Gorgeous Places(mountains, lochs, beaches)-Easy to get to via Public Transportation

If you buy a copy of Rough Guide Scotland you will be able to do much of the planning yourself.

Thank you! I will check out that guide book but I also have found suggestions from people on this forum to be so helpful. So...hoping for some ideas of "must see" beaches, locations with mountains, etc.

The Cairngorm Mountains are lovey. Aviemore (one of many small villages/towns in Cairngorm National Park) can be easily reached by train from Inverness or Edinburgh. There is a funicular up Mt. Cairngorm with awesome views on the ride and at the top. There are hikes, too. Good train and bus service to nearby places (Dalwhinnie with its distillery, Blair Atholl, with it's castle, and many others). There is also a restored steam train that does round trips along the River Spey so you can see a good bit of the countryside (including gamboling kids - sheep). The Cairngorm Hotel is across the street from the train station (and buses stop nearby, too). It looks like a miniature castle outside and a hunting lodge inside. A piper plays each night just before supper. Their restaurant and pub are great. Some of the best food I've had. They also have a decent Tourist Information office.

Thank you, Toni! Great information about the mountains/highlands. I have saved what you posted her.

I am also hoping someone can also jump in about beaches. I have seen so many amazing photos of beaches in Scotland but they seem only accessible by car "hire." Hoping I can get advice on how to reach one that is not very over-populated with kids and families and also reachable by public trans.

Nairn beach near Inverness is good. From Inverness you can visit the Castle of Mey as a day trip, which was the Queen Mother's home and the beaches here are good.

The best beaches are in remote places that you will need a car to get to, as in summer, anywhere close to good public transport by default will mean close to lots of people. Public transport in the more rural areas is poor. The beaches just south of Mallaig are good. You will find plenty of sandy beaches, it's just trying to get away from people.

A word of warning on the photography front, I have just returned from a month touring Scotland and my other half's very extensive camera kit has hardly been out of the bag as the weather and light has been so bad! What should have been great views of the Cullins on Skye was low cloud, mist and rain, so much so that you couldn't even see there was a mountain there at times! I did a day trip to Orkney, where the beaches were not busy, but it was difficult to photograph as there were near gale force winds and the sea passage was awful on the way back! For the best photography, you will need a car to get to the locations, as the best light is early morning and late at night, when public transport doesn't run. Note that in the far north in June, it is still light at after 10 pm and it is light again before 4 am.

Hi, yes, of course, the weather can make photography challenging, but that's when closeups are good options! I've tons of photos from my trips to Scotland so don't be too discouraged. This summer has been particularly hard from what I've heard.

As for beaches, yes, they can be hard to get to without a car. That said, I would encourage you to go past Nairn to Culbin Sands Forest. You walk through the forest and you end up on a beach with no people. It's the Moray Firth and you can walk east and look across at lovely views of Findhorn. Lots of water birds, seals and if you are lucky, Dolphins. There is a bus, but I would double check with Inverness Tourist info.

Dornoch, also has a lovely beach along with its world famous golf course, castle and cathedral. Here's walk highlands description of the Dornoch Point walk. It's a bit more of a trek by bus or train, so you might want to think about staying there. You could also visit Dunrobin Castle.

The stunning pictures that you have seen are mostly from the west. They are on the islands like Harris, Lewis, Skye, The two I've suggested are on the east coast.

Thank you so much for all of your good suggestions. Not to digress but maybe I could rent a car for one or two days from a "base" in s location to where ever I drive is not too dangerous. I am worried about driving a manual transmission as I have not done it since my 20s and also on the other side of the road. I think I would be OK in an automatic transmission car and in an area where it is not crazy-fast traffic. I also would be willing to pay a car service but not more than $100 total round trip for one day and I know that is probably not possible. I did see some private car services in Ireland (near the coast) that cost about $100 for 4 hours. That is reasonable.

Also...I do have a friend in Inverness that I could practice driving with if he is around but I cannot guarantee he will be there when I am there.

Yes...the beach pictures I have seen of the location I want to go to are Isle of Harris.

You could do public transport to either Uig on Skye or to Ullapool. From Uig you would get to Tarbert on Harris and rent a car there. From Ullapool you would get to Stornoway on Lewis. Play around with the maps to see what beaches you can get to. I thought that the ones off Harris were the most spectacular.

The traffic on Harris and Lewis is not bad at all. The roads will be tiny. Ask the companies for automatic. They often have some as many Americans cannot drive stick. Here's the list of car rentals on VisitScotland.

Pam

Thank you! I will check those options out.

If its GORGEOUS you are after, the Glencoe area is a must. You will have your loch fix with nearby Loch Linnie. Not sure about public transport to this region, we were there two months ago in a rental car.

The railways have some tips for inspiration at http://www.scotrail.co.uk/scotland-by-rail/great-scenic-rail-journeys and more links on that page.

British newspapers will also do occasional articles from a public transport angle:

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/apr/26/car-free-holidays-uk

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/may/09/scotland.railtravel

Great advice as always! Thanks! I am posting a new question because I have a new dilemma but it will be best to start a new thread.