Is Scotland having a moment? Travel recommendations for design lovers.

A grand castle in the countryside. Alan Cumming in a kilt and eccentric hat. 21 reality tv stars. Yes, I am describing the TV show The Traitors.

Mar 18, 2025

It feels like everyone in New York is talking about The Traitors and therefore maybe also Scotland. Certainly the best part is Alan Cumming and his outfits. TV Insider ranked them here.

*THE TRAITORS -- "Revenge Is A Dish Best Served Cold" Episode 302 -- Pictured: Alan Cumming -- (Photo by: Euan Cherry/Peacock)*

But before there was Traitors US, there was Outlander, which enraptured the women of middle America and probably other people too. There's actually data on this from the national tourism organization for Scotland. It's a legitimate PDF called "The Outlander effect & tourism," and in it they cite a survey from 2015/16 which found that Outlander had an outsized influence on visitors to Scotland, specifically from the United States. That's certainly supported by my visit to Deanston Distillery, which is a former cotton mill that now makes award-winning whisky using hydro-energy from the nearby River Teith (so cool!), but also had a scene from Outlander filmed there, which the German woman on my tour was VERY interested in.

"VisitScotland regularly undertakes Scotland-wide visitor surveys. The most recent survey (2015/16, a 'summer only' survey which reflected the views of the main holiday season visitors) examined the motivators that attracted people to choose Scotland. Of the 11,743 respondents to the survey it was discovered that 1 in 10 visitors were influenced by a travel feature about Scotland, whilst TV, film and books were also important prompts to considering Scotland as a destination, especially for international visitors."

"The word cloud above shows the TV productions mentioned by visitor survey respondents. It demonstrates, by size of the word reflecting the frequency of mentions, that Outlander (both TV and book) clearly has a significant impact in inspiring visitors to travel to Scotland, particularly from the USA."

It's fun to see that if you remove Outlander from this word cloud the Scottish Tourism Org made (LOL long live word clouds!), the influence of one of my favorite TV shows of all time can see the light of day. I am a die hard Shetland fan. I love the moody Shetland Isles as a backdrop for murder and the accents of the virtuous detectives. It is the perfect vibe for winter in New York and a great respite from seasonal depression (you think New York's gray? Try Shetland which is basically Scandinavia and gets only 6 hours of daylight on its shortest day). Recently it's gotten even more fun, as DI Perez has retired and been replaced with a less morally infallible, more complex female DI. GIRL POWER.

Anyways, Scotland is a place I've always loved, and I much prefer it to England or Wales. I feel I need to give Ireland a longer try (I've only been once and only to Dublin and the Cliff's of Moher which were beautiful but I was swarmed by gnats! You don't see the gnats in The Princess Bride). I've been to Scotland 3 times; one of those times was a long roadtrip with my little sister. When the car rental man back in London inspected the car upon return, he literally was like: "Ok looks good...miraculously" because we had driven so many miles and we were American. It truly was miraculous - the narrow stone walls in the Lake District are a rental car nightmare.

My work wife, who is a man named Dan but "work husband" doesn't really roll of the tongue, just asked for Scotland recommendations for himself and his real-life wife. He booked both of the hotels I recommended in the Highlands and found - in an inside joke that is only funny to Dan, Rosa, and I - that Rita Ora herself stayed at one of the hotels as well! Dan, I know you're Rita Ora's biggest fan! Anyways, he asked for Scotland recs and I figured why don't I write it down, so both Dan and the world can enjoy.

If you want to be inside on the inside joke, the story there is that once we were out to dinner in Detroit with some work colleagues and none of them knew who Rita Ora was except Rosa, myself, and Dan. So we were like: "What songs do you like Dan?" And he couldn't name any (obviously, how many of us can actually name a Rita Ora song, after all - she's the Who Queen s/o Who Weekly). So he pulled up his Spotify and goes to Rita's profile and it's like: "You have 9 liked songs." NINE! So he is forever now known as a Rita Ora super fan.

Ok let's get into it.

The Highlands

It would be silly to go to Scotland and not venture to the Highlands. Sorry, it just would be. They are magical.

Yes you need a car. If you are scared to drive on the other side of the road find a friend who is an overly confident driver like me and just cough up the money for insurance. It's easy to drive on the highways (it's only one way!). The country roads where no one is there for you to model behavior off of can can get a little iffy at times. You might find yourself drifting back to your habit of driving on the right side of the road. Give your travel companion the job of monitoring and calmly reminding you to always be on the left.

A note on driving an Electric Vehicle (EV):

There is a lot of EV infrastructure in Scotland from what we saw and it was very easy to find charging stations. I'm not sure what it's like further up in the highlands but even Stirling Castle had a huge EV charging lot. The city of Callander had a public lot you could charge at. It's easy to find out if where you're going has stations around it on the internets.

EV or not, make sure you get an automatic car. In the UK everyone is better than us and can drive stick shift, so pay extra close attention and don't just assume you rented an automatic vehicle!

