The Kelburn Castle has been a home to the Boyle family since it's construction in the 13th Century…read more It is the oldest castle in Scotland that has been continuously inhabited. Allowing the castle to be painted came about when the Boyle family were told that they would have to remove the tower because of damage to the stonework. Since it was going to be removed the family decided to ask four Brazilian street artists to paint the castle. Their graffiti art created so much excitement that the family appealed to the Historic Scotland to allow it to stay. They are a government agency responsible for preserving the country's historic monuments. The agency granted temporary permission and attached an end date. The end date has passed and the family is working towards extending it again. While I visited the castle it was under major renovations so perhaps the construction will stabilize the castle and allow it to continue to be known to tourists as the Graffiti Castle. It cost £9.00 to spend the day hiking on the property. It was an absolutely amazing day and I highly recommend visiting this property. There is a visitor office with hiking maps, bathroom facilities and an area to purchase food. Included in our entrance fee was a tour of the spooky forest. They had a children's section by day and adult section at night. I passed on the Halloween fun because of time restraints.

This is a DO NOT MISS venue. The graffiti castle is fabulous and the grounds, pathways, waterfalls,…read morehikes and secret forest just add to the experience. Entrance fee was £7 and well worth it.

Strathclyde Park can either be awesome or depressing, depending of course on what you want from it;…read morequiet walking/exercise green space or amusement park holiday destination for kids. I like to go early mornings to walk the dog when it is quiet and you only have the odd jogger and the ducks in sight. I'm not sure the actual distance round the perimeter - 3 miles I think so not bad if you fancy getting a decent bit of exercise. The park also hosts Parkrun on a Saturday morning for semi-competitive folks. The boat house (loads of water sports options available) cafe is also a nice stop off point for a quick refreshment and there is plenty of green space as well as a small beach to chill out and eat some home packed grub. I tend to avoid school holidays and any time after midday as the park sits right next to M&Ds amusement park and can become a bit of a nedfest but to be honest I'm probably just being overly judgmental. Busy crowds just ain't my thing. Definitely deserving of four stars as it really is a lovely part of Scotland and a nice wee escape from the town-y environs of EK, Hamilton and Motherwell.

'Strathy Park'. It's…read morereally really nice and great for running or cycling around, especially during the summer months where this place really livens up with families having picnics, dads showing kiddies how to skip stones in the water and lots of littering from youths, just to keep everything in balance. There's some great swings and such for children and the childlike alike and it's on the site of M & D's which has a good indoor centre with arcade games, bowling and pool which can help make a day of coming here. The rides in the theme park themselves are a bit of a let down. Watch where you park your car at night, as there have been reports of 'doggers'!

A couple of weeks ago, G-Bot and I decided to go on an outdoor adventure and so packed our camping…read moregear, put on our hiking boots and cagoules and set off on our trip in Betty. After my brother telling me that Buckfast swigging youths tend to head up to the Balloch area in the summer in their pimped out rides I figured that we'd try somewhere a bit quieter as I'm not down with that at all. We ended up in Luss and what a beautiful little town it is. The Luss Caravan and Camping Site is absolutely stunning with plenty of space and the most picture postcard picturesque views you could imagine. Waking up to the sun rising over the loch every morning would be a dream come true and even though we only stayed for a night I felt that the clean air and tranquil setting recharged my batteries. It was £25 for us to pitch our tent for the night and I have to say, I found that a bit steep but we had the option to leave the car outside the camping ground and pay only £16 but for all of the hassle of lugging the tend and goods all over the place we decided to just go the whole haul. It might even be a bargain, I'm not sure what to going rate for a campsite is but it was a £25 well spent. The staff who run the campsite are very friendly and the gift shop is well stocked and reasonably priced too. The toilets were clean and fresh and there was even a small play park for the little 'uns. If you're thinking of going camping then I highly recommend this campsite, it's idyllic.

As a first time motorhome hirer, we thought this place might make a lovely looking stop for our…read morevery first night. Well, we'd heard caravanning was a bit cliquish. And, how true!! I phoned to ask how the members-only system worked for new visitors. A reasonably polite woman gave me a rather confusing explanation about us either having to be full members (but we were too late to join as you can't do so on the same day - thanks!) or the hire company having to be Privilege members of the Club, and they'd accept that. So I phoned the hire company who confirmed they were. So I phoned the site back, this time getting an incredibly brusque man who rudely told me to go away as they don't in fact accept Privilege members, giving me an earful about the hire company not knowing the rules. After I'd hung up at his bad manners, he later phoned me back demanding I tell him who had recommended them so he could complain about them too. Well, apparently his own staff don't know the rules either, or I could have saved myself half an hour of wasted grief. What an experience to give first-timers considering this activity for the first time. If we hadn't booked our vehicle already, I'd be giving up in disgust at the hostile and unfriendly attitudes.

We looked for a place for a nice walk with our dog. Some place nice, green and quiet. Found this…read morepark here online and thought it looked promising. Came by car. Only a 40 minute drive from our BnB. Plenty of parking at the visitors centre at the main entrance. Free of charge. And no charge to enter the park as well. There are some shops, a coffee shop, a garden center, arts & crafts, toilets, a playground. Lots to do. There are several paths leading you through the big grounds of this park. Some very easy and flat. Some more narrow and a bit wet after rainy days. Bring some good shoes to be sure. We loved walking around the park with our English Bulldog. Lots of other furry friends to meet here. And a lot less visitors than one might expect. A first highlight is the Craigend Castle. Or more like what remains of it. Now nature is taking it back and it's fenced off. Some part of me would love to see it restored. Bought I also understand that they like to keep it this way. Let nature take it back for a living place for various animals. Then Mugdock Loch is another highlight. Walk around this beautiful quiet little Loch. Plenty of photo ops and benches for a picnic. The Loch is also the place where you will find the Mugdock Castle. Some really nice remains. Very fun to explore. With tables to make a picnic. A really nice little castle. We very much enjoyed our day here. Follow the map and the paths. Or just start walking and let yourself get lost a little. Surprisingly it's free...something that wouldn't be possible in my country. Not an impressive park of this size with so much to see. A lovely place.

