The Best Day Trips from Stirling, Scotland

When I decided to go to Stirling, Scotland, there were a variety of places I wanted to go, but I wasn’t sure which ones would be entirely worth my time. As I stayed there and adventured, I found some of my favorite places and activities, both on-site and traveling within the country, and I am happy to share it all with you.

Some on-site gems

Stirling offers a variety of fun experiences there in the city and can truly offer something for every type of traveler. For history buffs like myself, a few hours spent at the Wallace Monument (located almost directly next to the University of Stirling) learning about William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, and a variety of other Scottish heroes and their legacies is a well spent time. You could also spend the day walking down the halls of the Stirling Castle and learning about the royals who lived in the residence and how people of the castle lived from day to day. Another couple of activities to do would be visiting the old jail or going on ghost tours of the local cemetery.

For those who are interested in exploring the great outdoors there are no shortage of trails and hikes in and around Stirling. There are an afternoon’s worth of trails surrounding the Wallace Monument as well as a variety on the University of Stirling’s lush, loch-filled campus. You can even have the opportunity to hike up Dumyat, the great hill that is the picturesque background of the University of Stirling and marks the gateway into the highlands. These are some highlights I had found within walking distance but there are a variety more in and around Stirling.

In Stirling proper, there is no shortage of good coffee and pubs to go to. A short walk from campus there is a small pub, the William Wallace, affectionately called the Willy Wallace by locals, that hosts a myriad of events throughout the week, catering to the community. Trivia on Wednesdays, karaoke on Fridays, and live music on Sundays.

If pubs aren’t your thing, there are no shortages of great coffeeshops all around Stirling, so many that every time I went out I tried a new one and I got nowhere close to trying them all.

My Perfect Day in Stirling

That’s all to say, a perfect day in Stirling for me would include getting coffee at a local coffeeshop to then walk the castle and learn if its inhabitants. Then I would head over to Dumyat in the afternoon and spend it hiking up the incredible hill, just to end the day with some food and drink at a local pub. You would need far more than a day to get through Stirling but as seen above, there is no shortage of things to do.

Top day trips and experiences:

When exploring outside of Stirling, there are a variety of places that are easily accessible to reach by bus or train. Below is a list of some of my favorite day trips around Scotland as well as highlights based on what I did while visiting.

1. Visit the old city of Edinburgh and explore old town by foot.

Highlights:

• Holyrood Castle on the Royal Mile
• Greyfriars’s Kirkyard
• Armstrongs Vintage in the Grassmarkets
• St. Giles Cathedral
• The Christmas Market during the Christmas season
  

2. Travel to Pitlochry, “The Heart of the Highlands."

Highlights:

• The Highland Games in early September
• Many boutiques and Scottish wares shops

3. Take a Bus to the medieval town of Doune and visit the castle.

Highlights:

• Doune Castle, built in the 13^th-14^th century
• Brunch at The Woodside

4. Take a train to Glasgow to explore the industrial city.

Highlights:

• The city-commissioned “Graffiti Trail”
• The Glasgow Botanic Gardens
• The Barras Market, the city’s biggest flea market every Saturday
• The Burrell Collection Art Museum
• The Glasgow Necropolis

5. See the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, Linlithgow

Highlights:

• Linlithgow Palace
• Linlithgow Loch walk

6. Visit the seaside at Abernathy

Highlights:

• Fish and Chip Shops
• Local coastal flair

If you're interested in exploring more of Scotland, check out all our available programs here!

Blog by Selah Felty, Semester in Scotland - University of Stirling alumna, Grand Canyon University