You've got loads of choice. If you approach Scotland from the south west, you're only an hours drive from the Central belt. If it was me I'd head north of there for the Trossachs. It's the beginning of the Highlands, and while you'll get much more spectacular scenery even further north, you'll get beautiful scenery etc here without the long drive.
Look on the map just north of Glasgow. Its the area to the east of Loch Lomond. For places to stay- consider Aberfoyle, Callander, Doune. What sort of hotels etc are you looking for?
If you really want to cut down on the travelling look at turning left at Gretna and heading for the Dumfries and Galloway area. I dont know the area very well but it's got some lovely scenery.
Good luck
Bridd

Thanks for the reply in respect of accomodation I would prefer somewere that has BB& Evening meal and is prob nearby a loch (not to fussy you see )

but its as I said having never been to Scotland im looking for a starting point there is so much to see im realy going to have to rely on the members her for guidance,

Dumfries &Galloway is an option but am leaning more towards the Central regions Loch lomand etc etc I am looking at April May maybe evern sooner .. as mentioned all suggestions are welcome if you have a weblink then please feel free to share it with me all donations are welcome so to speak

Hi,

It's an awful long drive from the SW of England even to the SW of Scotland - have you thought about flying and hiring a car at the airport? Easyjet fly from Bristol and Flybe from Exeter up to Scotland and both are offering very good deals for advance bookings at the moment. It's what friends of mine usually do when coming up to visit.

You're talking about the best part of a day spent in travelling if you drive all the way or even possibly breaking the journey with an overnight stop along with the resultant cost. Getting an early flight up and a late flight back down means you could have a great 4 day long weekend based on being here late morning on Friday, spending 3 nights up here before getting a late flight back on Monday and all without the hassle and stress of the long drive in each direction on some of the busiest motorways in the UK. Shopping around for weekend car hire can get you some great deals because a lot of the airport business is based on mid-week business travellers.

Frankly, almost anywhere outside of the great conurbations of Edinburgh and Glasgow would suit your needs and there is some great scenery and walking to be had within an hour's drive or less from any of the Scottish airports. In your shoes I would tend to shop around and get the best flight and car deal and then make my further plans on the basis of which airport I was flying into! If you decide to do it that way - keep us posted and a number of us based up here in Scotland could then make all sorts of more specific suggestions for you :-)

SM

As a native of Dumfries, I am of course biased, but if we're only talking a long weekend here, Galloway would seem to be a good bet. Take the Raiders Road down to Clatteringshaws Loch for some stunning views, or visit Sweetheart Abbey at New Abbey for some romantic history, or just walk through one of the many forested areas, or explore the many small towns & villages.
As for somewhere to stay, try Hetland Hall, at Carrutherstown, just outside Dumfries, or the Clonyard House Hotel, at Colvend; Stunning, but more expensive are the Baron's Craig at Rockliffe, or the Balcary Bay Hotel near Auchencairn.
Don't make the mistake of most tourists and ignore Galloway - it is a really beautiful place. Any more info needed, just ask.
Iain

in the South West, Moffat is a good base with some stunning scenery very close by.

In the central belt I love Ardlui, on the side of Loch Lomond, but my absolute fave is Fort William, the town itself isn't much to look at, but has some wonderful pubs and restaurants, and is only minutes away from no end of gorgeous views, and of course Ben Nevis. You can also do seal watching trips from there, which may provide some good photo opportunities.

HTH

I'd second the suggestion of looking for a cheap flight. Even from here in Manchester, it's a long drive to Scotland for a weekend, if you go much further north than Glasgow or Edinburgh, driving can be slow.

After driving up to Orkney a few years back (a very long journey), we decided the following year to fly up to Shetland and last year to Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, which is beautiful. We got BMI flights there for £100 each, changing planes at Edinburgh, then hired a small cheap car. You should be able to get cheap flights to Edinburgh or Glasgow, which would widen your choice and may even find connecting flights to some of the islands. Work out what it woulkd cost in petrol and it will offset the additional costs, not to mention give you more time.

used to go to scotland every year as a child - can't help with accommodation as I can't remember where we stayed but my favourite place was Glenco - a fair way up - but beautiful. If it hasn't changed much in the past 15-20 years your wife will have a field day with her camera.

May I recomend that you consider a trip to the Isle of ARRAN .It is a one hour ferry sailing from ARDROSSAN and is truly SCOTLAND IN MINATURE with majestic mountains and easily climbed hills , beautiful beaches in the Northern half and lovely agricultural land to the south .
The roads are very Quiet and driving is a relaxing and pleasant experience , good pubs and restaurants and pleasant ,friendly folk.
Lang may yer lum reek ********* Wee John

would recommend fort william great scenery great pubs and you also have ben nevis and the end of the west highland way which is a great walk from glasgow to fort william,approx 112miles and takes around 6 days why not try that and do b&b every night,when i did it i camped outside pubs every night and really enjoyed it

I can highly recommend the Loch Lomond area for a peaceful and scenic holiday break, especially if you are going before June, as after that , the midges are horrendous! I was nearly eaten alive last July.
However, the beauty of the area does compensate somewhat. It`s absolutely beautiful. The village of Luss is very pretty, but also very popular with the coach fraternity as a stop-off. It`s where the TV series "Take the High Road" was set. There is a very good village store, it`s a grocer, hardware, gift shop and take-away, with a very good line in fish and chips. There`s a very large car-park. ice-creamsand drinks, and there is a choice of boat trips that you can go on.
We stayed in our own touring caravan on the C&CC site at Luss right on the loch shore, but if you`re looking for an hotel, there`s one right next door to the caravan site that looked very nice, it also being right on the loch side. I think it was called" The Loch Lomond Hotel". Anyway, enjoy your break, wherever you end up, Scotland`s lovely all over!

I would also recommend Fort William.It has some of the best scenery around.The drive from Glasgow to Fort william will take you through Loch Lommond and Glen coe.The surrounding Fort William area has many visitors spots,not forgeting Ben Nevis(some of braveheart was filmed in the glens of ben nevis)You can also catch the train used in Harry Potter from Fort William which takes you through the heart of some of the best scenery you'll see

I agree that Fort William is a lovely place, surrounded as it is by such magnificent scenery, but unless you have some kind of transport to get around, it`s easy to run out of things to do. There are only so many times that you want to stand and stare at Ben Nevis! No offence meant to Fort William, as I said, it`s a very nice town.