Tag Archives: Scotland

The gate to Scottish Highlands Stirling

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Central Scotland

Stirling, known as the coronation place of the Scottish kings, is in central Scotland. It is often called the gateway to the Highlands because the famous region of the Scottish Highlands begins not that far from there.

The city is one of the most popular tourist destinations and in the past has even been the capital of Scotland. Stirling was established as a royal city in 1130, although people have inhabited this area for about four thousand years.

Scottish scenery
Scottish scenery

Stirling is around 25 miles north-east of Glasgow and less than 40 miles north-west of Edinburgh, forming a kind of a triangle on the map between these three Scottish cities; they are all well connected by modern motorways.

Although Stirling has city status, it is only nineteenth of the 51 towns and cities in Scotland with a population of less than 38,000.

Medieval Stirling castle and old town

As the city is not too big, the old town is not large too, however, Stirling Castle, which is located at the top of a steep volcanic rock and can be seen far from the surrounding plains, makes it impressive. There is even an old saying – who owns Stirling owns Scotland.
If you are travelling by car, there are parking places at a reasonable price available near the train station, close to the Vue Cinema (see the link to the route on the map further in text).

Walls of the Stirling Castle
Walls of the Stirling Castle

You can, of course, park in the courtyard of the castle, however, the price will be much higher and there will not always be free parking spaces available. From the parking lots near the station, you can walk down the streets of the small city centre and walk up to the castle – it will not be too much effort, although the streets may sometimes be quite steep.

Wallace Monument

On the outskirts of Stirling, there is a monument, a symbol of Scottish history. The name Wallace may be familiar to many after the 1995 film The Braveheart, in which American actor Mel Gibson portrayed the historical image of the Scottish independence leader William Wallace.

For some time, a statue of an actor was even placed near the monument, but because of local opposition, it was removed. The main reason – the film is an artwork, and it cannot claim a full reflection of historical facts. And in the end, William Wallace was Scottish.

Some more tips if you are in Stirling

One of the largest institutions in the city is the University of Stirling, where I have worked for several years. Its reputation in some specific areas such as aquaculture is highly valued not only in the UK but also worldwide; students from all over the world go there to study. In fact, the university is not located in the city, but in its suburb town Bridge of Allan, about two and a half miles from the centre of Stirling.

Old Town of Stirling
Old Town of Stirling

The above-mentioned Wallace Monument is located right next to the university.

Stirling has many places to eat and various accommodation opportunities. It must be said that there are a lot of Indian restaurants and not everyone may enjoy it, but without huge effort, it is possible to find other types of restaurants and cafes.

One of the restaurants I can recommend is right next to the castle – Port Cullis. It is a cosy restaurant bar, where you can sit both indoors and in a small garden, and the prices (in August 2021, when we were there) are reasonable considering the location. In any case, after visiting the castle, having lunch there can positively complement the impressions gained in the castle.

Other places of interest for travellers to Scotland in addition to the above are Edinburgh, Glasgow, Isle of Skye, Loch Lomond and Loch Ness, the Hebrides, and a range of national parks for those seeking physical activities.

Portavadie

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West of Scotland

If you are in Glasgow and fancy to go somewhere else, you can reach an interesting place on one of the western peninsulas of the Argyll and Bute region in a few hours.

The Argill and Bute region is the second largest (almost 7,000 square kilometres, larger are only the Scottish Highlands) in Scotland and borders the Stirling, Scottish Highlands and a few other regions. However, the region has low population density and, with less than 90,000 living there, it is the sixth from the bottom of the list.

Portavadie boats
Portavadie boats

The region begins relatively close to Glasgow, just before Helensburg. Because of its lakes, region has two large peninsulas and three large western Scottish islands – the Isle of Islay, the Isle Jura and the Isle of Mull.

There are two major roads in the region in the north-south direction and one in the east-west direction (in its northern part).

