Scotland with Teens - almost final itinerary?
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Scotland with Teens - almost final itinerary?
Thanks to Sheila, Historytraveler and Craigellachie we have an itinery for our June/July trip with two teens (17 &14). We've tried to balance seeing the un-touristy parts of Scotland with some adventure, some must-sees and some legends (eg St Andrews). We'd rather enjoy what we see than just say we've seen it, and we think this looks full but still gives us time to visit, relax and explore.
We are now looking into B&Bs and final day trips so any suggestions are welcome.
Sunday June 25th
Arrive Glasgow 2:25 pm
Prebook a B&B in town (suggestions?) for 25/26
Monday June 26th
Explore Glasgow & rent car for tomorrow
See Bard in the Botanics
Tuesday 27th
Take Hwy A82 along the lochs, via Crianlarich (or Inveraray?) to Oban
Take 3:30 ferry sailing to South Uist
Arrive 9 pm; drive one hr to Langass Lodge
Lodge booked for 3 nights (27/28/29)
Wednesday 28th
Walk about N Uist (stone circle, cairns)
Explore beaches on Uist
Thursday 29th
Kayaking, roping @ Uist Outdoor (TBC)
Friday 30th
Take 7:20 or 10:40 am ferry to Harris
Drive/walk around for the day
Catch 4pm ferry from Tarbert to Uig (arrive 5:40)
B&B near Uig (Ferry Inn? Uig Hotel?)
Saturday July 1st
Explore Syke for the day, including Duntulm castle, the Quiraing, Kilt Rock and the Old Man of Storr
Possibly visit Dunvegan
B&B near Kyle of Lochalsh (Sonas B&B? Schoolhouse B&B At Dornie?)
Sunday 2nd
Drive via Spean Bridge (stop at Commando Monument) to Cairngorm Mtns
See the mountains, forests, birds etc
B&B near Newtonmore? Tomintoul? Rothiemurchus?
Monday, 3rd
Walk, drive, explore
Distillery stop (Dalwhinnie? Glenfiddich? Aberlour?)
B&B same spot as last night?
Tuesday 4th
Drive to Blairgowrie/Dunkeld via A939 and A93
B&B for 3 nights (4/5/6) Drumellie Meadow? Birnam Wood House? The Bridge at Dunkeld?
Wednesday 5th
Spend day canyoning at Nae Limits? (TBC)
Thursday 6th
Castles (Glamis, Huntingtower) & sights
Friday 7th
Drive to St Andrews, explore, walk the course
Stay overnight (close by? in town??)
Saturday 8th
Drive along coast through East Neuk fishing villages to Edinburgh
B&B at Edinburgh two nights (8/9)
Drop the car or do we need it to get to airport?
Sunday 9th
Edinburgh sights
Monday 10th
Edinburgh sights
Airport for 3 pm flight to Heathrow
Booked hotel for night near airport
Tuesday 11th
Noon flight to Halifax
We are now looking into B&Bs and final day trips so any suggestions are welcome.
Sunday June 25th
Arrive Glasgow 2:25 pm
Prebook a B&B in town (suggestions?) for 25/26
Monday June 26th
Explore Glasgow & rent car for tomorrow
See Bard in the Botanics
Tuesday 27th
Take Hwy A82 along the lochs, via Crianlarich (or Inveraray?) to Oban
Take 3:30 ferry sailing to South Uist
Arrive 9 pm; drive one hr to Langass Lodge
Lodge booked for 3 nights (27/28/29)
Wednesday 28th
Walk about N Uist (stone circle, cairns)
Explore beaches on Uist
Thursday 29th
Kayaking, roping @ Uist Outdoor (TBC)
Friday 30th
Take 7:20 or 10:40 am ferry to Harris
Drive/walk around for the day
Catch 4pm ferry from Tarbert to Uig (arrive 5:40)
B&B near Uig (Ferry Inn? Uig Hotel?)
Saturday July 1st
Explore Syke for the day, including Duntulm castle, the Quiraing, Kilt Rock and the Old Man of Storr
Possibly visit Dunvegan
B&B near Kyle of Lochalsh (Sonas B&B? Schoolhouse B&B At Dornie?)
Sunday 2nd
Drive via Spean Bridge (stop at Commando Monument) to Cairngorm Mtns
See the mountains, forests, birds etc
B&B near Newtonmore? Tomintoul? Rothiemurchus?
Monday, 3rd
Walk, drive, explore
Distillery stop (Dalwhinnie? Glenfiddich? Aberlour?)
B&B same spot as last night?
Tuesday 4th
Drive to Blairgowrie/Dunkeld via A939 and A93
B&B for 3 nights (4/5/6) Drumellie Meadow? Birnam Wood House? The Bridge at Dunkeld?
Wednesday 5th
Spend day canyoning at Nae Limits? (TBC)
Thursday 6th
Castles (Glamis, Huntingtower) & sights
Friday 7th
Drive to St Andrews, explore, walk the course
Stay overnight (close by? in town??)
Saturday 8th
Drive along coast through East Neuk fishing villages to Edinburgh
B&B at Edinburgh two nights (8/9)
Drop the car or do we need it to get to airport?
