Are there other Lochs more beautiful? If we are not interested in Nessie, should we drive along the Loch, or spend time elsewhere?

"<i>Are there other Lochs more beautiful?</i>"

definitely -- all over the country. Though Urquhart castle on the edge of the loch is a nice bonus.

But a lochs go, Loch Ness is more than half way down the league table.

to give you an idea: http://journals.worldnomads.com/stow...stle-Loch-Ness

As you can see -- the lochside is not any sort of dramatic scenery

"Are there other Lochs more beautiful? "

Most of them, without Nessie no-one would have heard of it

Here's a few recommendations
http://living.scotsman.com/recommend...och.3309992.jp
http://www.scotland-flavour.co.uk/top10/lochs.html

I wouldn't make a special trip just to see it. However, it is an extremely large body of water, and if you are traveling in that part of the country, you are going to get very close to it, if not drive by it, at some point. If you travel between Inverness and Skye by the southern route, a stop at Urqhart Castle is worthwhile. However, if you are going north of Inverness, it is not worth a special detour.

I guess if we are in the area and have time we'll drive back to the castle, but not make it a priority. I'll check out some of those others on the links from alanrow

Thanks!

My family is headed to Scotland for the last week of June, and Loch Ness is high on my son's priority list after reading about the legend (he's 8). He also firmly believes in Nessie.

We also saw a "Nova" program about the construction and testing of medieval siege weapons that was filmed on the grounds of Castle Urqhart, so that's in his Top 5, too.

Given all of the lukewarm comments about Loch Ness, just how low should my expectations be for this jaunt?

>Given all of the lukewarm comments about Loch Ness, just how low should my expectations be for this jaunt?<

It's a nice place but it's far from the most scenic or atmospheric loch in Scotland but it seems to be on every tourists agenda due to the Nessie story.

I live in Scotland and have been up to the Loch Ness area many times for business and pleasure. If I had to recommend 20 must sees in Scotland it wouldn't be on the list. That's not to say that you and your wee boy won't have a great time there.

My guess is your 8 year old son will make Loch Ness WELL worthwhile, and tons of fun! Loch Ness and Nessie would have been in my top 5 when I was a kid. I hope he sees her!

I think Urqhart Castle and Loch Ness sound like a no-brainer for your family. I'm just trying to figure out which are the most beautiful, most dramatic Lochs to see.

Sorry he won't see Nessie; she's not there anymore. However if you can arrange a boat trip on Loch Ness on a misty/foggy morning his imaginaton can run wild.

Nothing wrong with seeing Loch Ness and Urghart Castle, but it should probably be done on your way to see something else, in most cases.

I took two of my nephews to Scotland when they were 11 and 14. Loch Ness was #1 on their list in the preplanning. they loved it. They still talk about it and some of our adventures there.

We lucked out on a wonderful B&B and also a set of highland games in Fort Augustus (at one end of Loch Ness). The highland games were lots of fun and quite informative. There were events in which the boys participated--no pre sign-up needed.

We also visited the Higland Wildlife Park in the area. Their program is animals native to Scotland. It is a large area so the naimlas are in naturalistic enclosures. We walked about on our own and then went on the walkabout with one of the park rangers who was humorous as well as knowledgeable. We got to see wolves from a tall walkway above their enclosure. there were wild boar, otters and lots of others.

We traveled by the seat of our pants, and found B&Bs as we went. The original itinerary called for two nights in the area but we ended up staying 5 so we could take in the games. We found lots to do in the area and were delighted with a longer stay.

Hope your eight year old enjoys Urquart and environs.

Thanks very much for the extra advice; I feel guilty for hijacking this thread, though.

We're planning to visit Loch Ness on the way to or from Fort George (again, probably not my cup of tea, but my son really likes 18th c. history).

The Highland Wildlife Park sounds great -- I'll check into that.

I had to laugh about the Highland Games you lucked into; my family attended a local version (here in the Southeast US) and we were so hoping to find The Real Thing in Scotland, but I think we'll be too early. (We even had royalty at the Games here, if Prince Edward counts....)

Of course Nessie is still there. I have a picture to prove it. I will give you hint. If you go, take the cruise loch ness in Fort Augusuts and sit downstairs where the sonars are. If you look real close either to the left or right, you will see Nessie ;-). However, Nessie might not meet your expectations.

"<i>on the way to or from Fort George (again, probably not my cup of tea, but my son really likes 18th c. history).</i>"

Ft George may surprise you. It is absolutely enormous (all of Edinburgh Castle would fit w/i it's parade ground) and has lots to look at. And if you walk up on the walls you can watch Dolphins in the Moray Firth. They come in very close.

meant to add -- be sure to allow <u>plenty</u> of time for Ft George -- it really is huge . . .

As our tour guide told us on our visit to Loch Ness. "It's a well know fact that Nessie appears twice a day.... 10 minutes before you arrive and 10 minutes after you leave!"