Scottish B&B's

We will be driving around northern Scotland ( Ullapool, Lochinver, Bettyhill
et al) in May. Just want to wander. Is it safe to expect B&B's to be easily
available? We would rather not lock into places in advance, but the last
time we were up there ( 25 years ago) they were very hard to find -- have
things changed?
Or does anything ever change in sunny N. Scotland?
rjf

"Bob Fusillo" wrote in message
. ..
We will be driving around northern Scotland ( Ullapool, Lochinver,
Bettyhill et al) in May. Just want to wander. Is it safe to expect B&B's
to be easily available? We would rather not lock into places in advance,
but the last time we were up there ( 25 years ago) they were very hard to
find -- have things changed?
Or does anything ever change in sunny N. Scotland?
rjf

Associated thought/query: we will be a week/ten days or so. Would it be
practical to book into one place and tour about from there? I realize I am
asking for pretty specialized knowlege. My memory is that from Ullapool and
Lairg north there were nothing but Glaswegians who ran B&B's for the
"season" and then retreated to the warm climes of home for the winter.
Pickings were slim.
rjf

Bob Fusillo wrote:
"Bob Fusillo" wrote in message
. ..
We will be driving around northern Scotland ( Ullapool, Lochinver,
Bettyhill et al) in May. Just want to wander. Is it safe to expect B&B's
to be easily available? We would rather not lock into places in advance,
but the last time we were up there ( 25 years ago) they were very hard to
find -- have things changed?
Or does anything ever change in sunny N. Scotland?
rjf

Associated thought/query: we will be a week/ten days or so. Would it be
practical to book into one place and tour about from there? I realize I am
asking for pretty specialized knowlege. My memory is that from Ullapool and
Lairg north there were nothing but Glaswegians who ran B&B's for the
"season" and then retreated to the warm climes of home for the winter.
Pickings were slim.
rjf


The Kyle of Tongue is a pretty central location for touring the north.
There are a number of BnBs; 3 hotels - 2 in Tongue, 1 in Melness - the
hotels all have restaurants and pubs; and there are quite a few
self-catering places, with fully-equipped kitchens and laundry
facilities - the rental period for them is generally Saturday to Saturday.
May is, perhaps the _best_ month to visit the northwest - most
attractions will be open, the days are long, and the midges are still
asleep.
I can recommend a few booklets with suggested walks/drives in the area.

Sheila

Hi,

In 1999 and in 2005, we did fairly rushed motoring trips around Northern &
Western Scotland, staying in B&Bs. Where possible we followed the coast. We
travelled in June and therfore missed the peak season, we were often the
only guests. In July and August, I expect accomodation of all kinds would be
full.

In 1999, we had no problems finding in B&Bs in Oban, Tobermory (on Mull),
and Ullapool. In our 2005 trip, we stopped a B&B in Bonar Bridge, on the
East Coast, We then drove to John O Groats, before following the coast
Westward. We didn't look for accomodation till we reached the West Coast,
but did not notice any of "B&B" signs. We finally found in a pleasant B&B
in, I think Laxford Bridge, (we forgot to note the name of the village).

From there there were plenty of B&Bs in both Ullapool and on Skye.

From Skye, we drove accross Scotland to Inverness and followed the East
Coast Southward towards Edinburgh.

In this streatch, we were unable to find any B&Bs, and finally spent the
night in a motel in Dundee. I imagine that there must have been B&Bs along
this coast but, we had put off looking for a place to stop till too late in
the day and without a B&B directory and in a bit of a panic, we were unable
to locate any.

We had similar problems in the English Midlands travelling South, where we
found ourselves looking for accomodation in areas where there is aparantly
little tourist traffic.

Have a great trip.

Bob


"Bob Fusillo" wrote in message
. ..
We will be driving around northern Scotland ( Ullapool, Lochinver,
Bettyhill et al) in May. Just want to wander. Is it safe to expect B&B's
to be easily available? We would rather not lock into places in advance,
but the last time we were up there ( 25 years ago) they were very hard to
find -- have things changed?
Or does anything ever change in sunny N. Scotland?
rjf

On Thu, 24 Jan 2008 10:18:51 -0500, "Bob Fusillo"
wrote:

We will be driving around northern Scotland ( Ullapool, Lochinver, Bettyhill
et al) in May. Just want to wander. Is it safe to expect B&B's to be easily
available? We would rather not lock into places in advance, but the last
time we were up there ( 25 years ago) they were very hard to find -- have
things changed?
Or does anything ever change in sunny N. Scotland?
rjf

Compile a list of prospects from he
http://www.smoothhound.co.uk
and bring it with you.

- TR

VainGlorious wrote:
On Thu, 24 Jan 2008 10:18:51 -0500, "Bob Fusillo"
wrote:

We will be driving around northern Scotland ( Ullapool, Lochinver, Bettyhill
et al) in May. Just want to wander. Is it safe to expect B&B's to be easily
available? We would rather not lock into places in advance, but the last
time we were up there ( 25 years ago) they were very hard to find -- have
things changed?
Or does anything ever change in sunny N. Scotland?
rjf

Compile a list of prospects from he
http://www.smoothhound.co.uk
and bring it with you.


Smoothhound's good for many parts of the UK, but it's pretty patchy for
northwest Scotland - and I don't think they list any self-catering rentals.
Most tourist offices will offer 'BABA' - Book A Bed Ahead. There's a
small fee, of course.
Asking at your current BnB for a recommendation at your next stop, often
works well.

Following up to "Bob Fusillo" wrote:

I realize I am
asking for pretty specialized knowlege. My memory is that from Ullapool and
Lairg north there were nothing but Glaswegians who ran B&B's for the
"season" and then retreated to the warm climes of home for the winter.

they should be open in May its the best month.
--
Mike
Remove clothing to email

Following up to "Bob Fusillo" wrote:

Associated thought/query: we will be a week/ten days or so. Would it be
practical to book into one place and tour about from there?

i reckon one place will leave you covering the same road over and
over. If it was me I would get 2 or 3 places for multiple nights
booked up in advance. I just realised I havent been to Tongue for 30
years :-(
and of course its always sunny:-
"http://www.fellwalk.co.uk/torridon2.htm"
--
Mike
Remove clothing to email

Bob Fusillo wrote:

Associated thought/query: we will be a week/ten days or so. Would it be
practical to book into one place and tour about from there? I realize I am
asking for pretty specialized knowlege. My memory is that from Ullapool and
Lairg north there were nothing but Glaswegians who ran B&B's for the
"season" and then retreated to the warm climes of home for the winter.
Pickings were slim.



http://www.cloistertal.demon.co.uk/house.htm
http://www.rhiancottage.co.uk/
http://www.thecragganhotel.co.uk/
http://www.tonguehotel.co.uk/
http://www.benloyal.co.uk/index.html
http://www.roomfinderscotland.co.uk/mapsearch.php?townid=328
http://www.welcometoscotland.com/localareas/accommodation/north_highland/guesthouses_and_b_and_bs/all/Lochinver_c_Durness_and_Bettyhill
http://www.welcometoscotland.com/localareas/accommodation/north_highland/hotels/all/Lochinver_c_Durness_and_Bettyhill
http://www.welcometoscotland.com/localareas/accommodation/north_highland/self_catering/all/Lochinver_c_Durness_and_Bettyhill

Following up to S Viemeister wrote:

http://www.benloyal.co.uk/index.html

have they photoshoped in the mountain? It was long time ago but...
--
Mike
Remove clothing to email