Edinburgh may be my favorite city I’ve ever visited. I want to go back again later this year. That being said: thoughts about some of the things we did.

Edinburgh Castle is iconic, has great views, and outside of the Scottish crown jewels it was not that terribly crowded though there is also not as much to see as something like the tower of London though the history is still quite interesting. Can probably see it all in under a half day, realistically I think we were there four hours and saw everything but the crown jewels.

The royal botanic gardens in Edinburgh was not on my list of things to do before visiting but it was beautiful. Would definitely book at least half a day to explore it.

The johnny walker experience wasn’t all that great. Would book a seat at their bar way early but the tasting wasn’t particularly special. The west end brasserie right across the street from there actually has a stupidly long scotch menu if you have an idea of what styles you already like and just want to go taste a broad variety of things you could probably have actually spent less money there for better scotch (I don’t particularly love most of JW’s blends).

We actually took a fly fishing trip for native brown trout on one of the lochs northeast of Glasgow. VERY reasonably priced, gorgeous scenery, and fun letting my (now) wife catch her first trout on a fly. Pun intended but she’s now hooked. Definitely needed to pack better waterproof gear for that though. The rain jacket wasn’t good enough sitting in a boat going across a loch in a strong mist.

Edinburgh is the obvious answer. If you’ve never been there you absolutely should stop in. Old town was amazing as a tourist, although it does get very touristy, but that was definitely a Scottish moment for me I had there. New town also had a ton of fun places to stop in, good food, and exploring.

We went to Stirling Castle, easy to get to by rail from there, and had a great tour.

We loved Scotland so much we’re going back in a few months, but this time farther north into the highlands, Inverness will be our main base. If anyone has suggestions around there I’d love to hear them! (And it’s already starting to sound like I need to go to the western side on another trip there someday…

I went to Inveraray a couple years ago, and really enjoyed it. There’s a place that rents out essentially entire apartments for about the same as a hotel room. Nice little town, with a lot of food options. Castle and hiking trail within walking distance. On the water. Just a great time all around.

Here’s a photo I took from the overlook at the end of the hiking trail. You can see the castle and town below.

There’s a lot of Scotland, and don’t underestimate driving times. Argyll is good, but can be rather wet any time of the year. Going around now you should be safe from the midgies. Recommend getting onto some of the islands too, and boat rides are always nice. Kerrera is a lovely little island just by Oban. It has a very atmospheric castle, though the teashop isn’t as good as it was so pack a lunch. If you like a dram, make a tour of some distilleries, each has it’s own character. Argyll has lots of archeology & standing stones if that’s your thing. There are loads of lumpy bits of you like walking too. Pretty much anywhere is good, tourist hotspot are ok, but try to get off the beaten track once in a while.

If you’re driving, and going onto country roads, please please please learn to reverse.

If you’re lucky you may get to spot some wild haggis, but they’re quite rare now. The farmed ones are cute but have a nasty bite so be careful.

Also don’t neglect the borders, loads of history.

It may not sound your thing, but consider geocaching… It takes you to some interesting out of the way places.

I took a hike up in to the Lost Valley in Glen Coe on the recommendation of a very drunk Scotsman at a nightclub in Edinburgh. It was the absolute highlight of my trip and I’m so glad I made it.