Wonderful Reasons to Visit Scotland

Outlander fans have already discovered many wonderful reasons to visit Scotland. Any place where you can touch a standing stone and travel forward or backward 200 years in time must be magical! Not to mention meet someone like Jamie Fraser. But there are many more (non-fiction) reasons why Scotland should be on your bucket list! You can also read more about my trip in my related post 7 Amazing Days in Scotland.

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Beautiful Scenery

Possibly the most wonderful of reasons to visit Scotland is to see the amazing bucolic scenery and animal life. We went to three beautiful places that must be on your itinerary.

Loch Lomond

Loch Lomond is a spectacular lake north of Glasgow dotted with islands and surrounded by mountain peaks. Active travelers may want to engage in water sports, biking, and hiking. But soaking up the views is among the top wonderful reasons to visit this beautiful area in Scotland!

Glencoe

Glencoe is an amazingly golden green valley that lies about 60 miles north of Loch Lomond. The views are spectacular on the entire journey. Self-driving with a rental car or hiring a driver/guide is the best way to visit this region so that you can stop and take all of the photos you want! You can also take a day trip from Glasgow. You will have less flexibility, but you won’t have to drive on the “wrong” side of the road or pay a small fortune for a car and driver!

Isle of Skye

The unique geological features of Isle of Skye will captivate you and make you believe in magic, giants and fairies. Take the Trotternish Loop to see Fairy Glen, Quiraing, Kit Rock and Mealt Falls. Also don’t miss the Old Man of Storr! This is another location where having your own car or a driver/guide is a must.

Experience the Lives of the Prosperous

There are so many ways to see how the rich and famous lived in Scotland over the centuries. It seems like there is a castle on every corner! Experiencing the opulence is definitely one of the wonderful reasons to visit Scotland. We visited four castles that I highly recommend.

Edinburgh Castle

You can’t visit Scotland without visiting the city of Edinburgh and the Edinburgh Castle. The castle has served as a fortress, prison, and palace. To get a taste of the high life, you can visit the Honours of Scotland crown jewels, the Royal Palace, and even see some of Mary Queen of Scots embroidery! Don’t miss the Afternoon Tea Experience. You can dine like the rich!

Eilean Donan Castle

Located in the Scottish Highlands, Eilean Donan Castle was originally built in the 13th century. It is located near Isle of Skye in a place where three sea lochs meet. Although the original castle was destroyed in the Jacobite Uprising, the current version was restored faithfully in the early 20th century. Most interestingly, a single Scottish family has served as the constables of the castle for the past four generations. They truly experience what living in a castle is like!

Bothwell & Urquhart Castles

Both Bothwell and Urquhart castles are ruins today. But with a little imagination, you can still see how the wealthy and powerful lived. Bothwell Castle is located between Edinburgh and Glasgow. Visitors can explore the prison tower and the great hall and chapel.

Urquhart Castle is located at Loch Ness and is a great place to get stunning views of the loch. Perhaps you will spot Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, from the castle!

And the Lives of the Penniless

To balance out your tour, don’t miss also seeing how the less fortunate lived. Let’s face it, those of us with Scottish ancestry probably didn’t live in the castles! Seeing how your ancestors might have lived is truly among the wonderful reasons to visit Scotland.

Real Mary King’s Close

Under the buildings of Edinburgh’s Royal Mile lies a den of alleyways called Real Mary King’s Close. On a guided tour you will learn what it was like for a commoner to live in overcrowded Edinburgh between 1535 and 1897.

Tenement House & People’s Palace

Located in Glasgow, The Tenement House is set up to resemble tenement apartments in the early 20th century. The People’s Palace is also in Glasgow. It gives a glimpse of how the people of Glasgow lived from 1750 until today.

Highland Folk Museum

The Highland Folk Museum rounds out our tour of more humble abodes. This time, the focus is on country life. You can see how the Scottish farmed, built their homes, and how they dressed.

Do You Believe in Magic?

Scotland is magical not only on the the silver screen, but through legends of monstrous creatures and fairies. Discovering magic is a wonderful reason to visit Scotland!

Harry Potter Sites

You could fill your Scottish vacation with tours of sites featured in Harry Potter movies! If my teenage kids had been traveling with me, I probably would have. But since I was traveling with my mom and aunt, we limited our fandom to visiting the Glenfinnan Viaduct. You will instantly recognize it from scenes of the Hogwarts Express chugging between London and Hogwarts in the 2nd and 3rd Harry Potter movies. Bonus points if you can time it just right to see the Jacobite Steam Train passing by. Even better, schedule a ride on the Jacobite Steam Train between Fort William and Mallaig. Alas, our schedule did not allow for this, but seeing the viaduct was enough.

Searching for Nessie

The best way to search for the Loch Ness Monster, AKA Nessie, is to take a Loch Ness cruise. We enjoyed the views of Urquhart Castle and surrounding scenery as we scanned furiously for the monster. Maybe you will have better luck than we did!

Fairy Glen

Legend has it that fairies live in the Trotternish Peninsula in this part of Isle of Skye. But these fairies aren’t Tinkerbell or the Tooth Fairy. Scottish folklore is full of evil fairy stories, so we were told to behave ourselves while visiting Fairy Glen. Bad behavior could result in vengeful acts from the fairies, while they are said to reward kindness with good luck! We didn’t see any fairies, but I know they were there!

Standing Stones

Fans of Outlander know that Claire Fraser touched some standing stones near Inverness and found herself transported to 18th century Scotland. These stones are unfortunately fictitious. However, there are some stones near Inverness that you can touch and see what happens! Clava Cairns features three cairns and three standing stone circles of the Bronze Age. These 4,000 year old structures were built to house the ashes of the dead until the Winter Solstice. After a ceremony on that day to release the deceased’s spirit, the ashes would have been scattered.

Visiting Ancestors

Our most pressing order of business, and honestly what ended up being the most wonderful of all the reasons to visit Scotland for us, was to discover where our ancestors lived before immigrating to the United States. My great-great-grandfather and grandmother immigrated from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. This is an area between Edinburgh and Glasgow. My great-grandma Bess had written down the family’s address before she died in the 1980s. We had to visit the house where her dad had lived. Plus, a bit of web sleuthing also revealed the cemetery where Grandma Bess’s great-grandparents were buried, along with other relatives. We all have fond memories of Grandma Bess, and this was such a unique and interesting way to connect with her!

Make sure to use Ancestry.com to research your family connections in advance. I was surprised to learn that I had Scottish ancestors from both my mom’s side and my dad’s side. Even more surprising was that they were from the same region in Scotland!

What are your wonderful reasons for visiting Scotland?

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