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Arriving Glasgow with 7 full days and leaving the 8th day morning from Edinburg

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If you have been to Scotland and now you have the opportunity to do it all over again, with 7 full days, arriving to Glasgow and leaving from Edinburg, what would your ideal itinerary looks like, as active healthy adults with great energy level?

How many days at front end in Glasgow and how many days at back end in Edinburg? Would you skip Fort Williams and St. Andrews? Would you go up to Inverness? What would be the no-regret itinerary as if we don't ever get a chance to go back to Scotland?

We will be picking up a car at Glasgow and dropping it off at Edinburg.

Thank you!!

Posted by
503 posts

Well, it rather depends upon what time of year you are planning to go! If it's late spring or summer, you'll have longer days so you will have more time. But, given you have 7 days I'd recommend the following which would give you a small taste of all Scotland has to offer:

Day 1 - Glasgow - overnight Glasgow
Day 2 - drive to Oban at a leisurely pace - overnight Oban
Day 3 - day trip to Mull and Iona - overnight Oban
Day 4 Drive to Glencoe and explore - overnight Glencoe
Day 5 - Drive to Edinburgh - again leisurely with time for detours - maybe Stirling Castle? - overnight Edinburgh
Day 6 - Edinburgh
Day 7 Edinburgh

Posted by
3122 posts

Here's what I would do. I'm assuming an evening arrival on Day 1 and travel by rental car. With so few nights, there are going to be 1-night stays, which aren't ideal but it's the only way you will see a lot of the country because it is spread out and the roads don't make for very speedy travel. I'm also giving the cities short shrift, which may not be to your liking, but here goes.

Day 1: arrive Glasgow, stay at an airport hotel (the Holiday Inn is great, the Holiday Inn Express acceptable),

Day 2: get rental car in the morning. Be sure to ask the rental car agent which signs to follow at the roundabouts leaving the airport campus to get on the Motorway headed toward Loch Lomond (they are not self-explanatory, IMO). Drive north over the Erskine Bridge, through Dumbarton, along Loch Lomond and stop in Luss to take a short cruise on Loch Lomond. Proceed over the passes to Inveraray and stay 2 nights at Brambles.

Day 3: see Inverary Castle and Auchindrain Township open-air museum, also sights in the town of Inveraray.

Day 4: drive to the Isle of Skye (or Dornie, near Kyle of Lochalsh bridge) by way of Fort William. You can go via Glencoe or via the Connel bridge; each of these routes has its good points. Near Fort William, stop to see Old Inverlochy Castle and turn off briefly for Banavie to see Neptune's Staircase.

Day 5: see Isle of Skye, for example Dunvegan Castle and/or a hike.

Day 6: drive to Pitlochry or thereabouts. You'll have to decide whether to see Culloden Battlefield or take a hike in the Cairngorms or tour Dalwhinnie distillery.

Day 7: drive to Edinburgh, turn in rental car, stay at an airport hotel.

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