We are staying to five days and wanted to go to Iverness, the highlands, or some quaint coastal area. First, is that possible? Would we need a car?

If not, where would you suggest? We would like to take day trips to explore new towns or landscapes, not necessarily musuems as we plan to do that Edinburgh.

Thanks for any help.

Inverness is an overnight because you will want to see Culloden, Clava Cairns and the castle connected with Macbeth (although it isn't really).

You should also stop at Blair Castle on the way up.

Even overnight it would be a bit rushed and, yes, you'd need a car to get to Inverness and then out to the other places.

Now, if you also want to visit "quaint coastal areas" that can be done on a separate day trip in the direction of St. Andrew's. You can do this by car or probably on some sort of bus tour from Edinburgh.

With 5 days in Edinburgh, it will take you at least 2-3 days just to see the town. Do not miss the Museum of Scotland!!! Many people do not have that on their list and to pass it by is a huge mistake. I spent 4 hours there on my last trip and it was not enough. There is also a good art museum in Edinburgh if you like that sort of museum. I admit that it has been on my list forever, but I never seem to get there because my last two trips have been in Auaugst when so much else is going on. Next time.

I would suggest that you forget about long day trips and take a look at the tourist bus day trips that are offered from Edinburgh to different places (Stirling, Loch Lomond, Loch Ness, etc.). Pick one or two of them.

There is so much to see in Scotland. With 5 days, see the things near Edinburgh. Then come back another time and rent a car to see other things.

If you are there in August, be sure to sample some of the festival entertainment. My personal favorite is the Fringe Festival, but there are a lot of other festivals going on as well.

In Edinburgh, start at the Castle at the top of the Royal Mile and work your way down to Holyrood House (the Museum of Scotland is there also). Doing the whole Royal Mile with the Castle at the top and Holyrood at the bottom can be done as one day. You should leave a half day at least for the Museum of Scotland.

Then you might want to consider the Yacht Britannia parked in Leith. You can get there by public bus. Go over to the new town and see the homes there and Rose St. (full of restaurants). Be sure to eat sticky toffee pudding.

After you have done all those things, then branch out. I think the most popular day trips are to Loch Lomand and Stirling. Other places take longer to get to and, without a car, you might want to save them for another trip.

That is just my take on things. By all means, do your research and decide what your personal priorities are. Remember that travel in Scotland takes a lot longer because you will not be traveling on 4 lane divided highways except for very major roads--and they still are not as quick as similar roads in North America.

An easy day trip from Edinburgh is the coastal town of North Berwick. You can get there by train - it takes about half an hour and trains run every hour or so. I wouldn't use the term "quaint", but it is a pretty town with a beach and some nice little nooks and crannies to explore. If you are interested in wildlife then you can also take a boat trip out from the harbour around the Bass Rock - a small rocky island which has one of the world's largest colonies of gannets - it's an incredible sight. You can see lots of other seabirds too (sometimes puffins, depending on the time of year) and seals.

I wholly agree with Marie about the East Neuk of Fife. Not that there's anything wrong with Berwick, just that there's more to see on the Fife coast. OTOH, you do need a car or a bus trip for one and not the other

As to the Highlands, you COULD do a straight run north on the train (personally, wouldn't) getting off at say, Dunkeld, Pitlochry and Blair Atholl. Ther area sufficient number of trains for you to be able to do that in a day.

If you're prepared to dive a better option would be to do the Central Highlands. Go up to Pitlochry,west along the Tay, loop up through Glen Lyon, and back to Loch Tay, west to Killin and south through Strathyre, and home. Absolutely lovely, a fair bit off the beaten track, but NOT doable by public transport

Hi.
If you're only in Edinburgh for 5 days, you'll find plenty here to do for that time - even just within the city, there's a lot of different areas to explore, and tons of great walking trails.

North Berwick is cute and easily accessible by train, as well as St Andrews. My mom and I went to St Andrews for an overnight trip and it was really easy by train and had tons of stuff to do. Just another thought...

Since moving to Edinburgh, my husband and I have rented a car a few times to do some exploring - the Loch Lomond area is gorgeous, and if you drive around the whole loch you'll end up seeing the beginning of the highlands as well. It's definately been worth it for us to rent a car, but there's plenty to do without one too - it just depends on what you're looking for!

