Fort William
The Jacobite Steam Train, hauled by a former LNER K1 or LMS Class 5MT locomotive, travels the scenic two-hour run between Fort William and Mallaig…
Must-see attractions in Scotland
Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park
Loch Lomond
Two areas of great natural beauty, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, became the heart of Scotland's first national park, created in 2002. The park extends…
Dumfries & Galloway
Scotland's southernmost point is a spectacular spot, with windswept green grass and views of Scotland, England, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland. The…
St Mungo's Museum of Religious Life & Art
Glasgow
Set in a reconstruction of the bishop's palace that once stood in the cathedral forecourt, this museum audaciously attempts to capture the world's major…
Southern Highlands & Islands
If the tide is right, don't miss walking across the half-mile of cockleshell-strewn sand linking Colonsay to smaller Oronsay. Here you can explore the…
Orkney
Six miles from the ferry on Rousay, mighty Midhowe Cairn has been dubbed the 'Great Ship of Death'. Built around 3500 BC and enormous, it's divided into…
Southern Highlands & Islands
Bonawe Iron Furnace is one of the region’s most unusual historical sights. Near Taynuilt (not Bonawe), and dating from 1753, it was built by an iron…
Orkney
By the seashore, this sturdy stone-built farmhouse and storeroom are solidly built testimony to crofting life on Papa Westray island…5500 years ago. An…
Dumfries & Galloway
Seven miles east of Caerlaverock Castle, in tiny Ruthwell, a church holds one of Europe’s most important early Christian monuments. The 6m-high 7th…
Kirkwall
This distillery, South of Kirkwall's centre, is great to visit. Despite a dodgy Viking rebrand, it's a serious distillery that malts its own barley; see…
North & West Coast
As you head south from Durness, heather gradually gives way to a rockier landscape of Lewisian gneiss pockmarked with hundreds of small lochans. This is…
Glasgow
Behind Glasgow Cathedral, this sizeable 19th-century necropolis stretches picturesquely up and over a green hill. The elaborate Victorian tombs of the…
Central Scotland
The Kelpies, the stunning equine statues gracing the eastern entrance to the Forth & Clyde Canal, are named after mythical Scottish water-horses. The two…
Orkney
This superb museum, run with great passion, is full of knick-knacks from maritime and natural-history exhibitions covering whaling, the Hudson's Bay…
North & West Coast
South of Cape Wrath, Sandwood Bay boasts one of Scotland’s best and most isolated beaches, guarded at one end by the spectacular rock pinnacle Am…
Glasgow
The grand seat of local government was built in the 1880s at the high point of Glasgow's wealth. The interior is even more extravagant than the exterior,…
Orkney
This eclectic museum is a great visit, combining some excellent 360-million-year-old Devonian fish fossils found locally with a well-designed exhibition…
Dumfries & Galloway
This is a place of pilgrimage for Burns enthusiasts. It's here that the poet spent the last years of his life, and there are various possessions of his in…
Inverness
The main attraction in Inverness is a leisurely stroll along the river to the Ness Islands. Planted with mature Scots pine, fir, beech and sycamore, and…
Aberdeen
Overlooking the nautical bustle of Aberdeen harbour is the Maritime Museum, centred on a three-storey replica of a North Sea oil-production platform,…
Orkney
A half-mile west of Pierowall stands this sturdy ruined tower house, built in the 16th century by Gilbert Balfour, aide to Mary, Queen of Scots. The…
Aberdeen
This excellent museum records the history of one of the British Army's most famous fighting units, described by Winston Churchill as 'the finest regiment…
Stirling
This impressive Victorian prison building lay derelict from the 1960s until 2015, when it was reopened as a visitor attraction. Costumed guides lead tours…
Glasgow
One of Glasgow's top attractions, this outstanding museum 3 miles out of town houses everything from Chinese porcelain and medieval furniture to paintings…
Orkney
Hoy’s best-known sight is this 137m-high rock stack jutting from the ocean off the tip of an eroded headland. It's a tough ascent and for experienced…
Outer Hebrides
One of Scotland’s most evocative historic buildings, the Arnol Blackhouse is not so much a museum as a perfectly preserved fragment of a lost world. Built…
North & West Coast
Photogenically sited at the entrance to Loch Duich, Eilean Donan is one of Scotland’s most evocative castles and must now be represented in millions of…
Outer Hebrides
The Callanish Standing Stones, 15 miles west of Stornoway on the A858 road, form one of the most complete stone circles in Britain. It is one of the most…
Shetland
Old and new collide here, with Sumburgh airport right by this picturesque, instructive archaeological site. Various periods of occupation from 2500 BC to…
Edinburgh
Lauriston Castle has one of the most remarkable Edwardian interiors in Scotland, with elements dating back to the 16th century. Gifted to the nation in…
Shetland
A couple of miles beyond Bigton is the largest shell-and-sand tombolo (sand or gravel isthmus) in Britain. Walk across to beautiful, emerald-capped St…
Glasgow
Opened in 2018, this reconstruction of the original Willow tearoom that Mackintosh designed and furnished in the early 20th century for restaurateur Kate…
Orkney
Here is a fine example of the drystone fortified towers that were both a status symbol for powerful farmers and useful protection from raiders some 2200…
Southern Scotland
Dundonald Castle commands impressive views and, in its main hall, has one of the finest barrel-vaulted ceilings preserved in Scotland. It was the first…
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…
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…
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…
