Scotland, UK
Glasgow, Edinburgh, The Highlands - Aug 16 - Aug 25, 2022
We always wanted
to see Scotland so once here we tried to visit as much as possible during our nine days
trip. Our plan was to spend two days in Glasgow, one day in Edinburgh followed by
a three Day Isle of Skye and Highlands tour which started from Edinburg and then
spend two more days in Edinburg.
Getting to Glasgow from Edinburg
The easiest and
cheapest way to get to Glasgow from Edinburg Airport is by using Citylink AIRGlasgow Service 900 bus. The bus leaves from Stop D just outside the airport,
every 30 minutes, 24/7 and the average journey time is about 1 hour. We paid on
the bus by credit card but you can also pay by cash if you have the exact amount. The cost of one-way ticket was only 14.80 pounds. We got off to
Buchanan Bus Station which is centrally located.
After checking
in to our hotel, the first attraction on our list was George Square. It is considered the main public square in Glasgow
and the heart of the Merchant District, with the headquarters of the City
Council and the Merchants House located here. The square is adorned with
statues and monuments dedicated to famous historical figures like Robert Burns,
Sir Walter Scott or James Watt.
From here we walked about 1 mile up to Necropolis, an impressively large Victorian cemetery situated on a hill overlooking Glasgow Cathedral. To get to the main gate you cross a bridge known as the “Bridge of Sighs” because it was used for the funeral processions. Winding paths that climb up and down the hill will take you through about fifty thousand tombs and thousands of monuments of famous or wealthy people.
Glasgow Cathedral is located at the foothill of Necropolis and is a free attraction. The medieval cathedral is the oldest place of worship in Scotland and was dedicated to Saint Mungo, the patron saint of Glasgow, whose tomb lies here in the lower church.
From the cathedral we strolled on High Street, the oldest street in Glasgow, to Glasgow Cross, which is the historic centre of the city where Tolbooth Steeple is located. This 38-meter clock tower used to be the Town Clerk’s office but also a debtor’s prison in the past. Close by we visited St. Andrew in the Square, famous for its 18th century old church.
Second day in Glasgow we started with Kibble Place and Glasgow Botanical Gardens. On our way there we passed by St Mary’s Cathedral, one of the beautiful Glasgow cathedrals. Glasgow Botanical Garden has an important tree collection from all over the world in its Arboretum and many outdoors gardens like World Rose Garden, Herbs Garden or Children’s Garden where everybody can enjoy few hours of peace and tranquility. The main attraction of the gardens is Kibble Palace, one of the largest glasshouses in Britain where we enjoyed the rare collection of orchids and a variety of plants from all over the world. Entrance is free.
From the Botanical Gardens we walked to University of Glasgow. Founded in 1451, it is the fourth-oldest university in the English speaking world. We could explore the university grounds and also the Scotland’s oldest public museum, the Hunterian Museum. Here we could see collections from the departments of archeology, zoology, geology, finds from Roman sites but also artworks by Rubens or Rembrandt and the entrance is free.
In the same area we visited Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, another free attraction. The museum was designed in the Spanish Baroque style using distinctive red sandstone and features 22 themed galleries displaying a variety of exhibits from natural history, arms and armour to Renaissance paintings.
We headed towards the Clyde river to visit Riverside Museum and the Tall ship Glenlee. Most of the museum collections are from the former Museum of Transportation. There are locomotives, cars, bikes, bicycles, trams, ship models nicely displayed on the floor or on the walls, some of the exhibits with interactive touch screens to discover more of the details of each. There is even a reconstruction of a 1938 Glasgow street on display that takes you back in time. Just outside the museum the Glenlee Tallship is docked. Exploring the deck and below of this three-masted tall ship is free, same like the Riverside museum.
We left the museum and strolled along River Clyde, passing two more buildings with stunning architecture, SEC Armadillo, an auditorium building used for various events and OVO Hydro, a multi purpose events venue that showcases the city’s modern style and attracts the biggest names in entertainment. Finnieston Crane can also be seen when walking along the river, a giant cantilever crane no longer operational but one of the only eleven cantilever cranes in the world. The crane is a symbol of the city’s engineering heritage. Back in the city we leisurely wandered Buchanan Street and Sauchiehall street, two of the city’s main shopping streets and part of the “Style Mile”, an area with pedestrian streets and high-end shops.
3 Days in Edinburgh - Best things to do
Edinburgh is the
capital of Scotland and one of the most popular tourist destinations in UK. It
is also the seat of the Scottish government, Parliament and the highest courts
in Scotland. There are numerous things to do and see here, from medieval castles
and relics in the Old Town to modern architecture in the New Town.