Highland levels of difficulty:

EASIEST: Edinburgh to Callander - 1 hour, 15 minutes

MEDIUM: Edinburgh to Braemar - 2 hours, 20 minutes

HARDEST: Edinburgh to Portree, Isle of Sky - 5+ hours

Where to Stay:

Roman Camp (Callander) - The Roman Camp is a big, old pink hotel in Callander.

Callander is a lively town right by the River Teith, not far from Stirling. It's known as the "gateway to the Highlands" and sits just south of the Highland Boundary Fault, which is historically a meeting point between the Highlands and the Lowlands.

We chose to go here because we visited in winter and I didn't want to go too deep into the Highlands in the event of snow. Electric Vehicle, snow, and the other side of the road was a combo I wasn't trying to experience. Plus my friend Sarah (AuntSarahDraws) went to Fife Arms (below) in winter and put the fear of god in me based on her drive back in the snow.

Obviously, the deeper into the Highlands you go, the more rugged beauty you get to experience. But Callander was perfectly satisfactory. Taking morning walks along the River Teith, learning about the Roman Occupation (thus Roman Camp), and the quite easy drive to both Edinburgh (1 hour 15 minutes) and Glasgow (50 minutes) made it perfect and relaxing. The 2 restaurants are great onsite at the hotel and the rooms are charming.

Breakfast was baller (in the formal restaurant and included in your stay) and my husband Ben even got the Kippers which the waitress told him he WOULD NOT REGRET but I think he might have regretted it because it's a full on smoked herring at 9:30AM. The grounds are really cool and fun to explore, there is a beautiful garden etc. You can walk to downtown if you want to eat offsite or need to go to a bank or shop. I found the price to be extremely reasonable (although it might have been particularly great because it was off season).

The Fife Arms (Braemar) - As I stated above, both Rita Ora and Sarah (AuntSarahDraws) stayed here. Sarah has divine taste in hotels. Her partner is a wine maker. They like the finer things in life, you know. When asked to provide feedback on The Fife Arms, she simply replied: "Wow love Fife arms." What more do you need to know? Just kidding, here's more:

"My TLDR on fife arms is you will feel like you’re in white lotus meets the crown. You will see everyone, everywhere multiple times; at the airport, on your flight, at dinner etc. The hotel is gorgeous, traditional but also artistic in a way that convinced me I need to paint a sky in my traditional pre-war apartment. We hit up every nature walk which was great because it’s definitely a small town and after a drive there in the snow we were not going to drive anywhere else. In better weather, there’s a lot nearby to visit and it’s particularly picturesque. Otherwise best bed I’ve slept in and best beef Wellington I’ve eaten! Did a lot of painting and tea time."

Hotels I did not stay at, but considered staying at because they look amazing:

Glenmorangie House - We've all heard of Glenmorangie Scotch. They have a very chic looking hotel right by the distillery. Glenmorangie House is near Tain (one of the oldest towns in Scotland) in the northeast. It’s a Georgian-style estate surrounded by scenic views of the rolling hills, woodlands, and the Moray Firth. The interior design is *chefs kiss.*

Glencoe House - Glencoe House looks amazing. The house was built by architect Sir Robert Rowan Anderson who is famous for working on Balmoral Castle. I have been to Glencoe the town, but not this hotel because I was young and had v little monies.

Glencoe is on the way to Isle of sky and was one of my favorite places we visited. The Three Sisters of Glencoe are majestic. We stayed in a little Bed and Breakfast as a splurge. I don't remember the name and it was nearly a decade ago, so who knows if it's still open. It was full of married couples, and everyone definitely thought it was weird that my sister and I were sharing a bed and in our twenties. Whilst at a pub in the Lake District, a woman who was on vacation alone with her German Shepard asked us if we were a couple. I guess the UK is for lovers, not siblings!

Lundies House - Ummm. This place looks so sick. But it's also like really up there, 5 hours away from Edinburgh, in a place called Tongue! It's a former church manse and it might by my next Scottish destination.

No need to limit yourselves to these. There are a lot of amazing looking places at many different price points throughout Scotland. I also stayed at a lot of Airbnbs during my first trip for cost savings.

Things to Do:

Whichever part of the highlands you're in will determine the exact entity of the below categories you can see, but the general activities are much the same throughout:

Tour a Castle - if you're in Callander, that's gonna be Stirling Castle. If you're up by Glencoe, it will be Eilean Donan (really picturesque). Wherever you go, there will be a castle near or on the way.
Distillery Tour - Find a scotch whiskey distillery that speaks to you! There are so many. I liked Deanston because it's a former cotton mill and is super eco, using hydro-energy from the nearby River Teith. Also the soundtrack in the tasting room was gr8. They were playing MICHELLE.
Hiking - Anywhere you go in the UK they call a hike a "walk" and that's because from what I've experienced, most of the available hiking really is just a walk. But Scotland actually has elevation and so you truly can hike. The highlands are beautiful, they have that rugged beauty that you also find in places like Maine. I love the terroir.
Pubs - I've been to some top notch pubs in Scotland. They are pretty good throughout the UK. They know how to do pubs. Just pick one, any one Pub, and it probably is great and serves savory pies and will make you cozy as can be.
Eat Scottish Dessert - nothing can beat Scottish Shortbread, Millionaire's Shortbread, and Sticky Toffee Pudding.
Chill - Sit in the drawing room by the fire in your hotel drinking tea while reading, writing, drawing etc. Feel the Scottish highland vibes!

