City Breaks In Inverness And A Selection Of Top Class Tourist Attractions You Must See
Inverness, a city in the Scottish Highlands is situated in some of the most awe inspiring countryside in the United Kingdom. In and around the city are many places associated with historic Scotland, often these places witnessed a great deal of suffering and violence. Happily the city of Inverness has a amazing collection of visitor attractions (and the number is always on the increase). In the following paragraphs I introduce readers to 3 places to visit in Inverness Beauly Priory, Inverness Museum & Art Gallery and Inverness Castle:
Beauly Priory
Monks, from the Valliscaulian order, set up a community at Beauly Priory in 13th century. Sadly nobody has the ability to say the accurate date of the foundation of the settlement but it is commonly accepted that is was roughly around 1230. At that time the patron, and landowner, of Beauly, was Sir John Bisset, whose lands were almagamated with the Fraser’s of Lovat. The French monks, together with Sir John, are those who named the place Beauly, from the French ‘beau lieu’ meaning ‘beautiful place’. Sadly, the priory was abandoned after the Reformation and the stone was thieved for use the construction of other structures. Today the ruins of Beauly Priory are in the hands of Historic Scotland as they were handed to the State in the year 1913.
Inverness Castle
There have been many structures on the site of Inverness Castle through the centuries, evidence shows that the site had a structure there as far back as 1057. King Robert I of Scotland almost destroyed the very first Inverness Castle. The castle which sits on the site today was built and designed , in 1836, by William Burn. The magnificent building, of red sandstone, sits on a cliff looking down onto the the cathedral on the opposite side and the River Ness. King James I(of Scotland) held parliament at Inverness Castle in 1427, and instructed all the Northern Chieftains to be in attendance. Alarmingly 3 of these chieftains were later killed for their support of an independent monarchy.
Inverness Museum & Art Gallery
Situated in Inverness’s town center is the recently renovated Inverness Museum and Art Gallery which is well worth a visit especially if it is raining. Inside the museum visitors can investigate Scottish History and learn about how the Highlands are associated with the rest of the world. It is also possible to learn about the folk of the Highlands, their traditions and culture. There are a lot of different collections featuring, costumes, textiles, archaeology, wildlife, crafts and fine arts.
If you are taking a vacation in Great Britain this year and you plan to spend some of your time in Scotland, have a think about spending some time staying in Inverness. Finding Inverness hotel accommodation online is relatively easy as the vast majority of establishments have their own web site. Hotels in Inverness, small hotels, guest houses and bed and breakfasts are always of excellent quality and the Highlands are very well know for hospitality of the highest order, so you can be sure of have a most incredible time.
Categories: Travel Tags: city break, hotels in inverness, inverness, inverness hotels, Scotland, Travel, vacations
Spending Time In Cardiff And Facts You Need To Know
The city of Cardiff is not only the capital city of Wales, bit also it is the most popular tourist destination in Great Britain other than England’s capital city of London. Cardiff is also the largest Welsh city, however the city was only but a small town until the time of the early 19C. It was in the early eighteen hundreds when the small Welsh town developed into a considerably busy port involved in the transportation of local coal, plus other industries. It was not until 28th October 1905 that King Edward VII of England granted the small town of Cardiff city status, however, weirdly, the city only became the capital of Wales on 20th December nineteen fifty five. Soon after this Cardiff quickly became the place of choice for most national institutions, for example the National Museum of Wales, the Welsh National War Memorial and the University of Wales Registry Building. Through the last few decades the companies involved in Information and Technology have seen incredible expansion rates as well as, to a lesser degree various other areas of business, most noticeably in service industries. Tourism has also grown dramatically and there are now surprising numbers of places offering Cardiff bed and breakfast accommodation.
