I'm planning my first trip to Scotland and would like to manage without a car. There will be four of us including 2 teenagers. I need to stay in one place preferably in small town with quaint shops near hiking. Will be there for about a week in early August. Haven't booked anything yet but planning on getting that done this week. I was looking at places to stay but can't figure out if I have to walk or will be able to get a taxi from the train stations. Don't want to see ALL of Scotland this time around, just one or two areas. I'm trying to locate a good base in a smallish town but still able to maneuver by bus and train. We would like to see some of the castles, and Loch Lomand, maybe Dollar Glen. We were planning on taking a coach trip one day out of Edinburgh, that seemed relatively easy. Is it unreasonable to think we can do this without a car? I've been checking out maps and websites and I'm not sure how difficult this will be. Any help would be appreciated.

You can rent wonderful cottages all over Scotland that would be prefect for your family. One problem is many villages don't have train service and rural bus service isn't terribly efficient.

If you definitely don't want to drive, I'd rent an apartment or cottage in a larger town that has good train and bus service and also some day tours out of the local Tourist Information Center.

Dollar is not on a rail line, and Loch Lomond has service to its very south and very north ends but not along the main part of the loch.

Perth might be a good base - a nice city in about the center of the country w/ good train service.

Another totally different option is to spend a week on Skye. You can get there by train/ferry and there is bus an taxi service to get around the island. And some of the best hiling in the country.

But - why don't you want to drive? Renting a country cottage and exploring an area would be a lot easier for a family if you have a car.

Also consider Stirling which has good rail services, but is not a small town. Just north of there is Dunblane, I think virtually similar rail connections, but a small Cathedral town.

To be frank I think you will struggle to achieve all the things you mention without a car. You might be best advised to choose a place then see what you can do from there by public transport.

Be warned that August is one of the wettest months in the summer, so for outdoor activity you might do better to head towards the east coast.

oops - About Skye, that should have read " . . some of the best hiking in the country"

Nah; you can do it. You don't want, I think, cities as big as Stirling or Perth.

Try Dunkeld, Pitlochry, Kingussie, or Oban or Fort William; in other words, big enough to be a transport hub, but small enough to be interesting. Incidentally the transport thing is the only reason I put Fort William on there.

I think I'd go for Dunkeld if I were you.

I'd go for Dunkeld too, Sheila, thanks for putting us on to it! A delightful village. We stayed at the Atholl Arms for 3 or 4 nights, a moderately priced place with a fantastic restaurant. Absolutely wonderful food!

Remember if there's someplace you really want to visit that isn't on the bus route, you can always arrange for a taxi for drop off and pick up. We have had wonderful trips without a car.

janisj:

Thank you for your reply. I would really rather drive but I'm worried about driving on the left while also trying to handle not knowing the roads. I agree with the idea about Skye. I was actually planning on staying there first, but the rest of the family would rather not be on an island. I like the cottage idea but as we have never been to Scotland. I would like to make sure that we meet some locals there so I was thinking more about small inns or country houses. Is that the same as cottages?

you have all been so helpful! I am going to check out Dunkeld and Pitlochry and Kingussie as well as the bus and train routes. If I pick out places I would like to see, is there a place I can look (on the internet) to see if there is bus service provided? I did look at bus schedules but had some trouble determining if the place I wanted was on the route. Day trips will definitely work for a few days. Any suggestions for good day trip tour companies? Bus scares me a bit but seems like it would definitely be an interesting vacation.

I didn't realize there is a such a difference between east and west. Will it be too wet to hike in the west?

Leslied: First off all - driving in rural Scotland is a piece of cake. You have to worry more about sheep than you do about traffic. You don't need, nor want, a car in the cities like Edinburgh or Glasgow. But out in the country is is MUCH easier to just hop in the car and go where you want w/o having to wait on bus/train schedules.

About a cottage vs a B&B or hotel. No, they aren't the same thing. A cottage (self catering is the term in the UK) is a vacation rental. You would have the whole house/garden to yourselves. Now many people have the same idea - "we want to meet locals so we want to stay in inns". But to my way of thinking you actually have a better chance to meet/mingle w/ local residents when you rent a cottage. You will be going to the green grocer, news agent, butcher, other local shops, etc.

In a B&B, besides the owner - the people you meet will be other tourists. Nothing wrong w/ that at all. But in a cottage you have the sense of actually living in Scotland.

