43 Best Sights in Stirling and the Central Highlands, Scotland

Stretching west of the small community of Brig o' Turk, Loch Achray dutifully fulfills expectations of what a verdant Trossachs loch should be: small, green, reedy meadows backed by dark plantations, rhododendron thickets, and lumpy hills, thickly covered with heather.

From the lochside hides at this Scottish Wildlife Trust reserve near Dunkeld, you can observe the area's rich birdlife through a powerful telescope. The main attractions are always the ospreys, one of Scotland's conservation success stories, which can be observed between April and August. But there is much to see throughout the year, like the great crested grebe at feeding stations. The enthusiastic staff will willingly describe what is happening around the center.

The A821 runs west together with the first and gentlest of the Trossachs lochs, Loch Venachar. A sturdy gray-stone building, with a small dam at the Callander end, controls the water that feeds into the River Teith (and, hence, into the Forth).

This Victorian-era shrine to William Wallace (circa 1270–1305), the Scottish freedom fighter reborn as "Braveheart" in Mel Gibson's 1995 film of the same name, was built between 1856 and 1869. It sits on Abbey Craig, from which Wallace watched the English armies struggle across the old Stirling Bridge before attacking them and winning a major victory in 1297. A steep stone spiral staircase leads to the roof gallery, with views of the bridge and the whole Carse of Stirling. A less flamboyant version of Wallace's life is told in an exhibition and audiovisual presentation on the second floor. To reach the monument, follow the Bridge of Allan signs (A9) northward, crossing the River Forth by the New Bridge of 1832, next to the old one. The monument is signposted at the next traffic circle. From the car park a free shuttle will take you to the monument, or you can walk (15 minutes).

This newer county jail was an improvement on the original jail across the road at the Tolbooth, but it was still a grim place as a visit to its cells will show. Visitors are taken through the cells and corridors by costumed actors who recount in gory detail what went on here. Groups depart from the main gate every half hour. A popular addition has been the Escape Rooms in which guests must find their way out following clues. Tickets for these rooms are for groups of between 4 and 8; be sure to book tickets and reserve a time slot in advance, especially in summer.

Set among the oak woods and above a rocky river just north of Pilochry, the Pass of Killiecrankie was the site of a famous battle won by the Jacobites in 1689. The battle was notable for the death of the central Jacobite leader, John Graham of Claverhouse (1649–89), also known as Bonnie Dundee, who was hit by a stray bullet. One English soldier is reputed to have escaped the Jacobite troops by jumping into the river at a point still known as "Soldier's Leap." After Dundee's death the rebellion petered out. The National Trust for Scotland's visitor center at Killiecrankie explains the significance of this battle, which was the first attempt to restore the Stewart monarchy. Its Jacobite Café offers French pastries in addition to a good lunch menu of quiches, soups, and sandwiches.

This museum has a wide-ranging collection, including exhibits on natural history, local history, archaeology, and art, as well as an important glass collection. It also includes work by the great painter of animals Sir Edwin Landseer and some botanical studies of fungi by Beatrix Potter. It also now includes the 6,000 works—paintings, drawings, and prints—by the Scottish artist J. D. Fergusson (1874–1961) and his wife, Margaret Morris, an artist in her own right and a pioneer of modern dance. Fergusson was the longest-lived member of the group called the Scottish Colourists, who took their inspiration from the French impressionist painters in their use of color and light.

The dam built across the River Tummel, built between 1947 and 1951, was originally seen as a major threat to Pitlochry´s tourism, but has since become a major attraction for visitors. The fish ladder was created to allow migrating salmon who annually swim upriver in January to breed to continue to do so. The full story of the dam is told at the Dam Visitor Centre, which has a pleasant café and a view over the water. There are pleasant walks from there around the dam.

Some will tell you the Black Watch was a Scottish regiment whose name is a reference to the color of its tartan. An equally plausible explanation, however, is that the regiment was established to keep an undercover watch on rebellious Jacobites. The Gaelic word for black is dubh, meaning, in this case, "hidden" or "covert." A wide range of uniforms, weaponry, and marching banners are displayed in this museum in Balhousie Castle, and there's a very good café and shop. Be sure to book ahead if you would like a guided tour.

Here's your chance to travel back 2,500 years to a time when this region's inhabitants lived in circular homesteads known as crannogs. Standing on stilts in the middle of lochs, these dwellings were approachable only by narrow bridges that could be easily defended from intruders.

Besides selling a vast range of woolen garments and knitwear, the Scottish Wool Centre has a small café and some activities. Three times a day from April to September it presents an interactive "gathering" during which dogs herd sheep and ducks in the large amphitheater, with a little help from the public.

This small but intriguing museum in a neoclassical building, founded in 1874, houses The Stirling Story, a comprehensive social history of the town. It holds the oldest (reputedly) football in the world, as well as the charming 16th-century portraits of the Five Stirling Sybils. Closer to the present are banners and memorabilia from the great miners' strike of 1984–85. The chiming clocks remind us, on the hour, of the present. The museum also holds regular temporary art and historical exhibitions and has a pleasant café.

In this impressive cruciform-plan church dating from the 12th century, religious reformer John Knox preached a fiery sermon in May 1559 against idolatry. An enraged crowd stripped the church and poured into the street to attack the wealthy religious institutions; this helped start the Reformation in Scotland. The interior was divided into three parts at the Reformation, but in the 1920s Sir Robert Lorimer restored it to something closer to its medieval state.