Hi All,

Wondering if you can make any suggestions as I plan to go Scotland near 10-11 August for a week with better half.. I want to see the best of Scotland as she is a big lover of Scenic Beauty of nature; any ideas how to make the most of this?
I am current;y considering taking a train somewhere and hiring a car to cruise around and absorb the landscape. I will need to stop at Aberdeen to see someone before I return so I guess that will be my final stop before returning to London.

Actually have found a guide:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/scotland...rticles/76991#

any ideas how much it would cost me without the diving/kayecking and just the sight seeing?

Welcome to Fodors ZeelsOn. You will want to re-post over on the Europe Forum (see the Change Forum pull down menu . . .

Do realize you can't see 'the best of Scotland' in only one week. Do you have anything booked yet? Finding accommodations especially in/near Edinburgh will be VERY difficult.

So re-post over on Europe and we will see how we can help.

Only a week? You can either run around and see as much as you can and be exhausted or pick two places and enjoy yourself. personally my two places would be Inverness and Edinburgh.

has anyone poked a hole in that wall yet?

The 'guide' you found is describing a trip of at least 2 weeks Zeels. Nor is there any 'best of' anything except what YOU decide is best for you. Any description such as the one you found is simply someone ELSE'S idea of what is best.

If you want a week of 'Scenic Beauty' I would suggest you fly from London to Aberdeen (multiple flights every day) or take the train there and then rent a car. Then, look at a road map, pick out a circle route returning to Aberdeen and off you go. Whatever route you pick will be as good as any other UNLESS you have some specific places/things you are interested in.

Finding accommodation in the Highlands is never a problem. There are far more rooms to rent than tourists to rent them believe me and that includes in Edinburgh. I've never pre-booked a room there yet and with probably a 1000 nights spent travelling there, have never gone without a bed.

To get an idea of what it will cost, you need to say what kind of accommodation you will want. Nowadays, a simple Bed and Breakfast can go from 100 GBP and of course hotels vary a great deal.

If you want to post in more than one place (ie. the Europe Board) then you may find different people responding on each. Posting on BOTH is the way to get the largest audience for your post.

Katzgar, I have tried to puzzle out the meaning of your comment but failed. Please enlighten me.

it was a rather arcane reference to hadrians wall

"<i><blue>If you want to post in more than one place (ie. the Europe Board) then you may find different people responding on each. Posting on BOTH is the way to get the largest audience for your post.</i></blue>"

Sorry improvisor - but you are just <u>wrong</u> about that.

This is the catch-all/misc. forum and almost no one reads it nor posts here.

You yourself are brand new here so perhaps (just <i>perhaps</i folks who have been around a while know how the forums work best. If you look at the rest of the threads on THIS forum - the majority of recent posts are newbie's or yours. If you look at the Europe forum (or Asia or Mexico or whatever) you will find they are many MANY times busier. Posting here does not reach a wider audience since no Fodorites (except brand new members) access <i>only</i> this forum and they usually find it by accident via a google search.

I honestly don't understand WHY you insist an belaboring this. If someone wants advice/information about a place (ANY place) they get much much better response on the applicable geographic forums. If you don't like the way Fodors works fine - but misinforming new members is not very productive . . .

Most people posting on Fodors actually try to <i>help</i> folks w/ questions - and they OFFER that help on the appropriate boards.

To clarify - >>and newbies usually find it by accident via a google search.<<

Maybe, just maybe, regulars only think they know how the forum works best. This forum is no different than a thousand other forums. If 99 read the Europe board and 1 reads this board, then logically there is only ONE way to reach the maximum number of readers. Post on both boards.

You confuse reaching a majority with reaching the maximum possible. They are not one and the same. Majority equals most, maximum equals ALL. Theoretically, to reach the maximum number of readers requires posting on ALL forums whether they are related or not. But that is going a bit too far in search of an audience for a question. Posting here is NOT as the title 'Travel Ideas'is clearly related to the question being asked.

Clearly, people whether new or not are posting on this board asking for 'Travel Ideas'. Perhaps regular posters who "actually try to help folks w/questions"- should offer that help where it is asked and THIS IS an appropriate board unless you want to try and define 'Trip Ideas' in some way that makes posting here inappropriate.

OK - while you have beat this poor dead horse -- for three days -- the OP has not received any useful advice. Whereas IF the OP (who probably isn't coming back) had posted in Europe he would have received probably 20 or 30 relevant/useful/terrific responses. If results are what matters . . .

You can lead a horse to water............

I'll try anyway. Do some Googling and learn about 'Helicopter Vision' janisj. It is very common in business for a board of directors to hire a new CEO with no background in their specific business to overhaul a company. They are 'parachuted in'.

This is done because this person has no pre-conceived ideas of 'how the company works'. They provide a fresh set of eyes that can see things those immersed in the company and the company culture cannot see.

There is no company or forum that cannot be improved and sometimes it is very easy for a newcomer to see how while those who are 'regulars' cannot see it at all.

For example, this forum has no sub-forum for longer term travel or round the world travel. Where do you post a question like, 'Is a RTW ticket a good idea or not?' Or where do you post, 'what do you think of my plan to visit 14 countries on 4 continents in 3 months?'

There is no sub-forum for travel related but not geographical questions. For example, 'does anyone know of a good home schooling program for liveaboard cruisers taking a year off to sail with their kids?'

Fodor's may have some reason for limiting things or they may simply not realize they are limiting their forum in some ways. When you are sitting in the middle of the trees, it's very hard to see the forest.