- Email address verified
- Email address verified
About this trip
Essential Scotland! This amazing eight night/nine day sampler tour is a great way to discover Scottish textile traditions while at the same time explore the country and its history and culture. And to make the experience that much better, Corinne from The Woolly Thistle will be traveling with us the entire trip. Other highlights include: Gansey knitting class with Di Gilpin, wool waulking demonstration at Stirling Castle, behind the scenes tours to Prickly Thistle, Eribe and Johnstons of Elgin, and a Dorset Button making workshop. We’ve also built in some time for travelers to explore Edinburgh and Inverness on their own before our farewell at the Scotch Whisky Experience Centre on the Royal Mile.
About our special guest
Corinne Tomlinson is the founder of The Woolly Thistle on-line yarn shop; and she will be with us for the entire trip. Along the way, she will be offering several interesting presentations on textile inspiration and Scottish traditions, as well as a new beanie knitting pattern. Why settle for URL when you can have Corinne IRL?
About our host
Mary Jeanne Packer, the founder of Battenkill Textile Tours LLC, has been leading groups of knitters and fiber enthusiasts on trips around the world (and around the corner) since 2006 when she put a small ad in the national knitting magazines to see if anyone might want to come and spend a few days knitting, wine tasting, and visiting fiber farms in the Finger Lakes; and 20 people signed up! Those first 20 said they would "like to go to Ireland sometime"; and the rest is history. Mary Jeanne is the founder and co-owner of Battenkill Fibers Carding and Spinning Mill in Greenwich, NY.
What’s included
- Tour guide/manager
- Luxury coach with driver
- 3 -4 Star hotels
- Porterage service
- Daily Scottish breakfast
- Five dinners
- Five lunches
- One afternoon tea
- Workshops & attractionsAs listed in the itinerary
What’s not included
- AirfareFor travel to and from Scotland
- TransfersTo and from airport
- GratuitiesFor guide and driver
- Room service
- Alcoholic beverages
- Personal itemsIncluding phone calls, snacks, etc.
Available Packages
Price per person for two people sharing one room with two standard beds or sofa beds and private bathroom
One room with one bed and private bathroom.
Available options
One extra night plus breakfast for early arrivals. Price per person for a double room with two beds. No other tour services are offered this day. Please make your own arrangements for activities. Note: some rooms will be at our tour hotel and other rooms will be at a different, nearby hotel.
One extra night in a single room with private bath, includes breakfast. No other tour services are offered - please make your own arrangements for activities. Note: room may be at tour hotel or at another, nearby hotel.
Itinerary
Day 1 – Thurs. May 29
· Arrival at Edinburgh Airport and make your own way to the hotel.
· Meet your tour guide at 10 am in the hotel lobby for a brief introduction to your tour activities!
· Take a tram to Edinburgh city centre
· Visit Dovecot Studio, a centre dedicated to contemporary art, craft, and design and has a long association with beautiful handwoven tapestries and rugs.
· Private lunch followed by presentation by Corinne – The Scottish Textile Traditions.
· Enjoy some free time to explore Edinburgh, including the several yarn shops, before taking a tram to return to the hotel in time for dinner.
· Welcome Dinner with your fellow travelers
· Overnight 4 star Novotel Edinburgh Park Hotel, Edinburgh – Lunch and Welcome dinner included
Day 2 – Friday May 30
· Breakfast
· Enjoy full day tour to ERIBE an award-winning knitwear design house and manufacturer. Join Intarsia color planning workshop and presentation on knitwear design and trends by Rosemary; and factory store shopping.
· Lunch at Melrose
· Visit Great Tapestry of Scotland and discover the great tales of Scotland within panels
· Overnight 4 star Novotel Edinburgh Park Hotel, Edinburgh – Breakfast and lunch included
Day 3 – Saturday May 31
· Breakfast
· Join Gansey Knitting Workshop instructed by Di Gilpin who is known for pattern designs that explore Scotland’s incredible knitting heritage, blended with her own contemporary take on the construction, motifs and symbols - which make her garments something quite unique! Her work ranges from small mitten patterns, through scarves to full sweaters and tunics.
· Visit Bowbridge Alpacas, a family-managed herd of Alpaca and pedigree angora goats. Most fleeces are processed at a mill but a few fleeces are also available for purchase for hand spinning.
· After lunch at the alpaca farm, travel to your hotel in Dundee. Evening is at leisure to relax, knit and enjoy dinner at a local restaurant or bar (not included)
· Overnight 4 star Apex City Quay Hotel, Dundee – Breakfast and lunch included
Day 4 – Sunday June 1
· Breakfast
· Start the day with a guided tour of iconic Stirling Castle followed by lunch and Waulking demonstration (method of finishing newly woven tweed by soaking and thumping it steadily to shrink and soften it)
· Knit, relax and enjoy breath-taking views while you journey to your hotel located in steep-sided Glencoe valley.
· Overnight 3 star Ballachulish Hotel, Glencoe – Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
Corinne says: The name for my new Ballachulish Beanie pattern is from the Scottish Gaelic, Baile a' Chaolais meaning "the Village by the Narrows." For centuries, ferry boats traveled back and forth across the waters of Loch Leven and Loch Linnhe, not far from Glencoe in Scotland. One such ferry was named for the town it served, Ballachulish, and I have very fond memories of being a wee tot and going over the water on the ferry with my Dad. A bridge now traverses the Ballachulish Narrows where the ferry once sailed and this wee Beanie is named after the ferry at Ballachulish.
Day 5 – Monday June 2
· Breakfast
· Travel to Fort Augustus village and join Tania Jane TJFrog for a Dorset Buttons class.
· Enjoy lunch
· Join felting class with Bev from the Handspinner Having Fun
· Free time in Fort Augustus for sightseeing, shopping and relaxing before travelling to your hotel in Inverness
· Overnight 4 star Kingsmills Hotel, Inverness - Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
Day 6 – Tuesday June 3
· Breakfast
· Visit enchanting castle of Dunrobin, Museum, Gardens and falconry display.
· Lunch (not included)
· Visit Prickly Thistle, the only tartan-weaving mill in the Highland region of Scotland, where cloth is woven on shuttle looms dating back to the 20th century.
· Return to hotel in Inverness and join Corinne as she presents Inspirations from Places on the Land in Knitting Pattern Design and Color Selection.
· Finish the day with pop-up shopping experience by Wildwood Stitches and Black Isle Yarns.
· Overnight 4 star Kingsmills Hotel, Inverness - Breakfast included
Day 7 - Wednesday June 4
· Breakfast
· Explore the iconic, emotive and atmospheric Culloden Battlefield, filming location for Outlander, in a guided tour.
· Experience the history and craftsmanship of Johnstons of Elgin's, Scotland’s only vertical mill. Everything from dyeing and blending to spinning and knitting happens in one location.
· Enjoy Afternoon Tea experience at
· Return to Inverness for some sightseeing, shopping, dining and knitting at leisure.
· Overnight 4 star Kingsmills Hotel, Inverness - Breakfast and Afternoon Tea included
Day 8 – Thursday June 5
· Breakfast
· Comfort stop and lunch in Pitlochry (not included)
· Arrive to your hotel in Edinburgh. There will be some free time to relax at the hotel or explore Edinburgh’s iconic Royal Mile before meeting up with your group and Guide at the Scotch Whisky Experience to enjoy private tutored tasting and tour, followed by delicious Farewell Dinner.
· Overnight 4 star Apex City of Edinburgh Hotel, Edinburgh – Breakfast and Farewell dinner included
Day 9 – Friday June 6
· Breakfast
· Make your own way to the Edinburgh Airport to begin your journey home