Planning on walking in Scotland? With dramatic landscapes, incredible wildlife, and historic castles, Scotland goes way beyond bagpipes and the mysterious haggis!
So let us tempt you to our Scottish double bill.
Our Highlands Walk combines the ancient majesty of a breathtaking landscape that has seen plenty of drama and bloodshed, with the fascinating Royal city of Edinburgh.
And If you love a good tale and a rollicking history (amid wonderful scenery, of course), our Scottish Borders Walk is for you.
Plunge into the romance and intrigue of Scotland’s Border Country.
South of Edinburgh, today this is a place of softly rolling hills and sheep-grazed pastures, woven together by the tumbling, salmon-rich waters of the River Tweed.
In this quiet countryside, between the lush vegetation of the riverbank and higher, heather-clad summits, see the remains of fortified tower houses.
These are reminders of the region’s long history, and the dramatic role it once played in the medieval wars between England and Scotland. Locals still celebrate the “Borders Reivers”, raiders and bandits who swept back and forth across the frontier.
We stay in the handsome and historic Border towns of Peebles, and Melrose with its striking abbey ruins and the largest Roman fort north of Hadrian’s Wall.
We take an invigorating walk up into the Eildon Hills, perhaps the best known landmark of the Borders. Visible from miles around, legend has it that the Eildons were created by the devil using a spade, or that King Arthur is in a cavern beneath, awaiting Judgement Day!
We’ll visit grand country mansions such as Abbotsford, the home of author Sir Walter Scott. Scott set many of his ballads, poems and novels in the local area, the success of which allowed him to a magnificent estate on the banks of the Tweed.
Traquair is Scotland’s oldest inhabited house. Visited by 27 Scottish Kings and Queens, it dates back to 1107 and has been lived in by the Stuart family since 1491.
And a Wayfaring Walks’ special moment: We have arranged lunch in Traquair House, where the 21st Lady of Traquair Catherine Maxwell Stuart, a direct descendant of King James VI, will lead us on a tour of her home!
Travel through Scotland’s turbulent and intriguing history and enjoy the contrasting and rich scenery of the Central Highlands. Then we end our Walk in a most elegant capital city.
We visit Culloden battlefield – site of the final, bloody, Jacobite rising – which still has the power to move us. Further back in time, Clava Cairns is a well-preserved Bronze Age cemetery near Inverness.
As Britain’s largest National Park, the Cairngorms are the most extensive range of high mountains in the UK. It has a vast, tundra-like wilderness plateau at the heart of the region.
We explore Speyside, the valley of Scotland’s premier salmon fishing river and home to some of its finest malt whisky. Will we spot the elusive capercaillie, the largest member of the grouse family?
Blair Castle is at the heart of an historic landscape that was laid out in the 18th century. It features a huge walled garden, an extensive wooded grove, a ruined kirk, a red deer park and a gothic folly. Highland cattle graze in fields nearby. We may spot the native red squirrel amongst the branches of some of garden’s trees. Peacocks roam freely too!
We come upon the remains of an ancient forest, which includes the Birnam Oak and its neighbour the Birnam Sycamore. They are the sole surviving trees of the great forest that once straddled the banks and hillsides of the River Tay. Shakespeare celebrated the forest in Macbeth, as the famous Birnam Wood.
To Edinburgh – and what a finale! One dormant volcano, seven hills, clusters of cobbled streets and tantalising vistas waiting around every bend. Scotland’s capital is a fabulous place for a wander at your leisure. And we couldn’t say farewell to Scotland without a private tasting of some excellent single malts!