We visit Luss, one of Scotland’s prettiest highland villages sitting on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond. As you stroll around the village you’ll find rows of little cottages that come alive in spring and summer with over-flowing floral displays. These avenues of blooms will lead you to the pier where you can enjoy panoramic views of Loch Lomond and of Ben Lomond on the other side.

We stop for lunch in the bustling tourist town of Callander. Crammed with teashops and souvenir opportunities, Callander is often described as ‘the gateway to the Highlands’.

We visit splendid Stirling Castle, one of the best preserved Renaissance buildings in the country which has been returned to its original glory. Follow in the footsteps of Scotland’s Stuart Kings, of Mary, Queen of Scots and of Bonnie Prince Charlie. You’ll have enough time for a leisurely visit to the castle to learn about key moments in Scotland’s long, violent and bloody history. It wouldn’t be a Scottish castle if it hadn’t witnessed some historic battles. In its shadows are the sites of the Battle of Stirling Bridge where William Wallace (of Braveheart fame) defeated a much larger English army in 1297, and Bannockburn where Robert the Bruce did the same in 1314.