Edinburgh

There is plenty on the internet about what to do in Edinburgh. It's a great city, not very big though. If I just really had all the time and money in the world, I think it would be fun to go for Fringe Festival, although not for a first timer as that would be like visiting Austin, TX during SXSW.

Edinburgh High/Low Brow

High:

Signet Library Afternoon Tea - You can have Afternoon Tea at Colonnades at the Signet Library. It's fancy. It feels important and historic. There are pics of the royals visiting. It is home to the Society of Writers to Her Majesty’s Signet (WS Society), one of Scotland’s oldest professional legal bodies, dating back to the 15th century. But I found that out just now via the internet, not when I was there. It's not the best Afternoon Tea I've ever had taste-wise (I've had a lot) but it was definitely impressive and festive! I think it's worth the money for the ambiance and presentation.
Panda and Sons - Ranked #30 on the World's 50 Best Bars it is worth a visit! You need a reservation. They use some wild science-y techniques to make crazy drinks! I spent like a full hour just reading the menu because it's so interesting.
Calton Hill - I put this in “high” because of the insanely cool restaurant The Lookout. But it closed! Honestly devastating. But you should still hike up the hill and check out the view. It's one of my favorite places in Edinburgh.
Arthur's Seat - Arthur's Seat is an extinct volcano in Holyrood Park with panoramic views of the city. People LOVE it. You can see people hiking it from Calton Hill. I have never done it because I'm always too lazy. But I want to eventually.
Under the Stairs - this unassuming place rocked. The food was really good. The vibe was cool and didn't feel touristy. Also it's in Old Town so, convenient. Their website sums it up best: "cosy, casual, shabby chic. followers of no trends, just a purpose to make you feel at home." I no joke had buffalo chicken dip here and it slapped.

Low:

Go to a Cèilidh (Kaylee) Night - THIS IS SO FUN. Even if you just want to watch. Everyone dances to live music. The musicians guide you through the dance moves and everyone just does their best. My husband and I still try to do some of the dances and fail miserably - we just have fun OK! Some places to check (it's not every night so you need to schedule): Edinburgh Ceilidh Club, Old Town Pub
Dishoom - Dishoom has expanded to Edinburgh. I repeat, Dishoom is now in Edinburgh. It tastes just as good as it does in London.
Edinburgh Castle - It's very busy, kinda like Disney land but still fun. At Christmas time there is a cool light show. It's worth getting tickets, but even just going to the gates is a free show that could be enough to scratch the itch!
The Hop on Hop Off Bus - The first time I went to Edinburgh was with my sister during the long ass road trip we were taking and we were so exhausted. But we wanted to see the whole city! The Hop on, Hop Off bus was a godsend. We just sat on it, learned about Edinburgh, got off if we really wanted to see something, and back on again to exert as little energy as possible while learning. We were staying in an Airbnb outside of the city center so the last thing we wanted to do was figure out more transportation logistics.

Glasgow

You know, you don't really hear a lot about Glasgow. But for some reason, my mom, sister, and I went to Glasgow. We had a very fun time. It's much less tourist-forward than Edinburgh, and if you're not the kind of traveler who just likes to see how other people live, you might not like Glasgow. It's not as beautiful or historic as Edinburgh. It is, however, edgier, grittier, and it just feels MORE Scottish. No JK Rowlings living in a £2.2m 17th century Edinburgh mansion. Our Airbnb was right in the city center and near T.J. Maxx (T.K. Maxx in UK) and I am ashamed to say we went there at least 4 times.

Mackintosh - While I was in Glasgow I learned about Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868–1928). He was a Scottish architect, designer, and artist, best known for his Art Nouveau and Glasgow Style architecture. His legacy is very cool and his designs feel both art deco and steampunk to me. You'd probably recognize his chair with the super tall back. You can visit his house, The Hill House, which is 40 minutes from Glasgow or The Hunterian Mackintosh House in Glasgow which is a reconstruction of his house from 1906-1914.
Various homes of Charles Mackintosh
Museums - there are a lot of cool museums in Glasgow. I think more than Edinburgh. I don’t remember which ones I visited but I liked what I saw. Check them out here.
Nightlife - Glasgow's nightlife was really fun. More fun than Edinburghs. My mom even stayed out late. We went to a bar called Nice N Sleazy. It was multiple levels. They played "It's Raining Men" downstairs and my mom went wild. They served tons of White Russian variations. Apparently White Russians are a thing in Glasgow. We ended the night at the kebab shop across the street where we ate fried stuff. Now that's what I call a night out!