Good luck!

Oh yeah - I second the recommendation of the Museum of Scotland. It's just a few blocks from the Royal Mile and right on several bus lines and is definately worth it. Both my parents visited during their visits and said it was a highlight of their trips. My mom recommends taking the Introductory Tour for a quick overview, but I enjoy just wandering around.

Glad to hear someone agrees with me about the Museum of Scotland. I didn't see it until the last day of my trip and wish I had had more time. Great if you are interested in history!

If you don't want to bother with a car, I'd say 1) St Andrews (train to Leuchers then bus) and 2) Glasgow (train).

The East Neuk is nice but like Sheila says, it needs a car. St Andrew's is also quite quaint, though, and there are more actual 'sights' there. I'd just go to St Andrew's & save the touring by car for another trip.

Again if you don’t want to bother with a car you can think of trains north. On weekdays, with a buffet car, you can leave Edinburgh at 0840 Pitlochry at 1924 and Inverness at 1157. Southbound trains run from Inverness at 1831 and Pitlochrie at 2017 to Edinburgh 2204. I have picked Pitrlochry, but there are other pleasant Highland towns and villages with stations on the route. I do not know that coast, but similar trains leave Edinburgh at 0810 and reach Arbroath at 0943 and Stonehaven at 1018.

Ben Haines, London
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Here are some I prepared earlier:-

1/ Day trips from Edinburgh on the train….

Perth is a former major route junction for the trains, and you will find lines from there to Edinburgh, Glasgow, via Stirling, Dundee and then Aberdeen, Inverness and all points between.

1(a) I would suggest a day in Stirling would be a good use of your time. The only problem is, it's a bit spread out, so you might need to use cabs a lot. Great castle; Wallace
Monument, Bannockburn; good shopping.



1(b) Another thought would be Pitlochry then back to Dunkeld (actually, on checking my guide I see that some (not all, so be careful) trains stop at Blair Atholl. On second thoughts miss out Pitlochry, which is an overrated tourist trap, and go on to Blair Atholl) Blair Atholl is a planned village and is very pretty in a slightly twee Victorian style, and it houses Blair Castle, home of the Dukes of Atholl and the Atholl Highlanders. V. Impressive in the grand style. I have no idea how you get from the station to the castle but it's only a mile.

On the way back south plan to stop at Dunkeld- station is Birnam, again about a mile from
Dunkeld proper.


The Cathedral is special, but so is the Square with its National Trust houses- the Little Houses. Some very good antique shops (never pay what they are asking)


Birnam is, of course, famous as being the place from which the wood came to Dunsinane in Macbeth. Dunsinane is just north of Perth on the Aberdeen Road.

1(c).Most of Perth's interest lies in its history- ancient capital of Scotland- and in its place in Scottish literature. Just north of Perth, 2 miles or so, is Scone Palace, worth a visit itself, which was the site where the kings and queens of Scotland were crowned, seated on the Stone of Destiny, (a good fake of) which you will no doubt have seen when you visited
Edinburgh castle.

The town's 12th century Church, St John's, is worth a visit. It contains the remains of an Earl of Perth who is supposed to have told the town's baillies "If you give me six feet, I'll give you twa Inches"- a reference to the two parks on either side of the old town, the North and South Inches (from the Gaelic Innis meaning meadow). In addition, it is where John Knox preached the destruction of the monasteries at the start of the Scottish reformation

Sir Walter Scott wrote a novel called "the Fair Maid of Perth" and her house and that of Hal o' the Wynd, can both be visited. This will tell you all about Clan Chattan and Clan Kay and the battle they fought (staged?) on the North Inch. Next to Hal o' the Wynd's house is the City Mills which has a restored oatmeal mill and some nice craft shops. The City Mills Hotel, which I think is now called the Stakis, is another converted Mill, done so the lade
can be seen flowing underneath.

If you walk along the Tay, you can see where the houses in the Watergate had their gardens which led down to the river, where Kate Barlass held off the soldiers come to
capture and kill the king.

