ST ANDREWS
Jul 25th, 2005, 06:38 AM
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ST ANDREWS
My son will be studying at St Andrews this fall, and my husband and I would like to visit, play some golf, and tour the country. We don't know anyone who has been to Scotland. What should we be sure to see?
Jul 25th, 2005, 06:46 AM
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Edinburgh, Stirling, St. Andrews and the Highlands - Inverness
two of Europe's most scenic trains: Inverness-Kyle of Lochlash and Maillag-glasgow. (Take train from Inverness to Kyle of Lochlash, take bus from station across bridge to Isle of Skye, then ferry from Skye to Maillag for train to Glasgow - a great 3 or 4 day jaunt - stay on Skye in one of its many cozy B&Bs.
two of Europe's most scenic trains: Inverness-Kyle of Lochlash and Maillag-glasgow. (Take train from Inverness to Kyle of Lochlash, take bus from station across bridge to Isle of Skye, then ferry from Skye to Maillag for train to Glasgow - a great 3 or 4 day jaunt - stay on Skye in one of its many cozy B&Bs.
Jul 25th, 2005, 07:29 AM
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You can see a bit about the attractions of St Andrews at http://www.visit-standrews.co.uk/sea.cfm
Jul 25th, 2005, 03:21 PM
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Would LOVE to play the Old Course with our son. We have the first two weeks of October to travel. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate. I will look into the train trips. What a good suggestion. We just like to "hang out" and enjoy the sights. We generally spend at least 2 nights at each stop, since we aren't in our 20's anymore, or even our 40's!! Thanks for the suggestions.....Feiny01
Jul 26th, 2005, 11:38 AM
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You can't walk on at the Old Course. To book a tee at the Old Course in advance you phone, probably about a year in advance on 01334 466666 and ask for advance reservations.
Thereafter you can only get a tee by going through the daily ballot procedure. You phone the links committee on 01334 466666 the day before you want to play before 2pm (For Mondays you phone on Saturdays). You tell them the names of the golfers and their handicaps. (If you are picked you will have to show handicap certificates) and you tell them your home clubs. The ballot is then picked at random. They have on average 12-15 slots available per day.
The cost is 115 per round and the rounds are available for 2- 4 players
You can also try to play as a single or a pair on the actual day.
The starter will try to match you with a pair or a three ball if he can.
They suggest that you check the date in advance to ensure the tees are not booked for competition.
They suggest you turn up as early as possible to maximise your chances
They suggest you phone the day before after the ballot is drawn to find out how many two and three balls there are that you might join in with.
They say it happens a lot, but they guarantee nothing!
In Fife, crossing the Forth from Edinburgh, Dunfermilne is on your left. Robert the Bruce, the hero king who won Bannockburn is buried here in Dunfermilne Abbey (although his heart is buried at Melrose in the borders); go back onto the main road and you will shortly come to Loch Leven, where Mary Queen of Scots was locked up in the castle on the island (v. romantic..the story of the escape- she then fled to her cousin in England for succour. She locked her up for 20 years then beheaded her.) You can take boat trips from Kinross.
Vane Farm Bird Reserve is on the other side of the Loch.
There are lots of other nice places, like Ceres, Falkland Palace, the East Neuk villages, Pittenweem, St Monans and Leven - a stretch of picture-postcard little fishing villages, with Anstruther, Crail, etc, leading toward St Andrews. For hiking, there's the Fife Coastal path that runs along the entire coast.
In Anstruther visit the fishing museum, then have the best fish in the world for your lunch. After that drive along the coast to Largo, home of the 'original' Robinson Crusoe. When Daniel Defoe wrote about Robinson Crusoe, he was writing about a real person. His name was Alexander Selkirk and he came from Largo in Fife. Defoe was an English spy up in Scotland in the 1700's and nicked the story. That area of Fife is well worth a visit
In St Andrews, take a trip underneath the castle. It can be a bit of a squeeze so if you are claustrophobic then probably best to pass on this one. John Knox used to live in this castle - also get chance to see the bottle dungeon. St. Andrews with its ancient university, its cathedral and the home of golf, the Royal and Ancient is seriously worth a visit. It has one of the best beaches in the world- the West Sands, which is where they filmed the opening sequence of Chariots of Fire- shame about the weather- and one of the best ice cream shops in the world (Jannetta's) apart from being a lovely little town.