Places To See In Cardiff
Although Cardiff has had city status for only one hundred years, surprisingly there has been a castle in existence there for an estimated 2,000 years. The present Cardiff Castle is, most likely, the city’s most popular attraction which can be located in the very middle of the city centre. One can partake in a guided tour exploring the castle’s interior, and/or, enjoy a pleasant walk around and about the breathtakingly picturesque castle gardens. At the castle you will also find a new Interpretation Centre which displays the differing stages of development, of the castle, through the ages from the Roman period through to modern times.
The city of Cardiff also has a fair number of modern tourist attractions including the incredibly interesting Techniquest, one of Great Britain’s finest Science Discovery centres. At the centre you will be presented with in excess of 100 hands on exhibits, designed especially both to entertain and educate groups of all ages. There’s also a laboratory, a hi-tech Science Theatre, a Discovery Room and a planetarium.
There are a great many more visitor attractions to see in the Welsh capital, Cardiff, so, if you and your family are currently considering taking a break there it is incredibly important that you reserve your room at the earliest moment because, unfortunately Cardiff hotels tend to be surprisingly busy and are frequently fully booked for a long period in advance. If you are travelling in a large group you might find that Cardiff serviced apartments proves to be a less expensive option by comparison with bed and breakfast accommodation.
Categories: Travel Tags: Britain, Cardiff, city break, city breaks, destination, destinations, family vacations, holiday, Holidays, leisure, Travel, travel and leisure, UK, United Kingdom, vacation, vacations, Wales
Facts About Perth in Scotland To Help People Extract The Very Best Out Of Their Vacation
The ‘Fair City’ of Perth is also frequently called to as the ‘Gateway to the Highlands’. Built on the banks of the River Tay, the town of Perth was, for centuries, Scotland’s capital and in the medieval period the bustling little town was known locally as Saint Johnstoun (St. John’s Town). The name of Perth, or Peairt in the Gaelic, is a derivative of a word of the Picts which has the meaning of a wood or copse. Nowadays this beautiful little town is an awesome location for a vacation in Scotland with a large number of bed and breakfast accommodation in Perth to choose from.
Whether stay for a week or a fortnight you will quickly realise that there very many exciting things to see and do in the immediate vicinity of Perth and Perthshire. Tourist attractions include; restaurants, historical attractions, shopping and sport and leisure pursuits and many other types of entertainment. Not that long ago the town was a highly successful port mainly dealing in the export of leather, linen, bleached products and whisky. In more modern times tourism generates cash and much appreciated jobs for the local youth who happily take employment in the large number of guest houses and hotels in Perth and similar enterprises.
One of the most famous visitor attractions, not a great distance away from Perth, is one of the finest country homes in the nation of Scotland, Scone Palace. Here people are able to explore the fascinating past of Scone Palace, the place where the early Scottish kings were crowned including, Robert The Bruce (crowned in 1306).
Approximately 3m away, from Perth, tourists will find the 16th century Elcho Castle, which has the most glorious views of the River Tay. Elcho Castle can be dated back to 1570 when it’s building was commissioned by the Wemyss family who owned it until nineteen twenty nine. It is now in the hands of Historic Scotland.
Just a little distance west of Perth is the fine medieval structure of Huntingtower Castle. Constructed in stunningly beautiful it has, over the centuries, undergone many redevelopments and alterations. Huntingtower Castle started out as two separate tower houses however situated closely together.
Besides the tourist attractions discussed above the town of Perth has countless more, making it an awesome town for a family vacation. Tourist attractions and places, worth visiting, found in and around Perth include the following; Perthshire Visitor Centre, Perth Ice Rink, Kinnoull Hill, the Museum of the Black Watch at Balhousie Castle and Perth Art Gallery & Museum.
If you are planning to have a weekend break in Perth you will discover a large amount of online Perth hotels and guest houses and you will find a massive listing at http://www.perthhotelscotland.com/
Categories: Travel Tags: city break, destination, destinations, holiday, Holidays, hotels in Perth, leisure, Perth, Perth hotels, Scotland, Travel, vacation, vacation destinations, vacations