What to see in Scotland with 4 days Mid-July
 

My husband and I are planning a trip to Scotland in Mid-July for 4 days. We are having a hard time choosing where to go or what to see. Since we have a limited time we don't want to be running around all the time but stay in one area and really see it well. He is leaning towards Edinburgh but I'm thinking more of the Highlands.

Any suggestions on what are MUST see's?

Thank you:)

We visited both places in march. I would suggest basing yourselves in Edinburgh if you have never been to Scotland before.
Are you flying into Edinburgh? It is a very easy ariport to navigate.
Are you renting a car?
There is plently to keep you busy in and near Edinburgh. Do a search and find all the fascinating things to do and see in Edinburhg.I think you will get good sense of what Scotland is all about here, the rich history, etc...

You could do a day trip to St. Andrews, stirling,and countless other towns, beaches, etc.. Stirling is the gateway to the Highlands.
I think if you do a search on scotland on this board you will find a plethora of valuable information.

Have fun!!!

What kinds of things are you and your husband interested in seeing? History, cities, scenery, art, castles, gardens, distilleries, etc.? That will help with recommendations. My first reaction would be to stay in somewhere sort of central, such as Stirling or maybe a smaller town, where you could do a day trip by train to Edinburgh and also explore some countryside. You wouldn't necessarily be able to get deep into the highlands, but you would be able to reach some lovely scenery.

To be honest this is a spur of the moment trip. He has buisness in London and said I could come with and pick anywhere to visit. I've been to England/Ireland before and chose Scotland. We have our plane tickets to London but have to buy for Scotland. We have not made any other plans than that. We are trying to decide by tonight so we can make reservations.

We want to see some castles, go on a whisky tour and just see the local culture. We are so excited to go. It's just hard choosing one place from all the books and internet sites we have been viewing. Noone we know has ever been there before so we are excited.

Thanks for the tips.

I agree w/ noe. For such a short visit and wanting to see an area in some depth I'd pick somewhere like the Trossachs (near Callander) -- or --Dunkeld/Perth. Both are in the middle of TONS of things to see/do, yet still a resonable train to Edinburgh for a day trip.

The general Trossachs area would be a good base for Stirling, Loch Lomond, lots of other lochs/waterfalls, castles, Glencoe, etc.

Perth/Dunkeld would be a good base for Stirling, Blair Atholl, Sconne, St Andrews/Fife, and a bit more mountainous scenery than the Trossachs.

This way you could do it both from one base - a day trip to Edinburgh "car-less" and driving around a gorgeous bit of Scotland.

Don't woryy about the whisky - there are distilleries all over.

You could take an overnight sleeper train to edinburgh from London, tour the city that full day, and then pick up a renta car and head out to one of the areas suggested (or you could also fly up early in the a.m. and still have a full day for Edinburgh)