itinerary advice

sue again - I'm not trying to see all of scotland in 1 trip - so i'm excluding the northern and eastern areas. thanks

I think how you divide up your time, where to stay and therefore how best to advise you probably needs a little more information.

1. Will have a rental car or are you relying on public transport?
2. What are your interests? Scenery, hiking, museums, galleries, whisky etc. etc
3. Do you want to experience any of Scotland's islands apart from Skye?
4. What sort of accommodation are you looking for? Hotels, B&Bs, pods, self catering, etc. etc.
5. Do you prefer to base yourself in fewer locations and make day trips, or do you like to change base more frequently?

Just a quick note on placenames. Glasgow, Edinburgh (pronounced Edinbrr), Pitlochry.

If you are not into hiking I'd say 3 nights around Glencoe is way too much. Similarly if you are not big on cities, museums, galleries etc, then a total of 8 nights in Edinburgh and Glasgow is too much.

Happy to help more with a little more information.

Jacqui (Skyegirl)

Will you have a car?

Btw it’s Edinburgh (pronounced Ed-in-bruh) and Glasgow (pronounced Glaz-go).

sorry for the misspellings ( I should know better). I will have a car, and I like both cities, museums, castles as well as hiking and nature. I prefer small hotels and B &B's. I'm not much of a shopper, but enjoy all kinds of experiences. I know you can't be sure of what I would like - I guess I'm asking is what you, with more local knowledge, might do. I live in Alaska so shore birds are not unusual sights for me, but I enjoy them too. Thanks sue

Sue, thank you for the extra information.
The possibilities are almost endless with the amount of time you have. If you'd like to get a bit more off the beaten track, then perhaps you might consider the Outer Hebrides?

You could drive from Inverness (really only worth one night if you are doing the sheep dog experience), to Ullapool, and from there take the ferry to Lewis (must be reserved ahead of time). There are historic sites such as ancient brochs, stone circles and some amazing white sand beaches in Lewis & Harris. From there you could either take the ferry from Harris to Uig in Skye to continue your itinerary, or if you like the sound of the Outer Hebrides you could continue by ferry from Harris to Berneray, then by causeways down the chain of islands taking in North Uist, Benbecula and South Uist. There is a ferry from North Uist (Lochmaddy) to Uig in Skye.

Or you could continue even further by causeway to Eriskay and then by ferry to Barra. I adore the Outer Hebrides!

From Barra there is a ferry to Oban and from there you could drive to Glencoe.

Ferries all need to be booked well ahead of time via Calmac.co.uk

It's just one idea but the wild, coastal scenery and peace of the Outer Hebrides makes me keep returning even though I live just across the sea in Skye.

To make it happen I'd steal a night from Glasgow, or even visit Glasgow by train from Edinburgh for a day. And if you have extra nights to add then even better. I'm also not sure I'd want more than a night in the Glencoe area - it gets pretty busy and unless there are serious hikes you want to do, then it can certainly be experienced in a day.

Best wishes
Jacqui

Hoiw many days do you actually have? Are you wanting somewhere to stop for a few days or travel a bit further afield with with one or two night stops?

If you can, I would add an extra night to Skye. We spent 4 nights on Skye, and we were busy all the time. This also gives you some leeway in case you have some bad weather.

I followed this roadtrip itinerary around Skye, and it was very helpful. It keeps you organized in your driving so you are not backtracking and driving needlessly all over the place.

https://www.ontheluce.com/isle-of-skye-itinerary/

I was thinking of Lewis and Harris - that's a good idea. Also wondering about Arran? any thoughts about that? thanks sue

Arran is said to be ‘Scotland in miniature’. Well worth a visit, but in the opposite direction from Lewis and Harris. Whether it works for you will very much depend how many nights you have in total and how you want to divide them. I don’t personally feel t he draw of Arran in the same way as I’m drawn to the Outer Hebrides.

There are so many islands I haven’t been to yet, but I loved Lewis and Harris (more than Skye - no one shoot me). I stayed on Lewis but would love to spend some time on Harris.

I loved Lewis and Harris (more than Skye - no one shoot me).

I did too!

Where my personal real heart is on the Outer Hebrides is Eriskay, Barra and especially Vatersay- right down at the bottom (inhabited) end of the chain.

thanks everyone. Lots to think about. I'm not changing Skye - just need to decide if I go to Lewis and Harris from there and rearrange Glencoe. - Or go to Arran after Glencoe and save Lewis and Harris for next time. Might take a day trip to Glasgow from Edinburgh and skip it otherwise.

There are so many islands I haven’t been to yet, but I loved Lewis and Harris (more than Skye - no one shoot me). I stayed on Lewis but would love to spend some time on Harris.

And me as well. I can also echo Skyegirl's comment about how she doesn't feel the same draw for Arran that she does for the Outer Hebrides. I felt the same way. I spent several nights on the Isle of Arran and I really enjoyed it (it's a lovely island), but I absolutely treasured my time on Lewis and Harris. I'm really hoping to go back and spend more time in the Outer Hebrides.

It's hard to quantify that feeling, but to me, the Outer Hebrides just seems a bit more remote and wild than places like Arran, which is a bit tamer. It's probably a bad way of putting it, but there you go. 😊

My heart very much lies in the Outer Hebrides, North Uist in particular.Harris is stunning as is (IMO) West Lewis out by Mangersta and Uig and Reef beach.

If you can manage a few days out that way, it is SO different to Skye which seems very lush, busy and considerably populated in comparison (I love Skye too though.)

You could make your way down the island chain and leave from Lochboisdale or Barra.To me, Barra or Harris are possibly the most immediately attractive of the islands.Harris through to Berneray and the glorious north end of North Uist also comprise of one of Scotland’s officially designated Top 40 National Scenic Areas.

Their wind swept, shell sand beaches are the most beautiful I’ve seen anywhere we have travelled in the world.Many are backed by that unique landscape of ‘machair’ - rich grasslands covered in wildflowers though not at their best when you plan your trip.May into June/July is best, August too.

Harris in particular is very expensive in terms of self catering places (many in simply stunning locations) as it is so popular these days and gets repeat bookings year on year from regulars (ourselves included!)

A nice problem to have though, planning where else to go!

(On a side note, we stayed in lovely Girdwood 2 years ago during a fabulous Alaska trip.)