So I'm in the early stages of planning a 4-6 week trip to Scotland, and I'd like practical information that I may overlook in the process.
I'm not big on culture, and my grand plan is to do several of the longer hikes through the country with breaks to distilleries and towns in between. I also don't want to carry a ton of hiking gear so I'll probably do the old man thing and sleep at hostels, bothies, or B&Bs.
So far I have 2 trails that I am definitely doing:
1) West Highland Way (94 miles)
2) Great Glen Way (73 miles)
The good thing is that one begins where the other ends, and they're both good hikes. But they're both fairly long and I don't intend to do them back to back. I'm also planning on doing a several day hike in Skye, then taking a bus or renting a car to drive about while I rest up.
I'd like some suggestions from people more familiar with Scotland on what to do between the 3-4 long hikes I plan on doing especially geared towards landscapes and unique places to visit. I'm also planning on keeping my pack pretty light, like a 50liter back so gear suggestions would be good (aside from a good pair of boots and rain jacket).
In the West Highlands, maybe visit Oban. It's a much more interesting town (cathedrals, big folly on the hill overlooking the place) than Fort William, where the two trails join. The train journey between Fort William and Oban (there are usually three trains a day, and you have to change at Crianlarich) is often described as one of the most scenic in the world - so try to do that in daylight hours. From Oban you could cross by ferry to the Isle of Mull , and then maybe on to other islands (eg Iona)
I love the route from Loch Lomond to Oban to Fort William (Ben Nevis) to Mallaig to Skye. It's absolutely stunning. And Skye itself has fantastic hikes. There are some great hiking options in Cairngorms National Park too. The shorelines of the Orkney Islands are very dramatic as well.
Just off the west highland way you'll find a distillery called Aberlour in the village of Aberlour, highly recommend this and the mash tun inn is an excellentp lace to stay, a little expensive but worth it. also Dewars world of whisky in Perthshire and springbank distillery in campbeltown are a must see.
>>1051872
As far as distilleries go, I've seen about 50 of them so far and I'm still looking to see more. I'd highly recommend The Balvenie in Dufftown. Not only a beautiful distillery, but also one of the few that still have their own malt floor AND an active cooperage. Plus they have great hand-filled bottles. More and more distilleries do though. Distilleries can be cool for very different reasons. I really loved Glenfarclas because of sheer beauty, class and tidyness. A complete opposite that I also loved is Old Pultney where everything was a bit messy and the manager was giving us a tour in his old fleece sweater. But it just breathes passion and charm. Really different places but both great.
Islay has a lot of great distilleries to visit as well. You can't go wrong with Laphroaig, Ardbeg, Bruichladdich, Caol Ila or Lagavulin.
I was a bit let down by Highland Park as it felt too sleak and too much tooting your own horn. It started with the introduction movie that kept hammering that they made the best spirit in the world. Not my kind of deal.
Edradour in Pitlochry (just south of Cairngorms) is very charming with it's cute white buildings. Glenmorangie is beautiful too. They have a very impressive stillhouse in this old barn building.
I wasn't a fan of Glen Ord as it was too much of a big Diageo crappy whisky promotion. Too bad for a once great distillery. Anything that has the Singleton stamp on it is basically shit.
Talisker was nice too. And you're likely to pass Ben Nevis, which is also worth it. Wolfburn in Thurso is very new and just a big industrial hall. But it's still very fun to see the whole process in one look.
I thought Benromach was very charming as well. Pretty, friendly, great whisky.
>>1051863
Sounds like a great idea for my rest between hikes. I will certainly look into that. I was looking mostly into Skye and Islay.
>>1051870
Definitely going to see Skye. Cairngorms is going to be visited also, but I'm not sure which route I'll take. Right now I'm on the fence between East Highlands Way or Speyside Way.
>>1051872
I'm trying to maintain a budget so I'm going to stray from ritzy places, but I will splurge for distilleries. Will certainly note these distilleries.
>>1051891
Very cool and great information. Perhaps too many distilleries because I still have to be able to walk the next day! I will try to squeeze at least a few of your suggestions in. Did you visit the Glen Livet distillery? It's my favorite affordable aged Scotch here in the states.
