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Chewbacca

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I'm headed to Scotland next November with a few good friends and I'm early planning for it. The West Highland Line suggestion above looks amazing and we'll definitely do that. We only have four days for Scotland as we're doing a week driving around Ireland. We'll probably fly into Glasgow from Dublin or Belfast for the train ride and try to do a full day in Edinburgh after that and fly home from there. I've been to Scotland a couple times but never the highlands, so I'm trying to fit in both the highlands for me and Edinburgh for the friends. I try not to pack too much into a short trip, but it may be necessary this time considering their tight schedule.  

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Skip the castle. Like I said earlier evey Scott has told me that. Add Holyroodhouse and the cemetery with the dog. Forget the name

Greyfriar’s - very cool cemetery. My son got overwhelmed there, it’s pretty powerful.
And on the castle, it’s at the end of your walk up the Royal mile; it’s worth a quick visit, for as long as you want.
We also did short trips to Stirling, St Andrews, and Loch Lomond when we went the first time.
Have some scotch and sticky toffee pudding at the Worlds End pub, and grab a sammich at Oink one day.
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2 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

Feels like we got dropped off from a tour bus or something.  Maybe we walked up.  Don't remember.

We stayed in an AirBNB really close to the castle, so the top of the hill was kind of our base of operations anyway.  We started most of our days at the top of the hill, and worked things out from there.

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  • 3 months later...
  • 1 month later...

Just got back. Thanks for all the recommendations 

We did pretty much everything except Isle of Skye and St Andrew’s. Glencoe is one of the more beautiful places on earth. The entire country is pretty, warm, and welcoming. And they love a wee dram, which is nice. Loch Lomond and Loch Ness were both beautiful but the drive to Loch Ness was a bitch. I liked Stirling Castle the best as far as tourist sites. We even fit in the Royal Britannia (per demand from the women). 

Definitely don’t skip Edinburgh Castle. Great views of the city. 

National museums are free too. 
 

Now off to plan the next trip. 

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  • 2 months later...

So we are thinking about a 2 week combined Scotland Ireland trip. Knowing there will be a lot of driving in Ireland, wondering whether train travel from town to town would make sense in Scotland. 

Edited by Dbeasy
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6 hours ago, Dbeasy said:

So we are thinking about a 2 week combined Scotland Ireland trip. Knowing there will be a lot of driving in Ireland, wondering whether train travel from town to town would make sense. 

I rode the train from Dublin to Galway last year then down to Limerick.  Jumped off an had beers along the way. It is a nice way to travel but the network in Ireland is more limited than it is in Scotland and England. 

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15 hours ago, Dbeasy said:

wondering whether train travel from town to town would make sense in Scotland

Yes.  If you are packing light. 
 

There was a labor dispute the last time I was in Scotland so rail service was screwy.  We rented a car.  After a day getting used to other side of road driving wasn’t any big challenge.

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  • 1 month later...

If you are in the Highlands (especially the remote areas) and you are getting hungry or want a coffee and you see a place that is open...  don't over think it.  Stop.  There's no guarantee you'll find anything further on, or if you do, that it will be open even during peak hours.

 

Also make sure you have a sedate play list going on the stereo...   I was just lost in music and the winding road and almost over cooked a turn or took a blind summit too fast. (on more than a few occasions)  Those roads up there are slim, mountainous, rolling, and the views are legit.  

This song almost killed me.   

 

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On 11/25/2022 at 5:07 PM, Brisketexan said:


Jealous. I could have breakfast with black pudding every day.
And the scots really are nice, mostly willing to engage in random conversation, welcoming, and funny.

the fiesta on 35 and 39th has black pudding.  

 

we'll be in scotland for the first time ever next august.  going to be in annandale and edinburgh, maybe glasgow.  we'll have all four kids with us (13, 11, 10, 7). i've got a pretty good list going for edinburgh from this thread- it seems like glasgow might not be the best use of time?

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30 minutes ago, gsoda3 said:

the fiesta on 35 and 39th has black pudding.  

 

we'll be in scotland for the first time ever next august.  going to be in annandale and edinburgh, maybe glasgow.  we'll have all four kids with us (13, 11, 10, 7). i've got a pretty good list going for edinburgh from this thread- it seems like glasgow might not be the best use of time?

Fiesta is the only place I've found black pudding in Austin.  I may have to make a run there this weekend.

Glasgow is a cool town, but all-in-all, it's not the top tourist destination in Scotland for a reason.  It's a cool city, there's some stuff to see and do, but Edinburgh has much more in terms of "tourist shit your family will want to see."  Glasgow isn't a bad base of operations for trips to the western islands, Loch Lomond, that sort of thing, and there's definitely a good 1-2 days of stuff to see in Glasgow if you want.  Hell, we own a home there now, but I wouldn't put it as the MUST SEE place in Scotland.  Just a cool town with its own vibe, and honestly, that vibe is kind of best for students and young professionals: it's still quite affordable, cool and affordable nightlife in the West End and Finnieston, laid back parks and such for the older crowd to just "be."

