Scotland: peaceful retreat in late Novemeber...and no car rental!

I'd suggest you check out Aviemore. It is in the Cringorm Moutains. Easy train trip from Edinburgh. Lots to do and see. The Rothmurchie Estate has horseback riding, hikes, etc (though some actvities, like canoeing won't be happening in Nov.). There is a local microbrewery that gives tours (and samples- hubby liked the Caringorm Gold and the Blessed Thistle). A restored steam train does round trips along the Spey River through some lovely country. You can take the funicular up Mt. Caringorm and there are even hikes on the moutain ( and good skiing if there has been snow). Buses and trains connect you to lots of villages nearby. Blair Athol and it's castle is just a short trip away. There are lots of GREAT distilleries- including my favorite whisky- Dalwhinnie.
We like to stay at the Caringorm Hotel (small, family owned). It is across the street from the rail station and looks like a minture castle on the outside and a hunting lodge inside. Great pub and awesome restaurant! There are also B&Bs or cottages you can rent if you want that.

Sean , Please allow me to make a few objective suggestions. Having carefully read your post , it seems that you are trying to find a happy medium between too large and too small a place , Not having a car which would allow for more flexibility compounds the difficulty of choice . Pitlochry is great , but without a car ( which would provide easy access to " Queen's View " on Loch Tummel ,or the Edradour distillery , or Blair Atholl which is pure rural charm ) you might find that a little too confined . I would suggest what I think might be a happy medium ; Stirling . Easy access from Edinburgh , medium size town , no shortage of cozy places to stay , many choices of food venues , and above all , Stirling castle with its extensive history and stunning views of the surrounding area . Keep it in mind and have a great time!!

You could look at Dunkeld would be very quiet, but you could do some walks and there is a great pub. The TI list several walks along Tay or up into the hills. I'm not sure what you mean about Pitlochry not being up there enough. What's the concern? I was going to recommend that you check it out. From either place you can get to Blair Castle, on the train if it's open. So, I thought I'd look on Visit Scotland to see what was happening. A quick search found: A jazz festival in Dundee A winter festival in Oban
Lots of live music You could also do Inverness. It's a bigger town, but there will be more places open because it does not depend on tourism. You can do day trips from Inverness. PAm

@Toni: Wow, thank you! Aviemore looks almost perfect. Right off the train. The Estate, castle and piney woods trails are a mile walk away. This might be the ticket! The steam train looks like a great activity too. @Steven: I was certainly looking at Stirling. Just thought it might be too big. @Pamela: Dunkeld looks great as well! I'll look more into it. I really had no reason to cross out Pitlochry, it's still rather close to Edinburgh and how nice the scenery was, is it the "Highlands" per se and so on. We're looking for a true getaway, even boring. Pubs, walks/hikes (when clear outside), reading and fireplacing. Last October we took public transportation to the Cotswolds. It was all very easy. Train London to Moreton-on-the-Marsh. From Moreton, local bus to Stow-on-the-Wold, which got us deeper and into a beautiful, tiny village atop a hill. Stayed at a B&B and while a car sure would've been great to really see some sights. We were able to go on great walks everyday to nearby villages from 3-10 miles away such as the Oddingtons, Slaughters, Bourghton-on-the-Water. Looking for something of the same but knowing that the walking/hiking won't be quite as achievable! Thanks everyone so much for the recs, post more if you got 'em! This place is simply the best. Long live Rick!

I don't think anyone has mentioned but the days are very short at that time of year. Sunrise is at about 8am and sunset at about 4pm.

Yes, the days are short- but we enjoyed them. For many years we'd go to England and/or Scotland in late Nov/early Dec. Lovely time and a difference perspecitve of things. We found Aviemore to be great that time of year- it's the only skiing 'center' in Scotland so things are open then. We don't ski, but did enjoy the moutains in winter. It even snowed a bit on one of our trips- and it was lovely!!! The lobby of the caringorm Hotel is comhy- even homey. And its pub and restaurant can't be beat for great food. Inverness is also great in winter- but it is a city- not a small village. If you like that area, check out Drumnadrochit. We stayed with friends who live there once, so can't recommend a hotel. But the local pubs are great!!!

This is all great, appreciate everyone here. I think I've narrowed it down to Aviemore (most likely) but also looking at feasibility of Kingussie or Newtonmore. The latter are smaller. Only concern with Aviemore is that is seems a bit "larger". Haha, yea 2k population is "large", lol. But we'll see. Also have started to look for spots on the North Sea. I suppose anywhere from Dundee (too big) up to Aberdeen (too big). The train diverts from Aberdeen, so it would probably have to be along the route. Again, a small, sleepy seaside town with a few B&Bs, a few walks and a pub or two would be perfect as well.

Aviemore may have a population of 2K- but that is rather spread out. Kingussie and Newtonmore are in the same area and seem nice (have ridden through them with friends but never stopped there). We've visited Aviemmore problably 6-8 times - some in summer and some in winter. We love it and I'd go back anytime.

Small sleepy coast town? Plockton, but it's pretty far north. But you could do day trip to Skye. You can't get there by train, so you would have to look into the bus, but Tarbert is very wee town. I stayed at Stonefield Castle and really liked it. i was there for a music festival. If the bus service is good, it might be a good option. I've not been there and I don't know how it would be in November, but the Isle of Arran looks wonderful. It's close to Glasgow, but is said to be a wee bit of the highlands in the south. I would love to visit it. I think that you could walk most places. And I agree with your earlier comment about Oban. I've been mystified by it's attraction. ; ) But, you could take the ferry to Mull and then the bus to Tobermory. Again, thought check what's open. Mull is a wonderful island. Lots of wild life, whisky, good good, good pub, and great history. Check out the Lord of the Isles stories. Pam

I loved Anstruther, Crail and St. Andrews on the North Sea coast. But I was just on a daytrip this summer. Worth checking out though; they are fairly small coastal towns - very pretty. Close to Dundee and not far from Edinburgh.

Well, I was also going to suggest Dunkeld. We enjoyed this are immensely. Lots of nice walks along the River Tay as well as the nearby Birnam Woods. We enjoyed staying at the Atholl Arms Hotel. http://www.athollarmshotel.com/ A bonus for us was the Dunkeld Cathedral ruins: http://travel.webshots.com/photo/1146664670011574650ZyxUyJ

Still planning here! I think it's come down to Pitlochry or Stonehaven, which is on the coast up near Aberdeen. I felt Aviemore was too commercial and larger-seeming. I think due to it being more of a "hub" than a self-serving town.

Pitlochry is more holidayish than Stonehaven at that time of year. Note - if you go off main track too much and you're unlucky with snow you may find logistics are a problem. You can get stuck in little rural places (even medium sized ones). Days are very short in November - it's surprizingly far north (check daylight hours for your travel dates).
S

Hi Susan, thanks for the info. I picked Pitlochry and Stonehaven simply b/c they are both on the major rail line out of Edinburgh. Beyond that our furthest journey would be the 6 mile daily bus (5-7 daily) from Pitlochry to Blair Castle. In Stonehaven, it would be the 1 mile away Dunnottar Castle and Dunnottar Woods. We're fully expecting nasty weather, short daylight hours and hunkering down in a nice pub, fireplace and our B&B. To be honest, I think I like the town of Pitlochry but the castle of Stonehaven!

Hi sean If you're still considering Stonehaven - check out cathres castle, drum castle and the lairhillock inn.
S