Scotland travel Intinerary advice-based on the Rick Steves 14 day trip in the travel book

Personally I would throw in a couple of rest days and laundry days. Just extend one of you other stops by a day or two.

I have no idea what itinerary the book recommends. I do know that Rick Steve's tours don't allow for much breathing room. He also ignores entire areas of Scotland. I believe he doesn't mention Aberdeenshire with its fishing villages and castle trail or the lovely Borders or the spectacular northwest coast.

Why do you not want to include Skye? IMO, it's not a must see in Scotland. But, it would help to know what doesn't appeal to you about Skye before offering suggestions.

What are your interests? History, castles, ancient sites, whisky, wildlife, hiking, gardens, art? Will you be renting or prefer public transportation or a mix? You can definitely improve upon Rick's itinerary.

If nothing else, Frank's suggestion is good.

This is the itinerary in question- https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/scotland/itinerary

It also skips Dumfries and Galloway, Kintyre, East Lothian and many other areas.

The Orkney Islands are fascinating. RS doesn't include this in his 2 week car itinerary, but does mention it as an option for a longer trip. One of my favorite Scotland trips included several nights in Orkney, lots to explore. I wouldn't see this an alternative to Skye, but just something to consider if you decide to revamp the entire itinerary. By the way, I enjoyed Skye, but everyone's preferences are different.

I often disagree with RS's assessments of an area, but his write-up on Orkney is a good intro to possibilities.
https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/read/articles/orkney-islands-scotland

While I love Orkney, it is a long way and you are going to take up most of those two days just getting there and back and it's not cheap either... While it can be 'done' in a day you barely cover the highlights and there is a lot to see and do on Orkney. Save then (along with Shetland) for a longer trip to Scotland!

Build in extra time on other places - suggestions could be

• spend a couple of nights on Mull (or even Iona) rather than doing it as a day trip from Oban.

• Build in an extra night in Glasgow and use this for a day trip to either Arran or Cumbrae.

• Add another night to St Andrews are and explore the Fife fishing villages.

Alternatively spend a couple of days in the Borders area with its ruined abbeys and some delightful small towns...

There are so many choices!

After Glencoe, head up to Plockton, Shieldaig, Ullapool, then drive through Torridon as far as Garve before heading towards Inverness. IMHO, the scenery in Torridon rivals that of Skye. What draws you to Scotland? If it is romantic highland scenery, that RS itinerary is using a lot of your vacation days to visit cities, not the highland scenery.

I definitely don’t think you should replace Skye although it does depend on what your priorities are over the whole trip.For truly wow scenery, although so much of Scotland has this, even the journey to and from Skye though the North West Highlands is amazing.The island is stunning though it is also busy, certainly at the honeypot sites.It benefits from having at least 2 full days (3 nights.)
Mull is a beautiful island, quieter and the Iona trip plus the fantastic boat trip to Staffa (and possibly the Treshnish Isles for puffins up close) is superb.
I agree about cutting time in the cities - 2 days would easily cover Edinburgh, it’s not a huge city and I think you can probably drop my home city Glasgow unless there are specific sites there that appeal.It’s a great city with plenty of interest but I’d always suggest more time in the Highlands and Islands.