Restaurants in the area which are very good would include the Ostler's Close in Cupar, the Cellar in Anstruther, the Cellar in St Monan's and the Peat Inn at Peat Inn.
I put the following train trips together with an Edinburgh base, but it wouldn't take much to adjust them.
1. Perth is a former major route junction for the trains, and you will find lines from there to Edinburgh, Glasgow, via Stirling, Dundee and then Aberdeen, Inverness and all points between.
2 I would suggest a day in Stirling would be a good use of your time. The only problem is, it's a bit spread out, so you might need to use cabs a lot. Great castle; Wallace
Monument, Bannockburn; good shopping.
3 Another thought would be Pitlochry then back to Dunkeld (actually, on checking my guide I see that some (not all, so be careful) trains stop at Blair Atholl. On second thoughts miss out Pitlochry, which is an overrated tourist trap, and go on to Blair Atholl) Blair Atholl is a planned village and is very pretty in a slightly twee Victorian style, and it houses Blair Castle, home of the Dukes of Atholl and the Atholl Highlanders. V. Impressive in the grand style. I have no idea how you get from the station to the castle but it's only a mile.
On the way back south plan to stop at Dunkeld- station is Birnam, again about a mile from Dunkeld proper.
The Cathedral is special, but so is the Square with its National Trust houses- the Little Houses. Some very good antique shops (never pay what they are asking)
Birnam is, of course, famous as being the place from which the wood came to Dunsinane in Macbeth. Dunsinane is just north of Perth on the Aberdeen Road.
4 Most of Perth's interest lies in its history- ancient capital of Scotland- and in its place in Scottish literature. Just north of Perth, 2 miles or so, is Scone Palace, worth a visit itself, which was the site where the kings and queens of Scotland were crowned, seated on the Stone of Destiny, (a good fake of) which you will no doubt have seen when you visited Edinburgh castle.
The town's 12th century Church, St John's, is worth a visit. It contains the remains of an Earl of Perth who is supposed to have told the town's baillies "If you give me six feet, I'll give you twa Inches"- a reference to the two parks on either side of the old town, the North and South Inches (from the Gaelic Innis meaning meadow). In addition, it is where John Knox preached the destruction of the monasteries at the start of the Scottish reformation
Sir Walter Scott wrote a novel called "the Fair Maid of Perth" and her house and that of Hal o' the Wynd, can both be visited. This will tell you all about Clan Chattan and Clan Kay and the battle they fought (staged?) on the North Inch. Next to Hal o' the Wynd's house is the City Mills which has a restored oatmeal mill and some nice craft shops. The City Mills Hotel, which I think is now called the Stakis, is another converted Mill, done so the lade
can be seen flowing underneath.
If you walk along the Tay, you can see where the houses in the Watergate had their gardens which led down to the river, where Kate Barlass held off the soldiers come to capture and kill the king.
The town has really good shopping centered around the High street and Old High Street. On the north edge of the town is the Caithness Glass factory where you can see the glass
being made and, of course, buy from the factory shop. Caithness has gone into receivership, (like Chapter 11) so you need to keep an eye on the situation before making
the trek out
There are a lot of nice walks.. along the river and through the North Inch, through the Norie Millar gardens on the north side of the river, Branklyn gardens on the north side of the river, Kinnoull hill with its folly, and, Buckie Braes and Callerfountain out towards the west.
Places to eat- Let's Eat is without doubt the best place in town, Patrick’s is a bistro behind the Sherriff Court (which is on Tay Street), which is quite good, and Paco's and the Filling station, are all cheap and cheerful.
The Willows tea room in St John's Square is very good for coffee/tea and cakes and things.
5 Go up the coast as far as Arbroath, which is a traditional fishing town, famous for its "smokies", and its cathedral, which is where the Declaration of Arbroath was signed in 1320. "For so long as a hundred of us remain alive, we will yield in no least way to English dominion" and all that.
Stop (if you want) at Carnoustie a couple of miles down the coast.. smaller and more of a 1920s tourist place, but famous for its golf course. The course is owned by the Council
and is remarkably cheap to play..
