The highlights of a visit to Aberdeen are both plentiful and varied, ranging from the city’s shimmering granite buildings to the striking coastline and countryside all around, peppered with romantic castles, picturesque whisky distilleries and pristine golf courses.
Delve into maritime history
Uncover Aberdeen’s beating heart with a visit to Union Street, a granite-lined thoroughfare where many of its finest shops and restaurants take pride of place. Venture to the eastern end, where you’ll find the Tolbooth Museum, which can claim to be one of Aberdeen’s oldest buildings, a stunningly preserved nod to the storied past of 17th-century justice in one of the country’s oldest remaining gaols.
Among the gruesome exhibits on display, look out for the blade of Aberdeen’s 17th-century guillotine, a visceral reminder of the harsh nature of the time.
To explore further, make sure you venture down to the harbour to see where the seeds of Aberdeen’s growth were sown.
As well as the fantastic Maritime Museum, you’ll also be able to hope aboard a harbour cruise, on which you can get up close and personal with the dolphins who call the coastline home.
Silver screen castles
If history tickles your fancy, Aberdeen is one of the finest cities in which to take a step back through time. There are no fewer than 263 castles in and around the Granite City, the beauty of which has inspired many an imagination.
Bram Stoker wrote Dracula while on holiday at the eerily evocative clifftop site of Slains Castle, near Cruden Bay. Gorgeous Craigievar, with its cartoon-like pink walls and elaborate confection of turrets and towers, is said to be the possible prototype for Walt Disney’s iconic Cinderella Castle.
Franco Zeffirelli also used the spectacular ruin of Dunnottar Castle, on a rocky headland near Stonehaven, as a backdrop for his film version of Hamlet.
The most famous castle of all, however, sits at Balmoral, nestled in Royal Deeside. The castle and estate was purchased by Queen Victoria in 1848 and to this day it remains the summer residence of the Royal Family. When they aren’t in residence, visitors are welcome to explore the regal estate and its gorgeous grounds.
Down to a tee
Scotland is also famous as the birthplace of golf and there’s no shortage of classic courses within driving distance of the city. At the north end of the city is Royal Aberdeen, or ‘Balgownie’, the sixth-oldest golf course in the world. Also nearby, at Bridge of Don, you can discover the excellent Murcar links course.
Further north, Cruden Bay is a links course with teeth, overlooked by Slains Castle. If you’ve got the time for a day trip, head south to the north of Fife and discover the stunning town of St Andrews and its awe-inspiring course, long celebrated as the birthplace of golf.
The whisky trail
North-west from Aberdeen sits Speyside, the acknowledged ‘Malt Whisky Capital of the World’. Stretching from the Moray Coast to the Cairngorms National Park, this beautiful region boasts mountains, glens and fast-flowing rivers aplenty, as well as being home to over half of the whisky distilleries in Scotland.
There are more than 60 working distilleries scattered around the region, many of which can be visited on guided tours. Among the best known are Glenlivet, south of Ballindalloch, and Glenfiddich, which is near Dufftown.
Both of these are included on Visit Scotland’s excellent Whisky Trail. You’ll need a designated driver to sample the goods – or park up and stay overnight at a nearby hotel.
Car hire at Aberdeen is the key to unlocking not just the city itself but much of Scotland beyond.