I visited Scotland last Oct. and recommend you take lots of layers that you can add or remove during the day. A hooded rain jacket would also be a good idea. Your cottage may have a washer, and if there is a dryer it may be a washer/dryer combo which will take hours to dry jeans.

Make sure you have waterproofed walking shoes or booties, well broken in. You will need a sturdy folding umbrella and a waterproof jacket - and lots of layer underneath. Have not been in Oct - in the middle of July we got temps in the mid 40s with lots of wind and rain (and had to wear tee, shirt and sweater under a rain jacket).

I would bring turtlenecks or tee shirts; do not limit your tops to sweatshirts. If it turns warm you won't want to wear a sweatshirt. Warm socks. I would also take slacks other than jeans as you could wait several days for jeans to dry out.

Churches can be very cold so you probably won't be taking off your jacket during the service.

BTW - the entire forum is "europe." You forgot the UK tag but you could have asked the editors to add one (click on the yellow triangle) rather than reposting.

Click on your name to check for responses to your other post.

It could be swimsuit weather, it could be the first icy blast of winter. It could be anything in-between.

Don't take "waterproofed walking shoes or booties" as it's rare that the rain is heavy enough to need them - "ordinary leather shoes, the type you wear to the office, or even - horrors - sports shoes will do.

As above, waterproofed shoes are unnecessary unless your plans include some serious trail walking. Walks on paved streets don't need anything other than ordinary shoes.

Scarves, gloves and sweaters are a good idea. My wife takes them even in the summer, when we have encountered weather similar to that described by nytraveler -- 40's F in August.

Sweatshirts are cotton and thus clammy when wet. It will be wet at least part of the time, though almost never all day. Unless you have high quality raingear, you will get wet from perspiring if not from the outside. All students, and there are a lot of them in Edinburgh, wear jeans, but they don't mind being slightly damp all the time. You may not either.

More controversially, I would say a sweatshirt is inappropriate for a middle class adult in Edinburgh, particularly a sweatshirt with anything written on it. By "middle class" I mean someone who aspires to eat something beyond fast food or in the most casual of cafes.

Should you go to the Highlands, there is likely to be some snow at higher elevations, so you will need to allow for that. Fortunately, woolen goods are something that the Scots do exceedingly well.

Sorry - I found waterproof shoes to be necessary - it was very heavy rain - and if I had been wearing my usual canvas Skechers they would have soaked it all up - never mind flats with thin soles (which often let in any water on the sidewalk), and peep-toe shoes. I think you understood the "waterproof" part - there are a lot of shoes people wear on a regular basis that absorb or let in any water that's around.

Thanks for the wealth of information. I need to make some slight revisions on my packing list. Can't wait to get across the pond and begin our adventure in 119 days!

Instead of sweatshirts, consider mid-weight fleece jacket or pullover, especially with a hood -- they are good for layering, light weight, fast drying, and look a bit more grown-up.

I'll agree with nytraveler on the "waterproof shoes" issue. Timberland and other companies make Goretex lined shoes that are stylish enough to wear in the city, but still keep your feet dry. Walking around in damp shoes gives me the creeps. If you plan to do a lot of walking, even on city streets, you will be thankful for comfortable shoes.

For outerwear, modern waterproof breathable fabrics are a blessing, but if you want to go traditional, tweed is made for Scottish weather.

I can't remember how I got through life, and particularly travel, before polyester fleece was invented.

<<It could be swimsuit weather . . .>>

In the UK, swimsuit weather is anything above 60 F - that's why there were hundreds of cases of heat exhaustion at the 2009 London Marathon when the day's highest temperature was less than 68F/20C.

Agree w Heimdall on the Timberlands - have multiple pairs and they work perfectly. Columbia brand shoes would too. Check REI, any Timberland outlet, and LL Bean. My preference is Timberland and even on paved streets they seem to do quite well. Since you're renting a cottage in a more rural area than the center of Glasgow, Edinburgh or Aberdeen, decent waterproof walking shoes may be necessary.

I am going early November and trying to decide what kind of winter clothes to take. I live in central New Jersey and have three wool coats, of varying lengths and thickness, for the late fall and winter here. Should I just take the full-length thickest coat (and of course layers for underneath), or would that be too much for early November in Scotland? I transit through LHR this past February with snow on the ground, didn't think it was particularly cold compared to NJ (had my mid-weight 3/4 length wool coat on).

I do wonder sometimes how we Scots manage to survive with dry feet without recourse to advice from out infrequent visitors.

Hon - be fair - I'm still trying to rid of trenchfoot from my last visit north of Carlisle.

Just cos you all have webbed feet.........

We wear multiple diving suits, layered, with flippers in case of showers.

Flippers are on my birthday list.....

I've told you before. No dolphins!!

Flippers, Jo Malone stuff and James McAvoy.......

Weegie, you Scots are a hardy lot! Tee-shirts in subzero weather, and all that! the rest of us prefer to be comfortable.

Answers to weegie's question:

1. When you are full of whisky, you don't notice the weather.
2. When you exist in a permanent fug of cigarette smoke, you don't notice the "mist" outside.
3. The heat from deep fried Mars bars and pizzas (Scottish cuisine) keeps you warm.
3. You are a wet lot anyway.

I'd duck now if I were you.......

Man knows his stuff. No arguments here.

In fact, winter in New Jersey will usually be colder and snowier than Scotland in midwinter. The difference is that in NJ the seasons sort of follow a pattern - whereas in Scotland you can get late fall all year around.

I don;t know that I would take your heaviest coat - I would go more for layers. (But I wear a leather jacket - not blazer but mid thigh jacket - for any temps 35 or above. I don;t do heavy winter coats until temps are in the 20s.)

Good hooded raincoat is essential - my umbrella was useless.

I arrived in Glasgow, and the raincoat I'd bought especially didn't arrive with me. In mid-October it was bitter, cold, windy and bucketing rain - and I had only the clothes I stood up in, which I'd worn from Sydney almost 2 days ago. Not a happy chap!

Luckily my luggage arrived the next day - and I was ever so thankful for the waterproof shoes also!

I'll be arriving a week earlier this year - and I'll be carrying my raincoat all the way. I'm taking no chances of not having it when I get there!

Quote from a Scots friend: "When you can see the hills it is going to rain. When you can't see the hills it is already raining."

"Luckily my luggage arrived the next day - "

Which is why I only travel w/ a carry-on bag. Coat in the overhead w/ my roll aboard and everything arrives w/ me

What I usually take is a raincoat w/ a zip out liner, and mostly layerable sweaters/blouses/turtlenecks.

I landed at EDI in the middle of last month and it was 8.5C (47F) and raining buckets -- 4 days later it was 28C (82F) and HOT. Layers are your friends.

I do wonder sometimes how we Scots manage to survive with dry feet without recourse to advice from out infrequent visitors.

Webbed feet.

I said that already....