Starting at Stirling Castle
Many of our private tours begin, or end, at the amazing medieval Stirling Castle. Only one hour from our capital city of Edinburgh, it is an ideal visit to begin a tour to the west coast of Scotland or as a final farewell after many magnificent days touring in the north Highlands.
Some of our guests might also visit Stirling Castle on their own, the day before their tour begins in Stirling. This is exactly what one of our guests, Steve and Laurel did and that allowed Steve to take his time and enjoy exploring this extremely photogenic Scottish castle.
Enjoying the Queen Anne gardens
The best place to begin a visit to Stirling Castle is the Queen Anne gardens. Although they are always spectacular in the summer, they are beautiful any time of year. This is one of the best places to view the sculptures which decorate the Royal Palace which was built by King James V, as a wedding present for his wife, Marie de Guise.
Within the gardens is the excellent exhibition which explains the timeline and rich history of the Castle for visitors to understand how important this place was over many centuries.
Enjoy exploring the Royal Palace where Mary Queen of Scots lived as a young child, and from where her mother Mary de Guise, would have ruled Scotland as Regent, in her absence in the late 1560's. The Royal apartments have been richly restored so that we can see how they would have been in those days as a favourite royal residence.
The historic characters who roamed the castle are always delighted with the questions visitors like to ask them and particularly enjoy explaining their own role in the life of a busy castle.
Chapel Royal
This Chapel Royal was built in 1594 for the baptism of Prince Henry, the son and heir of James VI. It was the last Royal building at the Castle. James VI left Scotland in 1603 when he also became King of England, and he was eventually succeeded by his younger son, Charles I.
The frieze you see today was revealed again when the Chapel was restored in the 1990's. It was painted in 1628 in the hope of a visit to Scotland of King James VI and I. Today the Chapel Royal is a peaceful place within the Castle and stunning weddings and other special events are often held there.
Stirling Castle has been voted the favourite place to visit in the UK and many of our private tour guests completely agree with that! Thank you Steve Manke for sharing your tour photos with us!
