December 28, 2009 Christms In Scotland CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS We just got back from Christmas in Scotland, we were there only 7 nights, but it had to be a flying visit due to other commitments... well to say the weather was GLUM, is an understatement... However it did look beautiful. Yes, a White christmas, but not much fun driving on Black Ice! We flew Continental as always, and unfortunately the weather in Newark was awful too, so we were delayed by 7 hours from Newark to Edinburgh. But we got there eventually, so it was worth the wait. Our main reason for going was to spend Christmas with elderly relatives, so from that persona it was a great trip. We stayed at the Beautiful Hotel du Vin @ One Devonshire Gardens, in Glasgow's Trendy West End. The hotel is located in 5 historical Townhomes that are decorated in a very traditional, but very modern style, in lots of dark colors! The food was amazing, the service is inpeccable and the rooms are very cozy but large! Our favorite thing however, was the heated bathroom tile floor... such a wonderful addition during a cold winter visit. The location of the hotel is great, 2 miles from the city center, so you can easily get into Glasgow for shopping and sightseeing, parking is easy and free, and you can also walk to Glasgow Botanical Gardens and Byres Road which has some wonderful restaurants and local shops. Nearby is Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum which is a unbelievably beautiful building and well worth a visit, also not far away is the Burrell Collection, one of Glasgow's most famous collections of William Burrell, who just so happened to have owned House #4 at one time. More of our recent trip in another few days... Thanks for listening and reading! October 01, 2009 2010 Edinburgh Military Tattoo CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS Believe it or not, we have to order our tickets for next August's Edinburgh Military Tattoo by mid November, or they are all sold out!!! They are like GOLD in August! For anyone not familiar with this amazing event every year, it is a 3 week long nightly show that is located on the Edinburgh Castle Esplanade, In August each year. 2010 marks the Diamond Jubilee year of Edinburgh's celebrated Military Tattoo. Against the world famous backdrop of Edinburgh Castle this landmark 60th anniversary production will feature awe-inspiring colour and variety from the four corners of the globe. Discover highlights of the event, details and facts about the bands and performers over the years, lots of details about Edinburgh Castle and our Scottish Regiments. Check out their website at www.edintattoo.co.uk Another highlight of this tour for next August, is our day trip to St Kilda, The archipelago of St Kilda, the remotest part of the British Isles, lies 41 miles (66 kilometres) west of Benbecula in Scotland's Outer Hebrides. Its islands with their exceptional cliffs and sea stacs form the most important seabird breeding station in north-west Europe. The evacuation of its native population in 1930 brought to a close an extraordinary story of survival. Today, three organisations, The National Trust for Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage and the MoD, work in partnership to further a continuing programme of conservation and research on the islands to ensure the care and protection of this World Heritage Site. After years of searching, we finally found a company that does day trips to this amazing island, home to many breeds of birds and other wildlife.. So now CDT include a day trip to St Kilda on our unique Highlands and Islands tours each year... Definately Off the Beaten Track!!! August 25, 2009 The Tour just Finished CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS Just wanted to add some photos from the Highlands and Islands tour that just finished the middle of August. The first photo is at the Hillfort of Dunadd, where we meet a Clan Member heading to the top of the hill to memorialize a member of their clan. Just one of the interesting things that we seem to run into all over the country, you never know what will turn up on one of our tours! Dunadd is in the haunted glen of Kilmartin, south of Oban where there are many standing stones and burial cairns. Dunadd is the ancient hillfort where the Kings of Scotland were crowned on the Stone of Destiny when they first came to Scotland from Ireland in the 500's. It takes about 10 minutes to climb to the top and you can see the remains of cup and ring marks, and a boar is carved into a stone at the top.. Also there is a footprint that is said to be St Colomba's from 562 when he first arrived in Scotland. This area was then called The Kingdom of Dalriada. This photo is of the World Famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo, that is held for three weeks every August at the Esplanade at Edinburgh Castle. It is a mixture of Pipe Bands, dancers and other acts who are invited from around the world to perform at this event each year. A must see if you are in Edinburgh during Festival time in August. January 16, 2009 New Dates CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS Check out our website today for new dates on this tour, we have filled up one of them so have added a new date in the summer! Here is a wonderful picture of St Andrews Castle, a historical ruined castle sitting on the shore in the lovely town of St Andrews, home of Golf. Often on our tours we stop here and hit some balls at the practice range at the Old Course. There are 7 golf courses in St Andrews, plus more surrounding the town, any of which are fabulously fun to play, some much more demanding than others. But after golfing, we like to have time to explore the towns as well, so that you get to see some of the sites, like the castles, the battlefields and the historical places not just the