Great info so far and I appreciate it. I'm planning the trip for May 2016 so hopefully avoid tourist season and still get some decent weather. I've ordered some books from amazon for a general idea of things, but their suggestions should be taken with a grain of salt. My other resource for trails has been http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/long-distance-routes.shtml which is pretty great so far.
Also:
http://www.amazon.com/Frommers-Walking-Trips-Scotland-Hiking/dp/0470159898/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1447876664&sr=8-10&keywords=hiking+scotland&pebp=1447876670281&perid=0D187W8B3MHSYSJA82MP
http://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Planet-Scotland-Travel-Guide/dp/1743215703/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1447876686&sr=8-1&keywords=scotland
Thanks for info and keep it coming!
>>1051891
> I was a bit let down by Highland Park as it felt too sleak and too much tooting your own horn. It started with the introduction movie that kept hammering that they made the best spirit in the world.
It seems all other distilleries do this. They all like to think of themselves as the best of some kind.
I've been to Scotland twice now and the next time I'm definitely going to Kirkwall and eventually visiting Highland Park. I really do like their whisky, it's one of my favorites.
>>1052019
It's a thin line. But one of the things I love about the Scots and the whisky industry is when the people are fairly modest and cool and let the spirit speak for itself. Those are, in my opinion, often the most charming ones. Sure they'll call this great or that a personal favorite. But what struck me with Highland Park was they seems just a little bit too cocky about it. But that might just be a matter of how it goes with my image of the whisky industry. Their products (though sometimes pricey) are quite good and the distillery itself is very pretty as well.
>>1051979
Haven't visited The Glenlivet myself (yet). I've heard from friends that it's nice. I can see wanting to go because you like their product. And I'm sure you'll have a good time. But I'd also try and dip my toes into new whisky's as well. A distillery visit can really make or break a whisky brand for you.
>>1052122
>A distillery visit can really make or break a whisky brand for you.
Seems obvious now.
I'd like to add that modernity isn't necessarily a bad thing in terms of quality,( nor is a blend less special vs single malts). You should like what you like for flavor, and only find that the tour enhances your little mood while supporting them (or not).
There isn't that much that I'd say that I liked about the modern Guiness Tour, for instance, but the tower view at the end of it, but again, there isn't too much to see on a beer tour other than sterile kept rooms and metal tanks, but it's how it needs to be done. I think the best Distilery tour is Midleton's Jameson, but even then, the old ways are numbered and can and should become a thing of the past if a company is trying to save costs in a modern world. If you can't get a niche market to pay the extra funds for your old year old style brand, then it is what it is.
>>1052122
Yup I plan to expand my horizons which is part of the adventure.
>>1052130
I can see this happening but I may be limited to what I can hope to get in the US.
Still appreciating any info concerning hiking through SW Scotland.
So as far as travel accommodations go, how costly is it to get around Scotland? Between longer hikes, I want to take train/bus/rented car to move about but I'm trying to maintain a budget so I can stay longer.
Also, I have some concern about getting a few bottles of whisky while I'm there but I'm not sure how it is taxed?
>Also, I have some concern about getting a few bottles of whisky while I'm there but I'm not sure how it is taxed?
Highly. The same whisky is often cheaper in mainland Europe, the catch to that is finding it.
>>1053785
The whisky worth buying in Scotland is:
- Hand-filled bottles
- Distillery-exclusive bottles
- Really old and rare stuff you might run into at a fair price at old local shops
I always leave Scotland with 1, 2, 3 hand-filled ones. Great souvenirs.
Anything else is just more expensive than on the mainland.
>>1053803
Edit: hand-filleds are usually between 50 and 120 pounds.
>>1053804
damn that's heavy. How do you carry them all?
>>1053815
Bro, do you even lift?
>>1053790
I saw on a website you can carry 1 liter of distilled spirits before you are taxed but it does not say how much? I want to know because I'd like to take back 4 or 5 liter bottles.
