All,

I would like some advice on an upcoming trip to Scotland. My wife and I are travelling there with my parents (feel free to insert joke). My ancestors came from Scotland and we have alwasy wanted to visit. We are very flexible at this point, but have some spots we want to make sure to see.

Thanks in Advance

Land in Glasgow
Train to Aberdeen
To Braemer for Braemer Gathering
Back to Aberdeen
Train to Arbroath, stay in Ethie Castle (2 Days) side trips to St. Andrews and surrounding area
Train to Edinburgh, 3 days
Train to Ft. William
-two persons take steam train to Malliag
-two persons head to Iverness and Loch Ness (my wife doesn't want to miss this)
Next day meet up in Oban and tour Mull
Train to Glasow, 3 days...side trip to Stirling

you'll be very grateful for the separation in the itinerary. pity its a bit late in the trip.

i have seen various opinions on stirling and glasgow. I did one night in airth castle near stirling. i wouldn't have minded spending another day there. not sure if glasgow is a 3 day town.

only other advice is that september gives you the option of staying in B&Bs easily and i preferered them to hotels anyway.

unless you really want a particular B&B there are enough to not worry about booking them before you leave but i think its wise to book them at least the day before, just one less thing to stress about but still gives you flixbility during the trip, especially if you want to be flexible enough to get soem more time of separation from the parents.

oh, for various reasons train is a good idea, but is there a reason why you didn't choose a rental car?

the only reason i ask is that there are heaps of places you COULD see along the way and if the objective of this thread was to get suggestions on where else to see then a car gives flexibilty to see those spots...how about the train?

Things I am unsure on...
1. Are you meaning to hire a car at all?
There are bits in your trip it will be hard to do without one.

2.How do you mean to get to Braemar? Service bus? Do you mean tpo stay overnight? It's very late to get accommodation in Braemar for the night of the gathering.

3. How are you doing your side trips from Ethie?

4. Haw are the two intending to get from Fort William to Inverness? bus?

5. How are you all meaning to get to Oban? bus?

6. How do you mean to get about on Mull? The train has a limited range. LOL!

So long as those issues are resolved, you'll have a ball.
Is there anything specific you would like to ask about?

As you can see from Sheila's post - doing much of your itinerary is difficult by train/public transport.

It is pretty difficult to sightsee efficiently around Angus and Fife w/o a car. Several of your other routes are only doable on local buses - not train service. And the buses can take a lot longer than driving on your own.

Some of the train trips make sense - but for four of you, renting a car (even w/ the expensive petrol) will probably be cheaper than trying to tour around by train.

Think about taking the train to Aberdeen, renting a car there, and dropping it back at Glasgow before your 3 days there. The two could still take the Jacobite train to/from Mallaig and meet the other two in Oban.

Mull is much easier by car. You could visit Stirling enroute from Edinburgh to Ft William/Oban. Or the two could even take the train from Edinburgh to Ft William to link up w/ the Jacobite. Then the other two would not have to go to Ft William at all.

All,

Thanks for the info. We will be renting cars as necessary to get to can't miss places.

We wanted a way to get to Braemar while suffering from jet lag. We don't want a car in Edinburgh or Glasgow. I hear the traffic is really bad???

Braemar will be by bus from Aberdeen and back. We will have a car while at Effie Castle for side trips. Ft. William to Iverness, should we go by car? We will take the bus to Oban and rent a car while on Mull.

Looking at the itinerary are there any can't miss things we should include? Janis, I like your Stirling idea from Edinburgh. When we are in Oban and on Mull is it going to be quite a bit colder than in Glasgow or Edinburgh?

Thanks again.

I personally think renting a car and keeping it makes more sense than renting for a day or two, turning it in, then renting another and another and so on. For one thing - weekly rental rates are a LOT less than daily rates. Through most of the majors (hertz, Avis, etc.) if you book from the States you can get a full weeks car rental for about the same as 3 days of daily rentals. And pre-booking a car from the States will save you as much as 30% over booking one for a week locally.

I understand not wanting to drive on the first, jet-lagged day. But you aren't going there the day you arrive are you? By day-2 you should be fine to drive. (If I misunderstood and you are flying into Glasgow, taking the train to Aberdeen and on to Braemar on the same day -- then you're right. That would be too much)

As for the weather - in general the west side of the country (Oban/Mull, Glasgow) is warmer and wetter, the east side (Edinburgh, Angus, Aberdeen) is colder and drier. Of course being on the water can make it seem cooler. And "in general" doesn't mean that is what will happen while you are there.