Forget jumping out of a plane or travelling for 6 months. You haven’t lived unless you have been for a swim in Loch Lomand. It should be on everyone’s Ultimate Bucket List! I’m glad I’ve already crossed it off mine as I don’t know if I would be brave enough to do it now. It’s the cold! Even on a warm summers day (I use the term ‘warm’ loosely, it is Scotland) it’s still numbingly cold.
If you haven’t been to Scotland you need to experience it. There are some breathtakingly beautiful parts. I’m lucky enough to have been many times as a child. Both of my parents grew up there and we would go back to visit family. I haven’t been for a few years now and it’s somewhere I would love to take my children.
The Highlands is one of the many beautiful places you can go to in Scotland. As part of the Parent Panel team I get to showcase some of the family friendly places featured on Parent Friendly Stays.
The Isles of Glencoe Hotel is somewhere that is ideal to stay in on a visit to Scotland and I will tell you why.
The bedrooms are amazing. One thing that is really annoying when going away with kids is the bedroom situation. I have been known to spend my evening in the bathroom so as not to wake a sleeping toddler who has been grumpy all day! You won’t need to do that here as the kids are separated with a wall and have their own room within your room, complete with their own tv. It will comfortably fit 2-3 children, so perfect for most families. I can imagine waking up after a good nights sleep not having to trip over sleeping children in the dark or rolling over extra quietly to the beautiful loch and mountain-views. Then going to the restaurant for a full Scottish breakfast, another thing to experience!
The hotel has a heated indoor (needed in Scotland) pool with a sauna that is open to guests from 7am-10pm everyday. There are no restrictive times for the kids either so is a great activity for any wet days you may have. Ava is a real water baby so would love to go swimming here. With an adult only swim between 8-10pm you can pull straws on who gets to sneak off for a kid free swim, ok sauna and a drink in the bar 😉
If you holiday with kids that have way too much energy like we do then you can take them to the nearby Action Glen for some real outdoor sports. The boys would LOVE all of the activities. You can take part in water sports from kayaking to stand-up paddling and outdoor activities like mountain biking. If activities are your thing there are so many to do nearby, indoor ice climbing (sounds cool, haha), horseriding, climbing, cylcing, walking, segway and even skiing. You can see more here.
There are so many other things to do nearby so here are some of my favourites.
Remember that swim in Loch Lomand I was talking about earlier. You can stop off for a late afternoon swim and BBQ on the shores after a day trip to Urquhart Castle. A medieval stronghold on the shores of Loch Ness. Beware of the midgees!
Another amazing and I really do mean it, day out is the Oban Sea Life Centre. I went there as a kid and all of the Sealife Centres I have been to since just don’t compare. Forget your walk through tunnels, here you can get up close to the sealife. I can remember holding a starfish and tickling the Rays. It’s also home to orphaned seal pups which are very cute.
Some of the other places that I actually remember going to as a kid so they must have been good is Mugdock County Park, with great outdoor play areas. And the Isle of Iona, one of the most peaceful places I have ever been!
Told you it was beautiful!
A guilty secret of mine is that I love all things Harry Potter and one thing I have wanted to do for ages, apart from going on the Harry potter studio tour(James isn’t keen to go with me the meany) is to go on the Hogwarts Express! It starts near the Isles of Glencoe Hotel so it would be a great excuse to go on it. The boys like old steam trains so its a win win!
After writing this I now really want to go to Scotland and introduce my children to this beautiful part of the World.
Here is some proof of the Loch Lomand swim. I’m loving my jellie shoes!
Have you been to Scotland? What are your favourite things to do with the family there? So I can add them to my list.