Planning your trip in Scotland

Web site with free downloadable Explore area visitor guides for St Andrews, Stirling, The Trossachs, Highland Perthshire, Inverness and Loch Ness, Oban and Mull, Isles of Lewis and Harris.

Scotland is 60% the size of England with one tenth of England's population at 5 million people. Most people are surprised when they learn that Scotland's two major cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh, are on the same latitude as Moscow. Right at the very top of Scotland in the far north you will find the Orkney and Shetland Islands which are on the same latitude as Leningrad. The north of Scotland is closer to the artic circle than they are to London!! The climate here in Scotland is not nearly so severe as either Moscow or Leningrad, because of the influence of the sea and the Gulf Stream current which runs up the west coast of Scotland warming the country throughout the year.

Weather.

The weather this far north is very unpredictable. There are no distinct seasonal weather patterns (such as Monsoon, wet & dry seasons etc.) as occur in some parts of the world. So it is very much up to luck, how the weather is when you get here.

We have spells of lovely warm weather up to the end of October and any time from end of March onwards. From October to the end of May it is always advisable to come prepared to keep warm with warm coats hats and gloves.

We have plenty of good weather, but come ready for rain and showers even during the summers months, this is one of the reasons why our country is so lovely and green, The ever changing light conditions producing a kaleidoscope of changing colours over the landscape, a wonderful opportunity for photographers. 

The warmer summer weather is with us generally from the end of May well into October. In general the west is wetter than the eastern areas of Scotland.

The weather on the mountains/hills changes VERY QUICKLY making safety a priority for walkers and climbers.

Scotland's main regions.

Looking for our famous scenery?  Scotland is world famous for it's Mountains, Trees, Lochs etc. you will find these in the Highlands region which is located in an area that is north and west from Glasgow and Edinburgh, by drawing a line from Callander to Pitlochry to Inverness the area west of that line can be loosely called the Highlands. To the east of this line is what is know as the East Coast, which is generally flatter and dryer, and colder than the western side of Scotland. The Islands, are mainly off the west coast, and of course Orkney and Shetland at the very north of Scotland. There are frequent ferry sailings to the islands from Oban and Malaig, north of Fort William. Life on the Islands is at a much slower pace and has been altered little by modern life. Generally the more remote the island the less the impact of modern ways. The Central Belt, is the area from Glasgow to Edinburgh, it is here the bulk of Scotland's population live and work. The Borders is another area of Scotland and is found south of the line from Glasgow to Edinburgh. They are known as the borders as they border with England, this area again has much to offer with many Abbey's and fortifications, with a distinct character of their own, because of the constant battle for ownership of these places between Scotland and England.

Visitor Attraction Passes.

We thought we would give you a word of warning about purchasing entry passes before you get to Scotland. There are a number of Visitor Attraction Passes to Scotland's castles, stately homes and many other fine attractions.

The visitor attractions are owned and managed by a number of different bodies. The National Trust of Scotland, Historic Scotland, Scotland's Great Houses, and private owners. As far as we are aware there is not one pass that gets you in to all these different types of attractions. Before you decide to purchase a pass, make absolutely sure that you will visit enough attractions managed by that particular organisation to make it worth while.

Decide on the route you will be taking, then decide the attractions you would like to visit and before you decide to buy a visitor pass make sure there are enough attractions in your schedule to cover the cost of the pass. We hear of visitors who purchase visitor passes thinking it will let them in to all properties, which they do not, and then are very disillusioned that they have spent a lot of money and have not had value for money. So be careful!!!

The length of the days.

Mid winter and the shortest day light hours is the 22 December, twilight starts at approx. 8.30 am, sunrise at 9.30am. Sunset is at 3.30pm and the end of twilight at 4.15pm. This is one of the reasons New Year was so important to the Scots, they were afraid that the light and warmth of the sun might not come back again.

Around Easter time, April 1st, twilight begins at about 4.50am with sunrise at 5.30am. Sunset is at 6.40pm and the end of twilight is at 7.20pm.

Mid Summer. The longest day is 22 June, twilight starts at 2am with sun rise at 3.10am. The sun sets at 9pm and twilight ends at 10.05pm. This gives you time to see and do things after you have had your evening meal. Although many of the paying attractions such as Visitor centres will close before evening meal time. (We have listed as many opening times as possible to help you).

Autumn time. 1st October, twilight begins at about 5.25am with sunrise at 6.00am. Sunset is at 5.30pm and the end of twilight is at 6.15pm.