If you are rash enough to get off the train in Dundee (armpit of the Universe; am I making myself plain?) there's not much of quality to see or do. There is a very good visitor centre (the Discovery Centre) near the station, which interprets Captain Scott's voyages to the Antarctic, and his ship, the Discovery ,is moored alongside, so you can visit. Nearby is the Unicorn, a Dundee Whaler, which is also open to the public. There are people who actually like Dundee but they are few and far between.
Thereafter you can only get a tee by going through the daily ballot procedure. You phone the links committee on 01334 466666 the day before you want to play before 2pm (For Mondays you phone on Saturdays). You tell them the names of the golfers and their handicaps. (If you are picked you will have to show handicap certificates) and you tell them your home clubs. The ballot is then picked at random. They have on average 12-15 slots available per day.
The cost is 115 per round and the rounds are available for 2- 4 players
You can also try to play as a single or a pair on the actual day.
The starter will try to match you with a pair or a three ball if he can.
They suggest that you check the date in advance to ensure the tees are not booked for competition.
They suggest you turn up as early as possible to maximise your chances
They suggest you phone the day before after the ballot is drawn to find out how many two and three balls there are that you might join in with.
They say it happens a lot, but they guarantee nothing!
In Fife, crossing the Forth from Edinburgh, Dunfermilne is on your left. Robert the Bruce, the hero king who won Bannockburn is buried here in Dunfermilne Abbey (although his heart is buried at Melrose in the borders); go back onto the main road and you will shortly come to Loch Leven, where Mary Queen of Scots was locked up in the castle on the island (v. romantic..the story of the escape- she then fled to her cousin in England for succour. She locked her up for 20 years then beheaded her.) You can take boat trips from Kinross.
Vane Farm Bird Reserve is on the other side of the Loch.
There are lots of other nice places, like Ceres, Falkland Palace, the East Neuk villages, Pittenweem, St Monans and Leven - a stretch of picture-postcard little fishing villages, with Anstruther, Crail, etc, leading toward St Andrews. For hiking, there's the Fife Coastal path that runs along the entire coast.
In Anstruther visit the fishing museum, then have the best fish in the world for your lunch. After that drive along the coast to Largo, home of the 'original' Robinson Crusoe. When Daniel Defoe wrote about Robinson Crusoe, he was writing about a real person. His name was Alexander Selkirk and he came from Largo in Fife. Defoe was an English spy up in Scotland in the 1700's and nicked the story. That area of Fife is well worth a visit
In St Andrews, take a trip underneath the castle. It can be a bit of a squeeze so if you are claustrophobic then probably best to pass on this one. John Knox used to live in this castle - also get chance to see the bottle dungeon. St. Andrews with its ancient university, its cathedral and the home of golf, the Royal and Ancient is seriously worth a visit. It has one of the best beaches in the world- the West Sands, which is where they filmed the opening sequence of Chariots of Fire- shame about the weather- and one of the best ice cream shops in the world (Jannetta's) apart from being a lovely little town.
Restaurants in the area which are very good would include the Ostler's Close in Cupar, the Cellar in Anstruther, the Cellar in St Monan's and the Peat Inn at Peat Inn.
I put the following train trips together with an Edinburgh base, but it wouldn't take much to adjust them.
1. Perth is a former major route junction for the trains, and you will find lines from there to Edinburgh, Glasgow, via Stirling, Dundee and then Aberdeen, Inverness and all points between.
2 I would suggest a day in Stirling would be a good use of your time. The only problem is, it's a bit spread out, so you might need to use cabs a lot. Great castle; Wallace
Monument, Bannockburn; good shopping.
3 Another thought would be Pitlochry then back to Dunkeld (actually, on checking my guide I see that some (not all, so be careful) trains stop at Blair Atholl. On second thoughts miss out Pitlochry, which is an overrated tourist trap, and go on to Blair Atholl) Blair Atholl is a planned village and is very pretty in a slightly twee Victorian style, and it houses Blair Castle, home of the Dukes of Atholl and the Atholl Highlanders. V. Impressive in the grand style. I have no idea how you get from the station to the castle but it's only a mile.
On the way back south plan to stop at Dunkeld- station is Birnam, again about a mile from Dunkeld proper.