>>1053803
Good to know, hand filled bottles may be my only option if I am limited to one liter.
>>1053804
Kinda pricey, so I will have to look into it.
>>1053842
I've flown from Glasgow to Amsterdam 4 times with at least 4 bottles of whisky in my suitcase (checked in luggage). No problem at all. Same thing for the 10 people I was with (it was with our local whisky club). Some of them had as much as 10 bottles.
When you buy a hand-filled etc, you pay duty at the distillery (included in the price I mentioned earlier) and get a duty-paid sticker on your bottle.
None of us have ever had any trouble with customs. One guy could see (when we were back in Amsterdam) his suitcase had been opened and checked, but there was no problem at all.
>>1053842
>Kinda pricey, so I will have to look into it.
When you ask politely and show genuine interest, they'll let you have a taste first and you can decide if it's worth it.
Most of the time, in my opinion, they are. I have a handfilled Bowmore that's absolutely phenomenal. One of the best whisky's I've ever had. Balvenie had a spectacular one a few years back. And I have a couple more here. But then again, I've also passed on some too when the price and the quality are out of proportion. Glendronach had a 14 year old for 110 pounds. It was good, but not THAT good.
Most of the time, they're quite good though! And they're always unique single cask whiskies.
>>1054797
>I'm from the States so they may not be so lenient towards me.
I don't know about that, sorry.
>>1054797
I believe 1 litre 'duty free' is the limit for returning Americans. More than that and you can bring it in, you just have to pay import duties. Or hope they don't notice if you go undeclared. If so, they'll just charge you the duties. If you're flying into a state with more restrictive liquor laws, they'll have to enforce those.
>>1054894
>If you're flying into a state with more restrictive liquor laws
Can you expand on this. To my knowledge,
federal agents do not enforce state laws...
>>1054957
Just means that different states interpret what 'personal amounts' are. So you can bring in over the personal limit, but that upper limit of 'personal amount' determines if they bother charging you or not (usually if they suspect you are going to resell the liquor or use it in some further commercial purpose). California for example generally won't charge you duty if you bring in up to around 30 bottles of wine. Now whisky is more valuable/higher ABV, so ymmv.
2BQH, I wouldn't worry about it much. Declare it to avoid problems, but chances are good they will not bother unless you've stashed 80 litres of premium whiskey in your case... If they do ding you, I believe it's 3% of the value. Gotta think, is the extra time and paperwork worth it to them to take $15 for the government? Most cases, no.
>>1054894
>>1054957
>>1055013
Yes, I did some reading today and found you can take more bottles and if you exceed the 1 liter or $800 value mark, you pay a 3% tax which is nothing considering what you're getting. Now I have to figure out which whiskies to get and how to go about shipping them back as I'm not going to slog about with several bottles of whisky in my backpack.
>>1055083
Look into styrofoam bottle shipping packing cases. A few FRAGILE or GLASS stickers as well might help. Also, express that shit to avoid it going through too many waypoints where some bored dumb chucklehead will get a kick out of tossing your FRAGILE package into a sorting bin from across the room.
![prod_1138873_xl[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/ni8NRso.jpg "prod_1138873_xl[1].jpg")
take a bottle or 2 of this stuff.
it will save you from the midges.
just trust me.
>>1055187
Yes, that would be perfect. Good idea with the express shipment.
>>1055198
I read about the midges and I wondered if they're just like mosquitoes (more annoying or less annoying).
On another note, does anyone know about camping in the Trossachs? I only see 2 campsites and there seems to be a ban on wild camping south of Rowardeen. If I can't reserve a campsite, can I just wild camp somewhere?
>>1055278
>I read about the midges and I wondered if they're just like mosquitoes (more annoying or less annoying).
Ever dealt with sand flies or noseeums? Same thing
>>1055297
Yea, shouldn't be an issue. Only part of me exposed will be hands and face but I'll get some lotion just in case.
Still interested to know
>On another note, does anyone know about camping in the Trossachs? I only see 2 campsites and there seems to be a ban on wild camping south of Rowardeen. If I can't reserve a campsite, can I just wild camp somewhere?
