Scotland with children - a travel report on the scotland family trip

Family vacation Scotland: adventure & unique landscape

Melanie Adam tested our trip to Scotland with children “Scotland for family”. Together with other families, she explored the Isle of Skye, was on a scary tour in a real castle and drove the Harry Potter steam curl. Of course, they also got to the bottom of the puzzling stories about the Loch Ness monster. Now she tells us what she has experienced there.

Scotland for family

The myths & Monster of the Highlands

Hunt for Loch Ness
seals & Dolphins in Gairloch
Braveheart & Harry Potter

Group trip 9 days

4.8 out of 5 stars
5 Stars

Start of my Scotland family trip – chaos at the airport

In June 2016 I had the opportunity to accompany the pilot trip on our “Scotland for family” trip. But first I had to get there … So with my suitcase packed, I am at the Cologne / Bonn airport 1.5 hours before departure. 1.5 hours must be enough, I think. First of all, my tip for all families: plan more time! Because apparently dozens of other people have decided to use the Pentecost holidays and travel. So first of all, wait, wait, wait. "Slowly it is getting scarce", I think and mentally put everything in my hand luggage suitcase, "But where should I go with the rest?" 45 minutes before departure and 200 people felt in front of me. I have already sent a live picture to my colleagues in the office and they are probably already checking alternative flight connections for me. Then finally I hear the redeeming call "Edinburgh, please walk along here!" Thank God, a fast lane is opened for us! From now on everything runs smoothly. With a little delay we finally start towards Scotland!

Welcome to Scotland with kids

After less than 2 hours we fly over the coast of Edinburgh and a short time later I’m already in the arrival hall from the airport and my tour guide Frida greets me with a bright smile. Together with three other families, we are now heading to the first destination of our Scotland family trip: Stirling – which is also called "Key to the Highlands". So far, I only knew the accommodations from my colleague from Scotland and therefore I was very excited to check into the first hotel of our tour after about an hour. And it was actually the Scottish way architecture imagines: a large, old Victorian house that used to be a high school should be our home for the next two nights. As in the other accommodations of this family trip through Scotland, the interior design and decoration is determined by a lot of carpet and wood – sometimes you feel a bit like a fictional character by Jane Austen.

Castle tour and scary tour at Stirling Castle

The next morning it goes straight to the William Wallace Monument, which is dedicated to THE Scottish freedom fighter par excellence. The children can let off steam on a short walk in the forest. It’s really amazing how quickly the little ones’ willingness to walk changes when other children are around. After a few rounds of catching and playing hide and seek, we arrive at the top and climb the monument – even the very brave children with fear of heights proudly make it to the top. From here we have a fantastic view of the landscape and we can now imagine how beautiful the nature impressions will be in the course of the trip.

After the descent we head to Stirling Castle. The well-preserved castle serves as a very good visual object for that time, because the rooms have been well restored and are fully furnished. What the children find particularly exciting are Frida’s stories about the chores of the children in the castle at that time: Unfortunately, since children had to work at the time and were smaller than adults, they did not amazing Jobs such as Clean chimneys. After visiting the castle, we take a short break and meet at the nearby cemetery for a scary tour at sunset. Frida knows all kinds of legends about the deceased there, one more creepy and exciting than the other. Then it’s back to the hotel and go to sleep, because the next day we head to the Glencoe Valley

Varied program on the Scotland family trip

After an extensive breakfast, we make our way to the Glencoe Valley. On the way we stop in the Trossachs National Park and even climb a small mountain. The ascent is a bit strenuous, but once we reach the top, we are rewarded with a magnificent view over Loch Lomond. In bright sunshine, we all pose with our Scotland flag and feel like the King of Scotland. Anyway, it has to be said that Scotland does not live up to its reputation as a rainy country on the whole trip, because apart from a few past days on the Isle of Skye the sun was mostly with us. After the hike we have a little picnic and then we continue by bus towards Glencoe Valley, one of the most beautiful places in Scotland. Here is our accommodation right in the forest and when we fall asleep we hear nothing but the soft lapping of the nearby river "Here you can really enjoy the silence!", I think.

But unfortunately we don’t have time to spend a few more days here, because the next highlight of our Scotland family trip is already waiting for us. In this case, there has really been talk of it since the arrival: Because today we drive the Jacobite steam train the same route as the Hogwarts Express! I think it’s nice that the new generation is still so enthusiastic about the apprentice magician. Full speed ahead it goes past mountains, through valleys and over the Glennfinnan Viaduct to Mallaig – in between we even snack on one or the other magic bean to get the right Harry Potter feeling! When you arrive in Mallaig, you take the ferry to the Isle of Skye, called Isle of Fog in German. I was very excited about this island in advance, because I knew that the landscape here should be completely different from the rest of Scotland.