Most of my trips are a combination of B&Bs and self catering. I stay a week in one place, move around a bit staying in B&Bs/hotels, and then another week in another cottage.

For a family, self catering is wonderful. Restaurant hours are limited and it is great to have a kitchen where you can whip up snacks, light meals, midnight noshes, whatever. And having a washer/dryer is a HUGE help - especially for a family. it means everyone can pack lighter since you can do laundry at night after getting in from touring around.

We've travelled Scotland extensively without a car. We used the train and the buses and these allowed us to explore the highlands and the Orkney Islands.

The train is very enjoyable and the tea is lovely - albeit a pound per little cup!

Don't worry - have a great trip. Great hiking is around Loch Lomond and from there up to For tWilliam. It's called the West Highland Way. Depending on the amount of hiking you want to do I'd highly recommend it (lots of hiking - beautiful sites). You don't have to camp - the trail runs through villages and towns and there are B&B options.

Jen

Well I know this is not what you asked..... but in August the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is on and I reckon if you are going to be there then you should spend a night there.

The festival is just great - go to the tattoo on the late session. Street perfomers are everywhere.

Just my 10c. I travelled all around Scotland and Edinburgh at festival time is by far the highlight.

You will definitely get greater flexibility if you drive. No question. If you do that get a house somewhere about the east end of Glencoe/ top of Loch Awe, and you'll be well located to do lots of things.

As to web sites, someone else will tell you better. I know Highland Council do a site which shows all integrated transport, but, of course, Argyll isn't in Highland.

There are companies which do trips out of Inverness and Edinburgh, and specific location ones from places like Oban. have a look at teh undiscovered Scotland web site and see what she has listed for the areas you want to go to.

Sheila: thanks for the Dunkeld idea. I like what I can find about the town. On the train route and seems to be not too big. Some hiking nearby and a Cathedral. Helps to hear that someone stayed there for a few days and enjoyed it.(thanks Cameron: did you have a car?)
Janisj: still can't get over the driving thing but the cottages sound very nice and probably more likely to find something everyone will agree to. So I'm looking into that. Is it possible to take the train up to dunkeld and then rent a car there? (Just in case I decide I can manage the driving.)

Wilees: I was thinking about spending one day in Edinburgh just to visit but I think I will try and stay 2 days based on your recommendation. Just have to get the rest of the family to agree.

Thanks all. I have work to do!!!!

You MIGHT be able to renta car in Dunkeld (my sister lives about 2 miles away, and I can ask her to check, if you like) You certainly could in Perth which is 15 miles away.

Before you jump into Dunkeld ask how much you want to rely on public transport. It is a pleasant small town (the cathedral is mainly ruined), but the rail service is restricted, roughly every two hours. Perth has better rail services, but the really frequent services go no further than north than Dunblane and these will give you a good service to Edinburgh/Glasgow, a longer but fair service to Loch Lomond via Glasgow as well as into the Highlands.

Somewhere like Stirling may be bigger but will have better bus and rail connections.

Small towns and country cottages are appealing, but will impose serious limitations if you want to use public transport. It's all a question of compromise. Ask yourself which aspirations you are prepared to give up.

Also if you really are worried about driving - don't drive, the roads will be busy. You CAN do things by public transport if you are pepared to restrict yourselfin terms of where you go and where you stay.

Try emailing tourist information at some of the places mentioned in this thread and ask how easy it would be to get to places by public transport from there.

You could try Bridge of Allan as a base. This is a Victorian spa village two miles from Stirling. It has good bus and rail connections. From the local train station there are frequent trains to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dunblane and Perth.

In the village there are artisan shops and a big choice of good restaurants. Day trips from Stirling to Loch Lomond and The Trossachs national Park. Open top hop on hop off tourist bus visits major historical sites (eg Wallace Monument, Stirling Castle.

More information on this website : www.kilronan.co.uk

I know of a friendly B&B who could meet you at Stirling or Bridge of Allan train station

Oban and Fort William are very good bases. They are not villages, but are both easily accessible by train and have alot to do from there like day trips by boat and coach. You could easily go to Skye from each place for a day or a few days. I travelled for a month with two children 11 and 15 and used the train; it was great. If you are travelling with any children 15 or under and purchase a family railcard for 20 pounds, you get great discounts. There is so much you can do without a car in Scotland.