Dumfries And Galloway Region Of South West Scotland
An ideal and easily accessible location for a leisure break
Dumfries and Galloway region is situated in the south west corner of Scotland and is bordered by Cumbria, England and the Borders and Strathclyde areas of Scotland. A ferry route from Stranraer to Belfast, also makes Northern Ireland and Eire easily accessible.
By car we are two hours from Glasgow, Edinburgh and Newcastle, three hours from Manchester or Leeds and six hours from London. Our closest airport is Glasgow Prestwick at one hour away. Our nearest railway stations are at Dumfries, Lockerbie and Stranraer.
A UNIQUE DESTINATION WITH SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
DUMFRIESSHIRE
‘Galloway Holidays’ can introduce you to Dumfriesshire where the capital town of the south west of Scotland, Dumfries, rejoices in the name, ‘Queen of the South’.
The home of Scotland’s Bard, Robert Burns, creator of Peter Pan, JM Barrie, inventor of the pedal cycle, Kirkpartrick McMillan and site of one of Scotland’s most horrific murders, when in 1306 at Greyfriars Church, Dumfries, Robert the Bruce slew the ‘Red’ Comyn a rival for the crown of Scotland are part of the area's history.
From the former mining community at Kirkconnel via Sanquhar where the Southern Upland Way winds its way from Moffat towards the Galloway hills, to the Solway estuary where the magnificent ruins of Caerlaverock Castle overlooks the massive wetland wildlife reserve and bird sanctuary, Dumfries has something for everyone from glorious pastoral beauty to a sometimes violent history.
GALLOWAY
In a historical context, the name Galloway is derived from the ‘Gaels’ the Celtic people of the region who the Romans called, the Novantae. The rough, uncompromising Galloway Hills provided the Roman Legions with virtually insurmountable difficulties, however the roads they built have led to an impressive 21st century transport infrastructure, but have retained the native and rugged beauty of the unspoiled Galloway landscape.
Mary Queen of Scots spent her last moments in Scotland at Port Mary on the Solway coast, before travelling across the Solway Firth to Maryport in Cumbria where she was held until her death at the hand of her cousin, Queen Elizabeth.The Douglas’s, the Stewarts, the Comyns, the Balliols and the Viking invaders all played their part in the history and development of the Galloway culture and while the area has seen great social and political change over the centuries, two things remain, the awe inspiring visual beauty of the countryside and a wholehearted Scottish welcome.
KIRKCUDBRIGHTSHIRE
Kirkcudbrightshire’ (Kir-coo-bri-shire) which derives it name from the ‘Church of St Cuthbert,’ spreads from the former lead mining village of Carsphairn in the north to the scallop fishing harbour at Kirkcudbright in the south. In the east, from Lady Dervorgilla’s Sweetheart Abbey at New Abbey, to the grandeur of the huge man made Clatteringshaws Loch in the west. All this via Castle Douglas and the national treasures of Threave Gardens and Threave Castle
WIGTOWNSHIRE
Neighbouring Wigtownshire, a former Viking Kingdom, stretches from the awesome Merrick Hills in the north to the early Christian Church of St. Ninian at Whithorn, via the impressive Galloway Forests to Newton Stewart and Creetown. Hill forts and Crannogs dating from the Iron Age abound in the area. Wigtownshire also has many castles dating from the 15th century to the early 17th century.
The whole area is interspersed with ancient castles, forests, lochs, walks, villages, entertainments and sport of every kind and ‘Galloway Holidays’ are here to arrange access to it all for you.
A NATURAL AREA IDEAL FOR CYCLING, WALKING OR TOURING
The terrain of the region is beautiful and varied. It contains routes for people of all experience levels and with all kinds of interests. We have ideal countryside for walking, with the 7 Stanes we have some of the best mountainbiking trails in the world, there are castles and other historic attractions in abundance and with writers such as Robert Burns, J M Barrie and Dorothy L Sayer we have a rich literary heritage (see our Five Red Herrings Murder Mystery Tour based on Sayers novel of the same name!)
The only factor we cannot control is the weather but even it is milder than other parts of Scotland due to the influence of the Gulf Stream - as evidenced by the palm trees at Logan Gardens!
CASTLE DOUGLAS
Castle Douglas is a thriving market town situated in the centre of Dumfries and Galloway. In 2002 it was officially launched as a food town, in recognition of the many food related businesses in the town. With both the Solway coast and Galloway hills nearby, the town is an ideal base to explore the great outdoors. A popular centre for shopping with many independent shops, there are many examples of arts and crafts of the area including an extensive gem rock shop.
In and around the town, there are many places of interest including the nationally known Threave Garden; Threave Castle - situated on an island in the River Dee, accessible only by ringing the bell to summon the ferryman from the island; Carlingwark Loch, bordering the south end of the town and the small independent Sulwath real ale brewery including a visitor (and tasting) centre. There are several excellent restaurants in and around Castle Douglas which we can recommend.
NEWTON STEWART
Newton Stewart, our secondary base, lies at a cross-roads on the banks of the River Cree at the heart of Galloway. It is approximately 33 miles west of Castle Douglas - by direct route - and is an ideal centre for exploring the surrounding area.
As well as being a market town, it is a popular shopping centre and has an excellent community cinema. Newton Stewart is the gateway to the historical Machars Triangle which is bordered on two sides by Wigtown Bay and Luce Bay. The Galloway Hills including Cairnsmore and beautiful Loch Trool, beside Glen Trool and The Galloway Forest Park are just some of the stunning scenery in this area.
The Kirroughtree 7 Stanes mountainbiking centre is just outside the town.
COASTLINE
Our region has over 100 miles of coastline and many of our tours opass through small coastal fishing and yachting villages all with their individual character.
The other two theme towns in the region are both on the coast i.e. Kirkcudbright artist town and Wigtown, Scotland's Book Town - with nearby Bladnoch whisky distillery visitor centre.