KarenWoo

MaiTaiTom,
Wow!!! What a gorgeous photo of Urquhart Castle! I love ruins in spectacular settings. My daughter visited Urquhart about 10 years ago, and told me it was one of the highlights of her trip. I have read both of your Scotland trip reports and got some of my ideas from you. Thanks for the link. I will read your report again. And I will check out Cuillen Hills Hotel.

And what you accomplished in one day traveling from Portree to Nairn is amazing! I hope we have the stamina you have.

KarenWoo

Are you suggesting staying 2 nights in Glencoe? Is this because there is so much to see and do here? It is supposedly a 1 3/4 hour drive from Glencoe to Stirling. Does this sound reasonable to you? If we decide to spend 2 nights in Glencoe, then we could drive to Stirling Castle after we check out and conceivably arrive at the castle by noon. Spend a couple hours at the castle, maybe sightsee around Loch Lomond NP (I know it's backtracking a bit), and then plan to arrive at Dakota Edinburgh in the early evening.

So the options for our last 3 nights would be:
Option 1)
Glencoe - 2 nights
Dakota Edinburgh - 1 night
OR
Option 2)
Glencoe - 1 night
Stirling/Callender - 1 night
Dakota Edinburgh - 1 night

If I choose Option 2, we could spend most of the day after we check out of our Glencoe hotel in the Glencoe area, then drive to Stirling/Callender in the late afternoon. And then visit Stirling Castle the next morning. Now I am splitting hairs, I guess! Can't decide which is better. The inn you recommend in Glencoe looks wonderful, too! A nice place to spend 2 nights.

BTW, I already booked the Dakota Edinburgh. The price is right and free cancellation on Booking.com

stokebailey

As janis says, Links is not in a interesting part of Crail, but it's a pleasant enough walk to the harbour. Easier parking and car access, too. I'd call Crail a village and Anstruther a small town, with more restaurants and such.

You might find this interesting. Steve Marsh on the Coastal Path. He makes it to Crail on Part I.

https://youtu.be/O5e8Ck0EZaY

stokebailey

They get to Anstruther at 41.5
push on a wee bit footweary to Crail. So actually both towns at start of part 2, sorry.

His woman is such a good sport.

maitaitom

View from Cuillen Hills Hotel ...

janisj

being a bit pedantic, but "View from Cuillen Cuillin Hills Hotel ..." Named for the . . . Cuillins

KarenWoo

thank you for this link. I have saved it and will watch it when I have more time.

KarenWoo

MaiTaiTom, thank you for the beautiful photo of the view from Cuillin Hills Hotel!

KarenWoo

janisj,
I've been re-reading my thread, and I see that in your post #15 you do say that the drive from Glencoe to Stirling is about 2.5 hours. So knowing this and after talking it over with my husband, I think we will spend 2 nights in Glencoe Village. My husband doesn't really want 3 one-night stays. Stirling Castle closes at 6PM in June. So if we get side-tracked with making sightseeing pit stops along the way after we leave Glencoe, we would be safe arriving at Stirling Castle by 3PM and still have plenty of time to tour the castle. And then drive on to the Dakota Edinburgh.

I made reservations at The Waterfront in Anstruther and at Sunny Brae Bed & Breakfast in Nairn.
https://sunnybraenairn.co.uk/

jtpj777

Depending on how long you are willing to drive for - as my suggestion adds around an extra 30 minutes to your day driving from Crail to Nairn- you might consider the drive via Stonehaven to visit Dunnotar Castle - as you said you like ruined Castles in a spectacular setting - and Stonehaven harbour - around 1hour 45 mins from Crail, leaving 2 hour 15 minute drive to Nairn if you use the A96.
There are also options to include a detour to Dufftown on the Stonehaven/ Nairn route in order to visit one of the many distilleries in that area .
Of course the shorter route via the A9 also has its attractions.

Jackie44

Hi Karen, in case you are looking for restaurant suggestions, we ate at Cafe OneOneTwo https://cafeoneonetwo.co.uk/menu/ in Nairn when we were there in August and really enjoyed it.

janisj

Tacking on to jptj777's post -- It would make for a long drive but since you are staying multiple days in Nairn it would be OK IMO. Search for images of Dunnottar and decide if it is a 'must' -- it really is amazing (I'd actually wait til the day to decide because hiking out to the castle is not fun in wet weather - in fact the castle closes when the weather goes pear shaped). Assuming a decent day, I'd drive up to Dunnottar, then > Aberdeen > Dufftown > Elgin > Nairn. In Dufftown visit Glenfiddich distillery. Glenfiddich may not be one of the 'special' single malts but its distillery tour/visitors centre is one of the best.

