East Coast
Consecrated in the 13th century, beautiful Dornoch Cathedral, one of the Highlands' loveliest churches, is an elegant Gothic edifice with an interior…
Must-see attractions in Scotland
Mull
The ancestral seat of the Maclean clan enjoys a spectacular position on a rocky outcrop overlooking the Sound of Mull. Originally built in the 13th…
Arran
This elegant castle 2 miles north of Brodick evolved from 13th-century origins into a stately home and hunting lodge for the Dukes of Hamilton. You enter…
Aberdeenshire
This museum houses a fascinating collection of vintage vehicles, including a Triumph Bonneville in excellent nick, a couple of Model T Fords (including…
Orkney
At low tide – check tide times at any Historic Environment Scotland site – you can walk out to this windswept island, the site of extensive Norse ruins,…
Southern Scotland
Boat lovers should check out Irvine's Scottish Maritime Museum. In the massive Linthouse Engine Shop – an old hangar with a cast-iron framework – is an…
National Mining Museum Scotland
Scotland
This museum inside the Lady Victoria Colliery – the former heart of Midlothian's mining industry, 9 miles south of Edinburgh – paints a vivid, moving…
Kirkwall
The intriguing Earl’s Palace was once known as the finest example of French Renaissance architecture in Scotland. One room features an interesting history…
Borders Region
Standing proud and four-square across the harbour, this elegant 18th-century John Adam mansion was built on the profits of smuggling: Eyemouth was an…
Borders Region
Grandiose Floors Castle is Scotland's largest inhabited mansion, home to the Duke of Roxburghe, and overlooks the Tweed about a mile west of Kelso. Built…
Dumfries & Galloway
Three miles east of Stranraer, these magnificent gardens are among Scotland's most renowned. They cover 30 hectares and are set on an isthmus between two…
Oban, Mull & Tiree
On the west coast of Seil island is the pretty conservation village of Ellenabeich, with its whitewashed cottages. It was built to house workers at the…
Dumfries & Galloway
Stretching for 9 miles northwest of Castle Douglas between the A713 and A762, Loch Ken is a popular outdoor recreational area. The range of water sports…
Edinburgh
Opened in 1913, Edinburgh Zoo is one of the world's leading conservation zoos. Edinburgh's captive breeding program has helped save many endangered…
Biggar & Upper Clydesdale Museum
Southern Scotland
This museum is an enthusiastic community project that is well worth a visit. The pièce de résistance is Gladstone Court, a reconstructed street with…
Fife
This excellent museum covers the history of the Scottish fishing industry in fascinating detail, including plenty of hands-on exhibits for kids. Displays…
Southern Highlands & Islands
This museum, in Kilmartin village, is a fascinating interpretive centre that provides a context for the ancient monuments you can go on to explore,…
Borders Region
Finished in 1778, this is considered to be Scotland's finest Robert Adam–designed mansion. It is huge and famous for its classic elegance, ornate…
Caithness
Dating from between 4000 BC and 2500 BC, these burial chambers are hidden in long, low mounds rising from an evocatively lonely moor. The Long Cairn…
Southern Highlands & Islands
One of Scotland's most spectacularly sited castles, Castle Stalker perches on a tiny offshore island – Monty Python buffs will recognise it as the castle…
East Coast
Four miles south of Lairg, the picturesque Falls of Shin provide one of the best places in the Highlands to see salmon leaping on their way upstream to…
Caithness
Eight miles east of Thurso a minor road leads to dramatic Dunnet Head, the most northerly point on the British mainland. There are majestic cliffs…
Orkney
The Italian Chapel is all that remains of a POW camp that housed the Italian soldiers who worked on the Churchill Barriers. They built the chapel in their…
Southern Highlands & Islands
There were once no fewer than 32 distilleries around Campbeltown, but most closed in the 1920s. Today this is one of only three still in operation. It is…
Dumfries & Galloway
If your kids are complaining about historic sights and Robert Burns, pack up the clan and get down to this spot, between Dumfries and New Abbey off the…
St Abbs & Eyemouth Voluntary Marine Reserve
Borders Region
The clear, clean waters around St Abbs form part of St Abbs & Eyemouth Voluntary Marine Reserve, one of the best cold-water diving sites in Europe. The…
Islay
Likeable Kilchoman, set on a farm, is one of Scotland's smallest distilleries. It grows and malts some of its own barley here and does its own bottling by…
Orkney
A mile northwest of Stenness is this wide circle of standing stones, some over 5m tall. The last of the three Stenness monuments to be built (2500–2000 BC…
Southern Highlands & Islands
Subtropical plants thrive in Gigha's Achamore Gardens, the island's principal sight. Rhododendrons, camellias and azaleas take advantage of the…
Southern Highlands & Islands
The splendid, ruined 13th-century Rothesay Castle, with seagulls and jackdaws nesting in the walls, was once a favourite residence of the Stuart kings. It…
Arran
The Isle of Arran Distillery produces a light, aromatic single malt. The tour is a good one; it’s a small distillery and the whisky-making process is…
Dumfries & Galloway
The 18th-century Broughton House displays paintings by EA Hornel, one of the Glasgow Boys (he lived and worked here). The library, with its wood panelling…
Southern Scotland
A well-loved local institution that runs matinée shows every couple of days throughout the summer using miniature Victorian puppets and bizarre glow-in…
Islay
Ardbeg's iconic peaty whiskies start with their magnificent 10-year-old. The basic tour is good, and it also offers longer tours involving walks, stories…
Dumfries & Galloway
The mild climate in this southwestern part of Scotland is demonstrated at Logan Botanic Garden, a mile north of Port Logan, where an array of subtropical…
Shetland
This enthusiastic modern museum by Scalloway Castle has an excellent display on Scalloway life and history, with prehistoric finds, witch-burnings and…
Glen Affric National Nature Reserve
Inverness & the Great Glen
The upper reaches of Glen Affric are designated as the Glen Affric National Nature Reserve, a scenic wonderland of shimmering lochs, rugged mountains and…
Orkney
There are several archaeological sites on Sanday, the most impressive being this chambered tomb, similar to Maeshowe and dating from the 3rd millennium BC…
Old Town
The great grey bulk of St Giles Cathedral dates largely from the 15th century, but much of it was restored in the 19th century. One of the most…
New Town
Designed by William Playfair, this imposing classical building with its Ionic porticoes dates from 1850. Its octagonal rooms, lit by skylights, have been…
