Top Ten In Scotland

Craigellachie, you did it! Thanks for the top 11 of Scotland! I'm printing this out and it's the start of my Scotland file. NO FAIR that there isn't a separate section for Scotland!

I have always wanted to visit Scotland and I am even more attracted now that you have told me it sounds less crowded with visitors than Ireland is. I know I will love Ireland (my Irish grandmother came from Ireland so it's in my blood to love it), but it's also great fun to find beautiful places that are less crowded with visitors!

Okay, I am quite charmed by this teeny wee ferry you mentioned. Is a "teeny wee" ferry even smaller than a "wee" ferry?

How old do you think the oldest Yew in Europe is? The one that Scotland claims to have? That possibility alone might be enough to lure biologist hubby to Scotland. Plus, you have listed the Best nature watching! Biologist heaven!

Do you have a favorite castle in Scotland?

Thanks so much!

No city experiences ? (Not an outdoors type myself )

This is wonderful! I'm printing it out for my file. The five days we once spent in Scotland was only enough to whet the interest. Topping to see if anyone has additions.

Thank you so much for posting such invaluable information! I'm in the very initial fact-gathering stage for a first trip to Scotland (Fall 2006) and am copying this into my notes.

Thanks for taking the time to share this.

Craigellachie, my 10 would not be very different from yours.

My "pet" island is Islay, the Queen of the Hebrides. I've sailed past Gigha many times en route, but never landed. I have a friend who thinks that everyone loves their "first" Hebridean island and so it was for me.

I've not been onto Lewis or Harris but I adore Coll, and Tiree, partly for those wildlife things you mention.

My husband is heavily into pre-history so I would throw in Kilmartin Glen with its Pictish past; and Abernethy on Seyside is magical at dusk and dawn in springtime with roding woodcock and lecking Black Grouse and Capercaillie.

Thinking quite deeply about this, there are lots of places in Scotland where the best makes an enemy of the good.

Thanks everyone for your responses to date. Dealing with the questions in order of posting -
Melissa - I wouldn't want to suggest that Scotland is always less crowded than Ireland. I made the comparison with the Cliffs of Moher from personal experience, but remember this is one the the best known attractions in Ireland so it's maybe not fair to compare it with somewhere at the furthest corner of one of our islands.
Teeny wee (or wee teeny in some places) is definitely smaller than plain wee, and about the same size as wee toaty (variable spelling). Note that these are all relative - a wee teeny ferry for example is bigger than a muckle great mouse. Measurements also vary with location. A wee whisky in certain pubs will hardly wet the bottom of the glass, a wee whisky in the home of a hospitable Scot will be enough to have a bath in.
I've seen various estimates of the age of the Fortingall Yew, most put it at around 3,000 years though some suggest it's older.
Favourite castle - not really my scene but hopefully someone else will pick this one up.
Caroline - no cities? I did give a wee plug for the Fair City of Perth... I could say a lot of good things about most of our cities (even unfashionable places like Dundee) but I honestly wouldn't choose any of them ahead of the places I listed. I also tried to avoid the most obvious and well known tourist destinations as Melissa had asked for places that weren't in the guide books - OK, I compromised and named some famous places. Sorry.
Sheila - never been to Islay but guess which islad we are trying to book a late summer holiday on right now! Spooky or what? (PS any tips for self catering accommodation?) A well travelled person could easily fill all top ten spots with Scottish islands and the only problem would be which ones to leave out. I wouldn't argue against including Kilmartin Glen especially if you added all the other ancient historical sites nearby (Dunadd for example). BTW I'm sure I've read something by a respected historian who said that the "Picts" never called themselves by this name, it was an early version of a racist insult used by the Romans. Abernethy on Speyside would get a place on the reserve list at any time of day, and although I've never been there at dawn or dusk I can imagine that it's even more special then.
Still working on those top ten tips - hope to post in a day or two.

Craigellachie; I've done an Islay preview for another Fodorite which runs to some pages and I'll easily email to you. Though I say it myself who shouldn't, it's pretty good.

As to S/C accommodation it depends on budget and location (hard to think about their being locational choices on an island the size of Islay, isn't it). Do you have views on either? As an afficionada on booking for groups, I doubt there's a place on the island I don't know.

my favorite Scottish Castle (perhaps my favorite anywhere) is Threave Castle. I've mentoined it several times so do a search to find more info.

Can I add just a couple more - I love Lochinver... especially the drive North towards Kylesku, and just thinking about it makes me want to head up there (with a nice meal at the Albannach). Sorry, most of mine are more outdoorsy...

