A Break to The Isle of Harris

Fancy something a little different? Okay perhaps not today in this weather but how about planning for a wee trip to the Western Isles. I've only done it once but what a wonderfully wind blown and totally exhilirating experience it was.

A little trip to The Isle of Harris must be good for everyone's soul I would reckon and if you're looking for somewher to base yourself it's worth considering the hotel Hebrides.

Hotel Hebrides is an ideal base from which to explore the Hebridean Islands, we have listed some of the main sites of interest, travel points and Island attractions giving approximate travel times and distances, by car, so you can easily plan your holiday in advance.

For instance you can reach the following from the Hotel Hebrides:

• Callanish Stones - 50 minutes
• Luskentyre Beach - 20 minutes
• Leverburgh (to catch the ferry to Uists) - 30 minutes
• Stornoway - 45 minutes
• Tarbert Ferry Terminal - 1 minute
• An Clisham - 15 minutes

The Island of Harris is easily accessible by both ferry and airplane. Within 1 hour you can be somewhere beautifully different.

The image of the Callanish stones and hundreds more inspirational iamges can be found on the wonderful Flickr Scotland blog pages

Magners 2 for 1 Tickets - Glasgow This Weekend

The Magners Glasgow International Comedy Festival is nearly over, but there is still plenty left to see!

According to the organisers, "We have had a great festival and to celebrate we are offering 2 for 1 ticket offers on some of the hottest picks of the last weekend’s shows!
To claim your discount call the festival hotline on 0844 395 4005 and quote ‘Last Weekend 2for1’.

Pros from Dover: Pros from Dover II

27th March - Blackfriars Basement - £9/£7
Doors 7.30pm Show 8.30pm

• 'The Pros tear apart the idea that good sketch comedy is dead' **** Such Small Portions. 
•  'Fresh, brilliant and exciting.' ***** National Student.
•  'Wildly hysterical - these guys truly are Pros.' **** List

Noel James: Hurt

28th March 2010: Blackfriars Basement - £7/£5
Doors 7.30pm Show 8.30pm

You'll be happier having seen his show, as long as you enter it with an open mind. WARNING: this show features extreme wordplay PLUS flashing lights, (the latter happening only if you insist on blinking constantly).

Stand Up @ Sloans

28th March 2010; Sloans - £7/£5
Doors 7.30pm Show 8.30pm

With a brilliant and varied line-up of comics from across the UK and the USA, there's always a great selection of top quality funnies in store at Sloans.

Banks at Ullapool Book Fest

Novelist Iain Banks is to give a preview of his new, unpublished science fiction book at the most northerly literary festival in mainland UK.

Other guests announced for the Ullapool Book Festival in May include writers Ann Donovan and Kevin MacNeil. Banks' best known work includes The Wasp Factory, while his science fiction include Matter and Transition. Also appearing is Guatemalan poet Umberto Ak'abal, whose work has been translated into English and Scots. The book festival will be held from 7 to 9 May.

Check West Highland accommodation availability at Scotland's For Me

JLS Tickets on Sale Now

I know a couple of offspring who are looking for a couple of these tickets! JLS Tickets are now available online

The band who emerged from The X Factor a couple of years back are playing five dates in July across Scotland including Hamilton Park Racecourse, two in Aberdeen Exhibition Centre, Glasgow's SECC and Braehead Arena.

Check hotel availability for live gigs at Scotland's For Me

A Day (and Night) at The Races!

Looking for a short break with a difference? You could do worse than enjoy an overnight stay in Ayrshire ahead of a Day at Ayr Racecourse, Scotland's premier horseracing track.

A full calendar of events takes place across the year - both jumps and flat - and of course it is the home to the Scottish Grand national and the famous Ayr Gold Cup.

The Victor Chandler Raceday on Thursday March 25 is the last fixture before the Coral Scottish Grand National Festival in April and there is a good quality card featuring seven races for almost £45,000 in prizemoney and the action begins at 2.10 pm with a Handicap Chase over two miles five furlongs.
The feature race of the afternoon is a two mile handicap chase at 4.55 pm and then the final race is off at 5.30 pm.After racing a disco will play in the Horseshoe Bar for approximately three hours. Its a single enclosure day with entry costing £15 and gates open at 12.20 pm.Check hotel availability in Ayr.

The following meeting - the Coral Scottish Grand National Festival - takes places on March 10th and you can check hotel availabillity for Ayr Races online and it's a sure bet you'll find a Favourite!

Cluny Celebrations in Scotland

With nearly 300 events taking place across Europe in the 12 months from September, 2009, Scotland can feel proud that its week-end of events has been ranked in the top 6 by the Federation of Cluniac Sites.

The Burgundy based organisation promotes the cultural, educational and touristic aspects of the network of Cluniac abbeys and priories spread across the continent.

