virginiarose

Hello again!
Yet another question:
I only want to tour 2 castles during my upcoming trip.Reason being: I don't want all the castles running together, (so I'm not trying to remember which castle is which in the pictures).Which are not to be missed in this list:
1)Blair Castle
2)Cawdor
3)Inverary
4)Castle Menzies
Thanks!!!

sheila

They're all different. All I would say is drop castle mezies, and pick ONE of Blair or Inverary- which are similar in style to each other.

janisj

I find it very hard to get "castled out" since most of the castles are different. I would certainly not limit myself to just 4. But if that is what you want to do I'd drop Menzies and Inverary and add Kilchurn and Stirling which are both on your general route.

With Blair, Cawdor, Kilchurn and Stirling you have good examples of four totally different styles. Blair a large private castle; Cawdor a smaller Tower house w/ amazing gardens; Kilchurn an atmospheric ruin on the shore of a loch; and Stirling a massive fortified castle on a cliff w/ views of seemingly half of Scotland and enough to fill 1/2 a day.

And Urquhart is basically on the roadside as you drive north to Inverness so a good addition w/o any effort.

sheila

You just pick the ones you want I can't type and janis is numerically challenged

janisj

You noticed that, huh? But to limit myself to <b>TWO</b> castles in a week? Impossible

Virginiarose: you have PLENTY of time to see 4 or 5 castles and, trust me, you won't confuse one from another. Now if you went to 10 different tower houses (Crathes, Cragievar, Cawdor, Brodie, Fraser, etc etc) they <i>might</i> start to blur. or 10 different ruins (Kilchurn, Doune, Blavenie, Leven, Dunstaffnage, Urquhart, etc, etc) could start to run together.

But 4 entirely diifferent types of castles - no way to mix them up

bigtyke

Threave Castle

Craigellachie

Your itinerary looks reasonable, though if jet lag is an issue I'd agree it's better in reverse. Whichever way you go, take it easy the first day.
The Moray Firth narrows to almost nothing between Fort George on the south and Chanonry Point on the north. Depending on the tides you are almost guaranteed a close view of the dolphins from either place. They are also often seen near Kessock Bridge which carries the main road north from Inverness to the Black Isle.
Meal times - in the bigger towns you'll find something to eat almost any time, though the choice could be limited except at the &quot;standard&quot; times of around 12 noon to 2pm and 6 to 9 pm. After 9 you'll be lucky to get a sit in meal. Carry some non perishable snacks and soft drinks so that you won't starve in an emergency.
I wouldn't be put off by comments about April being too cold for kayaking. The waters of Loch Lomond will be freezing cold no matter when you fall in, but in July and August there will be more people around to laugh.

tower

Directly south if Inverness, near the shores of Loch Ness, the town of Drumnadrochit offers one of the best B and B's in all of the UK...Borlum Farm House...just a few minutes out of town (where there are some excellent pubs for dinners..like Ben Leva Hotel and Bar), and minutes from the Urquhart castle ruins on the lake shore. Also in town you can come face to face with Nessie...statue only.

Stu T.

virginiarose

Okay, another question: which currency should I use? British Pounds or Scottish Pounds?Both are generally accepted(so I hear).Which would be better for me?Thanks.My trip is slowly taking shape.Making reservations now.Yeah!!!!

Stellarossa

You cannot get Scottish pounds anywhere outside of Scotland so if you're thinking of changing money beforehand, it's Pounds Sterling you'll have. They'll take your money, Scottish or otherwise.

If you think you're going to have a lot of cash left over, spend the Scottish stuff. No other country in the world will exchange the Scottish toy stuff for real money.

janisj

&quot;<i>which currency should I use? </i>&quot;

Use what you get. They are the same. You will get both in your change and from ATMs. It would be best if you use up any left over Scottish banknotes at the airport before flying out. I usually try to keep one or two Scottish notes for a souviner every trip, but otherwise 6 of 1/half dozen of the other.

Craigellachie

Currency?
Scotland doesn't have its own currency (worse luck). Some Scottish banks are allowed to produce their own banknotes. These are in the same denominations as Bank of England notes and are the same colours (&pound;5 blue, &pound;10 brown, &pound;20 purple, never had any reason to know what colour &pound;50 and &pound;100 are). Everywhere in Scotland will take Scottish or English notes or a mix of the two. In other UK countries you might have problems using Scottish notes. Scottish banks also produce green &pound;1 notes which they stopped making in England several years ago. These are accepted everywhere in cotland but I don't think they'd be accepted anywhere else. I'm reliably informed that someone sold a Scottish &pound;1 note on ebay for &pound;10!

charliemac

if your looking for clifton house nairn you can find it here http://www.cliftonhousenairn.co.uk/
there is lots to see around the inverness /nairn area
culloden moor - scene of the defeat of Bonny Prince CHarlie at the hands of the protostant/Hanovarian Army 1746.
A stones throw is Clava Cairns 5,000 yr old burial chambers.
Cawdor Castle 'Home of MacBeth' (NoT).
(Also Near is a Pictish Fort with Fantastic Views of the Moray Firth).
Boat Ride to the Dolphins from Nairn.
Inverness Museum,
Fort George - Last build fort (after culloden) to keep the Highlanders from getting upity again, Has good army museum.
Groam House - Fortrose - Pictish Stone Museum on the Black Isle
Cruises run from inverness down to the castle on loch ness.

House of Bruar - Expensive
If your in Nairn Area then at Brodie There is IMO as good a shop as brua and not as expensive (also Brodie castle is worth a look)

virginiarose

Thanks for everyone's opinion!
On the last reply: I will be staying in Nairn for two nights.What shop(the one in your opinion) are you referring to?The shop at Brodie Castle?Please specify.
Also, I contacted a boat service in Nairn about little cruises to hopefully see dolphins and the seal island( of?He told me; I forgot)&gt;Are there more than one boat operation in Nairn?

virginiarose

Also, how often do you think I will be needing to fill up on petrol.I know it sounds an odd question, but I want to get an idea of how much my trip will cost.

sheila

Virginiarose, charliemac is talking about Brodie Country Fayre which is on the main road near Brodie Castle. I don't WHOLLy agree with him in making his comparison, but it's a nice shop.

I don't know how many dolphin boats there are in Nairn, but, since the dolphins have been suffering stress from bein harrassed by boats, could you haveca look at this page, and make sure your boatman is signed up to the Code of Conduct, please?

http://www.loupers.com/aboutus_boattrips.html

What will you be driving? It will make a huge difference to your fuel consumption.

janisj

to follow on what sheila said - I've been in the Country Fayre twice (both times I had neglected to check Brodie Castle's opening times and walked to the shop to kill time). It is a nice shop but certainly not anything like House of Bruar.

And as for Dolphin viewing. if you go to Ft George (highly recommended) you can get VERY good views of the dolphins from the walls and beach. They come w/i 30-40 feet of shore and once when standing up on the fort's wall I got a shot of four dolphins breeching at once.

virginiarose

I will be driving a compact car.Will not be sure exactly what when I arrive, but a small car.

sheila

If you take a petrol you'll get 40 mpg; if a diesl more like 50

virginiarose

So, far I'm am planning on staying in the following areas:

1)1st night: Kiltyrie Farmhouse (on Loch Tay for one night).

2)Glebe End B&amp;B in Nairn for 2 nights.

3)Lawriestone B&amp;B in Fort William for 1 night.

4)Lastly, for our last 2 nights we'll be staying at Waters Edge Cottage in and around Loch Lomond.