Here's one - The Quirang, on a clear day, having hiked around to the old man and seeing the whole mountain chain on the mainland stretched out in front of you... with a nice cup of tea afterward at the Flodigarry...

Boring but true... the drive through Glen Coe with Kinloch Rannoch either before or after, never ceases to awe...

Coming back to eat a wonderful meal at the Waterfront in Oban, after having spent the day out visiting with the puffins in the Treshnish... (or coming back to a fine meal at any of the many wonderful restaurants in Scotland after a day's hike...)

And here's a nice one, not as spectacular as some of the others, but still nice and not as outdoorsy - enjoying a nice day in Pitlochry when the theatre festival is on, or if not then, having a nice meal then wandering down to the River Tummel to have a drink at dusk and watch the salmon jumping in the river...

ahhh... I could go on... but must get back to work...

Whilst agreeing with most of Craigellachie's list, and without getting drawn into comparisons, I'd like to suggest a few more places, from my neck of the woods, for your consideration, delectation and delight [in no particular order]
1. Sweetheart Abbey, in the village of New Abbey, for the romantics among you. Built by the Lady Devorgilla in memory of her husband John Balliol [she also built Balliol College, Oxford, and Devorgilla Bridge, Dunfries] in the late 13th /early 14th Century, she lies buried in the presbytery with a casket containing her husband's embalmed heart.
2. Burns House Museum, Dumfries. The home of the man himself and his wife Jean Armour as it would have been. Other Burns sights in the town are his Mausoleum in St Michaels Churchyard, the window in the upstairs snug of the Globe Inn where he scratched the opening verse of Scots Wha Hae with a diamond ring, and the Robert Burns Visitor Centre.
3. Dumfries Burgh Museum, mainly for the Camera Obscura, one of very few such machines still extant.
4. For our American cousins, John Paul Jones' Cottage Museum, Arbigland - see the home of the founder of the US Navy, with audiovisual displays.
5. For those with a taste for obscure Scottish adventure stories, The Raiders' Road is a must. A 10 mile stretch of forest road immortalised (?) by S R Crockett in "The Raiders". Before/after [depending on direction of travel] stop off at Clatteringshaws Loch, with a stunning view, as well as its visitor centre, with iron age relics and Bruce's Stone (remember the Scottish Wars of Independence raged all over this area)
6. Caerlaverock Castle. The atmospheric ruins of this unique 13th Century stone enclosure fortress are a must for any castle nut [like me!]
The above is only a taster, there's lots more to see and do in Galloway - the forgotten Scotland.

OK, here's mine

1. Seeing Scottish Opera at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre - ideally performing Wagner's 'Ring'.

2. Seeing something really amazing and unique at the Edinburgh International Festival or the Fringe.

3. Eating the surprise tasting menu at Restaurant Martin Wishart.

4. Going on an 'art crawl' of Edinburgh's independent art galleries and artist-run spaces.

5. Sitting in Charlotte Square with a glass of wine on a warm afternoon during the Edinburgh Book Festival.

6. The new Parliament building.

7. Charles Jencks's Landform at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, on a sunny day or in the snow.

8. Strolling round the New Town on a winter's late afternoon when the lights are going on and having a nosy in at people's houses.

9. Sitting on the top deck of a bus going down the Mound on a winter's afternoon as the sun is setting over the West End skyline.

10. Talking to funny drunks in a really good pub like the Port O'Leith.

Does anyone know what happened here? I posted reply to this thread on 12 August but it never appeared on my screen when I checked the page a few days later. Now when I go back to try and remember what I wrote I find my reply is already there - but I can only see it when I go to the "post reply" page. Have I done something silly the first time I tried to post it?

Hi Craig. Don't know what happened. When I try to post a reply I can't see yours.

This is what I tried to post on 12 August; I still see it when I open the "post reply" page, in fact I've just copied and pasted the whole text in here. So I'm flumoxed as to why other people couldn't see it. I don't suppose it's magic and can only be seen by the one true heir to the Scottish throne? Ah well, it was worth a try. Here's the message-