Recognising the importance of Paisley and Crossraguel Abbeys (the farthest-flung from Cluny), the Mayor of Cluny, his Deputy and other civic dignitaries will visit Glasgow, Paisley and Crossraguel in May. They will enjoy a programme which consists of concerts, exhibitions, a conference and a Medieval Fair and a children’s bowling competition at Dundonald.

On Friday, 14th May the programme opens with a civic reception in Glasgow and a free concert by Canty, the 4-female voice ensemble from Cappella Nova. In the evening Renfrewshire’s Provost will host a civic reception in Paisley Abbey. In Paisley that day a special exhibition opens in the Museum tracing the impact the abbey had on medieval life in the town. Rooms are available to book online in Paisley at The Watermill in the town centre.

Saturday 15th sees the main events of a conference on the history and archaeology of Paisley and Crossraguel in Paisley Town Hall, while outside, a Medieval Fair will take place with various aspects of village life being portrayed by re-enactors. Inside the abbey will be activities for young children and youth with theatrical performers, an alchemist and calligrapher present.

In the afternoon the Franco-Swiss delegation will visit Crossraguel, the most complete Cluniac site in the UK. The abbey will be the subject of a £133,000 digital documentation project by a Cluny technical college and Historic Scotland. This will create 3-D images of how the abbey might have looked in its hey-day and provide a valuable tourism dossier for further developments.

Linking Paisley, Kelburn Castle, Dundonald Castle and Crossraguel will be coach tours starting at Paisley and Maybole. Historic re-enactors will be present at each site to entertain visitors. On Sunday, 16th May, a church service in Paisley Abbey will have the R.C. Bishop Tartaglia of Paisley as guest preacher.

Of course you can check availability and make your online reservations with Scotland's For Me

New Golf Route Linking Prestwick and Argyll

Interesting article in the For Argyll website introducing Golf Links Express an offshoot of the award-winning Loch Lomond Seaplanes business which will offer golfers a 20 minute seaplane flight to some of Argyll’s spectacular golf courses from Prestwick International Airport.

As one with memories of the golf tourism potential of linking Ayrshire, Argyll and Antrim by ferry the new route is more than interesting. In the mid nineties Celtic Links developed packges in conjunction with Argyll and Antrim Steam Packet company which created three or four centre golf breaks with joined up sailings between Ballycastle and Campbeltown, Argyll and Arran, Arran and Ayrshire and Troon to Belfast with the old Seacat.

There is already a great wee service running between Ayrshire and Argyll by sea - The Kintyre Express - So the idea that these can be linked by air shows great promise for this niche golf market for sure.

David West, from Loch Lomond Seaplanes, puts the logic of the development and paints an enticing picture. He says: ‘Prestwick International Airport already welcomes tens of thousands of golfers every year but many rarely venture further than Ayrshire because of the travel time by road. Now they can access some of the best links courses in the world within minutes. Golf Links Express will be able to carry up to 10 golfers and their clubs from Prestwick to Islay in around 25 minutes, on to Machrihanish in 15 minutes then to Loch Lomond in another 25 minutes. That’s three fantastic locations across Scotland (and all in Argyll). Each would usually take a day’s travel to reach by car.


‘We’ve already had bookings from golfers as far a field as the US, Scandinavia and Ireland,” said David West, founder of both Loch Lomond Seaplanes and Golf Links Express’.

Jim Mather, Scottish Tourism Minister was quoted, ‘Having seen the setting up and launch of the Machrihanish Dunes resort I am delighted to see that the potential realised for expanding the golfing appeal of Kintyre and of Islay by providing an air ferry service based on Prestwick, another of Scotland’s golf attractions.

‘As David West of Loch Lomond Seaplanes has said, the new Machrihanish Dunes course and the historic Machrihanish Course are but a short hop of twenty minutes away from Prestwick. The beautiful Machrie course on Islay, known only to true aficionados, is less than ten minutes on and for those who really want to extend the golf experience there are superb courses accessible in Northern Ireland 25 minutes flying time from Kintyre. It will be obvious that this could set up a wonderful opportunity for golfers to mix and match and that all the courses could enjoy an increased footprint as a result.

New Scotland Football Top For Me!

The new Scottish Football kit has been unveiled by Adidas at Hampden Park, Glasgow. So here's what all self respecting Scotland fans will be wearing this summer on the beaches around Europe!

3 Rounds 3 Different Ayrshire Courses From £52

Golf South Ayrshire is delighted to announce an improvement to their ever popular 3 round pass. They have made an amazing value pass even better value for money!! Now you can have 3 rounds on any 3 different Golf South Ayrshire courses Monday to Friday of any one week, and still for the incredible price of £52.

For sure the Golf South Ayrshire courses represent some of the best value and quality golf in the south-west of Scotland and "they aim to make sure it stays that way. This re-launched 3 round pass makes golf on their courses even better value for money."

Check availability for golf breaks in Ayrshire at some wonderful locations including The Old Loans Inn , Fairfield House Hotel in Ayr or Lochgreen House in Troon