Going this route will be about a 4.5 hour drive so with 2 hours at Dunnottar and 1 hours at Glenfiddich it will be a pretty long day. Dunnottar to Dufftown takes about 90 minutes. The castle opens ay 9AM and Glenfiddich's last tour is at 3:30 so very doable.

But IF the weather is vile, I'd just drive Anstruther to Perth, maybe visit Scone Palace, then head straight up the A9 through Aviemore then north to Nairn

KarenWoo

Jackie44, thank you for the restaurant recommendation! I appreciate it.

jptj777 and janisj, thank you for the sightseeing tips. We have to check into our B&B in Nairn by 7PM, so I have to be cognizant of that while sightseeing along the way. I was originally thinking of taking the A9 through Aviemore but Dunnottar does look amazing. I already had that on my radar, but I am a bit concerned about the 200 steps down to the castle and then walking back up 200 steps! Walking back up is the worse part for me. All 4 of us are in our 70's. I have already had hip-replacement surgery, and now my knees bother me from time to time, although I don't have arthritis in my knees. Old age, I guess. I will keep Dunnottar on the table and discuss with my husband and friends.

Scone Palace looks beautiful and was not previously on my radar! Thanks for the tip.

janisj

The 7 PM check-in in isn't a problem. Easy to get to Nairn by then. But as spectacular as Dunnottar is, it is a bit of a hike down then up into the castle, then the same down / up back to the car. Much of the path is wide steps/small landings so easy to take breaks but it isn't a flat stroll by any means. If you can manage say two flights of stairs to a third floor walk up, then not a problem. But if any of you do have mobility issues maybe give it a miss. Plus even if it is a nice day, if it had rained in the last couple of days I wouldn't recommend it.

So planning on taking the A9, visiting Scone and Blair Castle en route is probably your best bet.

KarenWoo

I am finding it difficult to find lodging in or around Portree for our dates in June. The Cuillin Hills Hotel has one room available for $340 per night and several rooms available for $490 per night, which is way above our budget. The Sligachan only has one room available and we need 2 rooms. Several other places I tried are not available as well.

So we are currently booked at the Rosedale Hotel in Portree. Is anyone familiar with this hotel? Unfortunately, they do not have parking but they told me there are 2 car parks nearby but I am concerned it will be difficult to find parking spaces knowing how busy Portree and the Isle of Skye will be. I just discovered the Viewfield House in Portree. Is anyone familiar with this place? It has free parking on their grounds. They suggested I contact them with specific room requests, which I did, and I am currently waiting to hear back from them.

janisj

To be honest -- on Skye in Summer beggars can't be choosers. As you can probably tell, the island has become outrageously popular - which doesn't just impact accommodations rates/availability, but also means the roads, parking and scenic spots get too crowded. There are more visitors than availability -- so you may just need to take what you can get. And waiting won't help - things will continue to book up. They will charge what they can get.

Unfortunately its hard to convince some that Scotland is absolutely FULL of spectacular scenery and Skye isn't unique

Gardyloo

I know you said in your previous thread that Skye was non-negotiable, but this is pretty much the reason I tend to recommend the Mull/Argyll option over Skye. Skye's popularity means things like fully booked (and very pricey) hotels, congestion at the main tourist destinations, things like that, are increasingly common.

I do hope you can work things out, but in case they don't to your liking, I'd encourage you to consider Argyll and Mull as an alternative. You could drive down the Great Glen with a stop at Urquhart Castle if you like, visit Glen Coe as a side trip, then tour Mull and Argyll, with Oban as a possible base, before returning to Edinburgh via Stirling. It wouldn't represent much of an increase (if any) in wheels turning time, and my guess is that you'd find things much less congested and competitive than they would be farther north.

Now I'll shut up.

KarenWoo

janisj and Gardyloo, I hear what you are both saying! Because it's only early November, I didn't think it would be so difficult to find lodging in Skye. Just curious, Are either one of you familiar with The Rosedale Hotel or the Viewfield House? And I admit I am shocked about hotel prices. We visited Greece last May, and we spent 3 nights in Santorini, which everyone says is notoriously expensive. We found a lovely hotel on Santorini and our room has a patio overlooking the caldera. Views were spectacular! And the cost was only $230 per night.

janisj

Haven't stayed in either one - I've only ever stayed at Sligachan or small rural B&Bs not in Portree - usually with just one or two rooms to rent.

Both Rosedale and Viewfield are in excellent locations, Viewfield House looks to be quite traditional/old fashioned - which doesn't bother me. Rosedale looks more updated sort of 'posher'. I'd probably be happy in either one

KarenWoo

I booked two beautiful rooms at the Viewfield House in Portree! I cancelled our reservations at The Rosedale Hotel because I was concerned about finding parking spaces in Portree. Would prefer not to deal with that at the end of a long day of sightseeing. Viewfield House has free on-site parking and the price is much better than most other places, about $205 per night and includes breakfast.