Day 1 in Edinburgh Itinerary – Princes Street, Princes Street
Gardens, Scott Monument, St Giles Cathedral, Royal Mile Street, Calton Hill
Princes Street is the main shopping street in Edinburgh, with
high-end boutiques and department stores on its northern side and the beautiful
Princess Street Gardens on the southern side. The Gardens divide the historic
centre of Edinburgh in two, the Old Town dominated by Edinburg Castle and the
New Town with broad avenues lined with Georgian townhouses and open squares.
Princes Street Gardens were built by draining what used to be a marshland,
Nor Lock, used as a natural defence. Among the main attractions in the Gardens
is the floral clock with a functioning timepiece and believed to be the oldest
floral clock in the world and Ross Fountain, a cast iron structure beautifully decorated with mermaids’ sculptures and four female figures representing the
arts, science, poetry and industry.
One of the most
iconic landmarks in Edinburgh standing in Princes Street Gardens is Scott Monument, dedicated to Sir Walter
Scott, an impressive 61 meters’ monument considered the second largest monument
to a writer in the world.
From here we
headed to the Royal Mile which runs
through the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town. Royal Mile stretches between
Edinburg Castle at one end and Palace of Holyroodhouse at the other and
encompasses also five other side streets. Walking up and down the streets you
feel like you just dropped in 17th or 18th century. The cobbled street is lined up
with historical buildings and symbols, gifts, whisky, tartan shops, many restaurants
and of course some bagpipes performers who create an unforgettable Scottish
experience. Strolling around we passed by the statue of philosopher David Hume,
known also for the tradition of rubbing his giant toe for good luck. The statue
had a traffic cone on its head, the practice of cone-capping being apparently a
timeless tradition to show the humour of the local population. At the time of
our visit, the Fringe Festival took place, considered the world’s largest
performance festival, so the area was bustling with visitors, artists and
improvised stage performances.
Halfway on Royal
Mile we visited St Giles Cathedral,
a wonderful church considered the national church of Scotland and dedicated to
St Giles, the medieval saint of lepers and cripples and also the patron saint
of Edinburg. The entry to the cathedral is free.
Day 2 in Edinburgh Itinerary – Edinburgh Castle, Arthur Seat, National
Museum of Scotland, Dean Village
Built on the
volcanic Castle Rock, Edinburgh Castle
is easy to spot from most parts of the city. The Castle was involved in many
historical events of Scotland considered to have been the most attacked castle
in Britain. There are so many things to do once inside that you can easily
spend a whole morning here. Some of the highlights of our visit were the Great
Hall, the Royal Palace, National War Museum or the Honors of Scotland, the
oldest crown jewels in Britain, on display in the Queens Room. Also on display
we could see the Mons Meg, one of the largest cannons in the world, and the One
O’clock Gun, which is still fired every day at 1 pm, except Sundays, Good
Friday and Christmas Day. Entrance tickets cost us 19.50 pounds and sell well
in advance so is recommended to buy them online as they have a date and time
entry.
From Edinburg Castle we walked to the end of Royal Mile where we hiked the trail to Arthur Seat located in Holyrood Park. Arthur Seat is the highest hill in a group of hills called Salisbury Crags, which are the remains of an ancient volcano. It is believed that its name was inspired from the King Arthur legends. There are many trails to get to the top, we chose to take the easier Salisbury Crags trail. After we spent some time on the peak enjoying the outstanding views of the city, we returned on a different, steeper route, which was a combination of hard ground and stone steps, and took less time.
We spent the
afternoon by visiting the National Museum of Scotland, a three-storey gallery space, where you could see a
multitude of wondrous exhibits, from Dolly the Sheep to a Mammal Collection, a
Fashion and Style Gallery, geological rocks, an open display meteorite or Lewis
Chessmen, one of the best archeological finds from Scotland. The museum was
free of charge.
At the end of
the day we went to Dean Village, a
quiet charming neighbourhood, originally a mill town in the 19th
century. We walked the Water of Leith walkway, a public footpath alongside the
Water of Leith river, which can be crossed on the Dean Bridge and offers some
picturesque views of the neighbourhood.
Day 3 in Edinburgh Itinerary – Britannia, Palace of Holyroodhouse, National Gallery of Scotland, National Gallery of Scotland: Portrait
We started our third day in Edinburgh with a visit to the Royal Yacht Britannia, located in Leith, a busy port district of Edinburgh. To get there we took a bus from a station close to our hotel to Ocean Terminal. Britannia was the royal yacht of British monarchy for over 44 years until 1997 being now retired from royal service and permanently berthed at Ocean Terminal in Leith. We purchased the tickets online and paid 18 pounds for each. The visit follows a one-way route, so you can not miss anything and we were provided with audio guides. Touring the five decks of this royal residence felt like a special experience for us.
