Scotland Travel & Tourism

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If you are planning a trip to Scotland, you will need to make sure you are planning for the trip with plenty of time. You will need to make sure you know what you will want to do as well as how you are going to get there and what you will need.

How You Will Plan Your Trip

You have a number of things to consider when planning a trip to Scotland. The most important of which is who you will use to get you there. This is not always the easiest of tasks to do. You will need research and plan so you will know what it is you will be getting and what you can expect. This is similar to what you would do if you were to partake in UFX markets trading. Doing your homework and looking into multiple options before making a final decision.

Before you do actually book a trip though your online vacation planner, make sure you think about the following:

• Are you going there for business or vacation
• Is there something in particular you need to do and can they help you do it
• Will you need transportation when you get there
• How far in advance do you need to have your trip planned
• What if any discounts do they have

Once you have ironed out all of the wrinkles and you have your plan in place, you will be able to book your trip. This will finally allow you to look forward to the trip.

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You could find a thousand articles telling you things you should see in Scotland, but you may not find as many about the real essentials of Scotland travel. Here are the top must-know facts and tips regarding traveling to Scotland.

1. Your American plugs won’t work. You don’t want to start a fire, now do you? European outlets will fry your electronics. Bring suitable adapters and you won’t have to buy new electronics in Scotland.
2. Stores generally aren’t open on Sunday. Most stores are open every other day from 9:00 to 5:00.
3. The emergency number isn’t 911. It’s 999. For police assistance, dial 0 instead.
4. The legal drinking age is 18. Children over 15 are allowed in pubs, but you should plan on accompanying them.
5. Last call is at 11:00 PM. In certain regions, you may find a tavern open until 4 AM, especially in cities.
6. Smoking is banned in all public places. Lighting up in public could cost you a fine of 50 pounds.
7. Group travel can be difficult, given all the things to do in Scotland. If you’re orchestrating a major group’s itinerary, ask their opinion first. Send out an email, open up a message board, or put up a survey like those found on kissinsights.com.
8. Scotland’s time zone is GMT. That’s five hours ahead of EST.
9. Tip your maid one pound per day. Porters get 75 pence per bag.
10. Scotland’s water is generally safe to drink. You can drink it straight from the tap.

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Are you visiting the city of Edinburgh, Scotland? Here’s a list of essential must-do travel tips for your Edinburgh vacation.

The Royal Mile

Welcome to one of Edinburgh’s most famous tourist destinations. It stretches between Holyrood Abbey and Edinburgh Castle and is chock full of gorgeous buildings and historic sites. Be sure to stop at St. Giles Cathedral and Gladstone’s Land! When you’ve finished, take a stroll through Grassmarket in the central part of town, especially if you finish at Edinburgh Castle.

New Town

You’ve seen Scotland’s Old Town– now it’s time for the New! With Scotland’s history being as long as it is, New Town isn’t very “new” at all. Its origins date back to the 1700′s. You may want to spend two days here: one for exploring shops and restaurants and the other to walk through the National Galleries of Scotland.

Arthur’s Seat

What? Scotland has a volcano? This ancient volcano offers stellar views of Edinburgh and the surrounding waters. Do yourself a favor and research its mythology before you go.

Royal Botanic Garden

This 70-acre garden is not to be missed. Built in the late 17th century, the Royal Botanic Garden was initially intended for medical research. Today, it’s one of the loveliest gardens in the U.K. Best of all, admission to the Gardens is free.

Of course, you don’t have to take these suggestions to heart. Call up friends who’ve visited Scotland, ask for advice on social media, or poll internet users through online surveys like those found at kissinsights.com.

Vacations today have been cut short for many due to the poor economy that many face. It is difficult to find bargains on every travel venture, but it is not impossible. The savvy traveler knows that finding a deal for a trip can be easy is using the internet for packages and promotions, as this is the main way many companies advertise such discounts.

Taking a Break

Take a break by traveling overseas. This is a great way to experience a different part of the world while still saving money and taking a much needed rest. Places like Scotland are great destinations for this particular type of excursion. UFX Markets Trading have helped to make the economy in Scotland and surrounding areas have a positive increase in revenue. This means that travel deals are present to help make this trip all that you had hoped for.

Time for Travel

The other factor in traveling today is simply finding the time to do so. This is hard step for many as they simply cannot pull themselves away from their work. It has been shown that people need an honest vacation about every six weeks. Finding the time for this is instrumental in maintaining a good attitude and having a long and healthy work life.

Traveling is also good for families. Bonding occurs best when it is away from technology, gadgets, or even familiar things. This helps families get to know each other at the core, as opposed to just through association with one another.

Planning a trip to Scotland? The best time to vacation is from May to October, which is likely to have the warm and sunniest of weather. No matter when you go, expect to experience some rain, so pack an umbrella or rain jacket.

