Today I want to share 5 great weekend trips in Scotland with you. If you’re wondering where to go in Scotland for a weekend, this list will help you find the perfect place for your style.
Weekend Trips in Scotland
I’ve been spending a lot of time in Scotland lately, and one of the things I’ve discovered is how easy it is to get up there for a weekend.
Whether I travel for a city break, a country getaway, or a highland fling, there are a lot of lovely places to escape for 48 hours.
If you’re in the mood for a Scottish adventure, these are the 5 weekend trips in Scotland you have to take at least once.
My list is primarily for Londoners like me who want to get up north for a quick break, but they’re easy for visitors and locals in other parts of the UK, too.
1. Edinburgh Weekend Trip
Edinburgh is one of Scotland’s most beautiful cities, and a great place to go in Scotland for a weekend if you’ve never visited this part of the UK before.
The city is an easy flight or train ride from London and other parts of the UK, so spending two days there is a breeze.
I’ve been to Edinburgh many times, and always love the castle views, museums, restaurants, cafes, and hotels. The city center is walkable, too, so it’s fun to explore the streets and soak up the atmosphere.
If you like discovering hidden spots, there are lots of great secret places in Edinburgh to explore, too. From streets to villages, it has it all.
If you’re in the mood to visit Edinburgh during the festive season, you can spend a weekend seeing the highlights of Christmas in Edinburgh or go for Hogmanay.
If it’s an August trip you’re planning, there’s no better place for weekend trips in Scotland than Edinburgh.
The city comes alive with action and acting during the Edinburgh August festivals, and it’s a great time to soak up the Scottish capital’s cultural highlights.
And if you have a long weekend in Scotland, there are lots of great day trips from Edinburgh you can take. Whether you love the coast or countryside, villages or cities, there’s a perfect one for you.
2. Scottish Borders Weekend Trip
The Scottish Borders are another great area for weekend trips in Scotland. I should know. I’ve spent a lot of weekends in the Borders over the years, and I’ve completely fallen in love with the area.
Just above the northern frontier of England, the Scottish Borders are easy to get to by train from London and offer an endless amount of outdoor activities, beautiful historic homes, and stunning coastline. Sheep, too. Lots of sheep.
Houses like Sir Walter Scott’s Abbotsford are beautiful with their lush gardens and fairy-tale towers. The waterfront and cliffs around St Abb’s Head are perfect places to get outdoors, and the Cheviot Hills are ideal for country walks.
The Scottish Borders are littered with stately homes, too. From Mellerstain House to Manderston House, Floors Castle to Traquair House, there are a lot to visit. You can even stay in a grand country house at the SCHLOSS Roxburghe Hotel.
Add to that towers like Smailholm Tower and Greenknowe Tower and abbey ruins in Jedburgh, Melrose, Dryburgh, and Kelso, and there are a lot of great places to visit in the Scottish Borders.
3. St Andrews Weekend Trip
St Andrews is another of the best weekend trips in Scotland. While it’s best known for golf, there’s a lot more to this seaside town in Fife than just the Old Course.
For something between city life and countryside, St Andrews is one of my favorite towns in Scotland. Not only does it have world-renowned golf links, but also a beautiful university and the prettiest cathedral ruins I’ve ever seen.
Add to that stunning coastline, great cafes and restaurants, fun shops, and lovely hotels, and there’s a lot to do in a weekend in St Andrews.
It’s not far from Edinburgh, either, so it’s easy to reach after getting to the city. You can even combine the two in a weekend trip if you want to spend one day in each place.
4. Glasgow Weekend Trip
Glasgow is about as different from Edinburgh as urban centers get, and it’s worth a weekend to experience its edgy vibe, rich history, and great nightlife.
From hip restaurants to a stunning Victorian necropolis, this Scottish city offers a lot of surprises. The Glasgow Botanic Gardens are worth a stroll, Finnieston has fun restaurants and nightlife, and the markets are full of vintage finds.
There are great museums and cultural institutions in Glasgow, too. The Riverside Museum was designed by Zaha Hadid and is worth seeing for its stunning contemporary architecture.
The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum has a Spitfire airplane suspended from the ceiling, and House for an Art Lover shows off famous architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s work.
Speaking of architecture, Glasgow is full of stunning heritage buildings. When you walk around the city, remember to look up. Alexander “Greek” Thomson’s 19th-century designs are particularly full of flamboyant details.
Glasgow is accessible from London and other parts of the UK by flight or train, making it easy to get there and away for weekend trips in Scotland. There are great hotels in Glasgow, too, so it’s an ideal place for a getaway.
5. Inverness and the Highlands Weekend Trip
Inverness is a quick flight from London, and opens up the Highlands for weekend trips in Scotland.
The city itself is often overlooked, but there’s a lot to do there and it’s worth your time. From independent bookshops to historic churchyards and towers with views, Inverness is ripe for exploration.
But there’s more to see outside the city, and with a weekend in Scotland you can do a lot in the Highlands.
Whether you tour a whiskey distillery to sample Scottish drinks, head out to spot the elusive monster in nearby Loch Ness, or pay respects at the famous battlefield of Culloden, there are many ways to spend 48 hours in this part of Scotland.
Where to Go in Scotland for a Weekend
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about where to go in Scotland for a weekend. There are so many great places in this part of the UK, and I’ve had an amazing time discovering these and more.
