Hey everyone!
I will be part of a group of college students in Ireland for the spring semester, and after the program is finished we have the option of doing some extra traveling. Some of us are thinking that we would like to go to Scotland for several days after classes are done (in early May). We have a couple ideas of places to possibly go (the Hebrides, possibly Huntly in Aberdeenshire where the author George MacDonald was from), but we're looking for other ideas. We'll be on a college student budget, obviously, so nothing too grandiose, but we are really looking to get a good view of the culture. We don't have a particular region to choose from; in fact, there is a good chance we will be traveling to England, as well, so we would be going the length of the country if we were able to do that as well.
Also, what is the mode of transportation that would be the most affordable and straightforward to use?
Thanks so much for reading and replying if you choose to do so!
Scotland bound college students
Recent Activity
View all Europe activity »
- 1 Bellevue House in Florence Contact ?
- 2 browsing homes for sale in Kent
- 3 Must-do Day Trips from London
- 4 A Christmas Store in Paris
- 5
Venice - another trip report (deja vu all over again)
- 6 Beaune Hotel or B&B Recommendation Please
- 7 Drive Rome Florence
- 8 Backpacking for the first time in 2014
- 9 Which tour company would be best?
- 10 How to make a phone call from a pay phone in London to Germany
- 11 I am Planning about to spend holidays at Windermere
- 12 The Adventure Begins.. Sarge56 in Italy
- 13 When to exchange US dollars to Euros
- 14 Gatwick Express 5 for 3 -- available at Victoria station or only online?
- 15 Sights to see, places to stop in drive from Edinburgh to London
- 16 Barcelona - eat, drink, dance.
- 17 10 days in Barcelona - itinerary ideas?
- 18 EU Rule On Olive Oil Roils Europe!
- 19
Iwan2go went...to Prague, Salzburg, Vienna and Paris
- 20 10 days in Andalusia in Feb 2014 - best home base
- 21
A bit of Scotland, wing mirror casualty, 7 days in London, and a Fodors GTG
- 22 Stay and Visit Italy/Amalfi and Grand Hotel Ischia Lido - Ischia
- 23 Northern Italy
- 24
May 24, 2013. How to avoid lines in Paris, and other observations
- 25 Spain and Portugal Itinerary 2 Week Vacation Help
You could see a good bit of Scotland by organizing your trip around Scottish authors. George MacKay Brown was from the Orkneys, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Robert Louis Stevenson from Edinburgh, Sir Walter Scott from the Borders near Galashiels, and Robert Burns from Ayr.
You would get a good look at Scotland by visiting the Highlands, the Islands, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
The cheapest form of transport (other than thumb) will be bus; and that will provide greater flexibility than train because of all the places trains don't go. BUT trains are much more comfortable, but Caledonian MacBrayne do a "value ticket" which combines train and ferry so that might work better for you.
Even Scotland doesn't have one homogenous culture. Is there something in particular you might be interested in?
Sadly, I think the number of people in the area who know about George MacDonald might be counted on the fingers of one hand (well, maybe two); but I'm one of them. If you decide you want to come to Huntly let me know. It's my home patch and I'd love to help
Comment has been removed by Fodor's moderators
Thanks so much for your replies!
Fife, I will run the Scottish authors idea by my fellow travelers - Conan Doyle is one of my favorite authors, I didn't know he was from Scotland! We will probably look at routes covering the different regions you suggests and see how it pans out.
sheila, thanks for suggesting the bus - my sister has spent extended amounts of time in the UK, so I suspected that the bus would be best from talking to her, but it's good to get it confirmed from a resident. I think as far as what parts of Scotland we're looking at, we're just looking for the widest experience possible over the course of a few days in as inexpensive a way as possible. So basically, we're wide open for ideas! Thanks for your thoughts
It would be helpful to know exactly how many days you plan to spend in Scotland as this will certainly influence where you'll be able to go especially if using the bus.