Best time to visit Scotland

With historic yet buzzing cities, remarkable wildlife, the epic landscape of the Highlands and more than 800 islands, Scotland is a dream destination.

The blustery North Atlantic weather that rolls onto the country’s shores (amazingly, Scotland contains more than 10% of Europe’s total coastline) makes the weather hard to predict, but it does fall into distinct seasons. Indeed, Scotland is more seasonal than many other European destinations, so it pays to consider the best time to visit before your trip.

Summer brings festivals – Edinburgh’s world-famous one comes to mind – and long, light-filled nights. Winter, on the other hand, is the time for wilder weather and whisky-warmed cozy nights inside, yet it is also the best time to stargaze and see the Northern Lights. Savvy visitors arrive during the shoulder season, with its dry weather and cheaper prices.

Savor a dram as you consider the best times to visit Scotland depending on your interests and budget.

July and August are the best time for festivals

Scotland’s social calendar fills up in summer. School holidays kick off in July, as does the busiest time of year for Scottish tourism. It’s high season for bird-watchers as well, and the best time to visit Shetland’s 100 islands and Orkney’s 80. It stays light late in Orkney, while darkness is practically non-existent in far-north Shetland’s “simmer dim” (the island’s summer-evening twilight), and there are no west coast midges. It’s a great time to visit the Outer Hebrides, too, and take in the biggest festival there, “Heb Celt.”

Edinburgh becomes the cultural epicenter throughout August, with myriad festivals, ceilidhs, whisky extravaganzas and more, taking place all over the mainland and islands, as locals and visitors enjoy the long northern summer nights. The program is actually closer to half a dozen festivals than one single event, so book travel and accommodation well in advance. This is the peak month for sighting minke and orcas on the west coast, with the basking sharks arriving to join the bountiful dolphins.

If you’re looking to get outside, expect warm weather but also some rain (pack the waterproofs). Alas, the midges are at their worst on the west coast just in time for high season.