Unless you form opinions based primarily on wildly offensive stereotypes, you’ll find that Scotland is a country renowned for its hospitable people, its breathtakingly stunning scenery, its rich and turbulent history, and its machine gun fire accent …
… not to mention its world-famous whisky!
Indeed, its popularity with travelers from the UK and abroad shows virtually no signs of abating. In 2014, over 15.5 million overnight tourism trips were taken in Scotland, with visitor expenditure totalling a whopping £4.8 billion. But what if you’re on a shoestring budget?
Luckily, Scotland is home to a number of awe-inspiring attractions with very reasonable (and often free) admission prices, which means you can sample the country’s delights without breaking the bank.
Need some inspiration? Here are three of our favourite spots:
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Loch Ness
Dig out your Loch Ness map and begin your hunt for Nessie, Scotland’s illustrious monster. If you fancy doing some exploring from the shore, there’s plenty of paths and lookout points for you to spot those mysterious ripples in the water.
If you want to get up close and personal, hop aboard a cruise and search for hidden happenings via the vessel’s sonar. Who knows, you may leave the area with more than a stuffed toy of Nessie – you could be the next front page headline!
Gallery of Modern Art
It’s not often in life you’ll get something for nothing, but the Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh offers free admission, allowing you to breathe in the national collection of modern and contemporary art dating from the early 20th century to the present day.
Head to Belford Road and you’ll find two separate buildings – Modern One and Modern Two. Inside, you can check out more than 6000 paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings, as well as major exhibitions at various points in the year.
Royal Yacht Britannia
If you’ve always wondered what it was like for the Queen on board the Royal Yacht Britannia, the UK’s number one tourist attraction offers you and your party an unforgettable insight into this floating royal residence.
Home to Her Majesty for over 40 years (and sailing over 1,000,000 miles around the world in the process), the yacht is now berthed in Edinburgh. You can also learn what it was like for the Queen on the ship and why its decommissioning was a sad day in her reign.
Now it’s over to you …
Have you visited Scotland? Perhaps it’s something you’ve always wanted to do but never got round to? Whatever your experiences, we want to hear your story – so please leave a comment below and let us know what you think of this undeniably popular tourist hotspot.
