500 Best Sights in Scotland

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).

You can take an informative guided tour of this world-renowned working textile mill and also purchase some of the best woollen goods on offer, from knitwear to tartans and tweeds. The shop also sells Scottish jewelry.

One of the four major sites belonging to the Edinburgh-based National Botanic Gardens of Scotland, the spectacular Logan Botanic Garden is a must-see for garden lovers. Displayed here are plants that enjoy the prevailing mild climate, especially tree ferns, cabbage palms, and other Southern Hemisphere exotica. There are free guided walks every second Tuesday of the month at 10:30 am; at other times there is a free audio guide.

This odd garden of delights provokes a double-take from most drivers traveling along the A838, thanks to its incongruous ceramic-topped gates. Park opposite, and stroll down into Danish artist Lotte Glob's pottery wonderland, where ceramic and metal sculptures are scattered across the gardens. Several paths lead down to the coast, and there are hundreds of pieces, including a library of ceramic books, en route. Her work reflects and adds to the landscape, using natural shapes and forms and building patterns into the rocks themselves. End your visit with a trip to the studio and pottery shop.

Across the river in Banff's twin town, Macduff, on the shore east of the harbor, stands the conical Macduff Marine Aquarium. A 250,000-gallon central tank and many smaller display areas and touch pools show the sea life of the Moray Firth and North Atlantic. This place wouldn't be half as good without the staff, who are knowledgeable, inventive, and engaging, especially with children, and there's always some creature to admire—the stingrays cause the most excitement—or watch being fed by divers.

Six ancient circles of boulders and head-high sandstone pillars are scattered across Machrie Moor. These relics of a prehistoric culture are as old as Egypt's pyramids, if not quite as impressive, and the site evokes a dim and distant past.

One of Charles Rennie Mackintosh's most admired commissions was the tearooms he designed in 1903 for Miss Cranston, whose tearooms across the city were a magnet for Glasgow's middle class. She commissioned the young Mackintosh for several projects; the Willow Tea Rooms were among the best known. The tearooms have now been restored to their 1903 state, with furniture to match Makintosh's design. You'll find other beautiful examples of his work in the building, too, including the Billiard Room, the Board Room, and the aptly named Salon de Luxe. An interactive exhibition focuses on the great artist in his time and place, together with his contemporaries, including the Glasgow Girls.

Conspicuous in the center of town are the stone walls of MacLellan's Castle, a once-elaborate castellated mansion dating from the 16th century. You can walk around the interior, still atmospheric even though the rooms are bare. The "Lairds Lug," behind the fireplace, allowed the laird (lord) to listen in to what his guests were saying about him. You can also get a glimpse of life below stairs in the kitchen vaults beneath the main staircase. The mansion has lovely views over the town.

The huge burial mound of Maeshowe, circa 2500 BC, measures 115 feet in diameter and contains an enormous burial chamber. It was raided by Vikings in the 12th century, and Norse crusaders found shelter here, leaving a rich collection of runic inscriptions. Outside you'll see just a large, grassy mound, but inside you'll find a stunning chambered tomb with remarkably sophisticated stonework. This site is 6 miles northeast of Stromness and 1 mile from the Ring of Brodgar. The site is open for guided tours only, which start at the visitor center at Stenness. Come between the end of November and the middle of January to witness the setting sun aligning perfectly with the central chamber. Capacity is limited so book ahead online during high season.

Founded in 1593 by George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal (the titular keeper of the king's mares), Marischal College was a Protestant alternative to the Catholic King's College in Old Aberdeen. The two joined to form the University of Aberdeen in 1860. The spectacularly ornate work of the main university building is set off by the gilded flags, and this turn-of-the-20th-century creation is still one of the world's largest granite buildings.

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds tends the remote Marwick Head Nature Reserve, where in spring and summer the cliffs are draped in wildflowers such as campion and thrift, and resound with thousands of nesting seabirds including cormorants, kittiwakes, and guillemots. The Kitchener Memorial, recalling the 1916 sinking of the cruiser HMS Hampshire with Lord Kitchener aboard, sits atop a cliff. Access to the reserve, which is unstaffed, is along a path north from Marwick Bay, around 4 miles southwest of Birsay.

This bastel (from the French bastille) was the fortified town house in which, as the story goes, Mary Queen of Scots (1542–1587) stayed before embarking on her famous 20-mile ride to Hermitage Castle to visit her wounded lover, the Earl of Bothwell (circa 1535–78) in 1566. Displays relate the tale and other episodes in her life, including her questionable choices of lovers and husbands and her own reflections on her life. The Catholic Mary´s claim to the crown eventually led to her execution on the orders of Queen Elizabeth I in 1587. There are tapestries and furniture of the period, and the house's ornamental garden has pear trees leading down to the river.

The high point of a visit to Fofar is the Meffan Museum and Art Gallery, which displays an interesting collection of Pictish carved stones, a recreation of Forfar's cobbled street The Vennel, and artifacts from the dark days of burning witches. Two galleries host frequently changing exhibitions by leading local and Scottish artists. The museum also houses a tourist information desk.

The town of Meigle, in the wide swathe of Strathmore, has one of the most notable collections of sculpted stones in western Europe, housed at the Meigle Sculptured Stone Museum. It consists of some 25 monuments from the Celtic Christian period (8th to 11th century), nearly all of which were found in or around the local churchyard. The large 9th-century prayer cross-slab known as Meigle 2 shows Daniel in the lions' den. Local legend holds the slab marked the grave of Guinevere, wife of King Arthur; in the story, Arthur sentences her to death by being torn apart by wild animals.

