The wedding date fatefully coincides with two big events in and around Edinburgh: the 2018 Open Championship and the Edinburgh Arts Festival. As you build your trip itinerary, ye might want to keep these little ditties in mind.
Edinburgh Arts Festival
The festival begins Thursday, July 26, so you could easily catch the event kick-off the day after the wedding. The event brings together the capital city's leading galleries, museums and artist-run spaces, alongside new public art commissions by established and emerging artists and an innovative program of special events. If you're bringing kiddos along for the trip, they have an Explorers program to engage young ones in creative workshops and outdoor art workshops involving play, woodland games and art activity. The vast majority of the festival is free to attend, and you're exactly right if you think we lifted most of this language straight from the event website. The event poster could make for a nice, frame-worthy souvenir, if you're into that kind of thing.
2018 Open Championship
The 2018 Open Championship will be held July 19-22 at Carnoustie Golf Links in Angus, which is about a two-hour drive from Edinburgh. If you're a golf enthusiast, you may want to plan your trip to start on the front-end of the wedding festivities to catch one of the last days of the tournament. From Carnoustie, you could continue northward up to Inverness and the Scottish Highlands for a couple of days before heading back toward the Edinburgh airport for the wedding festivities.
Fly Fishing
There's no shortage of outfitters and fisheries to help you try your hand at fly fishing for trout in lochs and rivers throughout the country. You may want to consider fly fishing while you're in East Lothian, perhaps on Monday, July 23. Here's an option that's just a few miles from Haddington.
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Isle of Skye
The Isle of Skye, connected to Scotland's northwest coast by bridge, is known for its rugged landscapes, picturesque fishing villages and medieval castles. The town of Portree, a base for exploring the island, features harbourside pubs and boutiques. And check out these bloody fantastic hikes!
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Inverness
This one's for you, Outlander fans. Inverness is a city on Scotland’s northeast coast, where the River Ness meets the Moray Firth. It's the largest city and the cultural capital of the Scottish Highlands. Its Old Town features 19th-century Inverness Cathedral, the mostly 18th-century Old High Church and an indoor Victorian Market selling food, clothing and crafts. The contemporary Inverness Museum and Art Gallery traces local and Highland history. Be sure to get a selfie with Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, before you leave.
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Loch Tay
This is a recommendation straight from Rae the Fabulous Wedding Planner. She says, "Personally one of my favourite areas in Scotland is around Loch Tay in Perthshire, namely around Kenmore. The area is stunning and there are quite a lot of water-based activities here and in the close by town of Aberfeldy. Plus, it’s only a two-hour drive from Edinburgh. There are a few walks in the area, but if you are looking for full-on hiking you would go to Fort William where Ben Nevis is situated. This is quite a bit further North but this is where you would find the ‘postcard’ Scottish landscapes."
St. Andrews
St. Andrews is a seaside town northeast of Edinburgh, on Scotland’s east coast. It's known for its many golf courses, including the Old Course, with the landmark Swilcan Bridge at the 18th hole. On a headland nearby are the ruins of St. Andrews Castle, replete with a medieval bottle dungeon. Close to the castle is the University of St. Andrews, founded in 1413. The iconic golf course is located about 90 minutes north of Haddington.
Sound Like a Local
No matter where your Scottish itinerary takes you, here's some light reading to help you blend in with the locals. Color us looking forward to tearing the tartan with ye tidy selves.
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+ More to come; this page is under construction. We'll have sign-ups for on-site castle activities the morning/early afternoon of W Day (that's Wedding Day).