Sunday 9th
Edinburgh sights
Monday 10th
Edinburgh sights
Airport for 3 pm flight to Heathrow
Booked hotel for night near airport
Tuesday 11th
Noon flight to Halifax
#2
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lal_birch,
Re a B&B in Glasgow. I can't give any personal recommendations but, if you haven't seen it already, you might find the city's official tourism website helpful;
www.seeglasgow.com
There is a link to hotels on the left hand side of the page & this includes B&B's. I know that Sheila has recommended Adelaide's here in the past & although I don't have any personal experience of it it's certainly in a very good location.
As regards Tuesday 27th I would choose to go to Oban via Inveraray rather than Crianlarich. There is very little difference in journey time between the two routes but I think that Inveraray is the more scenic of the two. It's worth stopping off at the Rest And Be Thankful just for 5 minutes to enjoy the fantastic view back down Glen Croe. Inveraray itself is also a pleasant town to stop for a break.
Jim
Re a B&B in Glasgow. I can't give any personal recommendations but, if you haven't seen it already, you might find the city's official tourism website helpful;
www.seeglasgow.com
There is a link to hotels on the left hand side of the page & this includes B&B's. I know that Sheila has recommended Adelaide's here in the past & although I don't have any personal experience of it it's certainly in a very good location.
As regards Tuesday 27th I would choose to go to Oban via Inveraray rather than Crianlarich. There is very little difference in journey time between the two routes but I think that Inveraray is the more scenic of the two. It's worth stopping off at the Rest And Be Thankful just for 5 minutes to enjoy the fantastic view back down Glen Croe. Inveraray itself is also a pleasant town to stop for a break.
Jim
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Agree about Inverary over Crianlarich
I've stayed in the Uig Hotel and would find it hard to recommend for anything other than its location. The Ferry Inn has recently changed hands but used to be pretty awful too.
DO visit Dunvegan. If just for the Fairy Flag
I'm very fond of the Heatherbrae I Nethybridge
Glenfiddich does a top tour, tho' it's not a top whisky. Worth trying to see if you can tour Balvenie, because they have a floor malting. But it's appointment only, I think.
Drop the car when you get to Edinburgh. The cost of a taxi out to the airport will be less than 2 days' hire.
I've stayed in the Uig Hotel and would find it hard to recommend for anything other than its location. The Ferry Inn has recently changed hands but used to be pretty awful too.
DO visit Dunvegan. If just for the Fairy Flag
I'm very fond of the Heatherbrae I Nethybridge
Glenfiddich does a top tour, tho' it's not a top whisky. Worth trying to see if you can tour Balvenie, because they have a floor malting. But it's appointment only, I think.
Drop the car when you get to Edinburgh. The cost of a taxi out to the airport will be less than 2 days' hire.
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lal,
Regarding accommendations on Skye, I suggested the Uig Hotel and Ferry Inn because they both received reasonable reviews on tripadvisor and in several guide books.
I suggest that you do stay somewhere near Uig as you arrive late afternoon/early evening and otherwise will find yourselves doing some back-tracking the next day.
Go to visithighlands.com for a good selection of B&B's and guesthouses.
I would book asap as the better places do fill up. I booked my Scotland accommendations almost three months ago, but then I had very specific places I wanted to stay. Good luck and let us know if we can be of any further help.
Regarding accommendations on Skye, I suggested the Uig Hotel and Ferry Inn because they both received reasonable reviews on tripadvisor and in several guide books.
I suggest that you do stay somewhere near Uig as you arrive late afternoon/early evening and otherwise will find yourselves doing some back-tracking the next day.
Go to visithighlands.com for a good selection of B&B's and guesthouses.
I would book asap as the better places do fill up. I booked my Scotland accommendations almost three months ago, but then I had very specific places I wanted to stay. Good luck and let us know if we can be of any further help.
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PWAbbott, it depends on what appeals to you. I just got back from visiting Scotland; and of the 11 carefully-chosen castle ruins I visited (the ones that are not furnished, polished and grand like Edinburgh & Stirling Castles), I would probably rate Doune as 2nd or 3rd on my list of favorites, and IMO well worth the trip!
#7
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I spend all day on a computer, but I'm not totally net saavy, so I'm wondering if I'm missing something when trying to book accommodations. I've tried all the accomodation booking sites recommended on the forum and it seems most of the search engines are by location or type (B&B /hotel etc). I have to enter each hotel/B&B to find out availability and suitability. Given I don't know the areas very well, it's quite time-consuming. It also appears that family rooms are mainly ony for families of three (the new trend?) and many of the 4 can't accommodate a 6 foot tall young man (bunk beds??)
Having said that, we did expect to be booking two rooms, and most of the people I've contacted have been very helpful. We've found some interesting places and chosen a couple working farms, including Quiraingview, 15 minutes from Uig. The view looks awesome and beats looking down on a ferry dock.
Sheila, were you aware that Heatherbrae has new ownership according to their website? As a bird-lover, do you know anything about the Balliefurth near Grandtown-on Spey?
Having said that, we did expect to be booking two rooms, and most of the people I've contacted have been very helpful. We've found some interesting places and chosen a couple working farms, including Quiraingview, 15 minutes from Uig. The view looks awesome and beats looking down on a ferry dock.
Sheila, were you aware that Heatherbrae has new ownership according to their website? As a bird-lover, do you know anything about the Balliefurth near Grandtown-on Spey?