Trvlgrl,
No objection to Lochinver and surrounding area being included. The whole Torridon / Assynt / Coigeach area is beyond comparison and head & shoulders above anywhere else I've ever seen. If it had been "perm any ten from 100" the north west would have had at least 10 candidates.
If the meal on the seafront at Oban consists of prawns so fresh the sea water has barely dried (or raw oysters for the brave), I'm with you 100%. Failing which, the mussels in the Harbour Inn are a close second.
As for Pitlochry, agreed the theatre has a setting to match any, but who wants to be indoors when you could be outside enjoying typical(?!?) Scottish summer weather? Surely the best day spent from Pitlochry is to climb Ben Vrackie (from Killiecrankie if you're feeling adventurous). Right on the edge of the highlands it gives an unbeatable contrast of views between the fertile Strath Tay to the south and the wildest of wild places to the north. If the sun is shining (as it always is), a swim in the disused reservoir is a must on the way down. There are usually too many people about to swim as nature intended but a brief dook in clear cold water after a day on the hill is one of life's greatest pleasures. The walk back down to Pitlochry takes you past the Moulin Inn, except it would be an act of sheer barbarism to go PAST without calling in. A view to match any, an Olympic size swimming pool, and one of the best pubs in the country on the way down - it's less than 3,000 feet but I vote for Ben Vrackie to be declared an honorary Munro.

Doonhamer,
I bow to your superior knowledge of our south west. It's been too long since I visited, many happy if somewhat faded memories waiting to be re-activated. Note for watching Fodorites - south west Scotland is a much, much bigger place than you would think from looking at a map. You won't do it in a day. Two or three days absolute minimum, preferably more. If this means you have to extend your stay in Scotland, who's complaining? (Only the English Tourist Board, poor diddums).

Caroline,
An interesting selection with not even the teeniest hint of bias towards Auld Reekie. Intersting to see the Parliament among your choices. OK, the organisation of the building contract (by the UK Government!) was a shambles, but the building itself is a fitting tribute to all of us who worked so hard to make it happen.
Just one quibble on your top ten. You obviously value our cultural heritage, you listed ten top places in and around Edinburgh, and you couldn't find a spot for the last resting place of Robert Fergusson? Burns thought he was the greatest Scots poet of all time, he even raised the money to pay for his tombstone in the Canongate kirkyaird. Any chance you could squeeze him in as number ten and a half?

Hi Craig. "all of us who worked so hard to make it happen" - top man ! Are you able to tell us what your role was ?

Sorry, I've seen the Fergusson statue, and I know I ought to have read him, but I'm afraid I haven't My interests are more in the contemporary arts.

BTW Scottish Opera's 'Death of Klinghoffer' is fantastic - I may go again tomorrow !

Re SW Scotland - we enjoyed searching for the Andy Goldsworth works around his home village of Penpont. I didn't so much enjoy stumbling round a depressing caravan park in Galloway, in the rain and wind, searching for the remains of the Wicker Man

(See, I do get out of Edinburgh occasionally ! Although usually only to go to Glasgow )

Caroline
"Are you able to tell us what your role was?"
Same as so many others - 20 years of pounding the streets, delivering leaflets, knocking doors, writing letters, standing at shopping centres, trying to waken the sleeping giant. On referendum day I met one lady with her husband (sadly no longer with us) who was almost paralysed but insisted on walking the 400 yards or so to the polling station to cast his vote in person. That's when I knew there could only be one result

Well done, Craig ! Actually when I posted I was thinking you meant you helped make the actual building happen : it was only later I realised you might mean the parliament itself.

When is the best time to travel in Scotland April/May or in October? I am planning a trip to Scotland with my 76 year old mother and she likes the scenic travel vs. city stays.

The weather could be the same in both, i.e. rather cold & grey. But it might be nice in May and the days are much longer. Both should be outside the midge season I think, although you could be unlucky in May if it's warm.

May I also cast a vote for the much maligned Parliament Building.

I too cmapigned for the concept and when we've got over the fuss, the building will still make us proud

saving for future reference. Great ideas!

there's an article in this months Saveur magazine about a restaurant, called The Chip in Glasgow, the Chez Panisse of Scotland.'
Sheila, have you dined there?

I haven't, Mimi. It's Sunday name is the "Ubiquitous Chip" and it's where the glittering people go.

I have eaten several times at the Chip, although not for about 3 years now. It was always quite good when I went (if not out of this world). However, about a year ago I read a very poor review of it, so it may be resting on its laurels.

BTW I am by no means glittering ! I suppose some quite trendy types go there but the decor is quite basic & sixties style - maybe that's supposed to be the similarity to Chez Panisse ?

Fair play to the place, though; I believe it was the first good restaurant in Scotland, back when Britain was still coming out of post-WWII austerity & discovering good food.

Craigellachie, I was just reviewing your "Top 10/11! in Scotland" in my planning for a trip in May 2006.

Could you tell me a little more about the "Superfast ferry from Zeebrugge in Belgium"? How would a person go about this?

