Related Resources • Scotland Travel for Romantics • Royal Honeymoon (1999) • European Travel and Romance

Elsewhere on the Web • Scottish Tourist Board • Edinburgh Festival • Edinburgh Zoo • Speyside Whisky Festival

By Susan Breslow Sardone

hile Scotland may not be the first place couples think of as a romantic travel destination, it certainly has a lot to offer. To travel to Scotland, I caught the overnight train from London to Edinburgh. I couldn't have felt safer or more lulled traveling in my private compartment. It was an extraordinarily cozy place to cuddle and sleep en route to Scotland.

Something awoke me early in the morning; maybe it was simply the anticipation of traveling to Edinburgh for the first time. I pulled aside the shade in my compartment and looked out. Scottish heather, I thought, observing the miles of open fields where lavender-tinted foliage waved in the breeze.

After the train pulled into the city, it was a short cab ride to the Caledonian Hotel (at right; now the Caledonian Hilton). I'd selected this traditional old hotel, which opened in 1903, for its location on Princes Street, the main thoroughfare. I requested a room overlooking the 14th-century Edinburgh Castle.

From my cavernous quarters, I had a clear view of the castle high on the hill. Tourist buses clustered around its Princes Street perimeter. I hadn't a clue which might carry me up there, but I wasn't terribly concerned. I had another destination in mind: I had come to Edinburgh to see its Zoo and witness the world-famous Penguin Walk.

It was a ten-minute bus ride from the City Centre to the Zoo. Halfway there I wondered if I was going the right way, as it seemed a suburban line. The bus soon reached the Zoo entrance, and I hopped off. I'd arrived just before feeding time, and was able to watch the Zoo's collection of penguins enact their nervous back-and-forth parade inside their pen.

I'd arrived just in time to watch the Edinburgh Zoo's famous penguin parade.

It was remarkable how orderly they were, lined up one in back of another, patiently following a leader in one direction. Next, as if it were choreographed, they all turned about face and marched as far as they could go in the opposite direction, the last penguin becoming the new leader. And then they all turned and did it again, and again -- until the zookeeper showed up with their fish.

After that astounding performance, I never made it up to Edinburgh castle. I went back to my hotel room, ordered a plate of delectable smoked Scottish salmon from room service, and took a nap. I spent the rest of my visit shopping for kilts and cashmeres along Princes Street.

I thought it was all I needed from Edinburgh.

SCOTTISH FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

ou, on the other hand, may demand more. If you're an Epicure, you must not only savor the salmon plucked from the world's freshest waters but also dine on Scotland's succulent lamb, cooked as you like it. Wash it down with a single-malt or an exquisitely blended Scotch whiskey.

When planning your travel to Scotland, consider allowing time to attend a festival. Edinburgh's cultural fests are world-renowned. Then there are the country's food festivals: Come spring and summer, regional foods are highlighted via competitions, cookery demonstrations, and exhibitions.

Often music and dance are part of the fun, with a ceilidh (traditional Scottish dance) held at least one night during the festival. Traditional dishes are presented for your delectation: Arbroath smokie (wood-smoked haddock); Forfar bridies (meat pies); stovied tatties (a potato side dish); black bun (a rich, dark-colored fruit cake); and haggis, the county's best-known delicacy, are among them.

Scotch drinkers will find themselves in a festive mood if they can make their to a gathering such as the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival. This lively event celebrates Scotland's whisky-making heritage at locations along the River Spey.

Enthusiasts can partake of tours and tastings at distilleries rarely open to the public, and meet master blenders and distillery managers who share their passion. Visitors may get an opportunity to turn the barley in traditional floor maltings or even try their hand at "raising" a cask. And if you pay close attention, you'll learn how the same water used in producing malt whiskies yields the world's finest cashmere.

In case you do decide to spend your next vacation in Scotland, just take my advice: Visit Edinburgh Castle. You never know when -- or if -- you'll pass that way again.

Caledonian Hotel appears courtesy of Edinburgh Principal Hotels Association.