The vast majority of roads are local and on many occasions those have single lane for driving in both directions. However, as elsewhere in Scotland, all roads are paved and the road surface is of good quality.

Portavadie

Portavadie is a very small village with a small marina and nice Scandinavian spa complex. This spa complex is not widely known and is mostly used by locals and sailors, however we did not found anything better in Scotland in five years living there.

In principle, everything is built for the recreational needs of sailors. In a relatively large area there are hotels, a restaurant, a modern administrative building of the port and the already mentioned Spa complex which is quite tiny but the best in terms of services I have enjoyed in the United Kingdom.

There is also a ferry terminal in Portavadie, from where you can quickly, in about 15 minutes, reach the port of Tarbet on the next peninsula in the direction of the Isle of Arran. The journey from Portavadie to Tarbet would take at least two and a half hours.

Portavadie marina
Portavadie marina

If you are on the ferry, you can observe the nearby Scottish salmon farms, which are set in a fairly large area across the bay. Once when we visited Portavadie, we took a ferry to Tarbet on our way back to Glasgow. The trip was interesting, it was worth stopping in several places along the way and enjoying the surrounding landscape. Of course, there are different Scottish castles there.

For example, in the town of Inveraray there is a parking lot by the water in a very beautiful place. It is also worth visiting the castle and its garden – there you can spend several hours in a pleasant atmosphere (there is also a parking lot near the castle).

On the way back you can stop at the northern end of Loch Fine to relax and eat. If there are no vacancies at Loch Fine Oysters Restaurant (often, reservations must be made several days in advance), you can also enjoy a delicious, good-value meal at the café in the garden centre next door.

Hotel and Spa

Returning to Portavadie, we’ve been there quite a few times, taking friends there as well. We also stayed in the hotel apartments. Prices are quite high, but spending an entire afternoon going to the spa complex’s pool and treatments is a great pleasure.

Sunset in Portavadie
Sunset in Portavadie

Inside the complex there is a swimming pool, sauna, café, on the second floor treatment rooms, while outside there is a heated pool and jacuzzi. It feels especially good to go there when the weather is cold outside. After leaving the sauna, you should walk about ten meters and then it is a real pleasure to sink into the pool and look at the surrounding landscape.

It’s even difficult to describe those feelings, so it’s better to go there and try it.

Road network in Scotland

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Scottish highways

The road network in Scotland is very well developed and virtually all, even the smallest, roads are paved. There are relatively few holes on them, even if they are in remote areas, so driving is quite enjoyable. The total length of the Scottish highways (according to 2017 data) is 56 thousand 250 kilometres, of which 632 kilometres are motorways. Strange as it may sound, the longest road network is in the Scottish Highlands.

There can be conventional Scottish roads with one lane in each direction (almost 28,000 kilometres in total), two- or three-lane motorways, or very narrow local roads with single file traffic sections. To be able to drive there, special passing places have been created on those roads. This type of carriageway is particularly common in the Scottish islands and makes driving slower but quite interesting.

To get to and return from Scotland, most motorists use the M74, which runs from the southern border of Scotland and is a continuation of the M6 in England. This motorway has three lanes in each direction almost along its entire length, with the exception of a small section before Glasgow, where there are only two lanes.

Central Scotland

Of course, Scotland’s best-developed and ‘fastest’ Scottish roads are in the central part of the country, connecting the capital, Edinburgh, with Glasgow, Stirling and Perth.

Road near Edinburgh
Road near Edinburgh

The main Scottish highways (motorways) connecting these cities are the M8 (Edinburgh-Glasgow), M9 (Edinburgh-Stirling), M90 (Edinburgh-Perth) and M80 (Glasgow-Stirling). In the absence of congestion, any journey to these cities will not take more than an hour, but in the morning before the start of the working day and in the late afternoon, when the work ends, the journey may take twice as long.

The good news is that motorways in Scotland, like in England, are toll-free, so there will be no extra cost for travellers, unlike such countries as France, Italy and Croatia.