>>1055644
Still looking for tips from Highlanders or Lowlanders
Ran into some problems planning my Islay part of the trip. I was planning on renting a bicycle for a few days and wild camp, but only one of the places has a website and rents at 15 pounds per day. Seems a bit steep...does anyone know if that's average rental fee or if the other sites (Port Charlotte, Bormore, Persabus) have cheaper options? I've spent more time than I should have researching this.
>>1056298
Still looking for tips
Scot here. Have some websites useful for planning your trip.
https://www.thetrainline.com/
>Book your train tickets in Advance, for example Inverness-Edinburgh/Glasgow can be bought advance for £11.30, or for 40£ on the day. If you get the cheapest tickets, it's cheaper than buses.
https://www.stagecoachbus.com/
http://uk.megabus.com/
>Buses
https://www.calmac.co.uk/
>Ferries, which are a good service, fun to take, and very reasonable priced owing to high Government subsidies.
http://www.mountainbothies.org.uk/locationmap.asp
>Site documenting all the bothies
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/long-distance-routes.shtml
>Indispensible resource for walkers and hikers, detailing all the nice hills you can climb and how to do so, and also giving guides to all the long trails
People say Hitchiking in Scotland is feasible and safe, and in my experience cars stop quickly.
I have no idea about Car rental as I can't drive. Public transport is not the best, but if you're willing to walk/ hitchike a few hours /days then Public transport can get you anywhere in Scotland.
http://www.outdooraccess-scotland.com/sites/default/files//docs/Scottish_Outdoor_Access_Code_-_Part_2_Access_rights.pdf
Wild camping is legal and easy, that document details the fine prints. Don't worry about farmers shooting you off their land.
Places I'd say most worth visiting are.
Glen Affric
Skye ( climb a cuillin )
Outer Hebrides ( uists and southern Islands are nice )
Other Islands of your choice ( they're all really nice )
West coast is where all the nice stuff is
I'd say Skip the Great Glen Way and try;
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/lochness/affric-kintail-way.shtml
Because Glen Affric is fucking nice, and so is Kintail. Also on that way if you are up to pay to visit Eilan Donan castle, which is pretty cool. Skye trail is meant to be cool too.
Protip; South and East are boring. But you may as well still visit because that's where all the people live.
>>1055198
And listen to this guy.
>>1056748
Great info! I have been using the walkhighlands website to plan my hikes and I had seen the megabus and calmac site to consider some transportation. The stagecoach looks like another great resource. I was aware of the bothies but it seems like it would be difficult to land an available one and it would be great to spend at least 1 night in any of them.
You're not the first Scotsman to suggest Affric so I will definitely have to look into this. I read through two travel books almost cover to cover and Eilan Donan castle is the 'most photographed castle in Scotland' so I would certainly pay it a visit. Skye is a must as well.
I wasn't planning on visiting south of Glasgow, and I think Inverness was the only eastern city I had intentions of seeing, but thanks for confirming my beliefs about those places.
Great information all together so thanks! I have a few months left to plan and I'm buying the ticket this month.
>>1056973
You don't book bothies or anything, you just turn up and if there's enough space for you to bunk inside you sleep inside, in high tourist season and during the shooting season you've got more chance of a bothy being full. If a bothy is full, then you have to camp outside the bothy. Seeing as you are assumed to have a tent and a sleeping bag already.
I've never had to camp outside a bothy the few times I've visited one. Some will obviously be more popular than others, but I think generally there should be space to bunk there if you turn up. And considering you said you plan to visit in May, which whilst a quieter time of year; I would advise going in July or August because whilst busiest, the weather is at it's best, but May should still be okay. You shouldn't have any trouble with bothies.
Also
https://www.syha.org.uk/
There's the youth hostel link, you probably already have that.
Inverness, where I'm from, isn't an interesting place as a city, but if you're going to get to the highlands you're going to go through there. Aberdeen, Dundee, etc are all dumps, nothing to see there. Edinburgh of course is a beautiful city, great to visit, lots to see and do, museums, galleries, nice architecture etc etc. It goes without saying that if you visit Scotland, Edinburgh should be the no1 city to see, if you weren't planning on already.