There are many vacation destination stops that are a must include for any itinirary.

Edinburgh

The city of Edinburgh is captivating from every angle. Plan several hours of time to explore the city on foot, take a guided tour of Edinburgh Castle, and enrich yourself in the history of the land.

Midday take a leisure walk down Royal Mile and Princes Street to enjoy the many shops, restuarants, and local pubs. End the day by heading to the Beehive Inn for an informal dinner with drinks followed by a guided walking tour to discover the colorful characters of Edinburgh.

Highlands

Before taking a tour of the Highlands, stop in Glencoe Village’s visitor center to obtain information packets and see displays of the area. Get ready to start the tour with a trip to Urquhart Castle for a look at the castle ruins, gorgeous scenery, and a panaromic view of Loch Ness.

Take out your camera and follow up with a scheduled boats cruise of Loch Ness and Shiel which includes scenic views, local wildlife, and an anormous amount of Nessie watching.

Shetlands

While in the Shetlands, take a visit to Mousa Broch, known as the finest and most well-preserved Iron Age tower. The next stop is to explore Jarlshof Prehistoric and Norse Settlement. The highlights of the settlement include Viking long houses, medieval farmstands, oval-shaped Bronze Age houses, and Iron Age broch and wheelhouses.

The trip to Shetland is not complete without taking in the scenery which includes beautiful sheer cliffs, rolling green hills, dreary moors, and numerous lochs and inlets, making it an ideal place for fishing, walking, and cycling. Have a camera ready for encounters with the wildlife. Shetland is famous for their ponies, but travelers can also easily find migrating birds such as the Puffin and seals sunny on the white sandy beaches and rocks.

The cuisine of Scotland is a mixture of cooking traditions and practices. The distinct attributes and recipes are of its own, but share much with other European cuisine resulting from foreign, local, ancient, and modern influences.

Scottish delicacies include:

• Cullen Skink – a hearty soup made from smoked haddock, cream, shellfish, and potatoes.
• Seafood – due to its freshwaters Scotland produces some of the world’s finest seafood. Prized by chefs the world over and high on the export list, seafood items include langoustines, oysters, crabs, salmon, lobster, and scallops
• Sirloin – Scotland has the five best beef breeds in the world including Aberdeen Angus, Longhorn, Shorthorn, Galloway, and Highlind.
• Game – game meats are plentiful in Scotland including pheasant and venison
• Haggis – Scotland’s national dish made up of chopped heart, lungs, and liver of a sheep which is cooked in a sheep’s stomach bag. Popularly served with neeps (turnips) and tatties (potatoes).
• Scotch pie – traditionally made with mutton and slightly spiced
• Square sausage – a common breakfast favorite is made from a flavored thin square of beef or pork which has been fried or grilled and served in a roll
• Porridge – Scottish oat meal served for breakfast with salt as topping

Enjoy the meal with Scotland’s famous:

• Beer and ale – is usually served in pints and there are many Scottish micro-brewery brews to choose from
• Irn Bru – extremely popular, bright orange-colored, fizzy soft drink that is loaded with caffeine. It is said to be the best cure for a hangover and acidic enough to clean a coin.
• Whisky – notice it is whisky without an “e”. This bevarage is the most famous export of Scotland

The deep dark narrow freshwater loch that stretches for 23 miles between Inverness and Fort Augustus is known as Loch Ness. It is the second largest Scottish loch with a surface area of 21.8 square miles and is approxiamately 755 feet at its deepest point. Loch Ness contains more fresh water than all the lakes, rivers, and reservoirs in Wales and England combined and is considered the largest body of water on the Great Glen Fault.

The A82 which runs along the western bank offers the most stunning views of the loch. Visitors can see rugged hills that climb steeply from the loch’s dark water and savour the beautiful surroundings from the many lookout points along the road. The loch covers a complete circuit of about 70 miles and is considered a challenge to drivers not used to driving on the left. Buses and boats are available for daily sightseeing tours.

Loch Ness is the alleged home of Nessie the Loch Ness monster. Nessie is a mythical creature that is said to dwell in the Loch and has been spotted on occasion by locals and passerbys. The sighting of Nessie leads credence to the remote possibility of potential survivors of the long-extinct plesiosaur which lived until around 65 million years ago.

The local attractrations include Urquhart Castle, the Loch Ness Exhibition Centre, and the Original Loch Ness Monster Centre. The castle may be in ruins; however Urquhart Castle with its four turrets and position at Strone Point offers spectacular views and is the perfect spot for Nessie watching.

The new visitor centre is partially beneath ground level and includes a video theatre, displays of medieval items, a restaurant, and large gift shop. The Loch Ness Centre offers video footage of monster sightings, exhibits of underwater monster hunt equiptment, and a gift shop.