We are having trouble booking our flight from Toronto to London, via Amsterdam using air miles, with a return trip from Glasgow. I'm wondering if it may be plausible to fly in to Belgium, take the ferry across to Edinburgh, and start our trip there, do Scotland, then a couple days in London and fly home from there.
We would be skipping a 2 day layover in Amsterdam but could do that in Belgium instead...(just looking to do one more place if we can, even just for a couple of days to get the taste of the place).

Booking with Air Miles and arriving in one destination, while returning from another destination, I have found is a bit of a nightmare, so I am looking for possible options flying in that would give us one more place to see enroute (they will allow a 4 day layover between stops) enroute.

So, what else can you tell me about this ferry? (cost, length of trip etc.)

I guess flying into Scotland direct can't be done?

You can find details on http://www.superfast.com/Scotland/English/index.asp

it's good but it ain't cheap

Thanks Sheila, I have found the site.
To your question about flying into Glasgow direct- there aren't many options for airlines with the Air Miles program, we are restricted to KLM/North West, Air Canada and American Airlines I believe.
KLM makes a stop in Amsterdam no matter what whether flying into London or Glasgow. Air Canada has lots of flights in and out of London in May, however, no options for flying into one destination and out of another.

We just thought it would be a bonus, if we had a stopover in Amsterdam and had the option, we would stay there overnight before flying into either London or Scotland (at no extra cost).
As we had been planning a couple of days in London prior to finding our way to Scotland for 2+ weeks of travel, we didn't want to travel back to London to return home to Toronto. Thought it would make better use of our time to leave from Glasgow, which is complicating things...

Thanks for your assistance, may be asking for more as we plan our itinerary for the trip.

raz,
If you're looking at the Superfast ferry site be aware that they recently announced a reduction in ferry frequency for this winter. They SAY it will be back to one daily trip each way next spring...
Four years ago I got direct Air Canada flights from Glasgow to Toronto - have these been stopped?

Craigellachie,
Thanks for your response. I actually finally got my flight plans settled today and able to use my Air Miles. Yes, I believe Air Canada does fly into Glasgow, however, nothing available with Air Miles at the time I needed (they only have so many seats on certain planes and once they're booked, you're out of luck). Had we wanted to fly in & out of Glasgow, we might have been able to make something work, however, our preferance was to fly into London and out of Glasgow -that made things much trickier.(you have to use the same airline for both trips when you book your travel with Air Miles.)
We are now flying into London via Amsterdam, then flying out of Glasgow also via Amsterdam - with a stopover in Amsterdam for one night on our way home to Toronto. We had initially tried for a stopover on our way to London but all the pieces wouldn't work...
In the end, we may regret all the time spent on airplanes and in airports, but some of us have to learn the hard way...
this is my first trip to Europe, so it's a learning experience for me all around.

Craig, yes, the Herald had a piece a week or two ago about Air Canada stopping direct flights to Glasgow - actually while Jack was schmoozing in Canada.

Kirkcudbright in the SW of Scotland. That is a wonderful place.

Second... Sulwaith brewery tour in Castle Douglas...

Third... Logan Botanical Garden in Port Logan.

Fourth ... All of Edinburgh.


I'm looking forward to visiting more places so I can fit Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire in the mix... I do like the Provost Skene's museum!

wow read all these suggestions and i am overwhelmed.. i am planning a 2 weeks vacation in the summer of 2012.. yes i am starting early since Scotland is my dream vacation! maybe i sound silly, but i wanna see the "braveheart" kinda sights. not the typical tourist stuff, but nature, castles and just beautiful sights. can't do all day hikes or such things as I have 3 children with me but i want to see as much as possible without having to rush from place to place. have time to suck it all in.. i would like to choose one place for one week and do day trips from there and the next week i would love to go to another place and do the same. and suggestions where to stay?

You'll probably garner better responses by starting a new thread with specific questions rather than topping a 6 year old thread.

Laura_King: Yes -- you definitely need to start a new thread of your own.

"but i wanna see the "braveheart" kinda sights. not the typical tourist stuff, but nature, castles and just beautiful sights"

Well -- 'Braveheart sites' are about the most touristy bits in Scotland (only Nessie sites are more so) Folks often say they don't want to go touristy places, like the country is full of theme parks -- not realizing places like castles, distilleries, scenic view points ARE the touristy sites in Scotland. They are touristy/popular for a reason.

Yes, two one week stays in holiday cottages is a great option. I have several l suggestions for locations and even specific rentals -- but I'll wait til the new thread is up, and post info there.