Scotland - where to go?

[IsabellaofFrance]

Somewhere with beautiful countryside, water of some description nearby, walking/climbing as well as bike trails.

I know this probably described quite a bit of Scotland, which is why I am having such difficulty - it all looks amazing!

Well, yes, it does describe a lot of my country! How long will you be staying, and how far are you willing to travel? Dumfries and Galloway is beautiful, with woodland walks and a Dark Skies award, and lovely small towns which have not yet been totally taken over by supermarkets. Further north, both Edinburgh and Glasgow have many attractions, with the beaches of East Lothian within easy reach of Edinburgh, and Loch Lomond only a short drive out of Glasgow. Perthshire is absolutely glorious, the East Neuk of Fife is pretty, Inverness is a buzzing wee place, there's been a lot of investment in John O Groats of late...

Aviemore would definitely suit you - big mountains nearby, loch Morlich is great for sailing and has a beach (the UKs highest inland beach) and there are loads of bike trails.

We would be staying for 2 weeks and coming from the Midlands. We drive to France usually so 8ish hours travel time doesn't really bother us, and more and it might get a bit too much.

Have a look at Peebles and the surrounding areas. The Borders are lovely and only a short drive from Edinburgh.

Glentress is fantastic for mountain biking and there are loads of walks and hills in the surrounding areas.

Lovely small town with independent shops, good restaurants and loads of good hotels etc.

Royal Deeside is stunning, lots to do there if you like the great outdoors. Ballater is a beautiful little town, too.

We honeymooned in WesterRoss on the West Coast. One of the most beautiful places I've ever been- dramatic mountains, beautiful beaches and lochs, and Inverewe gardens. It's pretty remote though, probably a good 10-12 hrs from the midlands. It's a great place for escaping from civilisation though!
Skye is also stunning with a little bit more civilisation.
TBH, you can't go wrong with large swathes of the Scottish countryside, it's a fantastic place. I also love that it's not nearly as popular as a lot of the uk so you can properly feel like you're in the wilderness.

Some words of warning;

Take warm clothes and a mac.
Avoid midge season.

Gairloch, Ullapool... the Summer Isles are wonderful. The West Coast is fab and the midges will be gone by now. Might be cold!
Loch Maree is very beautiful, further North than Loch Lomond, very picturesque.
Aviemore doesn't suit me (got turned away in a biblical downpour at the campsite at 8 or so, no soryy, closed. WTF.) but the Cairngorms would be great for what you want as well.

I would split it into two weeks. A week on Mull (what you want plus wildlife) & then a week staying here cottage on lochside overlooking Skye. (We've stayed there.)

We are staying in Aviemore right now (we are from Fife). You could do a week here and another week somewhere on the way up.

Aigas

Dornoch is lovely, Loch Tay too (although I haven't stayed there)

Mull of Kintyre! Has everything you are looking for and with the new ferry service from Ardrossan in the summer it is so accessible from Midlands! We have a holiday let and holiday park (pm me for details). Lots of islands to visit, wildlife (apart from my DH!), great Watersports and empty, clean, sandy beaches. Fab restaurants. Totally unspoilt and utterly beautiful (no shame in being biased) Our house overlooks the Hebridean islands, you wake to that view every morning! :). :). :)

Aviemore/Cairngorms without a shadow of a doubt. We've just booked for the 4th year in a row. Loads to do and fantastic cycle trails. Easy to get further afield - more cycling on coast up near findhorn too.

West coast not as family friendly for cycling. We go there too but tend not to use the bikes.

I second Dumfries and Galloway, I live in the neighbouring county and it's a beautiful area, there's loads of scope for outdoor activities- plenty of beaches, a huge forest park with bike trails, walks etc. there's an outdoor centre as well which does activities like archery etc and lots of little unspoiled villages with great history and lovely food. I go on holiday in Dumfries and Galloway and I only live a half hour drive outside the county, it really is a wonderful area. There are also a couple of wildlife/farm parks and an ice cream and a chocolate factory if you wanted anything like that to do for the day.

Vote for aviemore/Cairngorms from me too. Has everything you are looking for and only half an hour from Inverness.

I second Ullapool, achiltibuie and the Summer Isles. It's just gorgeous, and if you come in the summer with light nights and stunning sunsets.....

Between us, I'm not sure we've helped the OP...

My favourite place is ASsynt (north of Ullapool). Beautiful beaches, great mountains for climbing / walking - but not so great for bikes. (both ds and dh are mountain bikers). Aviemore is great for bikes - loads of trails - but much busier (and therefore more expensive). WE like both places - although dc probably prefer Aviemore as there is more to do.

Take a look at this place gavinburncottages.com/

They are in the Kilpatrick Hills between Glasgow and Loch Lomond.

Plenty of walking, bike trails and the views are incredible. Only a short distance from Glasgow.

We had a great time there.

Went to Peebles in April. Lovely little town. Very handy for Rosslyn chapel or trip to Edinburgh. Fife is lovely. All up that coast. Burntisland, Kirkcaldy .east neuk. Have a ride through the tweed valley to the samye ling monastery.

Havent done an awful lot of the other side but G
Asgow is lovely and tithe north is the Trossachs and loch lomond. We've gone after Xmas and its been lovely eith snow on the ground. Not on roads thankfully. The rennie mackintosh house at helensburghwell worth a visit.

Pitlochry and the road to Aviemore also very picturesque. Scotland is just awesome.

Dumfries and Galloway probably good for DCs.
Mountain biking www.7stanesmountainbiking.com/mabie#

Several trails not too far apart. One over in Peebles which is a bit further away, there is also road bike trails.

Walking, beaches, small towns so easy to nip in and out of.

Quite a few castles this is nice one

Can get the west coast train to Edinburgh or Glasgow from Lockerbie. Tibetan monastery north of there too.

Though it is the wetter side of the country.

Loch Tay (Killin or Kenmore), Loch Earn, Strathyre Forest lodges?

Would you do 1 week in 1 place, 1 week in another? I'd do a few days in a city as part of your trip?