St. Andrews and the Fishing Villages of Fife - Tour from Edinburgh

You will be picked up and taken to the tour destinations in an air conditioned Mercedes minibus accompanied by a guide.

Depart Edinburgh and travel north to South Queensferry. Drive up and onto the Forth Road Bridge and see one of Scotland's greatest man-made landmarks – the Forth Rail Bridge. At over a mile and a half long, the bridge was completed in 1890 and until recently was the longest Cantilever bridge in the world.

Enter the Kingdom of Fife whose easternmost stretch of coastline is home to a string of picturesque villages each with its own distinctive character and charm.

Stop at the traditional fishing village of Anstruther where you can check out its old cobbled streets and network of little alleyways or take a walk along the seafront to the harbour.

Continue north to the medieval town of St. Andrews. St. Andrew is the patron Saint of Scotland and according to legend his remains were washed up on the Fife coast. See the huge Norman Cathedral, the largest in Scotland.

St Andrews is a Mecca for all golfers. See the 'Old Course', founded in 1754. The course is in beautiful condition and its emerald green grass contrasts with the golden sands of the beach nearby.

St Andrews is also home to the oldest University in Scotland, at nearly 600 years old and the third oldest in Britain behind Oxford and Cambridge. Also see the town's once mighty castle.

Take a pleasant drive through the rolling countryside of central Fife, with its small villages and patchwork of farms, to Falkland. Falkland Palace dominates this old village and was one of the main residences of the old Royal family of Scotland, the Stewarts (Stuarts). The village is one of the most beautiful in Scotland with an array of old cottages and narrow winding streets. You can take time to wander around the picturesque village or enjoy a drink in one of the village’s traditional pubs or tearooms.

Leaving Falkland and starting your return to Edingburgh cross the Lomond hills past Loch Leven, where Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned by her Protestant nobility.

The tour ends at Waverley Bridge, Edinburgh. You will reach Edinburgh at 1800h (6:00pm).