golf courses Edinburgh is the capital city, and on our August tours, we include tickets to the World Famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo each year. It runs for three weeks of the year and is one of the most fabulous extravaganzas in the world! Performing groups from around the world are asked to perform at Edinburgh Castle's Esplanade during the show that is on nightly for the three week period, different groups are on each year, from around the world, Sweden, Australia, USA, Africa, China, doing dance, and other performing arts, including the finale of the massed Pipe Bands! A fabulous evening if you haven't been to it before! We include tickets to this event on our Tour that starts the end of July into August 2009! Sign up now this tour is limited to 12 spaces and they are going fast! December 10, 2008 Boat Trip on Skye CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS One of the new fun things to do that we have added into our tours this past year which was really cool was a boat ride in Staffin Bay which took us UNDER Kilt Rock! First of all, we had a fabulous day! The sun was shining and the sea was clear, blue and calm! We met our Captain and his boat and off we went into Staffin Bay and we got some fabulous photos of Skye from the water, beautiful photos of Flodigarry Hotel where we had stayed, and some amazing shots of Kilt Rock from below with the Mealt Falls beside them! Having seen it many many times from above, it was wonderful to see it all from below. We also have the pleasure of seeing some puffins, dolphins and some sea urchins underneath the water (it was that clear)... what a fabulous morning we had. So much so that we have decided to continue doing this on our 2009 tours that take us to Skye as well, of course (here comes the disclaimer), weather permitting! So come join us and enjoy for yourself seeing these naturally made wonders from the sea! Our tours are all small groups, so you won't be herded around like sheep! The only sheep you will see will be in the fields! October 02, 2008 Another of our Hotels CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS One of our favorite Hotels, and one of our guests favorite's is definately Culloden House Hotel on the outskirts of Inverness. At the time of the Jacobite rising in 1745-46, Culloden House was requisitioned by Bonnie Prince Charlie and used as his lodging and battle headquarters prior to that fateful and final battle on Culloden Moor on the 16th April 1746. Today, this handsome Palladian country house stands in nearly 40 acres where guests are free to wander about the elegant lawns and parkland to enjoy the exceptional peace, tranquility and majesty of the grounds. The interior features a wonderfully comfortable drawing-room with magnificent Adamesque plasterwork, many fine antiques and a large open fire. Culloden House is rated STB and AA four stars and two Rosettes for food. Member of 'Taste of Scotland'. By the end of the 18th century Inverness, the largest town of the Highlands, was acknowledged as its capital with its theatre, Assembly Rooms and polite society. Its winter season dazzled the eyes of the townsfolk - balls, concerts and plays all diverted the local gentry and wealthy merchants who made the town their base for the dark winter months. As the capital of the highlands, Inverness increasingly provided metropolitan sophistication and diversions as the town attracted wealthy families from all over the Highlands to settle. A ring of mansions and fine houses sprang up around the town where a civilized living style could be enjoyed distant from the noise and bustle of the town yet close enough to enjoy its facilities. The finest of the country houses in the neighbourhood of Inverness still survives, Culloden House, an exquisite Georgian mansion set in open parkland. September 25, 2008 HOTELS WE USE CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS We would like to introduce you to the hotels that we use on our mostly luxury tours. We have a collection of boutique city hotels, Georgian Mansions, Country Manor houses and quaint Guest Houses which are mostly smaller properties. Occasionally they have prior committments with wedding etc, but 99% of the time we have booked them far enough out to make sure we get to stay in these wonderful homes away from home! So if you would read on you can learn all about these privately owned properties all around Scotland. TAYCHREGGAN HOTEL, LOCH AWE, BY OBAN For hundreds of years Scottish drovers, following pathways first laid down by prehistoric man, found shelter and food at the inn at Taychreggan, on the shores of Loch Awe. Today visitors can follow the footprints left by the great cattle drives through the western highlands as they explore and discover the lochs and the ferries that once were the only means of transportation in this remote stretch of Scotland. True to its origins, our Scottish country hotel continues to provide a welcoming retreat where one can sit by a warm fire, relax with a whisky, and enjoy a wonderful meal. South-facing windows provide superb views of the long deep loch and ancient surrounding hills, silent reminders of the generations of Scots who have held this land so deeply in their hearts, yet have tread so lightly on it. September 23, 2008 Tour For 2009 CATEGORY: HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS Just released the tour dates for 2009 and we have added a very exciting day trip to the Highlands and Islands tour, a day trip to the amazing Island of St Kilda, 50 miles off the coast of Harris and Lewis! We go by fast speed boat and spend the day exploring this uninhabited island! Not to be found on any other Scotland Tour! Call or email us to get all the information or check out the details under the tour logo and print it out for yourself.

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