Scotland's Stone Circles

One of my favorites is the Callinsh stones on Lewis. The Ring of Brodgar on the main Orkney island is also nice. Unfortunately, these are not exactly the easiest to get too, but they are well worth the trip. Orkney has a lot of other prehistoric sites that are fabulous.

I would second what Caroll wrote. The ring of Brodgar on Mainland Orkney is in my opinion worth the ferry crossing if this sort of thing interests you. Lots more there too.

First, look for a copy of Scotland, in the Oxford Archaeological Guides series (Oxford University Press). The authors are Anna and Ritchie Graham. This is a great guide to the archeological sites and includes the stone circles. The two that I like best are out in far islands. ; ) First, the Ring of Brogdar on Orkney is fantastic. There are lots of other interesting archeological sites on Orkney including the Standing Stones of Stenness, Maes Howe, Skara Brae, the Eagles tomb and more. Also, the Callinish stone circle on Lewis in the Outer Hebrides is wonderful as well. The Dun Caroloway Broch is fascinating. I've also visited the Broch on Skye and the one north of Golspie in the northeast. There are many circles or similar structures on the mainland of Scotland as well. I've been to the Clava Cairns near Inverness. These are cairns that are surrounded by a circle of standing stones. I visited the Standing Stones of Cullerie in Aberdeenshire, which is cairns surrounded by a stone circle. Kilmartin Glen in Argyle is amazing. There are cairns, stone circles and Dunadd, where there was a fort on top of crag. You could do a trip that starts by flying directly to Kirkwall in Orkney. Then on to Inverness and explore that area, then west to Ullapool to catch the ferry to Lewis. Then take the Uig ferry to Skye and head south to Argyle and Kilmartin Glen. It would be a lot of travel so you might want to pick and choose. Pam

I have to agree that the Ring of Brogdar and the Standing Stone of Stenness on Orkney are wonderful. I found them more intreging than Stonehenge. I don't think you will find the circles/standing stones to be concentrated. They range all the way from the Shetland Islands, thorugh all of Scotland, Wales, and England and even to parts of France. Do some research, and pick the ones that facinate you most, or that work well into your trip plan. Inverness makes a great base to see much of the Highlands. You can do some good day trips from there. And it makes a good starting point if you want to visit other areas. You could fly into London, then up to Inverness. Spend several days there, then either train or rent a car and visit other areas. Pamela is great with advice about driving and routes in Scotland- I'd listen to her recomendations if you want to drive.

Hello John, We are also intrigued by the stone circles and have visited most of the major ones in Scotland as well as those in Derbyshire, Wiltshire, Cornwall, and Brittany. Pam has given you a good suggested route, but you could also go the other way. Starting from Glasgow, head to the Kilmartin Glen which is fascinating. Then head up near Fort William, take the Corran Ferry and then the ferry to Armadale on Skye. From Uig, Skye, head to Lewis for the Callanish circles (there are several).... From Lewis, you can either take the ferry back to Skye or to Ullapool in Wester Ross. We did the Skye option, detouring slightly for Eileen Donan and Plockton before heading to Inverness. From Inverness in the summer, you can do a very long day trip to Skara Brae and the Ring of Brodgar...... If you instead go to Ullapool, you could drive to Scrabster and take the car ferry to the Orkneys and overnight or longer there.... Another lovely stone circle not too far from Scotland is Castlerigg at the northern edge of the Lakes District..... As you research this topic, you will find mentions of dozens more stone circles. Be careful as you get into the very obscure ones-they can be very difficult to locate and often are so deteriorated there is nothing much to see once you do find the site....
If you would like specific suggestions for accommodations, let me know.

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Thank you everyone for your help.