One fine example of the Borders area's ornate country homes is Mellerstain House, begun in the 1720s and finished in the 1770s by Robert Adam (1728–92); it is considered one of his finest creations. Sumptuous plasterwork covers almost all interior surfaces, and there are outstanding examples of 18th-century furnishings, porcelain and china, paintings, and embroidery. The beautiful terraced gardens (open an hour before the house itself) are as renowned as the house.

Built in 1686 and restored in 1820, the Mercat Cross (the name stems from "marketplace"), always the symbolic center of a Scottish medieval burgh, stands just beyond King Street. Along its parapet are 12 portrait panels of the Stewart monarchs.

This converted mill is a reminder that this tranquil town was for more than a hundred years the center of the region's cotton industry. You can learn more inside, where arts and crafts are also on display. The tearoom serves light lunches and delicious home-baked goods. The building also houses the town's tourist information center.

The largest public reference library in Europe houses more than a million items, including what is claimed to be the world's largest collection about Robert Burns. The Mitchell also houses the remarkable private collection of outstanding puppeteer John Blundell. Minerva, goddess of wisdom, looks down from the library's dome, encouraging the library's users and frowning at the drivers thundering along the nearby motorway. This is a genuinely public library with open access to all its materials, nearly 100 computers for public use, and a comfortable on-site café. A bust in the entrance hall commemorates the library's founder, Stephen Mitchell, who died in 1874. The Aye Write Literature Festival takes place here every March, as do many other events celebrating Glasgow's history.

Run by the Scottish Wildlife Trust, the Montrose Basin Local Nature Reserve hosts migrating geese, ducks, and swans. Several nature trails can take you up close to the reserve's residents if you're quiet. In October, at least 20,000 pink-footed geese arrive: come in the morning and the evening to see them fill the sky.

The town's museum—housed in a neoclassical building that also contains the tourist information center—exhibits some fascinating bequests by the local gentry, including an early-19th-century ship carved from bone by French prisoners in the Napoleonic Wars.

Bute's biggest draw is spectacular Mount Stuart, ancestral home of the marquesses of Bute. The massive Victorian Gothic palace, built in red sandstone, has ornate interiors, including the eccentric Horoscope Room and the Marble Hall, with stained glass, arcaded galleries, and magnificent tapestries woven in Edinburgh in the early 20th century. The paintings and furniture throughout the house are equally interesting. You can also appreciate the lovely gardens and grounds.

If you wish to visit the southern tip of the Rhinns of Galloway, called the Mull of Galloway, follow the B7065/B7041 until you run out of land. The cliffs and seascapes here are rugged, and there's a lighthouse and the Mull of Galloway bird reserve.

Scotland's northernmost castle was built in 1598 by Laurence Bruce of Cultmalindie, uncle of "cruel" Patrick Stewart. Despite being a ruin it is rather fetching, with circular corner towers and a scale-and-platt (that is, not circular but straight-on) staircase.

Even adults tend to enjoy this cheerfully noisy museum—a cacophony of childhood memorabilia, vintage toys, antique dolls, and fairground games. The museum claims to have been the first in the world devoted solely to the history of childhood.

A must-see if you're interested in the details of Old Town life, this bright yellow, 16th-century building is home to a fascinating museum of local history. It houses some of the most important artifacts in Scottish history—including the National Covenant, a document signed by Scotland's Presbyterian leadership in defiance of a reformed liturgy imposed by King Charles I of England that ignited decades of civil war—alongside Scottish pottery, silver, and glassware, as well as curios like Greyfriars Bobby's dog collar.

A converted church is home to this local museum, a loveable haphazard collection of local artifacts, photographs, and memorabilia. There is also a local history archive.

The Lochnell Mine was abandoned in 1861, after 150 years of operation, and the mine and miners' homes now form part of this museum re-creating their lives. The isolated village of Wanlockhead, where the mine is located, has not changed a great deal since then—there was little alternative employment for the miners and their families. In the visitor center, housed in the old smithy, there are tableaux depicting the work of the miners and explanations of the nature of the ore from which the lead was taken. A visit consists of a tour of the miners' library, followed by a walk through the long gallery of the mine itself as well as some of the miners' houses. Hard hats are included, but it is still wise to keep your head down. The nearby Leadhills and Wanlockhead Narrow Gauge Railway runs on weekends throughout the summer and costs £7.50 for a round-trip ticket. There is a pleasant tearoom and shop in the visitor center, and you can also pan for gold.

The fishing boats have moved to larger ports, but Nairn's historical flavor has been preserved at the Nairn Museum, set in a handsome Georgian building in the center of town. Exhibits emphasize artifacts, photographs, and model boats relating to the town's fishing past. A genealogy service is also offered. A library in the same building has a strong local-history section.

Located in Newtongrange, once Scotland's largest mining village, the National Mining Museum Scotland provides a good introduction to the history of the country's coal industry. The main walkaround exhibition is a little dry—expect more on the chemical composition of coal than the social history of Scottish mining—but the guided tours dig (ahem) a little deeper. You'll get to explore a replica coalface, see the colossal mining machinery up close, and hear tales about life deep under ground from the ex-miner guides. In particular, you'll learn about the mining company (and its abusive general manager Mungo Mackay), whose power over workers extended to owning all the houses, shops, and even the local pub.

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).