Day trips and travel times from Loch Lomond

If you are Robert Burns fans, you can see his house in Dumfries on your way to Caerlaverock Castle. We stayed in a Georgian Manor House there that included dinner. Near Loch Lomond we stayed in a Farmhouse Manor and visited Inveraray Castle which is home of the Campbell Clan. February has short daylight hours in that latitude. Staying in 0ne Place and having to back track all the time might drive you crazy. A car is useful in Scotland because the trains don't run everywhere. Good Luck!

Driving in Scotland is slow and probably very different to driving where you live. Petrol (gas) is also a lot more expensive too...

It will take a lot longer to cover distances than you might expect. Driving to Caerlaverock is going to take a good three hours each way. You have to get round Glasgow and depending on time of day that can be VERY slow. Apart from the ruined castle, there isn't a lot else apart from scattered farms.

Parking is a nightmare in Edinburgh as well as expensive. If you are wanting to drive, have a look at using park and ride.

Use the train for Glasgow rather than driving.

Edinburgh - Castle and also the ruined Craigmillar Castle on the outskirts of Edinburgh. Don't miss St Giles cathedral.

Stirling - Castle. If the Church of the Holy Rude is open, that is worth a visit.

Glasgow - cathedral and doin't miss the wonderful Necropolis. There are also the ruined Crookston and Bothwell castles near by (check opening times as they may be shut on Thursdays and Fridays.)

Other ruined castles to think about are Dumbarton, Doune, and Blackness

Edinburgh by train is a no-brainer. Drive into Helensburgh, park up there, direct train to Waverley every 30 minutes, on a 6 car long electric train. Journey time 2 hours each way on what I think is the most scenic of the various Glasgow to Edinburgh routes.

I'm happy with Caerlaverock- 2hrs 30 minutes each way (and I'm not from a western US state, this is an easy drive even by UK standards)- Erskine Bridge, M8, M74 to Moffatt (make a pit stop in this attractive town for breakfast) then A701 down.

There is parking (with lots of electric car chargers!) straight behind the Rabbie Burns House (and also see his Mausoleum at St Michael's Church).

To make it a round trip and for added interest I'd be inclined to return via Ruthwell Church (for the ancient cross in the Kirk) then A75 to Gretna and M74 etc home.

PS- I am well used to that journey- I always used to do the central Glasgow route (don't know why, but a lot of lane weaving usually worked- if not 15 to 20 minutes delay in the morning peak was the worst I encountered, but the M8 is the easier route). I always felt just warmed up by the time I got to Gourock (further than Helensburgh) in spite of starting a good hour south of Caerlavorock.

The Isle of Arran in March will be like the rest of the western isles during that time: colder (probably ranging in the 40's) and getting dark by 6pm. And of course you should be prepared for rain. But the big advantage (imo) is that there will be far fewer crowds than April and May. It is certainly doable.

I was there last year and drove from Glasgow to Ardrossan (the ferry port to Arran) and then took the ferry over with my car. The road to Ardrossan is pretty good so you should be fine there. The roads on Arran are mostly single track, so you will need to learn the etiquette of passing in the frequent passing places. I really loved Arran. It's small and easy to get around with castle ruins, Brodick Castle, two distilleries, ancient ruins and cairns, some nice shopping and lovely beaches and mountains. It's called "Scotland in Miniature" for a reason. There have been issues with the ferry going over, but CalMac is working on it, so hopefully it will be resolved.

I will also add a shout-out to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum in Glasgow. It's not overly large so you can make your way through in a couple of hours, but is a wonderful and unique museum and I highly recommend it.

By next March the ferry port for the Isle of Arran is expected to be Troon, not Ardrossan. The date of switch of port has yet to be determined, it will probably not be confirmed (or otherwise) until January or February 2025, so you just need to wait for any updates.

But safe to say that for Cal Mac the move cannot come soon enough, when they are released from their contractual commitment to use Ardrossan, either by port closure for reconstruction, or the delivery of the new larger ferries which are too large to use Ardrossan (whichever comes sooner).

Nor is it known if ferries will ever return to Ardrossan after their estimated 2 years at Troon. There are many issues to resolve with Ardrossan, beyond the scope of this forum.

Troon is further south in Ayrshire than Ardrossan, but is a slightly shorter drive time because of better roads.

Thank you for all of the advice and ideas!

I will look further into riding the train to Edinburgh and back. I also found that a bus goes to Roslyn chapel from Edinburgh so we can do that on a second day

We are fine with the driving—saving money on the hotel allows us to stay a few days longer and see more.

Isn31c - Thank you for your information and the route recommendation. I love it.

Wasleys - I’m excited to do more research into your suggestions. I didn’t know about most of those.

Kathleen and Mardee - thank you for your valuable input.

I’m going to take all of this information and put it to good use. I’ll report back when I’ve got a better plan in place!

Re- a Priest's Hole- you would have to ask them to be sure, but given it's history I would be very surprised if there wasn't one- Traquair House at Innerleithen- https://www.traquair.co.uk/

What is nice about that is that is it is a bit over 2 hours from Helensburgh (so say 2:30 from your hotel), but you can then drive to Roslin/Roslyn for the Chapel, then take the Edinburgh Southern Bypass back to the M8 and thence your hotel. So you totally avoid driving in Edinburgh.

Given that Roslyn is a timed, prebooked entry I actually think I would do that first then Traquair where timing is less critical.

Ayr has had a hard time over the years, and is sometimes seen as Scotland's worst city- rather a touch of hyperbole in my opinion. But just stay on the A77 across Ayr avoiding the town if you want and you reach Alloway (Burns) from the south east.

I would then continue on, visit the Electric Brae and then Culzean Castle.

but given it's history I would be very surprised if there wasn't one

Traquair House doesn’t have a priest hole as such but does have an escape route for the priest.

The Priest’s room in the oldest part of the castle was used as a secret chapel from the C17th until 1829 when Catholics were again allowed to worship publicly. The altar was hidden in a wall recess and the white vestments worn by the priest were made cleverly made from quilted bedcovers and could be used as such in case of a raid looking for a Catholic priest.
There is a ‘hidden’ cupboard which was lined with shelves. This had a false back which gave access to the old spiral staircase and could be used as an escape route.

Traquair House is well worth visiting - it is one of the oldest inhabited houses in Scotland had close connections to the Stuart royal family. Mary Queen of Scots as well as many other Scottish monarchs have visited. The family remained loyal to the Stuarts and the Jacobite cause. Bonnie Prince Charlie visited in 1745. when he left, the 5th Earl closed the Bear Gates behind him, vowing they would not be reopened until a Stuart monarch was restored to the throne. They remain closed...

What do folks think of Outlander's portrayal of Bonnie Prince Charlie?