Scottish Highlands & Icelandic Geysers

A phenomenon in nature occurs when brilliant golden sunshine dances across misty, green glens to create a supremely rare effect of celestial light. The luxury of this luminosity is the inspiration for our journey from Scotland to Iceland with wild wonders in-between. In our “dear green place”, Glasgow, we seek the interlude of modern and ancient sites from Loch Leven, where its castle once imprisoned Mary, Queen of Scots, to the “armadillo” performance arts centre designed by famed architect Lord Foster.

We shop at charming Buchanan Street, comparable to London’s West End, and tee off at two legendary golf courses in Ayrshire: the Royal and the Turnberry. We follow a crinkled shoreline around a maze of islands to find Port William. Considered the “outdoor capital of the UK,” Port William is the gateway to the Ben Nevis Mountains and Scotland’s prettiest glens including Glencoe and Glenfinnan, made even more famous in the movies Skyfall and Harry Potter respectively. The light in Skye is exceedingly remarkable and helps spotlight some of the most geologically diverse landmasses in the world. But perhaps the brightest star shines most kindly on its favourite resident, the Talisker whisky distillery. Rare and remarkable, the Orkney Islands exemplify the serenity of remoteness. Once considered the “edge of the world,” the Shetland Islands mark the northernmost point in the United Kingdom, with a ruggedly beautiful landscape with the warmest people.

Chasing the midnight sun, we call on the Faroe Islands, a fairytale of unfathomable allure that seems to come straight out of a Jules Verne novel. Waterfalls plunge straight into the ocean, lakes sit atop sheer cliffs, green fjords dotted with jagged islands and a land where sheep outnumber people. Is there any wonder why the summer sun refuses to leave these islands? Our journey’s final salutation to the sun in Iceland begins enlightening experiences on the land.

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