I’m planning a trip to Scotland in May. Currently, I’m looking to arrive on May 23rd and depart on May 31st. As I have 8 nights on the ground, I was planning on spending the first three in Edinburgh (I land in Edinburgh and take off from Glasgow). Assuming I spending the first three nights in Edinburgh, what would your recommendations be for the remaining nights of the trip be? I’m more than willing to rent a car and drive. I would like to see Inverness if possible. I’m well aware that it is a drive to get there, but I would like to cover some ground for trip #2. I wasn’t planning on spending more than two nights in Glasgow based on reviews I have read throughout the past year.

Anyway, let me know what you think would be the ideal trip for eight nights in Scotland. I plan on taking photos throughout the trip.

I understand that there are numerous other posts about Scotland travel, but I specifically want to know experiences from traveling from Edinburgh to Inverness, and then fly out of Glasgow. The only requirements of the trip are to start in Edinburgh and spend the last night in Glasgow.

I have only spent one night in Glasgow (on the way to Arran), but intend to return for longer. There are some lovely buildings there. We stayed at the Glasgow Cenrtal Hotel, beautiful with great atmosphere. There is a vibrant night life if you are young enough to enjoy it (unlike me).

It's hard to suggest anything without knowing why you want to go to Scotland. What are your interests? Golf? Whiskey? Castles? Scenery? Why do you want to go to Inverness?

OK - so your requirements are Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow . . . If so, there is absolutely no reason to rent a car since trains connect all three. And since you have given us nothing else to work with we can't really make any better suggestions . . . w/o more info than you plan on taking photos.

BUT . . . My question is what do you expect to see in Inverness? It is a town - a busy town. But is not itself a scenic place - though there is a river running through it. There are (literally) a hundred other places you could visit that are nicer or more scenic. But you need to tell us what sorts of things you want to see/do and why you chose Inverness (and to a lesser degree - Glasgow). There are many reason to visit Glasgow -- but unless you are interested in its museums and Charles Rennie Mackintosh, there may be better places to spend your time. Flying out of GLA does not in and of itself mean you must stay in Glasgow.

So - tell us more and maybe we can help you . . .

I would suggest you avoid Inverness as there is nothing there to see. If you want to see Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle you can do a day trip with a local tour company like Rabbies or Timberbush who offer tours from Glasgow and Edinburgh.

You might find you don’t need a car at all if you use trains and tour companies.

However, if you are into photography. I would highly recommend renting a car upon leaving Edinburgh. I have heard great things about Rabbies, but tours do not necessarily stop in the most scenic spots. You also may see something that catches your eye on the way and with a car you can stop at will.

Actually because they are small group tour company, Rabbies often stops at the most scenic spots and are usually willing to make special stops if requested. If, however, you are a serious photographer and photography is the main reason for touring Scotland, then a rental car is a better option.

>>but tours do not necessarily stop in the most scenic spots<<

Rabbies does -- that is the point of their tours.

But until we hear back from the OP we can't really help w/ what is best for transport. If she really must stay in Inverness there is no reason for a car.

If you are really into photography then I would suggest an actually photography tour (even 1 day). There is an excellent one in Edinburgh (4 hours) and there is also a good one in Glencoe which offers some of the best landscape photography in the UK.

A friend of my wife visited from Germany last year and signed up for one of Rabbie's 2 day tours to Skye - she thoroughly enjoyed it.