The Cathedral is special, but so is the Square with its National Trust houses- the Little Houses. Some very good antique shops (never pay what they are asking)
Birnam is, of course, famous as being the place from which the wood came to Dunsinane in Macbeth. Dunsinane is just north of Perth on the Aberdeen Road.
4 Most of Perth's interest lies in its history- ancient capital of Scotland- and in its place in Scottish literature. Just north of Perth, 2 miles or so, is Scone Palace, worth a visit itself, which was the site where the kings and queens of Scotland were crowned, seated on the Stone of Destiny, (a good fake of) which you will no doubt have seen when you visited Edinburgh castle.
The town's 12th century Church, St John's, is worth a visit. It contains the remains of an Earl of Perth who is supposed to have told the town's baillies "If you give me six feet, I'll give you twa Inches"- a reference to the two parks on either side of the old town, the North and South Inches (from the Gaelic Innis meaning meadow). In addition, it is where John Knox preached the destruction of the monasteries at the start of the Scottish reformation
Sir Walter Scott wrote a novel called "the Fair Maid of Perth" and her house and that of Hal o' the Wynd, can both be visited. This will tell you all about Clan Chattan and Clan Kay and the battle they fought (staged?) on the North Inch. Next to Hal o' the Wynd's house is the City Mills which has a restored oatmeal mill and some nice craft shops. The City Mills Hotel, which I think is now called the Stakis, is another converted Mill, done so the lade
can be seen flowing underneath.
If you walk along the Tay, you can see where the houses in the Watergate had their gardens which led down to the river, where Kate Barlass held off the soldiers come to capture and kill the king.
The town has really good shopping centered around the High street and Old High Street. On the north edge of the town is the Caithness Glass factory where you can see the glass
being made and, of course, buy from the factory shop. Caithness has gone into receivership, (like Chapter 11) so you need to keep an eye on the situation before making
the trek out
There are a lot of nice walks.. along the river and through the North Inch, through the Norie Millar gardens on the north side of the river, Branklyn gardens on the north side of the river, Kinnoull hill with its folly, and, Buckie Braes and Callerfountain out towards the west.
Places to eat- Let's Eat is without doubt the best place in town, Patrick’s is a bistro behind the Sherriff Court (which is on Tay Street), which is quite good, and Paco's and the Filling station, are all cheap and cheerful.
The Willows tea room in St John's Square is very good for coffee/tea and cakes and things.
5 Go up the coast as far as Arbroath, which is a traditional fishing town, famous for its "smokies", and its cathedral, which is where the Declaration of Arbroath was signed in 1320. "For so long as a hundred of us remain alive, we will yield in no least way to English dominion" and all that.
Stop (if you want) at Carnoustie a couple of miles down the coast.. smaller and more of a 1920s tourist place, but famous for its golf course. The course is owned by the Council
and is remarkably cheap to play..
If you are rash enough to get off the train in Dundee (armpit of the Universe; am I making myself plain?) there's not much of quality to see or do. There is a very good visitor centre (the Discovery Centre) near the station, which interprets Captain Scott's voyages to the Antarctic, and his ship, the Discovery ,is moored alongside, so you can visit. Nearby is the Unicorn, a Dundee Whaler, which is also open to the public. There are people who actually like Dundee but they are few and far between.
Jul 26th, 2005, 12:15 PM
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My server in the downtown McDonalds, Victoria, BC excitedly told me he was hoping to visit Dundee, where his grandfather came from. All I could do was smile wanly and wish him good luck.
I also don't think Leven would be on many tourist maps, Sheila.
I also don't think Leven would be on many tourist maps, Sheila.
Jul 27th, 2005, 12:04 PM
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Thank you SO much!! I'm getting started on plans right now. It sounds as though we can "tour" pretty much from Edinburgh. I think my son gets some kind of "special consideration" being a student at St Andrews....so maybe we can get a tee time that way. Carnoustie would be great though, too. Thanks again.
Aug 2nd, 2005, 05:49 AM
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I just saw the "don't think Leven would be on many tourist maps". Actually Leven, the Largo's, Elie, Lundin Links and that whole coast are on a LOT of tourist maps. You should try them sometime . . . . . .
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