I am going to Iona for a week at the end of May. I am flying into Glasgow and have 4 days
before Iona. My only prior visit to Scotland was to Edinburgh. I will be alone and
was hoping that I would not have to rent a car though I can. Suggestions of where
to go, what to do, without being too rushed?
Posted by
New York City, NY, USA
5678 posts
If you want to explore the west coast, you'll either need to do tour or rent a car, in my opinion. You could spend time in Glasgow though. And then take some day tours from there. Glasgow is a great city. You're going to have lots of island time on Iona, so urban would be a good contrast. I checked Rabbie's Tours, which are the favorite on this site. They look interesting. I personally would not do the Highland tour, too much bus time for me. Also, you could go to Stirling for the day on your own. The tour of Burns Country sounds good. Also, I've always wanted to visit the Falkirk Wheel!
If you just want to go to a small village and hang out, do some walks in the hill and go to a nice pub at night, I would go to Dunkeld.
Pam
Posted by
RIchmond, BC,Canada
932 posts
There's lots to see in Glasgow, I spent four days there, and you can easily get day tours to some other popular places like Stirling Castle, Loch Lomond and other places. You will use your time more efficiently if you stay in Glasgow and do day trips.
Posted by
3123 posts
Agree with the above. You could also take a bus to one of the towns on the shore of Loch Lomond, from where you could take a boat cruise on the loch or just do some walking. For example, it's just over an hour from Glasgow to Tarbet on Loch Lomond. See http://www.visit-lochlomond.com/content/buses-loch-lomond?phpMyAdmin=Ll-cKsfScvDzFHbZNEBO9tG2e%2C6
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Thanks for the suggestions. In the timeframe I have, would you say it is
too far to try to take in Glencoe & Ft William or Skye? Kind of hate to miss
them. While I will have a week of island time, this is coming at the end of
two weeks in cities in central Europe so I will have had urban time.
Posted by
Corvallis,OR, USA
119 posts
If you rent a car, I think you could easily take in Ft. William/Glencoe and then head to Iona. I was on Mull and Iona for 3 days last Summer. When I left Iona, I drove all the way to Kyle of Lochalsh in one day. I stopped at Glenfinnan to see the viaduct and monument to Prince Charles. Then I stopped at Eilean Donan castle. I left Iona at 9am and reached Lochalsh at about 5pm. I didn't feel rushed at all. Fort William and Glencoe would have been an easy stop - was just not my destination that trip. I drove by myself and the GPS was worth the extra cost (which wasn't bad at all via Celtic Legend). You could get a car in Glasgow and probably drop in Oban if that is where you plan to catch the ferry. Next trip, I plan to spend time around Glencoe.