Every year there are plenty of reasons to visit Scotland including the great outdoors with its inspiring landscapes, our unique history dating back thousands of years, amazing local food and drink, spectacular sporting events, as well as art and cultural activities. All this comes with the warmest of welcomes which you can experience in our cities and villages when staying with Scotland's Best B&Bs.
Whether your dream holiday is sightseeing around castles and cathedrals or standing stones and whisky distilleries, there is something of interest for everyone. Scotland has plenty of opportunities for outdoor activities such as walking, mountain biking, cycling, golf, fishing, horse riding, watersports, snowsports and much more. As well as unspoilt mountains, magnificent forests, lochs and miles of varied coastline, there's much for nature lovers to enjoy on the lookout to spot puffins, eagles, dolphins, whales, deer and other amazing wildlife. To learn more, check out the Things to do pages on our website.
For 2026, we've picked some of the events which might inspire you to plan a seasonal break. Special events in Scotland in 2026 include The Commonwealth Games in Glasgow from 23 July to 2 August featuring 3x3 Basketball and 3x3 Wheelchair Basketball, Artistic Gymnastics, Athletics and Para Athletics, Bowls and Para Bowls, Boxing, Judo, Netball, Swimming and Para Swimming, Track Cycling and Para Track Cycling, Weightlifting and Para Powerlifting. Venues include the Scottish Event Campus (SEC), the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome and Arena, Scotstoun Stadium and Tollcross International Swimming Centre.
Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games mascot Finnie (based on Scotland's national animal - the unicorn)
The Highland capital will see the official opening of the Inverness Castle Experience which is already becoming the must-see visitor attraction in the city after a 'soft launch' in December 2025. With its brand new interactive exhibitions inspired by stories from across the Highlands, as well as its Ceilidh Rooms showcasing local music, food and drink, the Castle also has amazing views across the River Ness from its roof terrace. Inverness will also host the first World Shortbread Championships in November.
Inverness Castle Experience
Events - January and February
With darker skies in winter you might just see the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) which should be more frequently visible in 2026 thanks to the current sunspot cycle. The season for skiing and other snowsports depends on the weather and the amount of snow, but can get started in January or February at Glencoe Mountain Resort, the Nevis Range, Cairngorm Mountain, Glenshee and the Lecht.
Snowdrop Festival (end January – mid March)
Burns' Night is always celebrated on 25 January when we remember the national bard of Scotland with Burns Suppers of haggis, neeps and tatties, plus a dram or two of whisky.
SPECTRA is Aberdeen's Festival of Light (5 - 8 February 2026) which returns for its 12th year with lots of new installations on the theme of 'Be Curious' which will creatively illuminate the famous Granite city, while Granite Noir (17 - 22 February 2026) is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the city's crime fiction festival.
In Perthshire, the Winter Words literary festival takes place at Pitlochry Festival Theatre (12 - 15 February 2026) with a wide range of authors, playwrights, poets, adventurers and broadcasters. Curated by the theatre's new Artistic Director - actor Alan Cumming.
Spring can be the ideal time to visit as the days start to lengthen and nature comes back to life. Gardens and trees are very vibrant at this time of year, and it's too early for the dreaded midgies. In Moray, you can enjoy magnificent displays in the gardens and woods at Brodie Castle which has over 100 types of daffodil. In Fife with over 20,000 daffodils in bloom, Scotland's Daffodil Festival will be at Blackhouse Rossie (home to the only National Scientific Collection of Narcissus in the world). Most of the main visitor attractions such as castles and distilleries will be open daily from Easter onwards throughout the spring and summer months.
Murrayfield will host matches of the men's Six Nations Rugby on 14 February and 7 March 2026 while the women's matches will be at Murrayfield on 18 April and at the Edinburgh's Hive Stadium on 9 May 2026.
The Kingdom of Fife has its Whisky Festival (27 February - 1 March 2026) in Cupar and the Fife Food & Drink Week (7 - 15 March 2026). St Andrews hosts the StAnza: Scotland's International Poetry Festival (13 - 15 March 2026) as well as the annual Cocktail Week (20 - 29 March 2026)!
Aberdeen hosts its second Northern Lights Beer Festival (11 April 2026) at the Music Hall in the city centre.
The Inverness Blues Festival is a new event for this year (28 March 2026). Annual events include the service of commemoration at Culloden Battlefield near Inverness around the anniversary of the 1746 Jacobite defeat (tbc 18 April 2026) , while later in the month the epic Etape Loch Ness cycle race is a challenge for hundreds of riders (26 April 2026).
The Scottish Grand National at Ayr Racecourse (18 April 2026) is a big event on the horse racing calendar.
Highland dancers at Ballater Highland Games- photo copyright VisitScotland / David N Anderson
Events - May and June
The Highland Games season starts in May and runs until September in dozens of locations across the country. We have longer hours of daylight in May and June so it's a great opportunity for packing in extra time to do all the sightseeing you want.