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On 5/15/2023 at 5:21 PM, Neonmoon said:

Just got back. Thanks for all the recommendations 

We did pretty much everything except Isle of Skye and St Andrew’s. Glencoe is one of the more beautiful places on earth. The entire country is pretty, warm, and welcoming. And they love a wee dram, which is nice. Loch Lomond and Loch Ness were both beautiful but the drive to Loch Ness was a bitch. I liked Stirling Castle the best as far as tourist sites. We even fit in the Royal Britannia (per demand from the women). 

Definitely don’t skip Edinburgh Castle. Great views of the city. 

National museums are free too. 
 

Now off to plan the next trip. 

Dude, Isle of Skye was the highlight of our Scottish trip. Even more beautiful than Glencoe. You need to go back. 

 

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  • 4 months later...

Son just graduated Clemson and is going to Europe for a couple months before the real world starts.  I am meeting him in Scotland in January.  The plan is to fly into Edinburg on Friday and rent a car to head straight to St. Andrews.

Spend Saturday in St. Andrews and on Sunday walk the Old Course and then leave. The plan is to go to Inverness for a couple days.  Do a Whisky tour from Inverness and then head to Isle of Sky, hike old man Storr and the fairy pools.  

My son is a golf whore, so he found a course he wants to play on the Outer Hebrides called Askernish.  Then we plan to spend the night in Glencoe and finish for a couple of days in Edinburgh. 

Anything i am missing?  Is three days in Inverness too much?  Am I spreading ourselves too thin?

Is Glencoe worth more than a day ? 

Any Food/Bar recs.  I’ve made a list of some of the places mentioned here. 

Thanks in advance. 

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21 hours ago, Gordon Shumway said:

Son just graduated Clemson and is going to Europe for a couple months before the real world starts.  I am meeting him in Scotland in January.  The plan is to fly into Edinburg on Friday and rent a car to head straight to St. Andrews.

Spend Saturday in St. Andrews and on Sunday walk the Old Course and then leave. The plan is to go to Inverness for a couple days.  Do a Whisky tour from Inverness and then head to Isle of Sky, hike old man Storr and the fairy pools.  

My son is a golf whore, so he found a course he wants to play on the Outer Hebrides called Askernish.  Then we plan to spend the night in Glencoe and finish for a couple of days in Edinburgh. 

Anything i am missing?  Is three days in Inverness too much?  Am I spreading ourselves too thin?

Is Glencoe worth more than a day ? 

Any Food/Bar recs.  I’ve made a list of some of the places mentioned here. 

Thanks in advance. 

3 days might be a bit much in Inverness but if you are using it as a home base to travel the Highlands,  than you should be good.  

Food and drink around Inverness that we enjoyed:

https://www.themaltroom.co.uk/ for tastings. Super small place and the staff were great. 

https://www.mustardseedrestaurant.co.uk/ we went for lunch after many recommendations and loved it

https://www.xoko.co.uk/ coffee and excellent breakfast/pastries

When we went,  we ended up staying in a small town outside of Inverness called Nairn. If you find yourself there,  https://theclassroombistro.com/ this place was great.

Edinburgh:

https://www.oinkhogroast.co.uk/ for a quick pulled pork sandwich while you walk the streets

Cafè Elmrow for a full Scottish breakfast

https://www.eleanore.uk/ had our favorite meal in Scotland.  I want to go back to Edinburgh just to hang out here again. 

https://www.sprywines.co.uk/ chill wine bar. There is a small room in the back if you wanted a secluded space

https://www.taisteal.co.uk/ solid and affordable fine dining

Honestly,  we didn't have a bad meal in Scotland.  I left thoroughly impressed with their scene. 

Edited by SmokeyTheBear
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38 minutes ago, SmokeyTheBear said:

Honestly,  we didn't have a bad meal in Scotland.  I left thoroughly impressed with their scene. 

I felt the same way.  Thoroughly gruntled with the food in Scotland.  We ate very well while we were there.  And left with a love of haggis and black pudding.

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22 hours ago, Gordon Shumway said:

 

My son is a golf whore, so he found a course he wants to play on the Outer Hebrides called Askernish. 

 

I just googled that course.  Looks amazing, and also looks like the definition of "old Scottish golf."  Can't wait to hear about it.

Also looks like they put 18 flags in the middle of nowhere in a beautiful location and called it a "golf course".  How are you getting there?

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37 minutes ago, Wiler77 said:

I just googled that course.  Looks amazing, and also looks like the definition of "old Scottish golf."  Can't wait to hear about it.

Also looks like they put 18 flags in the middle of nowhere in a beautiful location and called it a "golf course".  How are you getting there?

We are taking a fairy from Mallaig.  We will be renting a car and driving from there.  it looks fun, and he is the most excited about playing this course than anything. 

 

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions,Ill post pics from the road.  

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Planning to spend a couple of weeks in Scotland / Ireland this Summer with my wife and our 3 kids (2 in college and a 10 year old).