From Easter through December, you can schedule a one hour monster cruise aboard the Nessie Hunter which has been specially equipted with sonar and underwater cameras.

The Isle of Arran is an undiscovered jewel in Scotland’s crown with picturesque landscaping, village shops, culinary delights, cozy pubs, and wonderful accomodations. It is renowned for its wildlife and many species of deer including the Roe and sharks include the Basking are a common site.

The heartbeat of Arran is Brodick, where visitors congregate along the coastal road to view and admire the town’s long curvy bay. As the coastal road continues to the north, Corrie a small pretty village comes into view. Corrie has a hotel, village shop selling sculptures by local artist Marvin Elliot, and one of the starting tracks up Goatfell peak.

Many will concur that the only way to enjoy the Isle of Arran is by strapping on hiking boots to take a challenging scenic walk in the mountainous north or renting a bicycle to cyle the island’s circular roads.

It is not void ofa few tourist attractions. Brodick Castle and Park should be the first stop on any tour.  Keep in mind that only a small portion of the castle is open to the public. At first the castle gives you the initial impression of an animal morgue upon entrance into the hunting gallery with all the prized deer heads displayed on the walls. However, take note of the intricate fireplace in the library and the peculiar table furnishings in the formal dining room. The steep entry fee to the attraction is justified by the extensive grounds with various trails among the exquisite rhododendrons.

On the west coast is the largest village called Blackwaterfoot. Plan on taking a walking tour of King’s Cave and combine it with a visit to the Machrie stones. In Whiting Bay, amongst the small sandy beaches and village shop is Arran Art Gallery; one of the best places to find exquisite landscape paintings and drawings of Arran.

At the end of a long day of hiking and sightseeing, stop it at one of the many legendary watering holes for the local brew and live music.

Everyone loves to share their adventures when they travel internationally. The problem is that making a phone call back home to share those exciting adventures can be very expensive. Depending upon the country you are visiting, a phone call back home can cost anywhere from a few cents a minute to a couple of dollars. This potential major expense can cause many travelers to miss out on sharing some of the exciting adventures of overseas travel with their friends and family. However, there are a few ways overseas travelers can make calls back home without having to spend a fortune.

The first way that international travelers can call back home without having to spend a lot of money is by using a calling card. Calling cards are prepaid cards that the traveler purchases before they travel to their destination. Once they reach the destination the prepaid card has an allotted amount of money that can be used for international calls. These international calls are generally cheaper because the company that provides the calling card will offer a reduced rate on international calls.

Other popular ways international travelers can call home without having to spend a large amount of money on international calls is by purchasing a prepaid cell phone. Prepaid cell phones can be purchased at your vacation destination and can often come with some great plans and even offer the choice of using a simple cell phone or a smartphone. Some of the international cell phone plans that are offered through prepaid cell phones can include unlimited calling to local and international phone numbers and even unlimited text and web browsing.

While calling cards are still popular among travelers, many international travelers are making the switch to using a prepaid cell phone because it allows them to only pay for what calls and texts they make, which allows them to save money while they are traveling.

Located astride the River Ness at the Northern end of the Great Glen resides Inverness. Known as the primary city in the Highlands, visitors overflow the area in summer intent on shopping and sightseeing after a morning of monster hunting for Nessy in nearby Loch Ness.

Inverness is a beautiful place to take a stroll along the picturesque River Ness or schedule a cruise on the Moray Firth in search of bottlenose dolphins. Travel during the month of September and be delighted to hear the sounds of bagpipes since Inverness is the host city for the Nothern Meeting. The Nothern Meeting is considered to be the most prestigious solo piping competition in the world.

Another can’t miss experience is the annual City of Inverness Highland Games in July. The event is a way to celebrate Scottish culture and heritage through music, dancing, and athletics. The highlight of the event is watching kilt wearing sportsmen compete in athletic events including the caber toss, hammer throw, and stone put.

Inverness also has its share of tourist attractions including the Urquhart Castle, Eden Court Theatre, Inverness Castle, and Ness Islands.

Urquhart Castle dates back to the 13^th century. From the fragmented castle ruins, tourists are offered the most majestic views of the deep, dark, and narrow Loch Ness below.

After years of major renovations and extensions, the Eden Court Theatre has reopened. It is known as the Highlands’ main venue for history, art house cinema, and culture events including stage performances of dance, music, drama, film, comedy, and children’s events.

Serving the Sheriff’s Court atop a hill above the city centre lays Inverness Castle. This picturesque castle dating from 1847 has Baronial turrets and pink-sandstone accents.

Of course the main attraction in Inverness is the Ness Islands. Only a twenty minute walk from the castle, no one can resist taking a leisurely stroll along the river, finding an ideal picnic spot, or taking in the mature Scots pine, fir, sycamore, and beech trees.