From Ocean
Terminal we took bus 34 (Lothian Buses) to Palace
of Holyroodhouse, located at the end of Royal Mile and very close from
Arthur Seat. We purchased the tickets at the entrance, one ticket was 19.50
pounds at the door but will be less if purchased in advance. The ticket
includes a complimentary multimedia guide which we welcomed because made the
visit more informative. The Palace is the King’s official residence in
Edinburgh and home of Scottish Royal history. Once inside we could visit
staterooms, each filled with furniture, paintings and historical objects, the
Throne room, the Great Gallery filled with portraits of kings of Scotland and
the Royal Collection with items linked to the Stuart line such as the Darnley
Jewel locket. Outside we visited the ruins of the Holyrood Abbey, founded in
the 12th century by King David of Scotland and we wandered through
the beautiful Palace Gardens.
National Gallery of Scotland is centrally located beside Princes
Street Gardens and is another free attraction. Here you can find a huge
collection of world class art including works of famous painters like Titian,
Rembrandt, Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso and more.
National Gallery of Scotland-Portrait is a hidden find in the heart of
Edinburgh. We discovered it accidentally
while walking on Queens Street. This
National Gallery is an art museum that holds the Scotland’s national
collections of portraits and one you can also visit for free same like the most
museums in Edinburgh.
3-Day Isle of Skye and Highlands Tour
Ever since I
laid my eyes on some images of the rocky hill known as The Old Man of Storr, I
promised myself if I ever visit Scotland I will make sure to visit it. We knew
we will not be able to rent a car in Scotland because you have to drive on the
left side of the road and we were not comfortable with that. So we researched
few companies that offered tours in the Highlands and included Isle of Skye
destination where my iconic place was. Each company has a slightly different
itinerary, some include accommodation into the cost of the tour, some not and
of course each one has a different price. We chose to book a tour offered by
Highland Experience Tours company through Viator. The 3-day tour cost us CAD
1,300 and included 2 nights’ accommodation and breakfast.
The tour was
offered from Edinburg but if you were staying in Glasgow, they either dropped
you there or provided you with train tickets to return to Glasgow at the end of
the tour. The pick-up location in Edinburg was early in the morning, at Café
Nero, on Royal Mile, next to St Giles Cathedral and we travelled in a 16-seater
minibus.
Day 1 Itinerary – Loch Lomond and The Trossacks
National Park-Luss-Glencoe-Loch Ness
Half of the
people were picked up in Edinburgh and half in Glasgow. As soon as everybody
was on board, our driver and guide, Rob, (Robhallbespoketours Hall) who was a very chatty and knowledgeable
guy in many subjects, asked us to introduce ourselves and he named us by where
we were from, team Canada, Spain, Australia, Utah, Texas, Georgia, Ohio,
England. It was a very rainy morning day but our guide promised that it won’t
last based on his experience living in Scotland and he was right, we were lucky
to see the sunshine every time we arrived to some spot on our itinerary. We also
had surprising and very welcomed unscheduled stops to scenic spots that were
not included in the official itinerary.
Loch Lomond and The Trossacks National Park
We drove along
the banks of Loch Lomond, a freshwater loch in southern Scotland, and we
learned from our guide that loch actually means water or lake. Loch Lomond and
The Trossacks National Park is Scotland’s first National Park and. The fault
line that runs across the National Park divides the Highlands from the Lowlands
creating a beautiful and unique landscape of lochs, coastlines, rugged hills
and forests.
The first stop
was in Luss, a picturesque
conservation village with lovely slate cottages on the shore of Loch Lomond. We
walked through the village to the edge of the loch on the Luss Pier, where you
can also have stunning views of the Ben Lomond, the Scotland’s most southerly
mountain.
On our way to Glencoe we had a quick stop for pictures at Raanoch Moor, a stretch of 50 square miles of boggy moorland and one of the great wilderness areas in Great Britain, a mix of mountains, bogs, lochs and rivers that create an endless landscape.
Next stop was at the famous Three Sisters of Glencoe, three distinctive and dramatic ridges of the Bidean Nam Bian mountain and one of the most stunning place we ever seen. We never imagined that the Highlands could be so unworldly beautiful. Here we had time for a short hike and plenty of pictures. A short drive from here we went to Glencoe Visitor Centre for lunch.
The Commando Memorial is a monument dedicated to the men in the elite British Commando Forces that died in World War II. From here we could also have a glimpse of Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in UK.
Fort Augustus is an historic village and a popular tourist
destination for being located at the shores of Loch Ness. Of course we did not spot the legendary monster but we
enjoyed the walk through the small hamlet and the spectacular views of Loch
Ness.
A short drive from Fort Augustus our guide proposed a stop at Invermoriston Bridge and Falls, a great spot for photographs and to stretch our legs.
