clothes and weather in england & scotland in july/august

AS a general rule, no. However, if you are hiking you might find them handy. My experience of England/Scotland in summer is that it is wet and quite cool compared to the USA. That said, sometimes, they have a heatwave (but never like ours!) so you should keep watching the weather on one of the weather sites until you leave. But of course, 1 pair of shorts take up very little room!

I took a pair of shorts on my first hiking trip in Scotland and never wore them. I do now take convertible pants. And have found that there are times when I want to take my 'legs" off and enjoy the sun. But I'm sometimes glad to be able to put them on again later in the day. Weather in the UK is very changeable so that's why I like the convertible pants.

Pam

Edward-
Whatever rain gear you decide to take with you on your trip, do yourself a favor and spend the extra $$ on Goretex. Do NOT be fooled by "water resistent" or any of the other generics. If you're close to a Cabela's or REI you might check there. Don't forget to get bottoms! Nothing like rain-soaked pants for your trip.

You would want to layer your clothes and definately take a fleece with you.
Have fun!

We love the UK in late July- especially Scotland. We have been visitng there at that time of year for about 20 years. I don't think you'll need shorts- but take one pair of nice walking shorts if you really want to and if you plan on doing lots of hiking. I usually take 3 pair of cotton blend pants, 3 T shirts and a "big shirt" to use a an evening "jacket" or on cool days, a windbreaker and an umbrella. My husband takes 3 pair of dockers or 2 jeans and dockers, 2 polos and a button-up for night, a windbreaker and umbrella. We both take comfortable socks and wear good walking shoes. I hope you find you LOVE Scotland like we do.