Twilight is the light from the Sky between full night and sunrise or sunset produced by the diffusion of the sunlight through the atmosphere. The light levels are often sufficiently good to allow activities outside with out the need for torches or lights.

Airports.
It is very easy to get to Scotland, it may surprise you how easy and inexpensive it is. The two main airports of Scotland are at Glasgow and Edinburgh, both are international airports. The main provincial airports are at Aberdeen, Inverness, and Dundee. Highlands and Islands Airports operate ten airports throughout the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is also a small airline that will fly you directly to all the islands click on this site to find out more.

Flights from London airports to Scotland are frequent. By booking early, weeks ahead rather than days ahead it is possible to make very substantial savings on the regular fares. It is possible to get extremely cheap flights from London to Edinburgh and Glasgow via RyanAir.com and Easyjet.com and Go.com all offering superb deals including Amsterdam, and Dublin. Prices of £40 and lower return, can be obtained, by booking early and being prepared to travel at off peak times. Be prepared to buy the first time you visit their web sites, as you will often find the prices have increased the second time you visit. So know your dates and possible times before you visit their web sites to buy a flight.

Cheap flights - we found this web site that gives you all the tips on how to get the best flight deals.

If you have had a long flight and arrive at Heathrow remember that you can have a shower in terminal one; for £3 they also supply the towels, there can be nothing more refreshing after a long flight. It is located just behind Burger King in terminal one.

Travel
There is a net work of intercity buses which travel to all the larger towns through out Scotland. Local buses around a local area can be scarce although there are often bike hire establishments available.

Trains have a regular service to the principal towns throughout Scotland, again booking early can result in very substantial savings, always remember to ask for the best prices when booking. A young man from Colorado told me the train system here is superb, they are regular, on time and you are able to get to places all over Scotland, much better than the States he said. He had bought a travel pass so all his travel in the UK was by train, unlimited travel. Click on this site and you will find a map of Scotland with all the stations and from there the time tables of the various services. This site will take you to details of Rail bus travel from the railway stations in Scotland.

Visas
European citizens can enter Britain with a passport, without a visa for 3 months. Citizens of Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States can enter on a passport as well and stay for up to 6 months. Citizens of other countries require a Visa which they can get from the British Consulate in their own country.

Vaccinations
No special vaccinations are needed to enter Britain

Security and safety.
Scotland is generally considered a very safe country to live and visit. The ordinary population do not carry guns, the Police do not carry guns, indeed most Scots only experience of a gun are seeing them on TV in films and may be the military in parade etc.

It is generally safe to walk almost anywhere at any time of the day or night, the only word of caution are some areas in the big cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen, but having said that these are not areas most tourists will find themselves. It is not uncommon to see women walking late at night on their own. In world terms Scotland is a very safe place to visit.

This does not mean there is no crime, of course there is. The biggest piece of advise is do not to leave any valuables where they can be seen to tempt the opportunist thief. In your car make sure all your valuables are in the boot or trunk as Americans would say, if you leave them on display, there is always the opportunist thief who will smash the car window to help themselves.

Restaurants.

We thought we would put a few words in about getting food. We are told by Germans, Austrians and Americans that they have sometimes experienced problems with our method of ordering food. There are places where the waitress will come to your table to take your order, but in most cases make sure you place your order for food at the bar or counter, other wise you will have a very long wait!! We are told of visitors sitting waiting and leaving in disgust as no one has come for their order.

Ferries.

Europe direct to Scotland. A new ferry service directly from the continent of Europe to Scotland, commenced in May 2002. The ferry service runs from Zeebrugger in Belgium to Rosyth in Edinburgh Scotland. This will make a fantastic difference to those travelling to and from Scotland and Europe. It will cut out the long haul trip (some 5 hours by car) from Hull in England to Scotland. The ferry will leave each evening so you arrive next day at your destination in Edinburgh or Zeebrugger fresh after a good nights sleep.

Island ferries. The majority of ferries are found on our west coast to the islands and of course at the north to Orkney and Shetland. There are numerous small ferries to all the various islands which are great for exploring the area, whether on bike or walking in perfect peace and seclusion. By clicking on this site you will find the time tables for over 22 islands off Scotland mainland coast land. Just be patient as the map of the islands downloads.

Car journeys.