The overnight
accommodation provided for both nights of the tour was in Inverness, at different B&Bs for different people in our group,
depending of availability and if you were a couple or single. Our guide took us
to our place and he also picked us up every morning. We were very pleased with
the accommodation, our B&B was Pine Guest House. Our host, Angela, was very friendly and sociable and we were served
with a tasty Scottish breakfast each morning. Inverness, regarded as the
capital of Highlands is a popular tourist destination for its proximity to the
Highlands. Many tours are offered from here. We got few hours each evening to explore the town and we fell in
love with it. The town has great landmarks such as Inverness Castle, St.
Andrew’s Cathedral, old bridges, a great townhouse but also charming streets
lined up with gift shops, boutiques or Scottish taverns.
Day 2 Itinerary – Eilean Donan Castle and exploring Isle of Skye: Black Cuillin-Portree-The Old Man of Storr-Kilt Rock
The current Eilean Donan Castle is a reconstruction
of the old 13th century castle that was a bastion for Clan Mackenzie
but was destroyed by the government ships in 18th century in answer
to the clan’s involvement in the Jacobite rebellions. This picturesque castle
located on the small Eilean Donan island is one of the most recognizable
castles in Scotland and was used as a filming location for many blockbuster
movies.
Next stop was at Fairy Pools located at foot of Black Cuillin mountains. The route to get there was on windy, single track road with passing places for the cars coming from opposite direction. The allowed time was enough to hike to the most uphill pool and return to the bus even at a slower pace. Fairy pools are a series of waterfalls that create small pools, a place of natural beauty that attracts many visitors. From the parking lot we just followed the path that goes steady uphill and follows the waterfalls upstream, the return route being about 2.5 km.
The stop for lunch was in Portree, which is Isle of Skye largest town. Here we had enough time to roam the city’s streets lined up with shops and admire the colourful houses that adorn the harbour.
After driving north for about 15 minutes from Portree we stopped on the side of the road for a photo shoot of The Old Man of Storr, the iconic pinnacle rock that we wished so much to see. The rocky hill has a very scenic hiking trail that attracts lots of visitors. The itinerary did not include hiking the famous trail but just being close by and able to admire it totally fulfilled our wish.
When visiting Isle of Skye, Kilt Rock is a must see attraction. This towering rock formation that resembles a kilt was a quick stroll from the parking lot. We walked along the fenced edge of the sea cliff to take in the beautiful views of the waterfall and the vertical “pleats” that inspired its name, whilst listening to Scottish bagpipe tunes performed by a young player for the enjoyment of the visitors.
Day 3 Itinerary – Culloden Battlefields
Last day
official itinerary only included Culloden Battlefields but our tour guide had more
surprises for us.
Clava Cairns, the first attraction of the day was a Bronze Age cemetery
complex located near Inverness. This prehistoric site contains kerbstone rings
and standing stones that are believed to also have an astrological
significance.
About 5 minutes driving from Clavern Cairns we visited Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre. This is the actual site where the 1745 Battle of Culloden took place and where the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stewart was defeated by the British government force. Our guide narrated for us the history of the battle and also involved us in a funny interactive re-enactment for a better understanding. On the field we saw different grave markers of the clans that fought at Culloden, the Culloden Memorial Cairn, the Well of the Dead and the thatched Old Leanach Cottage that survived the battle. The Visitors Centre had lots of artefacts of the battle and interactive battle shows and videos. Culloden Battlefield is a nice place to visit especially if you, like us, are an Outlander movie fan.
On the way back to Edinburgh, we had a quick stop at Carrbridge Pack Horse Bridge, a picturesque bridge built in 18th for funeral processions, also nicknamed Coffin Bridge.
For lunch we had a stop in Newtonmore. Here we could also visit Highland Folk Museum, a place with over 35 historical buildings that you can explore and discover how Highlanders lived and worked. It was also one of the filming locations of the popular movie Outlander portraying Mackenzie village.
Because during our trip a common discussion point was about the Scottish whisky, our guide asked us if we were interested to go for whisky tasting at a renown distillery. Everybody happily agreed so we visited the Dalwhinnie Distillery where we could either have a shot of different whiskeys from the menu or taste three Dalwhinnie Single Malts, individually paired with Scottish Highlands chocolates. Of course you had to pay for your choice, decently priced considering the quality. This was a fun and enjoyable stop and an experience we never had before.
The last stop before Edinburgh we enjoyed a lot, especially after hearing the stories told by our guide. It was at Taste Perthshire where our guide bought some carrots and we handfed the famous Highland Coos or hairy coos as commonly called.
This was
our first organized trip we have ever been and we were left with very positive
impressions and memories. Everything was well organized. Rob, the tour guide
was very knowledgeable and a good company, chatting during the trip and
explaining in detail the history of all the places we visited, the meaning of
some old Scottish words but also about Scotland’s culture, history, people and of course whisky. The tour itinerary was very interesting and also full of unexpected but very memorable stops.
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