Trying to figure out lodging, probably easiest to rent an apartment instead of multiple hotel rooms.  Is Airbnb and/or Vrbo the way to go or is there some Brit or Euro version that is a better source for me?  I'm a bit afraid of getting scammed as I've seen a few listings noting "Hacked account / Fake listing".

@txduck87 @Brisketexan @Chewbacca @Incredulity @Hagbard Celine

Anyone else who has experience with Airbnb or Vrbo or Brit / Euro equivalent specifically in Scotland / Ireland, any guidance you can provide is appreciated.

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4 minutes ago, orange dream said:

Planning to spend a couple of weeks in Scotland / Ireland this Summer with my wife and our 3 kids (2 in college and a 10 year old).

Trying to figure out lodging, probably easiest to rent an apartment instead of multiple hotel rooms.  Is Airbnb and/or Vrbo the way to go or is there some Brit or Euro version that is a better source for me?  I'm a bit afraid of getting scammed as I've seen a few listings noting "Hacked account / Fake listing".

@txduck87 @Brisketexan @Chewbacca @Incredulity @Hagbard Celine

Anyone else who has experience with Airbnb or Vrbo or Brit / Euro equivalent specifically in Scotland / Ireland, any guidance you can provide is appreciated.

We did Airbnb in the UK (granted....10 years ago), and got a nice place in Edinburgh and in London.  There were 6 of us traveling, so it was the way to go.  But I can't vouch for how well it works now.

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14 minutes ago, orange dream said:

Planning to spend a couple of weeks in Scotland / Ireland this Summer with my wife and our 3 kids (2 in college and a 10 year old).

Trying to figure out lodging, probably easiest to rent an apartment instead of multiple hotel rooms.  Is Airbnb and/or Vrbo the way to go or is there some Brit or Euro version that is a better source for me?  I'm a bit afraid of getting scammed as I've seen a few listings noting "Hacked account / Fake listing".

@txduck87 @Brisketexan @Chewbacca @Incredulity @Hagbard Celine

Anyone else who has experience with Airbnb or Vrbo or Brit / Euro equivalent specifically in Scotland / Ireland, any guidance you can provide is appreciated.

We did an airbnb in Edinburgh, but I've soured on STRs as a whole after seeing what they have done to housing markets in tourist areas (including Edinburgh).  I'll be sticking with hotels going forward, I think.

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21 minutes ago, orange dream said:

Planning to spend a couple of weeks in Scotland / Ireland this Summer with my wife and our 3 kids (2 in college and a 10 year old).

Trying to figure out lodging, probably easiest to rent an apartment instead of multiple hotel rooms.  Is Airbnb and/or Vrbo the way to go or is there some Brit or Euro version that is a better source for me?  I'm a bit afraid of getting scammed as I've seen a few listings noting "Hacked account / Fake listing".

@txduck87 @Brisketexan @Chewbacca @Incredulity @Hagbard Celine

Anyone else who has experience with Airbnb or Vrbo or Brit / Euro equivalent specifically in Scotland / Ireland, any guidance you can provide is appreciated.

the #1 issue with britain is plumbing

what they call a "power shower" is an electric water sprayer

you have zero guarantee on potable water quality especially in the private homeowner rental market

both cold and "hot" water could be coming from an open cistern in the attic with dead birds in it

i would inquire with the owner of every rental property as to the type of plumbing they have on site

you want to hear the owner say PRESSURIZED hot water, which you follow up with the question to clarify that the property has an UNVENTED CYLINDER for hot water creation

those words will get you the bathing experience you take for granted in the rest of the western world

+++

January days are SHORT in Escocia - with the time change it will be real tempting to burn half the available daylight before you've finished breakfast

+++

I have too many recommendations that would break your primary itinerary so I will only say that if you are going to Mallaig and skipping Loch Morar shame on you

+++

I want to hear more about this @Brisketexan Glasgow situation.

 

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3 minutes ago, Hagbard Celine said:

I want to hear more about this @Brisketexan Glasgow situation.

Not much to tell.  Boy is in uni in Glasgow.  Instead of renting, we bought a flat - wasn't too pricey, exchange rate was decent.  He'll live there through school.  After that, it's in a good enough location that renting it out to students should generate decent income and, eventually, we may want to have it as a part-time residence for us in retirement.  Wouldn't mind spending the summer months in Glasgow.  Even if it's mostly as a base of operations/taking day and longer trips out and about in the UK.

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1 hour ago, orange dream said:

Planning to spend a couple of weeks in Scotland / Ireland this Summer with my wife and our 3 kids (2 in college and a 10 year old).

Trying to figure out lodging, probably easiest to rent an apartment instead of multiple hotel rooms.  Is Airbnb and/or Vrbo the way to go or is there some Brit or Euro version that is a better source for me?  I'm a bit afraid of getting scammed as I've seen a few listings noting "Hacked account / Fake listing".

@txduck87 @Brisketexan @Chewbacca @Incredulity @Hagbard Celine

Anyone else who has experience with Airbnb or Vrbo or Brit / Euro equivalent specifically in Scotland / Ireland, any guidance you can provide is appreciated.

We had great success with B&Bs. 

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