Weather in Scotland

Inforapennyinforapound

Just a quick one please.

We are considering a 1 or 2 week holiday in Scotland towards the west coast next year.(never been).

Now i realise that we shouldnt expect glorious weather but would people please advise the best time to go when we can expect less rain? i.e Either spring or autumn.

We will probably go in May or September and because it wont be cheap we want the best chance of decentish weather.

Thanks in advance

MrsBartolozzi

I'd say either May or September would be good. It obviously depends on where you are staying, but (I am on East coast) the best longish term period of weather this year (not just the odd hot day IYSWIM) was in May, when I spent a lot of time landscaping the garden and it was pretty warm and sunny for about a week, then dry for a few days, but not so sunny.
The weather this past week has also been pretty good too, but remember to pack your waterproofs whenever you come!!
Scotland can surprise you though, I got sunburned on Skye in march once, when all I'd packed were long sleeves and thermals!!
You'll have a great time whenever you come, I'm sure.

stumpycat

Hmmm, Scottish weather can be unpredictable to say the least!
I'd say that there's usually a good chance of a mini-heatwave in May. When all the exams are on tends to be really good weather - it also gives us false hopes for a good summer...
Saying that, it's lovely and sunny today!

Nosht

No guarantees, I'm afraid.
Way up the North West coast past Fort William & the Inner & Outer Hebrides seem to be more settled in spring, but not always.
We go to Arran every summer & it has been wet for the last 3 years, 15 days of rain out of 21 this year.

Regards,


N.

Inforapennyinforapound

Thanks so far.It would be the west coast and ive been wanting to visit for a long time.
Its the planning of it that bothers me.I suppose we(2 of us) could just drive up and i hope there are enough b&b's to cope with demand in May as this is sounding a bit better than Sept.(by the way when do the midges appear?)

Always_Harassed

We have midges out our backdoor pretty much Spring through to Autumn. Went up north last year and there is plenty of availability of accommodation. It gives you the chance to give the place the once over. We had prebooked Skye but would not have chosen that hotel if we had seen it before. The hotel in Fort William that we just found on the day was much nicer. The problem with a lot of the hotels is that they can change owners or staff from year to year so a good recommendation might not be current. If you go on spec ask to see the room.
Agree with previous poster that either May or September would be good. It is absolutely glorious here today and during July and August it rained almost every day and some days it was torrential.

*MF*

May is a good time - here is why:

http://calendar.visitscotland.com/may/scottish-weather/long-daylight-hours.aspx

Those long daylight hours can make a holiday in May or June in Scotland very special!

More general info:

http://international.visitscotland.com/sitewide/essential_info/Climate/climate

Hope this helps ... but if you want a taste, and maybe an idea of where you might want to go, this is a link to a series of videos (with adverts before the main videos!:eek:) ... called Edge of the Land - bit dated but shows what to expect.

http://video.stv.tv/bc/Scotland+on+TV/scotland-theedgeoftheland/

jackieglasgow

May for the last possibly seven or eight years that I can remember, in fact, we've been discussing today how our summer seems to have shifted to May/early June, but we still expect it to be nice in July, which it hasn't been for a very long time. September is usually not bad either, but if I was telling someone when to come here for a holiday, I'd definitely say May. But it's fab whenever you come.

CostTripping

Go in September, although the weather in Scotland can change every minute, September is usually quite a nice month.

eilidh_s

You can't predict the weather at all. This year was lovely until the end of June then it turned awfull. Although today I got sunburnt! When it's nice, it's absolutly gorgeous, but even when it's wet 'n' wild, it doesn't hold us back and the scenery is just as spectacularly awesome!

choille

Been a strange year. Hot in April. May, June, July glorious. August disgustingly wet - wetter than normal although it had been so dry till then, and also the midges were worse than they've ever been.

Brilliant last two days - really warm again. I love September, but it's a gamble - so it is.

I'm in Wester Ross which is changeable weather wise, but it has been a great summer apart from August.