28/08/2026
🧳 CAN WE PLEASE STOP CHANGING HOTELS EVERY NIGHT IN SCOTLAND? 😂
Okay, I need to have a little chat about your Scotland itinerary.
Because I keep seeing people plan these incredible trips where they've somehow managed to fit Edinburgh, Glencoe, Fort William, Skye, Inverness, Loch Ness, Culloden and approximately 47 castles into seven days.
And I'm looking at the itinerary thinking...
When exactly are you enjoying Scotland? 😂
I completely understand how it happens. You look at a map and everything seems relatively close together, so you think, “Oh, we could stay somewhere different every night and see SO much!”
Technically, yes.
But then you have to pack your suitcase every morning, check out, load the car, drive somewhere, find somewhere to park, check in, unpack, figure out where you're eating dinner...
And then you wake up and do it all again.
At some point you're not on a Scotland holiday anymore.
You're just moving house every 24 hours. 😂
I'm a MUCH bigger fan of choosing a few really good bases and actually exploring from them.
🏰 START WITH EDINBURGH — 2 OR 3 NIGHTS
If you're flying into Edinburgh, please don't immediately grab your rental car and escape.
Stay for a few nights.
Edinburgh deserves it.
Wander the Royal Mile, explore the Old Town, pop into little closes, walk down Victoria Street, visit the castle, find a cosy pub and allow yourself some time to just wander without constantly checking the clock.
There is so much packed into central Edinburgh that you can easily fill a couple of days without needing a car at all.
And honestly, I love having a day in Edinburgh where I have absolutely no idea where I'm going.
I'll see a little street and think, “Ooh, what's down there?”
And off I go.
This is also why I wouldn't move hotels halfway through your Edinburgh stay just because you've decided you'd rather be closer to something on the other side of town.
It's Edinburgh.
You're not going to be that far away from anything. 😂
⛰️ THEN GIVE THE HIGHLANDS SOME TIME — 2 NIGHTS
Once you're ready to leave Edinburgh, head towards the Highlands and give yourself a couple of nights around Glencoe or Fort William.
And this is where I REALLY don't want you rushing.
Glencoe is not somewhere you should drive through, take three photographs and announce, “Right, we've seen it.”
Absolutely not.
This is the part of the trip where I want you getting out of the car, stopping at viewpoints, taking little walks, finding somewhere for lunch and generally allowing Scotland to mess up your carefully planned schedule.
Because it will.
You'll see a waterfall.
STOP.
You'll see a mountain covered in mist.
STOP.
You'll see a Highland cow.
Obviously STOP. 🐮😂
And if you're staying around Fort William, you've also got Ben Nevis, Glenfinnan and plenty of beautiful scenery nearby.
Personally, I wouldn't stay one night in Glencoe and then move to Fort William for another night just because they're technically different places.
They're close enough that I'd rather unpack once and explore both.
One suitcase. One room. Two nights. Much less faffing.
🏝️ THEN SKYE — AND PLEASE DON'T GIVE IT ONE NIGHT
This is the one that makes me want to gently take people by the shoulders and say:
PLEASE SLOW DOWN. 😂
You've driven all the way to the Isle of Skye and you're going to give it one night?
No.
Skye deserves at least two nights if you can manage it, and I'd happily stay three.
You've got the Old Man of Storr, the Quiraing, Kilt Rock, Fairy Glen, the Fairy Pools, Dunvegan, Portree and all those ridiculously beautiful stretches of coastline where you're going to want to stop every five minutes.
And let's be honest, you ARE going to stop every five minutes.
Because I'm going to be in the passenger seat saying, “WAIT! LOOK AT THAT!”
My husband has become very accustomed to this. 😂
I'd use Portree as a base if you want somewhere with restaurants, pubs and shops, then spend your days exploring different parts of the island.
You don't have to see every single attraction.
In fact, trying to do that is exactly how you end up spending your entire holiday in the car.
Pick a couple of areas each day and enjoy them properly.
🦕 WHAT ABOUT INVERNESS?
If you've got enough time, I'd give Inverness a night or two, particularly if you want to explore Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle, Culloden and Clava Cairns.
This is another place where having a base makes life so much easier.
You can spend the day exploring and then come back to the same hotel, have dinner, maybe find a pub and relax instead of dragging your suitcase into yet another room.
But I wouldn't automatically add Inverness just because it's on the map.
If you're doing a shorter trip, I'd rather give those extra nights to somewhere you're already enjoying.
🧳 SO HOW MANY HOTELS DO YOU ACTUALLY NEED?
For a one-week Scotland trip, I'd be perfectly happy with something like:
🏰 3 nights — Edinburgh
⛰️ 2 nights — Glencoe/Fort William area
🏝️ 2 nights — Isle of Skye
Three bases.
Seven nights.
And suddenly your holiday feels SO much calmer.
You still get Edinburgh, the Highlands and Skye, but you're not spending half your trip checking out of hotels and trying to remember which suitcase contains your clean underwear. 😂
If you've got 10 days or two weeks, absolutely add another base.
You could include Inverness, Oban, the Cairngorms or somewhere else that fits the kind of trip you want.
But please don't feel like you need to change hotels every time you cross a little invisible line on the map.
Scotland isn't going anywhere.
You don't have to see everything in one trip.
Actually, I think one of the best things you can do is leave a little room for the things you didn't plan.
That's when you find the tiny café you weren't expecting.
The village you hadn't heard of.
The viewpoint that wasn't on your itinerary.
The little bookshop you suddenly spend an hour in.
The castle you didn't even know existed.
Or the Highland cow who has decided she's far more photogenic than everyone else on the trip. 🐮😂
Those are the moments I tend to remember.
So here's my little Scotland planning challenge:
Count how many times you're changing accommodation.
If you've got six different hotels booked for seven nights...
Put the suitcase down.
We need to talk. 😂
And now I really want to know:
How many different places did YOU stay on your last Scotland trip?
One? Two? Four?
Or did you actually do the full “new hotel every night” experience?
And be honest...
Did you love it, or were you ready to throw your suitcase into Loch Ness by day five? 😂👇
