Fife

Visitors can follow the Fife Tourist Route through coastal towns and enjoy the spectacular seascapes and breathtaking views of the Firths of Forth and Tay. The route follows the East Neuk of Fife, through the picturesque fishing villages of Anstruther, Crail, St Monans and Pittenweem – host to an annual artist’s festival.

Here the history of these fishing communities and their struggle with the sea is told at the Fisheries Museum in Anstruther. For walking enthusiasts, the Fife Coastal Path is a signposted trail along the shore or visitors can explore Fife on one of the area’s many cycleways.

Fife is also closely associated with golf, with more than 40 courses, including the world famous St Andrews. This unique university town has a castle and ruined cathedral, miles of beach, good shopping, a museum and Botanic garden.

Away from the coast, the gentle landscape of Fife is also worth discovering. The village of Ceres is the setting for the Fife Folk Museum, and lays claim to the oldest Highland Games in the world. A few minutes away, Falkland Palace is the fine Renaissance former residence of the Stewart kings, closely associated with Mary, Queen of Scots. Further south is Culross, an exceptionally well preserved 16th-century town of cobbled streets with white houses and red tile roofs – and Dunfermline, ancient Scottish capital and home to philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.