Summer ‘27 touring advice

All I've got for you is, assuming you want separate beds for the 4 of you, you will probably want to book at least some of your accommodations in advance. Between the whole world traveling and the internet, it can be difficult to find room at the inn (or a table for lunch/dinner).

We traveled to Scotland with another couple in September 2023 and had a difficult time booking 2 rooms 2 months in advance in some locations. Summer is even worse.

Long gone are the days we used to play it by ear in Scotland.

Enjoy your adventure!

For off the beaten path, consider the far North: Wick, the nearby Castle of Mey, Orkney and Shetland — anchored by Edinburgh.

If you are driving a Van look for Campgrounds. Campgrounds in Scotland or Caravan Parks are not as rustic as you might think. Sometimes they have accommodations where you just supply bedding. And they may have stores, cafes and laundromats. They tend to be by the National Parks or Seaside. For culture as the natives live it: you can go to family style pubs and watch football on TV. Or you can stop at Costco or Tesco to fill up your cooler. Some Farms may let you park in their field on Skye. You usually find Pubs with accommodations in bigger villages. Look online. As for backroads there are really just a few ways to go in some parts anyway. Don't leave the pavement if possible. There are views everywhere so don't worry about. If any in your group have University connections, you should look into School accommodations if you are traveling in the Summer. Look at Visit Scotland online to get more information. PS I said Costco as a joke since a lot of folks want to believe Scotland is not living in the current century.

Or, look at the Lowlands, south of the Edinburgh/Glasgow corridor. Lovely rural countryside, lots of history, castles etc.

You won’t be renting a ‘van’ here because a van is a commercial window with a bench seat in the front and no seats or windows in the back. The terminology you want in the UK for a larger passenger vehicle is a 7 seat people carrier or 7 seat SUV. I know there’s only 4 of you but for the luggage space I guess you’ll want a bigger vehicle. Arnold Clark come highly recommended as a company.

@kathleen mentioned Costco. We only have 3 in the whole of Scotland.

It’s also hard to find accommodation on the hoof, so you’ll want to plan your journey and pre book your accommodation. Pubs are not as common in rural Scotland as in England and pubs with accommodation even less common again. Pubs in Scotland, particularly in cities tend to be for serious drinking, and are usually rather more basic than the cosy, country pubs you find in places like the Cotswolds. I say this from a position of having lived in various English regions and now living in rural Scotland. B&BS are much more common in rural Scotland than pubs with rooms.

As for farmers in Skye letting you park up on their fields, I don’t know of anyone here who would let you do that free of charge if arriving by vehicles and you’d need a camper van or a tent to stay on campsites. I doubt you’d enjoy driving a camper van large enough for 4 adults on our narrow roads! Before someone comes along and tells you that you can camp anywhere in Scotland, this is not true. We have an Outdoor Access Code which permits wild camping in certain circumstances but it explicitly states that you must arrive on foot or by bicycle. I know you haven’t said you want to camp, but other replies have mentioned it, so just clarifying for the purposes of other readers.

Between the whole world traveling and the internet, it can be difficult to find room at the inn (or a table for lunch/dinner).

This is urban legend, especially for lunch, outside of a very few tourist hot spots such as the Isle of Skye.

But, yes, there is a good half of Scotland which this forum rarely gets to, including almost half the country below the Central belt- the Scottish Borders, Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway- all packed with history and scenery.

There is a lot of talk on here about Highland Games, but in the Borders there is a great tradition of the Common Ridings to experience (a rare occasion in the area when you need to book places far ahead, partly because of how early in the day they start)- https://scotlandstartshere.com/ridings-festivals/

The ridings are a big slice of history, even if now they are mainly about fun.

Costco in the UK isn't the same in the US even where it exists. They are not where ordinary people do their shopping, but more a place for wholesale shopping.

Another big slice of history, before the Jacobites often missed on this forum (and most tours) is that of the Covenanters]1.

If going south from Glasgow or Edinburgh towards the Clyde Islands (Arran especially) a good introduction to the Covenanters is the Lochgoin Covenanters Museum tucked away down a dead end country lane just off the motorway.

There were also (many) other battles, apart from Culloden. One example is the much earlier Battle of Flodden Field- rarely visited on this forum because it is south of Edinburgh between there and Northumberland. An example of what there is when you explore an area rather than just travel between tourist hot spots- https://www.flodden1513ecomuseum.org/places/local/flodden-field

Or, if you go to Stirling, then don't just go to the Castle and the Church of the Holy Rude, but visit the Battle of Bannockburn site (200 years even before Flodden)- https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/bannockburn/ and also Cambuskenneth Abbey (a totallly integral part of the story of Stirling Castle)- https://www.historicenvironment.scot/visit/all/cambuskenneth-abbey/

Rather than (or in addition to) Iona visit the Isle of Whithorn in Dumfries and Galloway (which has an equally important place in the religious history of Scotland). Of the Clyde Islands Bute is just as good as Arran- and, it too has history- for instance in St Blane's Church (another significant piece of the early religious story of the Country)- https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/bute/stblaneschurch/index.html

This is urban legend, especially for lunch, outside of a very few tourist hot spots such as the Isle of Skye.

Well Stuart, we had an almost hour wait for a table in Lairg for lunch on a weekday. And without a reservation we would never of had a table for dinner at a pub in Oldmeldrum. Just a couple examples from a late September trip. I wouldn't consider either of these places "tourist hot spots".

You have a lot of good advice from Skyegirl.

What time of year are you planning for this?

How long are you planning to spend in Scotland?

Are you wanting to change accommodation every night or spend a few days in each place?

What initial research have you done and have you identified parts of Scotland you think you might like to visit?

Places like the Borders, Dumfries and Galloway, the Angus Glens are less busy and touristy than say the Highlands, and Skye.

There are so many wonderful places to visit, it's difficult to know where to begin with advice.

DK Eyewitness Scotland is an excellent place to start for ideas. It describes the different areas of Scotland and has lots of pictures to tempt you. It also covers many undiscovered gems not found in the other guide books. It has suggested itineraries and information about places to stay. Maps are also adequate for initial planning although if you are wanting to explore the back roads you may need to buy a road atlas to Scotland. AA touring Atlas Scotland is one of the best.

Also depending on where you want to go, you need to book accommodation well in advance. places like Skye and Mull get booked up very quickly. Some of the more remote areas of Scotland have limited accommodation.

Here's my Trip Report from 2022 if you think it will be helpful.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-scotland-the-search-for-jamie-fraser

If your plans include Skye or Mull, book hotels well in advance. Also book ferries well in advance if you're needing one (Mull). Highlights of our trip were Mull and Stirling Castle.