3 weeks to explore

Hi, Traveljeans,

The first thing you need to do is get a couple of good guidebooks (RS and Rough Guide to Scotland would probably fill the bill), and check out some of the travel blogs and videos on YouTube.

You should also check out the WalkHighlands website for ideas of hikes. Many of the hike descriptions include photographs taken by reviewers of the hikes. I'm a bit older than all of you, so I tend to stick to the one and two boot hikes.

I could tell you my personal preferences, but most of those tend to be in the Highlands and Islands. There is just so much to see, and even after 26 visits, there is still so much more that I still want to see!

As far as accommodation, are the four of you two couples, or are you travelling as separate individuals? Unless you can share accommodation, it will be difficult to find lodging for all of you. Some b&bs have twin beds, but not all. If you aren't travelling as two couples, you'll most likely have to get two twin rooms, as opposed to two doubles. Many of the larger hotels have twin rooms, but some don't. Our favorite b&b from this year's holiday had twins only, but that's highly unusual.

Finding traditional music is pretty much hit or miss. You could check out Sandy Bell's while you're in Edinburgh. There are trad sessions there most days. Check out the listings for folk clubs in Scotland, to find out if they have concerts on nights when you're nearby. The Isle of Skye Folk Festival is May 12th and 13th. Tickets are going pretty quickly. There are also music sessions on Skye, at various hotels around the island. The tourist office in Portree should have a list of the sessions.

While you're in Oban, you should take the ferry to Kerrera. There is an easy hike out to Gylen Castle, and if you're lucky, the cafe will be open. Also, while you're on Skye, take the ferry out to Raasay for the day.

The largest concentration of castles is in Aberdeenshire, although you'll find castles, in all sorts of disrepair, throughout Scotland. The Rough Guide is your best source for castle information.

Okay, that's it for now. Keep coming back to this forum with your questions. We all love Scotland, and we're a friendly bunch!

Best wishes,

Mike (Auchterless)

p.s.: Don't forget your midge repellent!

How many nights in country? 19?

I would start with 3 nights in Edinburgh and plan for a car after that, if possible. 4 nights on Skye - there’s no need to rush that, since it’s a priority.

Do you want to stay in Oban or on Mull (or nearby)?

There are seriously no bad plans for Scotland except trying to go too fast. :) But there are a LOT of options and with 3 weeks, you will have to make choices. You may want to go back and read through the Scotland forum threads - that information may help you with more focus. And you will want to make reservations for Skye the minute you have dates nailed down.

Although it will help that you are traveling in May rather than in the summer, lodging is tight--as well as costly--in the towns accessible via public transportation (like Oban and especially Portree). I found that needing a twin-bedded room (as opposed to a double) added to the challenge. I recommend getting lodgings nailed down as soon as you can.

From the standpoint of precipitation, the weather in western Scotland is very iffy. The monthly-summary weather statistics in Oban's Wikipedia entry show May is the driest month, but rain should be expected on 23 days that month! It's best to allow yourself some extra time at stops where outdoor activities are important to you. I was limited to public transportation during my 2019 visit to Scotland, but as has been suggested here, having a car for exploring rural Scotland is very helpful. It means you can check the weather forecast in the morning and drive in the direction likeliest to be dry!

Hi again, Traveljeans,

Just another quick post - with three weeks, you are probably not going to see everything that you want to see, but the four of you should get together to work out an itinerary which makes everyone happy. Not to worry, you'll probably end up deviating from it once you get there!

I'd recommend going counterclockwise (anticlockwise for our Scottish forum members!). Edinburgh to Inverness, with a possibility of visiting Aberdeenshire on the way; Inverness to Skye; Skye to Mull via the Ardnamurchan Peninsula; Mull to Oban; Oban to Kennacraig to Islay; Islay to Kennacraig to Bute (Mount Stuart is a must see!) via Tighnabruaich; Bute to Wemyss Bay, then back to Edinburgh.

The above is just a general outline. You may want to travel north from Skye, or out to the Outer Hebrides, and return Stornoway to Ullapool or Castlebay to Oban.

So many choices; so little time!

Once again, best wishes for your travels!

Mike (Auchterless)

p.s.: As all of you are in your mid to late 60s, you are entitled to "senior" discounts at many sites, castles in particular. In Scotland, those discounts are listed as "concessions". We've saved a bit of money over the last couple of holidays using those benefits. Hey, we've earned it!

The are around Torridon and the journey to get there were highlights of mine.

Our tastes seem pretty similar, and I have found in several trips that having a car is really enabling for making stops at places that are difficult by public transit, and to travel more efficiently. I've never found driving to be that difficult and I actually find that Google Maps time estimates are pretty close, but I'm very self-conscious about driving below the posted speed limit. We always try to plan our trips so that we rent a car as we leave (Glasgow, for example) and drop it off when we return to Edinburgh (for example). Parking isn't that big a deal outside of those two cities. If you want to visit one or more of the islands, put those trips before you've rented or after you've returned a car, unless you want to take a car by ferry. I found Loganair to Stornoway, Orkney, and Shetland to be good value when you consider all the factors (added driving, added sailing time, risk of weather cancelation, seasickness)

If you want to find trad music, you'll find that in May, it's pretty limited. The target bars will have music on Wednesdays only (for example) until late June or July, when it becomes more frequent. Glasgow and Edinburgh will have nightly music all year. Also, since any music you do find is supported by you buying a few beers or whisky, you want your lodging to be walkable from said bar, meaning staying at a countryside B&B will lead to quiet nights or a designated driver. I posted a trip report on this forum a few weeks ago that illustrates my planning style.

If you'll be in the Oban area and depending on your budget I'd recommend Barcaldine castle for 1 or 2 nights. It's in the middle of nowhere and about 20 minutes from Oban. It was a splurge, but the stay was a highlight in itself. Breakfast is served but you'll need to travel to find other meals. https://www.barcaldinecastle.co.uk/ We stayed here overnight in June on our way to Mull.

Loved Mull. The typical tourist seems to make a daytrip to Mull, only as a means to visit the Iona Abbey. But for personal reasons we spent a few days in Tobermory on Mull so we could visit Calgary Beach which looks like it belongs in the Caribbean. We stayed at the Harbour View B&B in Tobermory. How fit are you and your friends? The B&B is on top of the hill overlooking the Harbour and it's a steep walk down the road into the town centre. https://tobermorybandb.com/ It's cash only.

***BEFORE you drive, watch some videos about driving in Scotland, especially single track roads. Mull, Skye and that western side of Scotland has a lot of narrow, twisty-turny roads that take time to get used to.

Here's my Trip report if you want to take some time to read it, there may be some useful nuggets to pull from it. We were there in June and started in Edinburgh then headed to Inverness before going west to Oban and Mull and ending up in Glasgow. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-scotland-the-search-for-jamie-fraser

We stayed at the Harbour View B&B in Tobermory. The B&B is on top of the hill overlooking the Harbour and it's a steep walk down the road into the town centre.

Allan, that's where I am staying in May next year. Thanks for the tip/warning about the parking and the steep road. I will keep that in mind. :)

The Isle of Skye Folk Festival is May 12th and 13th. Tickets are going pretty quickly.

Mike, I had no idea about this - I'm glad I made my hotel reservations in advance! I will be on Skye that Saturday morning and will stay for 4 nights and would love to visit the festival that day. I checked the website but I'm not sure how the tickets work. Can you buy a ticket for one day the day of? Or do I need to buy one in advance? It looks like online you can only buy a ticket for both days, not just one. If you don't know, that's fine but thought I'd check. I also emailed them at the website.