While all 5 of the travel destinations on my list make great weekend trips in Scotland, it’s always nice to have more time. If you can squeeze in a few extra days, they’ll be all the better. Or a few extra weeks. Or years…
Where would you go on a weekend trip in Scotland?
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20 Comments on Lady’s 5 Weekend Trips in Scotland You Should Take
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My cousin’s Girlfriend is heading to Scotland for a school exchange, I’ll be sure to share this post with her! X
With love,
Iann Ethel
Thanks! I hope she has a good time.
I’m hooked on your photos and descriptions! I want to visit all of these places now.
Thanks! I hope you can!
Last October we spent a wonderful weekend in Edinburgh and it left us longing for more Scottish adventures! I hope we can organize a tour in the Highlands someday, that would be so beautiful. I’ve always had this bucolic idea of that area!
By the way, i’ve seen you will be in The Hive next may. Sadly, this time we won’t make it 🙁 But we will be following it in social media!
I hope you can visit the Highlands someday. That’s too bad you won’t be at The Hive this year, but hopefully we can see one another sometime in the future.
For anyone with a clan name, Edinburgh is an even more exciting place to visit this year as they can support their clan parading into the castle for the Edinburgh military tattoo. Over 50 clans are invited and each have their special night so it is a great excuse to get yer tartan oot! if you are a Hay, a Wood, a Maclean, a Hunter or a Campbell you ken where to head this August! 🙂
Nice!
Scotland is my favorite place in the world after my homeland of Croatia. A weekend trip or two could never do it justice. If I had to confine myself to, say, a week, I’d start by flying into Inverness then heading straight to Culloden, where Scottish history was decisively made one dark day in April of 1746, and one of whose headstones you feature in your post. That place is so atmospheric that it can’t help but bring a lump to the throat, as you stand there on that desolate moor and see the banners of the armies as they stood that fateful day. If you can afford it, stay at the Culloden House Hotel, which was Bonnie Prince Charlie’s hq during the Battle of Culloden. I’d then drive north to John O’Groats, the northernmost point of Britain’s mainland, from where I would take a ferry to the Orkney Islands. There are some incredible prehistoric sights to see there, including some standing stones, but my favorite thing was the Italian Chapel on the isle of Lamb Holm, which was constructed by Italian WWII prisoners hungry for home. The paintings on the chapel walls and roof were based on religious cards they carried with them. After the war, the prisoners remained on friendly terms with their jailers, and some returned for visits. From the Orkneys I’d head west to Cape Wrath, every bit as forbidding and magnificent and imposing as its name suggests, so beautiful with its spectacular cliffs and beaches. I’d then turn south and stop in charming and lovely Ullapool, like many places in the Highlands, frozen in time. I’d visit the isles of Harris and Lewis, where James Barrie (who wrote Peter Pan) set his mystery of “Mary Rose” on Loch Voshimid, which looks like a lunar landscape. Of course the magical Isle of Skye (Skye meaning “mist” in Gaelic) is well worth a visit too. Heading south, I’d stay again at Inverlochy Castle Hotel if I could afford it, and pay a visit to spectacular Glenfinnan, where Bonnie Prince Charlie landed when he arrived in 1745 to lead the Scottish rebellion to what would tragically end at Culloden. I’d save the best for last: Glencoe, Glen Etive, Loch Linnhe, Port Appin, and Castle Stalker. Glencoe, much like Culloden, holds a singular place in Scottish history. Anyone familiar with Game of Thrones will know what I mean when I say that George R.R. Martin based the infamous “Red Wedding” episode on the notorious Massacre of Glencoe, a so-called “massacre under trust” to differentiate it from the many other massacres that went on in the Highlands during those lawless times. To this day the Massacre of 1692 is not forgotten in Glencoe, and Campbells (the perpetrators) are looked at askance in that magnificent glen, the capital of rock climbing in the Highlands. Port Appin is home to the fantastic restaurant and hotel The Pierhouse, and also the most spectacular views of the most picturesque of Scottish castles, Castle Stalker, made famous by Monty Python. When the family who owns it is in residence over the summer, they accept reservations for visits and will come row you over to the castle (the only way it’s reachable). A truly one-of-a-kind and magical adventure. I could go on….but those are my Highlights of the Highlands.
Thanks for sharing your highlights, Sandra! I appreciate it.
I’ve never been to glasgow, but it looks great!
Yeah!
Aaah I’d love to visit the Borders and the Highlands. In the sunshine, especially, it must be just the most breathtaking scenery I imagine!
Yeah! It’s so beautiful there. I hope you can go sometime soon.
This all looks so amazing! I’ve been wanting to go to Edinburgh for so long, but honestly all of these places look amazing!
x Annabelle
I hope you can visit Edinburgh and the others sometime!
I have never been to Scotland but all of these trips sound incredible!
xx Kelly
Yeah, they’re great!
I’ve been to Scotland last summer, mostly hiking, so I hardly have seen any towns or cities. When I was in Glasgow the weather was absolutely nasty and it put me off successfully from any deeper exploration… I really want to get back to the Highlands and see more of the Eastern side of Scotland, as last time I kept mostly to the west (Skye, West Highland Way etc.).
Those photos and descriptions are really inviting, thank you!
Happy travels 🙂
Ioanna (A Woman Afoot)
I hope you get a chance to explore the east on your next trip. It’s really different from the west, but also beautiful.