Scottish Highlights: 9 Must-See Places in Scotland

Over the Christmas break, I was lucky enough to spend a week in Scotland with some family bouncing around Glasgow, Edinburgh and Pitlochry. Check-out the highlights of our visit.

Edinburgh Underground

Did you know there is an entire underground city in Edinburgh? The city was only recently rediscovered in the 1980s but was originally created in the 1700s as vaults underneath the South Bridge. The space was used as storage space and workshops for local businesses such as shoemakers, restaurants, wine makers and more. However, during the industrial revolution, the vaults illegally became home to many people who couldn’t afford other housing. The tour is a great way to learn a little bit of history about the city and at the very least is a fun excuse to explore some underground tunnels that may or may not be haunted! The tour is run exclusively with Mercat Tours.  

Arthurs Seat Hike

One of the most amazing parts of our trip to Scotland was our hike through Holyrood Park. This quick hike is inside the city but overlooks the entire skyline. We were lucky and timed the hike right as the sun was setting which made for some great views of the city.

Scotch Whisky Experience

While you could take a tour here, we opted out and instead just went to the restaurant to do a whisky tasting of our own. They offer reasonably priced tastings and provide Scotch from different all over Scotland so you can really see the taste difference from the different areas.

Edinburgh Castle

We unfortunately ran out of time to enter the castle but we did walk up the Royal Mile and walk around the outsides. This is definitely top of list for the next time I’m in Edinburgh. It also has a great vantage point overlooking the city, even from the bottom of the castle grounds.

Blair Athol Distillery

We took the train up to the gates of the Scottish Highlands, Pitlochry! Here, we visited the Blair Athol Whiskey Distillery which provided a lot of information about distilling whiskey but also came with 4 tastings at the end.

Craigower Hill Hike

Pitlochry is a great place to go for a hike. There are a ton of trails and great vantage points that overlook the towns and rivers. We decided to do a shorter hike on the Craigower path but there were longer ones such as Ben y Vrackie.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

After a few nights in Pitlochry, we took the train back down to Glasgow. Glasgow is well-known for being a city of art. The Kelvingrove is a completely free gallery and museum that boasts over 22 different exhibits ranging from animals to ancient Egypt to the history of Glasgow itself.

Clydeside Distillery

We couldn’t leave Scotland without one last Scotch tasting but we took it one step further and did a Scotch and Chocolate Tour at Clydeside Distillery. It was worth every penny. The tour is limited to 6 people and runs for an hour and a half. After getting to learn more about the history of the company and the process of distilling you get 5 whiskey tastings that are each paired with a chocolate made by a local artisan. Never in my life did I think of chocolate and whiskey as something that would go well together but trust me when I say it does. This is a must-do tour if you’re in Glasgow!

Ashton Lane

This is a cute little back street in Glasgow that’s filled with pubs, restaurants and shops. It’s great to walk around and at night they turn on some twinkling lights that make for great photo backdrops!