Western Islands

As for the extra cost, those will be if you travel to western islands of Scotland. Scottish roads in the western islands are as good as elsewhere, although you can often get caught on roads with only one lane in both directions.

West of Scotland
West of Scotland

There will be an additional cost for the ferries that will take you from the mainland to the island. The ferry service is very well organized and they run precisely according to a pre-arranged schedule. It must be said, however, that ferry travel is not cheap and can be stopped due to the weather conditions, mainly due to strong winds (those my be well over 100 kilometres per hour).

There are also popular destinations that can be reached both by land and by ferry, such as the Isle of Skye. We’ve tried both ways, and each has its advantages, especially if you don’t have to rush anywhere.

Rest of Scotland

Where there are no motorways, there are good ordinary roads, in some places there are even two lanes in each direction. One of the main reasons why there are no motorways is the Scottish terrain. For example, when driving in mountainous areas, in many cases there is hardly a space for even one full single lane.

Road in Scotland
Road in Scotland

Another feature, especially in mountainous areas, are long stretches of road where overtaking is prohibited but also practically impossible, as the roads are winding and cars, buses and lorries with long trailers drive on them. One can only hope for luck that there will not be many slow vehicles on the road.

In any case, if you go plan a longer trip, you can’t trust the estimated time of arrival to your destination proposed by your navigation device – be sure to add some time to your trip if you want to get to the destination at a specific time.

However, there should be no rush when you travel around Scotland. The country is so beautiful that you can enjoy the scenery during almost every season, especially when you are lucky enough to have sunny weather or at least sunny spells.

Capital of Scotland Edinburgh

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Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland

Edinburgh definitely is one of the most special places, at least for me personally. Not only because we have been living there for several years.

Although Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland, it is only the second largest city in Scotland, the largest being Glasgow. It is home to just over half a million people, although in summer the city’s population can even double during the touristic season.

Streets of Edinburgh Old Town
Streets of Edinburgh Old Town

The city hosts many different festivals throughout the summer, so tourists from all over the world come there to see those and even participate. In addition, Edinburgh’s Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Getting there

The Scots have done their best to make it easy to get to the city. At Edinburgh Airport, a variety of airlines live together in a friendly way. Prior to the pandemic, the airport handled almost 15 million passengers a year. For example, Riga, which is a city of similar size, accommodated only half of it (7.8 million passengers).

Getting from the airport to the city centre is very convenient. To get to the city centre, you can take a bus (airport shuttle) or a modern tram (Edinburgh has only one tram line operating from the city centre to the airport). The fastest is the AirLink bus (route No. 100), which has some other stops between the airport and the city centre.

Edinburgh can also be easily reached by flying to the nearby Glasgow Airport or the slightly more remote Aberdeen Airport (there are five much less important international airports in Scotland).

And of course, train and bus routes connect Edinburgh with many other British cities. I have also written separate blog about the road network in Scotland.

Places and things definitely worth seeing in Edinburgh

Even if you haven’t been to Scotland, you’ve probably heard words like Edinburgh Castle, the Old Town, the Royal Mile, Holyrood, Walter Scott and Arthur’s Seat. The good news is that most of Edinburgh’s attractions are relatively close together. In addition, there are many events in the city that are worth attending if you are lucky enough to be in the city at that time.

Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo

Undoubtedly, the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, which takes place every summer in the courtyard of Edinburgh Castle (in 2022 from August 5 to 27). Military orchestras from different countries take part in the show and delight the audience with military marches, marching and other passionate performances.

Admission to the event is quite expensive, ranging from £ 60 to over £ 600. The cheapest tickets theoretically cost £ 30, but it’s a small sector on the very edge of the arena. Tickets must be purchased well in advance, preferably several months before you decide to go there. In any case, if you’ve given away £ 60 for the show, you won’t feel overpaid after the grand event – it’s really worth seeing!

The Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh Castle is certainly the most famous tourist destination in the capital, if not the whole of Scotland (mysterious Lake Loch Ness could compete with it).

Edinburgh Castle
Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh Castle is on an ancient volcano and can be seen from a distance before you even enter the city. The top of the volcano has been inhabited since the Iron Age, but the royal castle has been located there since the 12th century. Until 1633, the castle was a royal residence, but since then it has also played an important role in Scottish history.

The castle is the most visited tourist destination in Scotland (over 2 million visitors a year) and the second most visited in the UK. The entrance fee to the castle is quite expensive (in my opinion, compared to what you can see there), £ 18. However, to see the large courtyard of the castle and the city panorama from the top of the cliff, you do not have to pay at all – you can enter it for free and spend as much time as you want. However, it will not be possible during the military show period, because there are stands for spectators installed at the time.

This blog covers just a few things you can see in the Scottish capital, I will continue posting about something else soon. If you are elsewhere in Scotland, you can also read my blog about the Scottish Highlands, the Isle of Skye in the west of Scotland and Stirling.

Glasgow

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Glasgow is Scotland’s largest city, the fourth largest in the UK and the 27th largest in Europe. More than 600,000 people live in Glasgow today, even though the population was over 1.1 million before the middle of the 20th century. Since then, many people have moved to nearby towns and now in Grater Glasgow region live almost 1.8 million people, about a third of Scotland’s total population.

What to see

The city is well known for its university, founded in 1451. The university has 35,000 students from 140 countries, employs around 9,000 people and is one of the world’s top 100 universities.

University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow

There are also a number of other highly ranked universities in Glasgow where young people from many parts of the world come to study.

Although Glasgow has always been an industrial city, especially known for shipbuilding, it also has a very large cultural heritage. There are many museums, art galleries and exhibitions in the city, but the history can be felt simply by walking through its streets.
Popular attractions include the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum (free admission), the Riverside Museum, Glasgow Science Centre and George Square in the heart of the city. And of course, the central building of the University of Glasgow is worth a visit; both the exterior of the complex and the Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery inside are impressive (it can be visited free of charge).

Traffic

There is an underground transport in Glasgow – subway. It has only one round line and trains run in both directions. Interestingly, subway cars are much smaller than, for example, in London. It feels like miniature railway arrives to the platform.

It is best to get around the city by underground or train if you need to go somewhere more far away from the centre. Of course, buses also run across the city, however I have only used buses a few times in three years when I lived there. I did not like that busses are often be late, slow and also relatively expensive.

The city centre is walkable and has pedestrian-only streets.

Sauchiehall street in Glasgow
Sauchiehall street in Glasgow

Those who want to go to other destinations must remember that Glasgow has two main railway stations and you cannot get to where you want to go from both stations. The stations are about a 10-minute walk away, so trying to find a bus or taxi to get from one to another doesn’t make much sense. Of course, if you have a lot of luggage to handle, you just have to take a taxi.

There is also a bus station in the city centre, with buses to major cities and other destinations in Scotland and England. In general, intercity bus services in Scotland are good.

If you arrive at Glasgow Airport, almost the only cheap choice to get to the city is the bus that stops at the terminal. However, if you arrive after midnight, you may have to take a taxi, which is not cheap at all.

Where to go

There are many shops and cafes in the city centre, during the day you can walk through the pedestrian streets, see the central station from the inside and go to the eastern part of the city centre, which is not far away and has its own charm because there used to be city warehouses.

Evening in Partick, Glasgow
Evening in Partick, Glasgow

But the city centre is turning very busy in the evening, as many nightclubs are opening up and life is getting different. The most popular, in some ways even legendary, entertainment street is Sauchiehall Street. Life in the area is bustling until three o’clock in the morning, especially on weekends.

Glasgow is a very active city in general, where people relax after a day of work, and especially after a week of work, and it’s so different from many other Scottish cities that are much quieter. So if you are in Scotland, it is worth visiting Glasgow and enjoying its special charm.