Mugdock is one of my favourite places to go.. It's not to far from the city centre and you feel…read morecompletely in the countryside.. I had been going to Mugdock for years and never new there was a castle and only last summer, up behind the castle I found some world war 2 gun barracks.. So much to see and the wildlife is amazing.. If your lucky enough you might go when the castle is open, if you get the chance go in as the view from the roof is stunning.. They also have a coffee shop where you can get some food but most importantly an ice cream..

Southerness Holiday Village is a half hour drive from Dumfries and i have been giong there for over…read more20 years and would highly reccommed it for a great family holiday. The village has a 2 mile long beach with a lighthouse and loads of facilities to keep the whole family amused including an indoor heated swimming pool,soft play area,crazy golf,outdoor play area,amusement arcade with mini ten pin bowling,the sunset showbar which has a kids club and live entertainment on every night.There is also a restaurant and takeaway,mini supermarket and a launderette. There is a championship golf course in the village. the holiday village is open from march to october.

I am jealous. I am jealous that there are people in this world who can get up every morning and go…read morehere, even if just for a quick morning walk. We visited Loch Lomond on New Year's Day and can I just say it made for the most magical start to a new year for me. I'm floored by its beauty and tranquility and if its the start of the Highlands, holy cow - or rather coo! My tour group couldn't get over how stunning the light, filtered through clouds touched upon the hillsides. The park was clean and everyone did their part to keep it that way. No one was too noisey either. Would love to come back and explore more!

Truly, a magnificent park and one a few untouched by development in Scotland. Jagged peaks and…read moresteep mountain tops punctuate the sky and mark some of the most prestige wilderness areas in the world. I wholeheartedly loved this park and my time exploring it. Going back, I would spend a weekend and camp here to really immerse myself (guess I have a good excuse).

Brilliant experience at the Boathouse. The menu is extensive, which is very impressive given the…read moresize of the restaurant. Sitting outside on a sunny afternoon, we were treated to an incredible experience from start to finish with an incredible chef! Meal was fantastic and every dish was very much enjoyed!

I had wanted to visit Gigha to eat the famous halibut there since I moved to Glasgow. The…read moreexperience and meal at The Boathouse exceeded every expectation I had. The warmth of the welcome, the service, the views and the quality of the food is just superb. The Boathouse is just minutes away from the ferry and has a perfect position facing over a small bay with incredible views back over to the peninsula. We arrived mid afternoon and had some ice cold Peroni out on the decking overlooking the white sand beach and turquoise water. We were camping at The Boathouse - which I can highly recommend. There's quite a few pitches doted around and it's an incredibly relaxed atmosphere. Campers mingle with locals who mingle with those who have just come over for the day to eat the amazing seafood on offer. The showers and washrooms are all clean and new, with piping hot water from very early in the morning. There are washing/drying facilities and it's a brilliant half way between wild camping and a formal site - just without any fuss. Everything we needed was here and nothing was too much trouble from anyone we spoke with. If you are planning on visiting, you need to book for dinner as the place was full. Luckily we already had. We started with some oysters and then quickly ordered some more. They were cold, creamy, soft and absolutely delicious. Perfect start. After much deliberation we opted for a lobster mac 'n' cheese to start and the 'Gigha plate'. We has seen the live lobsters being brought in only an hour before and a considerable amount of one was inside the mac 'n cheese. There is no scrimping on the good stuff here. The Gigha plate consisted of deep fried halibut, quails eggs, salmon, smoked halibut, Gigha bread, oyster and the star of the show - the chef's own beetroot smoked halibut. I'd waited a long time to eat the halibut here and the beetroot smoke was just superb. Main course was the monkfish and fish curry and the pan fried halibut. Everything is cooked to perfection and the chefs inventive use of Gighas own produce of potatoes, to beetroot to fish makes it a locally sourced, excellently executed dining experience. We just amount managed to cram in a deliciously light sponge of sticky toffee pudding and peanut butter icecream - and the wonderful pecan tart with red grape ice-cream. Perfect to end to a great meal. With around 30 whiskeys to choose from I went for a Talisker to round the meal off and take a coffee outside and admire the view until bed. Wherever you are, get your map out, work out how to get there and go eat some fish and check out that view. It's worth every mile.

Perfect! Hillhouse was a fabulous place to stay and have as a base for our group of 8 friends…read moretaking a week long golf trip to play the renowned courses of Troon, Prestwik, Dundonald, Western Gailes and Turnbury. The accommodations were ideal, service was superb and setting was magical. The grounds of the estate were perfectly manicured and the Scottish Garden was breathtaking. A walk around the house and grounds was like taking a step back in time. We all loved the morning cook to order breakfast, chef prepared dinners and the very relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Andrea and the staff went out of their way to make us feel welcome as they took care of every little thing and detail. Sad to say that I am not sure if I will ever come back to Hillhouse, but I feel very fortunate that I was able to stay there and experience such a special place with my friends.