The Common Ridings provide an epic spectacle. These colourful equestrian festivals held every year from June to August in 11 towns of the Scottish Borders to celebrate the history of the Borders Reivers.
May is Whisky Month and if you enjoy a wee dram, there are plenty of tasting events. The Spirit of Speyside whisky festival (29 April - 4 May 2026) features tours, tastings and special events in dozens of distilleries around Moray and Aberdeenshire. Clackmannanshire's Whisky Festival (9 May 2026) is in Alloa, while Dundee's Whisky Festival is on 13 June 2026. Head to the Inner Hebrides for the Isle of Islay's festival of music and whisky (22 - 31 May 2026) in distilleries and other venues around the island.
Historic Cromarty in the Highlands is home to the annual Crime & Thriller Festival from 1 - 3 May 2026.
Hundreds of cyclists take to the roads for the The Cancer Research UK Etape Caledonia (10 May 2026) around Pitlochry in Perthshire.
The Borders Competitions Jim Clark Rally (22 - 24 May 2026) is an exciting unique closed road motorsport event based around Duns in the Scottish Borders.
The Highland Gathering and Atholl Highlanders' Parade (23 - 24 May 2026) at Blair Castle in Perthshire is a sight not to be missed if you want to spot men in kilts!
The Scottish Traditional Boat Festival (13 - 14 June 2026) in picturesque Portsoy, Aberdeenshire, is always a colourful celebration of our maritime heritage.
Scotland's main annual agricultural show, The Royal Highland Show (18 - 21 June 2026) at Ingliston near Edinburgh, is one of the country's biggest events.
Events - July and August
The Highland Games are in full swing every weekend throughout the summer months. For more kilts, check out the European Pipe Band Championships on 27 June 2026 in Perth or the World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow (14 - 15 August 2026). Late July to September is often the best time to see purple heather flowering on the hills but watch out for the midgies!
If you like the great outdoors, then the Scottish Game Fair (3 - 5 July 2026) is a popular event in the grounds of Scone Palace (Perthshire).
The Scottish Transport Extravaganza with its Vintage Vehicle Rally (tbc July 2026) is a unique event held at Glamis Castle which will be celebrating its 50th year.
Golf fans can see The Genesis Scottish Open (8 – 12 July 2026) at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, East Lothian while The Women's Scottish Open (23 - 26 July 2026) will be held at Dundonald Links in Ayrshire.
The Commonwealth Games will take place in Glasgow from 23 July to 2 August 2026 with sports including swimming, athletics, cycling, basketball, gymnastics, bowls, boxing, judo, netball and weightlifting, along with the Para equivalents.
August sees the ever popular Edinburgh Military Tattoo (7 - 29 August 2026), Edinburgh International Festival (7 - 30 August 2026) and Edinburgh Fringe Festival (7 - 31 August 2026).
Autumn is a beautiful time for exploring nature especially if you enjoy seeing colourful displays of leaves. From mid September to November, the forests of Scotland become picture postcards. Perthshire is known as 'Big Tree Country' and it's spectacularly colourful in autumn, but don't overlook the Scottish Borders, Central Scotland, Aberdeenshire and the Highlands which also have some superb areas of forest. Throughout September you can often get access to hundreds of fascinating buildings across Scotland which participate in the Doors Open Days programme.
The Queen's View in Perthshire - photo by VisitScotland / Kenny Lam
Every year the Nairn Book and Arts Festival (29 August - 6 September 2026) puts on a huge programme of events with a variety of top authors.
Celebrating Scotland's seafood, the Stranraer Oyster Festival takes place from 11 - 13 September 2026.
The year's biggest shinty match - the Tulloch Homes Camanachd Cup Final takes place in Oban on 19 September 2026.
Marathons don't get much more dramatic than the Loch Ness Marathon (27 September 2026), but you can also enter for The Dramathon (17 October 2026) if you can manage to get from one Speyside distillery to the next!
Not to be missed is the annual World Porridge Making Championship (3 October 2026) in Carrbridge in the heart of the Cairngorms.
The Enchanted Forest (8 October - 8 November 2026) is Scotland's premier light and sound event set in the autumnal splendour of Faskally Wood near Pitlochry, Perthshire.
Gaelic is celebrated in competitions every autumn at the Royal National Mod which Glasgow will be hosting from 9 to 17 October 2026.
Winter is a quieter time for tourists so it's worth checking for off season rates and special offers. You can enjoy some fiery sunsets at this time of the year and cosy nights by a log fire.
Not to be missed is the first ever World Shortbread Championships (21 November 2026) in Inverness where amateur and professional bakers will battle it out for prizes.
A variety of winter illumination events at unique venues including Edinburgh Castle, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and Brodie Castle in Moray take place every year.
At the end of the year, we celebrate at Hogmanay to see in the New Year with a few drams. We're expecting Hogmanay parties will be in full swing in Edinburgh and Inverness to see out 2026 and see in 2027!
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