Colorful homes along the shoreline in Tobermory, Scotland.

Scotland's 10 Most Laid-Back Towns

Scotland's quieter towns have a way of making time feel less urgent. In Plockton, boats trips across Loch Carron, a sea loch in the Scottish Highlands, offers sightings of seals and seabirds. In Wigtown, the day can disappear between shelves of second-hand books at The Bookshop. The flagstone streets of Stromness still carry traces of its maritime past, while Tobermory's colorful waterfront, and the rushing Falls of Dochart in Killin, provide different reasons to linger. These ten Scottish towns invites visitors to trade packed itineraries for unhurried walks, local stories, and the pleasure of having nowhere in particular to be.

Tobermory

In the town of Tobermory, one of the key highlights is the waterfront aligned pastel-painted buildings curving around the bay. One of those buildings holds the Island Blue Tobermory Gift Shop. The shop sells a wide variety of high-quality gifts like local artwork, soft toys, homeware and decor, clothing, accessories, books and stationery. It is a wonderful place to find the perfect souvenir for you or your friends and loved ones to commemorate your time in Tobermory.

To enjoy the beauty of nature without visiting any major national park, Aros Park offers a mix of coastal scenery, cascading waterfalls, and outdoor recreation. The best part is that the park is a short walk from the town center, so you don't need to travel far. Speaking of waterfalls, the park is also home to Aros Waterfall. On the path to the waterfall, parkgoers can hike up the trails to see the upper and lower parts of the falls. The upper falls sit over mossy basalt ledges, while the dramatic lower falls drop toward the sea, offering views of Tobermory Bay. Either part of the falls offers breathtaking views of the sea and the town, making it perfect to capture all of those unique photographs.

Plockton

Plockton is known throughout Scotland as the “Jewel of the Highlands”. The town itself is a breathtaking seaside retreat, and because it sits on the coast, there is plenty to do on and near the water. One activity to take part in is Calum's Seal Trips, a family-run boat tour establishment where patrons can go sailing across the waters of Loch Carron. On the tour, people might be able to see common and grey seals, otters, porpoises, sea eagles, and various seabirds. If there is no wildlife to see, then patrons can catch stunning views of Duncraig Castle, Heron Island, the Applecross mountains, and the Cuillin ridge on the Isle of Skye. It is a great way to spend the day on the water and take in the sights in and around the town.

At Plockton Coral Beach, patrons will be treated to spending the day at a crescent-shaped, secluded beach where swimming, wading, kayaking, and taking photographs are the main activities of the day. They may also spend the day sunbathing, exploring the rock pools for any signs of marine life lurking around, and taking walks along the soft, white sand. After a long day of exploring the wonders of the water and walking along the sands of the beach, fill up your appetite at The Harbour Fish Bar, where they serve fresh fish that are cooked to a one hundred and sixty-year-old formula. They also serve chips, fresh calamari, haggis, black and white puddings, hand-rolled pizzas, and freshly brewed coffee to help you wake up and start another fun day on the shore.

Dunkeld

As the gateway to the Scottish Highlands and with preserved architecture from the 18th century, Dunkeld is a place to visit if anyone ever wants to explore what life was like way back when without the use of a time machine. One such place to visit is the Dunkeld Cathedral. Located on the north bank of the River Tay, the cathedral is a place of worship, and inside the church, visitors can view the tomb of Alexander Stewart, the "Wolf of Badenoch", the Black Watch Regimental Memorial, and the Apostle Stone. Visitors may also gaze upon the unique architecture, as the cathedral is built as a combination of a roofless, grass-floored medieval ruin and an active, roofed parish church. Admission is free, so everyone can have the opportunity to get a glimpse of one of Scotland’s most impressive cathedrals.

For fans of the works of renowned author Beatrix Potter, they are in luck, as Dunkeld is also home to the Beatrix Potter Experience at the Birnam Arts Centre. The permanent addition to the centre celebrates the author and tells the story of her childhood, of spending summers in Highland Perthshire. It was those highlands that inspired the settings of some of Potter's famous works like The Tale of Peter Rabbit and The Tale of Jeremy Fisher. More literary history can be found at The Birnam Oak, as the tree is the last surviving relic of the Birnam Wood from William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Patrons can spend the day walking through the river sides, spotting the local wildlife, and standing under the shade of the tree where the witches' prophecy in Shakespeare’s play was fulfilled.

