North Scotland : Is it worth the extra "push" ??

angelkay

i live in Aberdeenshire on the coast which is extremely beautifull. there are loads of small villages dotted along the coast with old harbours that once upon a time used to be the hub of the community. when are you planning on coming? if it's later in the year you should plan it round some shows like turriff show, keith show, black isle, portsoy small boats festival. nearly every town and village has a gala or fete in the summer but the ones above are the bigger shows. turriff show lasts 2 days with a campsite right next to the show grounds (best to book this early as it does get booked up very quickly) the campsite is council ran it is clean and about a 4 min walk from the main street it doesn't open till march school holidays. there are many trails that you can follow the popular being the whisky trail which follows all the distilleries and the castle trail. you will not be disappointed with whatever you decide to do

withabix

If you're going as far as Ullapool, catch the ferry to Stornoway...then take in Stornoway, Butt of Lewis, the amazing beaches in Harris and Lewis - some of the most beatiful and stunning beaches in the world, great scenery....I spent nearly a year working on the island 3 years ago.

g4fne

Wow ... decisions, decisions ... Thanks to all feedback so far.

This is my current thinking ...... We will be coming up in May this year, outside of school holidays & hopefully miss the bigger crowds & midges.

From next year we will be dictated by School holidays.

Bearing this in mind & the feedback i'm getting, i'm thinking the West side & incorporating the far North in some way as favourable this year. Hopefully miss most the crowds & some of the midges.

Then hopefully a 2nd trip next year to the quieter (during peak season) & less midges East Side during the school holidays 2010.

notakid

We did something similar last year by train. I will say Thurso which we visited because my MIL was from there was horrible. Its charmless and a stopping off point to visit the Islands and nothing else. There were much much nicer places to visit don't think just because is on the coast/ a distance, its nice. A sentiment echoed on the tripadvisor forum. Which is worth a read!

Its not that I'm not easily pleased, I loved Inverness and the surroundings were beautiful and that too seemed to get mixed reviews but I thought it lovely.

I would also say I hated John O'groats too when i visited as a child. So maybe its personal choice but even now the family use it as an indicator for making the best of; ie better then Thurso!

g4fne

notakid wrote: »

We did something similar last year by train. I will say Thurso which we visited because my MIL was from there was horrible. Its charmless and a stopping off point to visit the Islands and nothing else. There were much much nicer places to visit don't think just because is on the coast/ a distance, its nice. A sentiment echoed on the tripadvisor forum. Which is worth a read!

Its not that I'm not easily pleased, I loved Inverness and the surroundings were beautiful and that too seemed to get mixed reviews but I thought it lovely.

I would also say I hated John O'groats too when i visited as a child. So maybe its personal choice but even now the family use it as an indicator for making the best of; ie better then Thurso!

I wondered if this would be the case as, having visited numerous coastal areas, i am fully aware how "hit & miss" it can be, & would be very dissapointed to book into somewhere for a few nights to be surrounded with what your describing .... Just the kind of feedback i was looking for ... thankyou

loobylou2

bigbullyweedave wrote: »

I've done the whole circuit (from Arran to Skye to Ullapool, then up via Dunnet Head to John O Groats, Wick, Inverness etc) and thought that was amazing - wouldn't hesitate to do that again! Absolutely breathtaking... but be prepared for LOTS of driving...

Mrs. BBWD

We did this too when our children were younger and I agree with Mrs BBWD, it is fantastic and well worth doing if you can schedule in lots of stops along the way. John O Groats is ok, you can go on a speedboat trip from there to see all the birds nesting!!!

lilac_lady

i'd go with your plan to visit the west coast and then head up to the top of the map. Stunning scenery, well worth the trip.

moonrakerz

Try the gardens at Inverewe and drive out along Loch Ewe, white sand beaches to die for !

DON'T go to Aviemore - worst "tourist trap" on the planet - awful. Great scenery, but give the town a miss - unless you are looking for the loos and are really desperate.

WolfSong2000

I'm at Aberdeen university, but used to holiday in the North, near Aviemore and Inverness...we stayed in Boat of Garten, and it's absolutely *gorgeous*. Plus they have a site where you can go and watch Osprey's, which is well worth a look. It's absolutely beautiful around that area, and the highlands are something that should not be missed!

littlereddevil

If you are english be prepared for a shock at our road system.! Very little money is spent on upgrading our roads even to dual carriageway. Really antiquated going north and takes forever.I personally would never wish to go to the very top unless I had to.