The Borders
This tour can be taken as a day tour or built into an extended tour.
The scenically attractive Borders region with its romantic connections with Sir Walter Scott and its turbulent history featuring the Border Reivers is a must. A one day tour would include a number of visitor attractions such as Abbotsford House (former home of Sir Walter Scott) and one or more of the Border Abbeys - Melrose, Dryburgh, Jedburgh and Kelso. [Sir Walter’s grave is at Dryburgh Abbey and Robert the Bruce’s heart is buried at Melrose Abbey.]
Also worth a visit is Floors Castle (present-day home of the Duke of Roxburgh), a magnificent building and the largest inhabited family home in Scotland. Nearby, as a contrast, can be found Smailholm Tower, a typical border tower house.
The oldest inhabited Scottish house is also to be found in this area (Traquhair House). It even produces its own beer.
More than one day can be spent in this area whose buildings display its stormy past and struggles for power, not just between Scotland and England but between the great Borders families.
Family history tours
If you have a Borders family name such as Armstrong or Scott then a tour of family sites can be put together for you - see Testimonials page.
