somewhere to stay.

But you could add on St Andrews, North Berwick and Dunbar.

I'd pick Dunkeld myself. St Andrews if you have any interest in golf or like to be by the sea.

arctan

Thank you very much, Sheila. We're not golfers, which is why I passed up on St. Andrews to begin with (although it does sound remarkably pleasant even for non-golfers).

I looked up Dunkeld based on your suggestion, and it sounds terrific! Would you happen to have any suggestions for places to stay there?

much appreciated,
j

sheila

I'd go with the Atholl Hotel myself, but it entirely depends on your style

arctan

thanks a lot, Sheila. Also, would you have any thoughts about Crieff vs. Dunkeld for our 2-night stay...?

cheers,
j

janisj

My choices - given your requirements and being w/i a relatively short train ride from Edinburgh - would be Dunkeld or St Andrews. Unfortunately, there are no trains to Crieff.

There are no trains to St Andrews either, but they do go to Leuchars and then there is frequent bus service from the station to St Andrews. Or you can take a taxi. There is also pretty good bus service in Fife that will get you to the fishing villages, Falkland Palace etc.

Dunkeld is a lovely small place. And the surrounding area is full of walking/hiking possibilities.

sheila

Crieff is much "older" sort of a town too.

pittpurple

Hi arctan,

Just wanted to put in a vote for St Andrews - I know you aren't golfers, but it really is such a lovely little town with a gorgeous beach. I went there on a day trip when my dad visited and fell in love with the place and returned for an overnight with my mom. There's a lovely ruined cathedral and castle and a gorgeous walk along the beach. Really cute main street with little shops and a few cafes and restaurants. We are not interested in golfing at all and we had a lovely visit. The train from Edinburgh is really easy - there are lots of buses to meet you at the station and it's only a few minutes ride. There are taxis too.

Have a great trip!

arctan

Thank you all for the very informative responses! Have been abed with the flu the last couple of days; hence my delay in getting back. But that's also given me a chance to do some more reading up on Scotland, with the result that I'm now thoroughly confused! So very much to see, and so little time...

If you folks will bear with me, I'd like to run a few more questions by you:

-- We are going to be there in early August. Given my reading of the other threads, is it a completely crazy idea to be in Edinburgh at that time?

-- If we do go to Edinburgh, either Dunkeld or St. Andrews sounds perfect for our original plan of a -night stop at a small village on the train line from Edinburgh.

-- BUT: after reading up on all the wonderful train journeys, we are tempted to change our plans to fit one in. The two options I thought of: a) Edinburgh--Glasgow-Oban (there isn't a direct train from Edinburgh?); and then spend a couple of nights on Mull before going back to Edinburgh; b) Even better, would like to do the train trip from Glasgow-Fort William (maybe carrying on to Mallaig). If we do that, could you please recommend a place to spend a couple of nights? (Skye? Plockton?)

Oof. I think I should ask all this in a separate thread... thanks for your patience!

j