Car Hire - You will find many car hire companies all offering different deals. We suggest you shop aroun and find the package that suits you best. Some car hire companies will not hire cars to people over 75 years old, but others such as Avis and Hertz do. So do not be put off by some one company saying No!, as there sure to be others that do.

Car Journeys - There is probably no better way to see Scotland than by car. You can get to all the special little places that you cannot reach by Public Transport.  It is very easy to hire cars here. Do your homework before arriving to find the best deals.

Cost of fuel - You will find our fuel here very expensive compared to many parts of the world, but what you can see with a full tank of fuel is incredible. Remember that distances from one place to another are small compared to other parts of the world. Scotland is a small country in world terms. Pitlochry to Inverness is 80 miles (look on the map opposite to see these two locations) this will give you a sense of scale of the distances between places in Scotland.

Motorways and dual carriageways - There are a network of motorways and dual carriageways. The M74 from the English boarder takes you to Glasgow. Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth, Dundee and Aberdeen are all connected by a motorway and dual carriageway network.

Speed limits - Scotland in common with Britain drive on the left hand side of the road. Maximum speed on motorways and dual carriageways is 70miles per hour, other roads 60 miles per hour, in towns 40, 30 and occasionally 20 miles per hour. Watch out for the speed cameras!

For those of you who plan to bring your own car, or hire a car we provide some approximate travel times to allow you to plan your trip. Our times are based on you driving between the towns at a moderate speed without stopping, and assuming no major hold ups. Please remember to add on time for your own schedule of stops on route.

• Glasgow centre to Stirling - 45 to 60 mins
• Edinburgh centre to Stirling - 45 to 60 mins
• Edinburgh centre to St Andrews - 70 to 90 mins
• Stirling to Callander and the Trossachs - 20 to 30mins
• Stirling to St Andrews - 100 to 125mins
• Edinburgh to Perth, north over the Forth Bridge - 45 to 60 mins
• Perth to Pitlochry - 30 to 40 mins
• Pitlochry to Inverness - 90 to 110 mins
• Pitlochry to St Andrews (via Perth and Dundee) - 90 to 110mins
• Pitlochry to Oban (via Aberfeldy) - 135 to 160 mins
• Stirling to Oban - 105 to 130 mins
• Oban to Inverness - 150 to 180 mins

Accommodation.

We thought we would give you an idea of the different types of accommodation available, even though we do not offer accommodation on our site.

Caravan and Camp sites are all over Scotland, there should be absolutely no difficulty in finding one or indeed several in the areas you are travelling. Be careful during peak seasons, some of the busy locations fill up very rapidly, so do not turn up at 7pm in the evening always expecting there to be space available. Price per stance or pitch can be in the region of £7 to £15 per night depending on the area of Scotland and time of the year. Many are not open from November to March/April..

Youth Hostels and Backpackers (self catering), offer very comfortable accommodation, although you will sleep several to a room or dormitory, share washing facilities etc. There are cooking facilities were you can prepare basic meals. They are usually found in all large towns and also surprisingly more and more in the country areas. Price per person per night £10 to £14 depending on the area of Scotland and time of the year.

Holiday Flat/Cottage/chalets which are self catering, a home from home. Many provide every modern convenience, washing machines, TV some with video players, irons etc. etc. Typical prices for sleeping 4 people is from £130 to £900 per week depending on location and time of the year. This can work out to be a very affordable holiday if you divide the cost amongst the number of people it can accommodate.

Bed and Breakfast, you will find literally thousands of places offering B&B accommodation from small country houses, guest houses, Victorian villas, farms, to large castles. The prices start at about £15 per person per night up to £30 or more depending on location and time of the year. The cheaper rates do not usually include en-suite bathroom facilities. There is always spare capacity, but again the warning is for peak seasons (June to early September) in busy locations you will find the earlier you book the better the selection and location.

Hotels are found right across Scotland from the busy towns to the country areas. There are some world class hotels catering for your every whim to the more modest. You have a fantastic choice many with their own superb restaurants offering world class food many using Local Scottish ingredients and the natural game found here in Scotland, from Venison to wild Atlantic Salmon, wild Brown Trout, sea fish from the coastal waters to a superb selection of shell fish of all varieties from Scotland's rich coastal waters. The prices start from £35 to £80 and more per person per night depending on location and time of the year.

Walks.
Here are some web sites with information on walking routes.
http://www.explore-highland-perthshire.com/walks.htm

http://www.transcotland.com/hpt.htm