The town has really good shopping centered around the High street and Old High Street. On the north edge of the town is the Caithness Glass factory where you can see the glass
being made and, of course, buy from the factory shop. Caithness has gone into receivership, (like Chapter 11) so you need to keep an eye on the situation before making
the trek out

There are a lot of nice walks.. along the river and through the North Inch, through the Norie Millar gardens on the north side of the river, Branklyn gardens on the north side of the river, Kinnoull hill with its folly, and, Buckie Braes and Callerfountain out towards the west.

Places to eat- Let's Eat is without doubt the best place in town, Patrick’s is a bistro behind the Sherriff Court (which is on Tay Street), which is quite good, and Littlejohns, Paco's and the Filling station, are all cheap and cheerful.

The Willows tea room in St John's Square is very good for coffee/tea and cakes and things.

1(d) Go up the coast as far as Arbroath, which is a traditional fishing town, famous for its "smokies", and its cathedral, which is where the Declaration of Arbroath was signed in 1320. "For so long as a hundred of us remain alive, we will yield in no least way to English
dominion" and all that.

Stop (if you want) at Carnoustie a couple of miles down the coast.. smaller and more of a 1920s tourist place, but famous for its golf course. The course is owned by the Council
and is remarkably cheap to play..

If you are rash enough to get off the train in Dundee (armpit of the Universe; am I making myself plain?) there's not much of quality to see or do. There is a very good visitor centre (the Discovery Centre) near the station, which interprets Captain Scott's voyages to the Antarctic, and his ship, the Discovery ,is moored alongside, so you can visit. Nearby is the Unicorn, a Dundee Whaler, which is also open to the public. There are people who
actually like Dundee but they are few and far between.


As an alternative to going up the coast from Dundee, you could change there and get the train to Leuchars, 6 miles from St Andrews. Buses leave Leuchars for St Andrews every
half hour (not Sundays)

The suggestions of taking the train / bus to the likes of St Andrews or North Berwick are good. I think there is more to do and see in St Andrews and it would be my preferred day out.
Edinburgh is not car friendly so hiring a car and driving there is not a great idea unless you know the city and feel competent driving on the left side of the road.
There are a number of organised day / half day bus tours leaving Edinburgh to the likes of Loch Ness, Inverness, Loch Lomond, Inverary, Roslin Chapel and Glenkinchie Whisky Distillery. Have a look through the following bus tour websites to see if any are suitable to you for the dates you are in Edinburgh. An organised bus tour should let everyone see the scenery and countryside.
The bus tours to look through are www.heartofscotlandtours.co.uk
www.travelscotland.co.uk
www.scotlinetours.co.uk
www.timberbush-tours.co.uk
www.rabbies.com

Some tours involve a lot of travelling - Inverness and Loch Ness being the furthest away and on bus tours you will be restricted as they adhere to their timetable. Alternatively you can also choose to use public transport to the likes of St Andrews or North Berwick or Stirling and this enables you to explore these towns for as long as you wish, before returning to Edinburgh.

There's a hop on hop off bus in Stirling that will take you past anything you might want to see (Wallace Monument, Bannockburn, the Castle, etc.) and a few things you might not care about (Stirling University, Bridge of Alan - although the Alan Water Cafe in Bridge of Alan has renowned fish n' chips and wonderful ice cream there.) I have not taken the bus, but it is described at:
http://tinyurl.com/z5uwx

"Dundee (armpit of the Universe; am I making myself plain?)" It does however have the only Frank Gehry building in the UK, which we took a day trip to see.

Also Day trip to Durham... beautiful cathedral city in North East England

Thanks so much for all your suggestions--most helpful!

Caroline, you're right. Dundee has much improved since I first wrote that. It now has the tasting Rooms, and......


that's it.

I didn't know about the Maggie's Centre in Dundee. It's surely impressive. (I was all set to say something sarcastic about modern architecture, but that is a smart building).

OK, there's another good thing that's happened in Dundee. City of Discovery!

The Maggie's Centre was fairly groovy, but I guess it's only worth a day trip if you're here for years, not 6 days

Oh, and the Dundee Rep is quite good isn't it ? We went up once to see an adaptation of Camus's ' The Plague'. And there often seem to be good contemporary art exhibitions on.

But OK, Dundee is not in the top 5 (10 ? 20 ? 100 ?) Scottish places to visit

It doesn't even feature in the league. And the Rep's plunged since Hamish Glen left, too