First time in Europe I would hit the big stuff; three days back in London, another three in Paris and fly home from Paris. Save the sidetrips through the countryside for your fourth or fifth trip over there.

Agree with renting your car from the airport and not in Edinburgh proper, but if you head west toward Falkirk to start a Highlands journey, you'll see a major roundabout early in the drive with like 3 different roads involved. It was my first roundabout driving on the left side of the road and a baptism by fire.

Saying this not to scare you, I highly recommend driving, it's awesome, but be ready for it if you do.

Also, IMO, Edinburgh > Glasgow by far.

If you visit the western Highlands, drive the Glen Coe road (stunning) and read the history of the area before you do.

Spent 23 days tooling around Scotland in 2023. Trains and buses will get you anywhere you want to go, including small towns. If you rent a car, watch some videos on navigating roundaboutsreally the only challenging things. We visited 5 or 6 distilleries. All tours include ~4 pours of various whiskies. All distilleries were happy to provide to-go bottles with screw-top lids that the driver can take with them to enjoy later. Plenty of castles/museums/pubs and restaurants to enjoy if the weather outside is unpleasant. Enjoy!

AGROAg88 said:

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Spent 23 days tooling around Scotland in 2023. Trains and buses will get you anywhere you want to go, including small towns. If you rent a car, watch some videos on navigating roundaboutsreally the only challenging things. We visited 5 or 6 distilleries. All tours include ~4 pours of various whiskies. All distilleries were happy to provide to-go bottles with screw-top lids that the driver can take with them to enjoy later. Plenty of castles/museums/pubs and restaurants to enjoy if the weather outside is unpleasant. Enjoy!

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Any "can't miss" recommendations? What are the top 5 places you visited?

Wife and I did a ~65 mile walk along the Speyside River, from Buckie to Aviemore. The company (Gemini Walks) arranged for a room at a guesthouse or B&B, then hauled your suitcase to the next night's venue. They all fed you breakfast and most had a sack-lunch purchase option. Gorgeous area with surprisingly few walkers.

We spent a couple of nights in Edinburgh (castle tour was nice, and the military band tattoo is supposed to be fantastic) and a couple in Inverness/Culloden battlefield. We caught the Highland Games in a little town called Dufftown. It was a blastthink small town Texas rodeo fair with bagpipes and tug-of-war.

Distilleries are all over, with generally similar tours. The newer ones don't have as much to offer, so some of them have food pairings/chocolate tastings. My favorites were Strathisla, Oban and Cragganmore. If you enjoy whisky, it's heaven. We went into a bar in Craigellachie with a huge selection, arranged by "Made within 1 mile of this bar, 5 miles, 10 miles, 50 miles".

Definitely on my "visit again" list.

AGROAg88 said:

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Wife and I did a ~65 mile walk along the Speyside River, from Buckie to Aviemore. The company (Gemini Walks) arranged for a room at a guesthouse or B&B, then hauled your suitcase to the next night's venue. They all fed you breakfast and most had a sack-lunch purchase option. Gorgeous area with surprisingly few walkers.

We spent a couple of nights in Edinburgh (castle tour was nice, and the military band tattoo is supposed to be fantastic) and a couple in Inverness/Culloden battlefield. We caught the Highland Games in a little town called Dufftown. It was a blastthink small town Texas rodeo fair with bagpipes and tug-of-war.

Distilleries are all over, with generally similar tours. The newer ones don't have as much to offer, so some of them have food pairings/chocolate tastings. My favorites were Strathisla, Oban and Cragganmore. If you enjoy whisky, it's heaven. We went into a bar in Craigellachie with a huge selection, arranged by "Made within 1 mile of this bar, 5 miles, 10 miles, 50 miles".

Definitely on my "visit again" list.

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Looks like most of the places you mentioned are north of Glasgow/Edinburgh. What's that area like in March? Still worth going?