Geographically and culturally speaking, Scotland is a land apart from the rest of Britain. A land of great untamed beauty, home to a people with a distinctive culture and a proud national identity, Scotland is a country that deserves special attention and will reward you with a lifetime of cherished memories.

For many people Scotland begins and ends with Edinburgh the country’s capital City or Glasgow its contemporary urban centre. But of Scotland’s many attributes, its most prized is the romantic wilderness of the Highlands. A vast untamed area of rugged peaks, heather swept glens and shimmering lochs, all teeming with wildlife. Many travel to the Great Glen, a place of picturesque beauty famed for Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle, or the famous Lakeland area of the Trossachs, but venture further north and you will find truly awesome scenery waiting to be discovered. While the many disparate Scottish islands such as Skye , Mull , the Hebrides and Orkney offer great escapes in timeless and beautiful locations noted for dramatic coastlines and secluded sandy bays.

The rugged nature of Scotland (and its weather) is reflected in the character of its people, who are renowned as much for their resilience and self-reliance as for their spirited nature and warm hospitality. Scotland’s colourful culture is celebrated with all its bagpipes and tartan, during the Highland Games and the Edinburgh Festival in August, the Hogmanay celebrations of New Year and Burns Night; the celebration of poet Robert Burns on 25 January.

Scotland’s tumultuous history is filled with evocative figures like William Wallace , Robert the Bruce , Mary Queen of Scots and Bonnie Prince Charlie who are quite literally etched into the landscape, with many historic sites throughout the country relating to their place in Scottish culture. Other sites of historic interest include the famous Neolithic finds throughout the Orkney Isles and the castles that dominate the key cities of Stirling and Edinburgh.

Scotland is renowned as the spiritual home of golf with numerous links courses including the famous Royal and Ancient Golf Club and the hallowed Old Course at St Andrews, making the town a Mecca for golfers.

Scotland is also known as the home of single malt whisky, with distilleries located throughout the country producing whiskies that are true to their centuries old formulae and offering a real flavour of Scotland.