Have you been to Scotland? If not, there may be a few things that will surprise you about this country. Here are 5 things you might not know about Scotland!
5 Things You Might Not Know About Scotland
Scotland Has Over 790 Offshore Islands
I wasn’t aware of just how many islands Scotland has until I started researching for my trip. I wanted to visit them all during my trip because there was something unique about each one of them. In the end, I settled on exploring just a couple of islands in the Inner and outer Hebrides.
The Food is Not all Haggis and Black Pudding
Last week, I talked about how I’m not all that adventurous when it comes to food, so it’s probably no big surprise that I was not excited to try Haggis or Black Pudding. Lucky for me though, there were plenty of other tasty things for me to eat in Scotland.
There is no shortage of fresh and local seafood, Shepherd’s Pies, and I even found myself eating Indian food on more than one occasion.
Passes that Include Ferries and Buses
We all know that transportation can be one of the biggest expenses when traveling, so I was thrilled to find out that ACP Rail offers a Freedom of Scotland pass that includes ferry trips to the various islands and buses for the more remote areas of the country. Click here to see prices and options.
There may be other companies that offer these types of passes in Scotland, but I wasn’t able to find any in my search.
Hostels on the Islands
I was always under the impression that I would have to spend an arm and a leg on accommodation in Scotland, so I was surprised to learn that there are hostels on many of the islands. Dunard Hostel on Barra and Dervaig Hostel on the Isle of Mull are just a few that I found.
The Big 5
In 2013, Scotland is celebrating the Year of Natural Scotland, so they teamed up with Scottish Natural Heritage and came up with a list of five of the country’s most adored wildlife. Their Big Five picks are the Red Squirrel, Red Deer, Golden Eagle, Otter and Harbour Seal. Maybe next year they will make it seven and include Puffins and Heilan’ Coos!
To purchase prints or cards of our Scotland photos, please visit our Fine Art Portfolio.
Plan Your Trip to Scotland
After traveling consistently for over 10 years, we’ve come to trust and rely on a few websites to help us find the best deals on flights and accommodation.
Flights:
- Momondo is the first place we check when searching for cheap flights. It searches hundreds of sites for the best fare and includes both standard and budget airlines. The price calendar feature shows the cheapest days to fly in your preferred month of travel.
Accommodation:
- Booking.com offers savings on hotels, apartments, and villas in 80,000 destinations worldwide. You can browse hotel reviews and find the guaranteed best price on hotels for all budgets.
Thanks for sharing your experience. We were there in 2013 and have been trying to return since we landed back in the states. So, some say ‘next year in Jerusalem’, we add ‘or Scotland’.
I love that picture of the highland cattle. I want its hair hahaha.
Scotland certainly has some unique features. Most amazing for me is the number of islands and the red deer.
790 islands! that’s incredible. This is the reason i will visit Scotland. I wont to explore by myself.
Scotland looks like such a great place to explore and hike. It looks so peaceful along the coast. I had no idea they had so many offshore islands.
I have yet to make it to Scotland. It just looks stunning. I cannot wait to plan a trip. Thanks!
790 islands? I must go someday! Thanks for sharing! : )
I *just* completed a backpacking tour through the highlands and Isle of Skye… I agree that the Highland Coo’s should be a part of that list! 🙂
I love Scotland… My faave country ever!
I have always wanted to visit Scotland and your two first photos are exactly why! I would love to see the rocky cliffs and bluffs – it looks so beautiful.
We were in Scotland last August. Completely enchanted…! I want to go back and do only islands. Thanks for sharing this!
Thanks for reading! I could go back and spend months exploring just the islands.