Day 1: EDINBURGH
Arrival at airport and transfer by bus to hotel, with time to settle into your (pre-booked) room and relax. Dinner and overnight stay in hotel.
Day 2: EDINBURGH
Breakfast at Hotel, followed by guided tour around Edinburgh, Scotland’s most literary city. Indeed, it was the first place to be nominated a world City of Literature by UNESCO. Edinburgh provides a stimulating creative environment and has been a source of inspiration for many writers, from Robert Louis Stevenson to Muriel Spark. JK Rowling was living here when she began writing the Harry Potter series. Other distinguished writers native to Edinburgh include Kenneth Grahame, author of the children’s classic, “The Wind in the Willows”, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. During our walking tour, you will be able to explore the little streets, courtyards and pubs of Edinburgh, which reflect the lives of important Scottish writers. You can also opt for special visits in relation to the best-selling Rebus novels by Ian Rankin, or “Trainspotting” by Irvine Welsh. In addition, we can pay a visit to the Writers’ Museum and to the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Return to the hotel in the evening, with dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3: ALLOWAY – WIGTOWN
After breakfast, we leave for the picturesque town of Alloway, birthplace of Scotland’s most famous bard: Robert Burns, author of such well-known poems as Auld Lang Syne and Tam O’ Shanter. We will visit the historical Burns National Heritage Park, which contains the cottage where the poet was born, as well as a museum and monument. We can also see various places that appear in his famous works, such as the old bridge over the Doon (Auld Brig o’ Doon) and Alloway Church (Alloway Kirk), and can pay a visit to the Tam O’ Shanter Experience. In the afternoon we drive to Wigtown, Scotland’s National Book Town and home to many bookshops, publishers, printing works, bookbinders and writers. Wigtown also stages an annual book festival. Return to the hotel in the evening, with dinner and overnight stay.
Day 4: GALASHIELS – MELROSE
Breakfast and departure for St Mary’s Loch, a picturesque spot associated with Sir Walter Scott, William Wordsworth (the English Lakeland poet), and the Scottish writer and poet James Hogg. We continue to Galashiels and Melrose, where you can admire Melrose Abbey and Abbotsford House, home of Sir Walter Scott, where you can visit his study, the library, living-room, hall and armouries. Abbotsford House is a rich repository of historical and literary documents in relation to Scotland. In the afternoon, we will visit the famous viewpoint known as Scott’s View: a vista that he preferred to any other, overlooking the River Tweed and the Eildon Mountains. Return to the hotel in the evening, with dinner and overnight stay.
Day 5: DUNKELD – KIRRIEMUIR
Breakfast and departure for Dunkeld. Here we will visit The Hermitage, a beautiful wooded area by the River Braan and the setting for two bizarre follies: Ossian’s Hall and Ossian’s Cave, built by the Dukes of Atholl and inspired by the works of James MacPherson. In the afternoon we will continue to Kirriemuir, birthplace of James Matthew Barrie, the creator of Peter Pan. His tale of fairies, crocodiles and a boy who never grew up was published in 1904. Kirriemuir is now the property of the National Trust for Scotland, and the early years spent here with his brothers and sisters influenced Barrie’s development of his fictional characters. Indeed the outdoor wash-house served as his first theatre! There’s a fascinating exhibition charting Barrie’s life, together with theatrical costumes and memorabilia. Return to the hotel in the evening, with dinner and overnight stay.
Day 6: GLASGOW
The last stage of our tour will take us to Glasgow, a lively, cosmopolitan city, very different from Edinburgh and combining the energy of a great international centre with some of Scotland’s most spectacular scenery. We will visit the impressive City Chambers (the City Council headquarters), George Square, the Merchant City, and Glasgow Necropolis (a Victorian cemetery situated on a small hill to the east of Glasgow Cathedral). You can also admire the Burrell Collection, the Fossil Grove and the McLellan Galleries. Return to the hotel in the evening, with dinner and overnight stay.
Day 7: RETURN
Breakfast at hotel and transfer to airport. End of our services.