Wigtown

Wigtown has a unique feature as it is Scotland's National Book Town. This is because the number of books outnumbers the number of people who live within the area. The people celebrate the town’s love of books with a ten-day celebration called the Wigtown Book Festival. During the festival, artists, international visitors, and authors gather together for a series of author talks, poetry readings, and live music performances. If you love to spend the day reading books, then the festival is the place to be on a crisp, autumn day.

When the town’s book festival is not taking place, book lovers can browse the crown jewel of the town's many bookstores, The Bookshop. The shop is the largest second-hand book shop that is home to over 100,000 titles ranging from fantasy stories to autobiographies. There is something for everyone to read within the labyrinths of shelves. If you want to enjoy a bite to eat within this book lovers' paradise, then plan a trip to ReadingLasses Café where the menu highlights include homemade soups, gourmet sandwiches, and a rotating cake menu with unique flavor combinations like chocolate-violet and rose-pistachio. It is a great place to enjoy delicious dishes and take advantage of the peace to read your book.

Stromness

If you are still looking for excitement in and out of the water, then the town of Stromness is the place to visit. The town is best known for its long maritime heritage as it was shaped entirely by the sea. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the town served as a final port of call for ships heading to the New World, and one place where sailors and captains stopped was Login’s Well. At the well, the ships would stop so the crew could fill up their water casks before sailing off to their next destination. Today, the well is a historic landmark tucked within the flagstone streets where people can get a glimpse at a small piece of preserved maritime history.

While on the docks of Stromness Marina, patrons will be treated to an abundance of activities to take part in. This is because the marina is a place to watch boats arrive and depart for the town. The marina is also a world-class spot for diving, wildlife cruises, and rugged coastal walks to spot lighthouses, wildflowers, and wild seals splashing in the water. For those breathtaking views and to capture those amazing-looking photographs, a trip to the Yesnaby Cliffs is in order. Aside from the breathtaking views of the sea below, you can view iconic sea stacks, rare clusters of wildflowers, and ancient historical ruins of a pebble cove and a medieval chapel.

Melrose

For a lot of rugby fans, Melrose is like a second home to them, as the town is the birthplace of the Rugby Sevens, a fast-paced, high-scoring version of the game of rugby, where seven players per team play on a full-sized pitch. To honor their rugby legacy, the town hosts its annual Melrose Sevens Tournament in summer. At the tournament, spectators can witness players on the field competing for the Melrose Cup. It is now a global phenomenon, as the game is considered an Olympic sport that draws millions of spectators every year and is an event for sports fans and rugby lovers alike.

Another thing Melrose is known for is its sweeping hill walks, and one place to take such a walk is Eildon Hills. The hills are a distinct range of three volcanic peaks and are one of the most popular hill walks in the Scottish Borders. This is because the trails are well-marked and allow visitors to easily scale all three hills in a single day. After all of that hiking, a place to get a post-hike meal is The Ship Inn, a lively inn that serves the best of both British and Scottish traditional dishes like fish and chips, haggis bites, and dirty fries, as well as traditional roast beef and roast chicken dinners with all the trimmings, an extensive menu of drinks, and an assortment of soups and salads, perfect to fill one’s stomach after an extensive walk or an intense rugby match.

Culross

If Culross is famous for one thing, it's for its best-preserved 17th- and 18th-century royal burgh. Because of this, the town is considered a living time capsule, showing people what the town looked like during the 17th and 18th centuries with its steep cobbled streets, whitewashed houses, crow-stepped gables, and red pantiled roofs that have remained quite untouched since the 1600s. Speaking of the 1600s, one of the artifacts to see that has stood the test of time is Culross Palace. While it is not an actual royal palace, it is a 17th-century merchant’s lodging establishment and townhouse that has a maze of small rooms with rare, surviving painted timber ceilings from the early 17th century, mural decorations, and period furniture. There is also a fully restored kitchen garden outside complete with planted areas of historical herbs, vegetables, and fruit.

Another historical area within the town is Mercat Cross, a traditional stone monument where, a long time ago, long before there were newspapers and television news, announcements of everything that was going on, good and bad, were made for the townspeople to hear. At Culross Abbey, people will be able to step inside this historical, medieval landmark, which is famous for its atmospheric medieval monastery ruins and a church interior featuring stained glass, the tomb of Sir George Bruce and his family, and Gothic architectural details. The outside is just as amazing as the inside, as the abbey has sweeping views of the village rooftops above the hill it is perched on.

