The Road-trip roundup

For the next 2 days we made our way past Loch Ness attempting to find Nessie and into Inverness stopping at Castle Urquart before heading South back to Largs. We stopped along the way for small pit stops and spent the evening in a fantastic Air B n B – Black Croft lodge located South of Inverness.
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Overall, despite the bad weather we had a wonderful time. We were amazed with how beautiful Scotland is and how similar it is to New Zealand. We spotted some great wildlife, got stuck in various highland cow traffic jams, explored so many castles and really immersed Leo into the ‘real’ Scotland which was my plan from the start.

​Places we loved included, Inverary, Eilean Donan, Skye in general and Luss. Places we would honestly choose to miss would be Oban, Fort William and Aviemore as we found these places to be very hyped for what they are (quite disappointing)

Our tops travel tips would be as following:

• Self-drive instead of taking a tour. The roads are well paved, and it allows you to stop along the way and really enjoy the scenery and surrounding areas.
• Take a cool box and buy food as you go! Supermarket food in Scotland is so cheap. We found it the best value for money we have seen in the past few months as the variety is great and most supermarkets do meal deals for 3GBP which can easily be dinner.
• Try and visit as many castles as possible. Scotland is riddled with incredible castles both old and restored allowing for a huge contrast and filled with interesting history.
• Expect rain!! Scotland rains for about 11 months of the years and even though we are traveling in September , the temps were never about 15 and we found it cold and windy throughout. Bring waterproofs and a good walking shoes to really explore the tracks.
• Eat fresh seafood! You are traveling in some of the most perfect fishing spots in the country so make sure you experience it at least once. If feeling a bit more adventurous, try my favourite, black pudding, potato scone and haggis – each traditionally Scottish and worth at least tasting them!

I guess for us we can only say fantastic things about our trip up North. Scotland is beautiful, green, full of beautifully friendly people and we had an amazing time. In recent years Scotland has become incredibly more popular with tourism both domestic and International so be prepared to have pricey accommodation and for the tourist attractions to be busy. 

Don't let this put you off though as you should 100% make the North of Scotland part of your next adventure...just dress warm and be prepared for rain!