And once again, I say, Skip the great glen way and go for glen affric instead. So much nicer, and so much quieter than the great glen way which is really massively over-rated IMO. If you want to take a few days climbing hills along the way, which I recommend, definitely try to do a cuillin in skye, and glen affric also has some nice hills there and you can see coast to coast from the top of them.
>>1055644
Just wildcamp wherever you want, nobody's gonna stop you. The loch lomond wild camping ban applies to the kind of people that car camp in laybys and leave a fire and beer cans after them. You'll be fine.
>>1056999
I'm going in late April to May due to school conflicts (I may get into a master's program and they start in June at the earlier). From the weather reports I've scanned, average precipitation is at it's lowest and temperature is reasonable. I think beating the tourist season is just an additional perk.
Youth hostel looks good, and I will probably stay at one every few days so I can shower and explore a town without lugging a backpack everywhere. Good to know about Inverness because I may just stay there for a night and take the first bus to Aviemore the next morning.
The cities I plan to explore so far are Edinburgh, St Andrews, Stirling, Aviemore, and Port Ellen as my base for Islay.
Not sure if I want to skip Great Glen because it may seem dull or overpopulated, but I've seen a lot of gorgeous pictures from the walk.
I do plan to do mostly wildcamping, and it's good to know about Loch Lomond. Thanks for the info, every bit helps.
>>1057332
Well you go when you go, personally I'd say April is too early for me; it's too cold and there's no leaves on the trees. But you should still have a good time, and there'll still be snow on the hills which is nice. You'll definitely beat the tourist season and get to stay in your bothy. Anyway, You've chosen some good places to visit and I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay. Have fun
>>1057504
High 40's to high 50's doesn't seem cold to me. I'll be active the majority of the time I'm there, but I am concerned with a wee bit of rain.
>>1058155
Still looking for tips.
>>1058882
Tips on what? For rain, bring a good waterproof shell and also waterproof trousers because the rain comes sideways most of the time, you will encounter a lot of rain and not much sun.
>>1058882
Be more specific.
>>1059083
>>1059183
I have a tested shell that is perfect. It's also windproof. Bringing a wool jacket which fits underneath as well. Still not sure which pants I'll get since I've never hand waterproof pants but was looking at
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EA02CU2?colid=2BCUNP02NNN5U&coliid=I26SMZCDEEOOGO&psc=1&ref_=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl
Specifically, I have doubts about what to do with my backpack when I'm in the cities. Do hostels provide locking cabinets big enough to store a 50L pack? I don't want to be walking about in a museum or throughout a city with that thing on...
>>1059218
Dunno about hostels mate, train stations maybe.
>>1059227
Hmm sounds like something at least.
Is it cheaper to fly into Edinburgh or Glasgow?
If you like whiskey maybe considder walking the Speyside way, it's a ~65m flatter route between Aberdeenshire and Perthshire. Speyside is famous for its whiskey and there are dozens of distilleries on the route.
West highland way can be wonderful but it's also pretty punishing if the weather is bad. Great glen isn't as interesting as the WHW but nice to walk.
As for other things, i'd recommend checking out Perthshire - the Cairngorms are beautiful and have a couple of short 2 or 3 day walks scattered about them. Balmoral, Pitlochry and Dunkeld are all great places to visit for an afternoon. Imo Sterling (near Glasgow) is the most picturesque town in Scotland plus it's got the castle and Wallace monument, but not much else.
Hostels usually keep your bags secure whilst you're out and I think the big stations in Glasgow and Edinburgh also have bag drops. Enjoy your stay!
foodwise what is there to experience beyond standard fish and chips fare?
>>1060823
They have pretty good lamb.
At least, when I was staying overnight at the bird observatory on North Ronaldsay, in Orkney, they served an excellent lamb shank.
>>1060714
I am considering that as well and several anons have said great glen trail isn't that great. Cairngorms seems like a large area and I'm not sure what to do within it.
Thanks for the info!