Dornoch

The town of Dornoch has a bit of some spooky history in it. This town is known for many things like its world-class golf links and a cathedral that has been standing tall since the thirteenth century, but what a lot of people don’t know is that Dornoch has also been famous for its connection to witchcraft, specifically, the last legal execution of the art of witchcraft. In 1727, this was the site where Janet Horne was burned at the stake for practicing witchcraft. Today, that execution is marked with The Witch’s Stone, a small memorial that commemorates the last witchcraft execution before the end of the witch trials.

Aside from its spooky history, Dornoch also has breathtaking coastal scenery, and a great place to spend the day is Dornoch Beach. On the stretch of golden sand that meets the crystal blue waters of the ocean, beachgoers can spend time taking long walks, collecting seashells, spotting the local wildlife like seabirds, otters, and dolphins, swimming and paddling in the water, and trying their hand at kitesurfing among the waves. Afterwards, for a beach day lunch, nearby is the Highland Larder (open seasonally), where sandwiches, burgers, seafood platters, breakfast bagels, and lemonade are the main delicacies that are sure to fill up anyone’s stomach before heading back out into the water.

Killin

If you are looking to find some waterfalls throughout your time in Scotland, you have come to the right place, as Killin is stuffed to the brim with them. One waterfall in particular that you will find while visiting the town is the Falls of Dochart. The falls are a multi-tiered structure where the water runs into the River Dochart, and people can watch from the free viewing areas as the water plunges into dark, jagged rock steps before finally making it into the river. The waterfall feels more like a thrill ride rather than a gentle flow, but it is still an amazing sight to behold nonetheless.

Speaking of amazing sights, another amazing sight to behold is Finlarig Castle, a tower house built in the seventeenth century and now in ruins. Despite the tower being in ruins, it once served as a major stronghold for the Campbell clan (the Campbells of Breadalbane), and now, patrons can explore the exterior with caution, seeing what was once a fortress that could withstand all of the rivals the clan had to face. Fifteen minutes away from the village is the Killin Stone Circle. The circle is a prehistoric relic that dates back to the Neolithic or Bronze Age, where six upright slabs of rock stand together. Nobody knows where the rocks have come from and why they were built together in a circle like this, but it is a protected structure that has visitors coming back to guess who put the rocks there and its significance.

Fort Augustus

The southern edge of Loch Ness is where the town of Fort Augustus resides. It is a picturesque village in the Scottish Highlands, and because of its location at the edge of the loch, tourists and locals have an equal opportunity to see boats get lowered or raised into and out of the water at The Caledonian Canal. Every day, people gather around to witness the boat from the comforts of the canal’s gift shop or cafe, where local Scottish dishes and ice cream cones are served. Another thing to do on the waters of the canal is to take Nessie Cruises along the canal.

On the cruise, passengers can gaze upon the stunning views of Fort Augustus and the surrounding waters of the loch. They may also try to catch sightings of the infamous Loch Ness Monster (or “Nessie” as the locals call her), a creature that is only mentioned in legends shown in books and films. Along the village path and with sweeping views of Loch Ness is The Lock Inn. The inn serves traditional British and Scottish pub dishes like haddock and chips, highland beef burgers, Cajun chicken burgers, homemade soups, and a wide variety of local whiskies and drinks that will satisfy anyone’s appetite.

Scotland's Best Retirement Towns RankedSet against Scotland's glens, coastlines, and river valleys, small towns appeal to retirees seeking a mix of accessible social services and a range of recreational options.

A Different Experience

While big cities like Edinburgh and Glasgow are great cities to visit and explore, there are some things you can do in a laid-back town that you cannot do in any big city. In laid-back towns, people can explore and try everything without having to worry about the massive crowds of people that walk up and down the streets. They may also be able to enjoy nature that is untouched by humans, learn about the history and folklore behind some of the landmarks, and enjoy some authentic hospitality from the locals. For a more slow-paced way of life, consider visiting a small town when coming to Scotland, esspecially for the first time, because if one takes the time to slow down and stop to see what is around you, you might just make discoveries nobody took the time to notice.

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